USC pre-pharmacy program - is it worth it?

[skysong]

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So, I'm currently a high school senior trying to figure out which college to go to. I'm leaning towards USC's tap program, which is basically 3 yr undergrad and direct admission to 4 yr at the pharm school...but the price scares me. I'm also considering going to UCSD or UCLA and applying to pharm school after I graduate, but then I won't have that guarantee of already being admitted. So I'm wondering if you guys have any advice? 😕 Is it worth it paying that much? Oh, and I'd have to maintain a 3.2 gpa and get no less than a C- if I want to stay in the program (how hard is that for usc??) Plus, I'm not even entirely sure if pharmacy is what I want to do because I actually have to work hard at chemistry whereas english and math come more easily to me. HELP!!

 

[ilovepharmacy]

Hey! I'm in TAP right now and I was in the same boat as you - considering UCLA mostly. I understand money is a big factor, but a LOT of students at USC are getting financial aid. If you really want to go into pharmacy the TAP Program is the best path you can take - a 3.2 is below the average competitive GPA for pharmacy school. So, while you do have to study, you don't have to be overly competitive with the pre-meds and other pre-pharms, etc. I think to keep a 3.2 you can only get 2 or 3 C's if you get an even amount of A's and B's in your other classes (don't worry i got C's too - and in my chem's mostly ahahah). You just have to know your limits when you come to college - find that balance between social life and academics - while TAP is easy for some, I know some people who got kicked out. That's with any school you go to though. What other careers are you thinking about? If its another health-related or science-related field, the TAP pre-reqs are usually the same as the bio, chem, pre-med, etc majors. Just remember, you will be saving yourself a year of undergrad and you don't have to mess with LOR's, interviews, PharmCAS, grades, etc because you already are accepted to USC's SOP. You will have it made if you're in TAP 😉 But if you aren't too sure about pharmacy and you don't know what you want to do yet - you may want to save the money.

You mentioned you were thinking about UCSD - they have a 7 year program too beginning this fall - but they don't mention the GPA requirements and it looks harder to get into it than TAP program because they want you to apply to the program after 2 years of undergraduate work. Check this site for more info: http://pharmacy.ucsd.edu/programs.shtml#BS


PM me with any other concerns and good lucks with your decision! 👍

 

[skysong]

Wow, thanks so much for all that advice! I'll definitely PM you to bother you with some questions.