What's next after BS degree

[MIkeNB]

How are doing guys? I was wondering if any one of you guys can fill in our advice. I've been trying to explore possible options to fill my time after i graduate from BS of biology. I want to improve my application and hoping to get in for the 2010 cycle if i fail to get in now. i thought of:

Postback - my health advisor states that this is a bad idea. It would not improve myself that much but will be time consuming and hard to get into classes

masters- For me this is a commitment that might cause me to miss the 2010 cycle since I have to finish the master program before i can get into pharmacy.

Work- this is not for me, sitting and waiting will not improve my application.

So, do you guys have any advice or corrections to my opinions of my future paths. Any advice would help me a lot

Current:
GPA- 2.9
Pcat- 70
Pharm tech
volunteers:
hospitals- hands on with patient
Helping the less fortunate (financially)

Work:
Pharm clerk 1 year
Pharm tech 1 year

My low GPA is mostly due to my first two years.

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[Haleyzx]

I would suggest you to retake some classes to bring the GPA up, since that is the only weakness I see in your app.

 

[Clown]

Retake the pcat, retake some classes to boost up your gpa, continue working as a pharm tech?

 

[MIkeNB]

would retaking classes really get people in? How many times must u repeat the class until you look bad? 3 times? If this is the case, then i guess im doing postbac but please give me ideas. Even personal experiences.

 

[fenixtnlfan]

You really need to retake the PCAT. I think you will need a score in the 90s with a low GPA. Since you have a BS, it will be hard to raise your GPA. However if you have low grades in the pre-reqs you might want to consider retaking them. Pharm schools usually place more emphasis on the pre-reqs, so a master's might not really help you. If you don't get in this year, contact the schools you applied to and ask what they would like to see improved in your app. That will give you a better idea of what is important to them and where to focus.

 

[thephoenician88]

your first 2 years of prereqs are most important during application process

 

[tootoo30]

Retaking classes will only help if you don't have over 100 credit hours. If that's the case your GPA will only creep a little. I would suggest retaking the PCAT and shooting for at least 90 that should get you some interviews. Also try schools that only calculate a prepharmacy GPA, did you do good in your prerequisites? Also try applying to the newer schools.

HTH

 

[MIkeNB]

Im a B-A student in my prereqs. The only problems in my GPA is mostly my GEs. however, some of my science classes during my early years are also dragging me down. Alright, guess imma spend time with the freshmen for a semester. Thanks guys. If you have any other suggestions. I would love to hear it.

 

[fuCl]

PCAT retakage. period. Masters is wasteful both in time, money. Post Bacc... worthless.

For getting into pharmacy school.

 

[MIkeNB]

I heard from a few that retaking pcat as many times as you want still counts the same. Is this true?

 

[diastole]

Join the Peace Corps. It is two years and will set your time line back a bit but it is worth it on its own. It will set you apart from other applicants, show that you have compassion, an ability to adapt to different environments, demonstrate an ability to work with a variety of people and you will develop language skills to boot. It is a life altering experience. Plus it is totally fun.

You could retake the PCAT and that might improve your application a little but with your GPA, you need something to really stand out. This could do it. I could see why you wouldn't want to spend two years doing something like this but it takes that long to complete a master's. Wouldn't it be cooler to say that you spent the last two years helping people in Botswana?

 

[pharmDlinz84]

Hey there.. i've been having the same exact question as you... i even pushed my graduation for this summer just to still be considered an undergraduate so i can increase my gpa!!
Cumm. 3.16
non-science 3.67
science 2.8
When i applied though my science gpa was only around 2.7 or something..

i've come to the conclusion that i am not doing a masters because that will not help my overall application (and i really want to be a pharmacist... so masters would not help me).

i emailed Veronica working in the admissions for UOP (CA) and i asked about retaking courses.. i mean as long as you dont have a C- in any course.. she suggests I just take a semester full of upper division courses and basically A's them all!! THis will show that we had a bad semester or two but we can definately make it into pharmacy school... i mean if you have time, take lots of units in one semester b/c a few classes will NOT increase our gpa too much!! Im taking 20 units this semster.. some lower division and some upper division SCIENCE courses... i will get A's in all of them and hopefully i will have better chance next year!! Oh, and im going to do PCAT in june!! I would study for that too!! make your score better!!

Oh and since we have low gpa... i suggest you apply supper early! LIke first week early... 2 of my friends had around my gpa and they applied super early and they are both in pharmacy school right now...

im not really sure what postbac means.. but i know another friend applied for fall 2007 and didnt get in so she took 2 courses during 2007-2008 as postbac and when she applied in summer 2008 they averaged her undergrad gpa with her postbac gpa... so i think taking courses as post bac is the same as being undergrad.. in our school we even pay less being post bac.. the only thing is we have last priority to get into the courses.. so i think you should take courses in fall and if you still dont hear back from them in fall take more in spring.. (IF THIS IS REALLY what you want to pursue.. pharmacy i mean)!!

okay.. well i guess you can tell that ive been like disecting this question for a while now so i'll stop now!! Good luck..

 

[pharmDlinz84]

Join the Peace Corps. It is two years and will set your time line back a bit but it is worth it on its own. It will set you apart from other applicants, show that you have compassion, an ability to adapt to different environments, demonstrate an ability to work with a variety of people and you will develop language skills to boot. It is a life altering experience. Plus it is totally fun.

You could retake the PCAT and that might improve your application a little but with your GPA, you need something to really stand out. This could do it. I could see why you wouldn't want to spend two years doing something like this but it takes that long to complete a master's. Wouldn't it be cooler to say that you spent the last two years helping people in Botswana?

i thought about peace corp too but i honestly think raising your gpa and pcat scores will be better!! I mean there might be a chance of impressing them with peace corp but who knows for sure?! just my thoughts...

 

[fenixtnlfan]

I heard from a few that retaking pcat as many times as you want still counts the same. Is this true?

Typically schools take your highest score, but that is not true for all of them. The schools do see all of your scores, so I think they would be put off by a student who had to take it lots of times to get a good score rather than the student who did it within a few tries. Taking it over and over isn't really helpful because then you are just relying on luck rather than fixing your weaknesses and then taking the test once.

 

[xshooshix]

I managed to creep by with a 70 (62 last October), so I think you need to raise your GPA. Also, what are your subscores? I think they may help as well.

You also should consider applying to my school (Wayne State University) since the average acceptance of PCAT is a 75. It's no University of Michigan (and they use our rotation sites, btw), but at least its in the top 50. I haven't heard anything from Wayne yet, but I did interview (terribly though) with a 62 since they only take your latest score. If you want a party school, you can forget it... pharm school will be your top priorty. Megabus, however, will gladly take you to Chicago (seems as though youre pulling for CCP) from the school in 5 hours if you want that city life. Also, NEUCOP seems to accept kids with 50+ PCAT. My friend got in via waitlist with a 56.

 

[avuong]

Hi Mike,
hang tough and you'll make it through in no time.
Best of luck!

 

[jmoini]

Join the Peace Corps. It is two years and will set your time line back a bit but it is worth it on its own. It will set you apart from other applicants, show that you have compassion, an ability to adapt to different environments, demonstrate an ability to work with a variety of people and you will develop language skills to boot. It is a life altering experience. Plus it is totally fun.

You could retake the PCAT and that might improve your application a little but with your GPA, you need something to really stand out. This could do it. I could see why you wouldn't want to spend two years doing something like this but it takes that long to complete a master's. Wouldn't it be cooler to say that you spent the last two years helping people in Botswana?

diastole, are you an RPCV?

i thought about peace corp too but i honestly think raising your gpa and pcat scores will be better!! I mean there might be a chance of impressing them with peace corp but who knows for sure?! just my thoughts...

i became a peace corps volunteer because i wanted to help people, gain some international experience, and try to figure out what i wanted to do in life. it was a great experience, and i learned a lot, and you should consider it, but not because you think it'll improve your chances for pharm school. it is a serious decision and commitment. join because you want to, not because you think it'll look good. those types of people didn't stay too long.

work, and improving prereq course grades/pcat will be more productive. i enjoyed taking a break from full time school and did this. you might enjoy it too.

 

[diastole]

i thought about peace corp too but i honestly think raising your gpa and pcat scores will be better!! I mean there might be a chance of impressing them with peace corp but who knows for sure?! just my thoughts...

I wouldn't recommend it if you only want to look good on an application. You have to really want to do it or you could end up absolutely hating it. I ate food with bugs in it and had a house with a dirt floor for awhile. It is definitely not for everyone but I think it is a valuable experience on its own. I think it will look good and will make someone stand out but that is just a guess on my part. But even if it doesn't, you still got to spend two years in the Peace Corps. If that isn't appealing on its own, there are less extreme ways to improve an application.

 

[diastole]

Oops, didn't read the last post before I replied. I was in Paraguay in the early 90s. Great experience.