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When does pharmcas have to be completed?
Started by Hiper
I think that the end of September is the ideal time to turn it in by.
You have to turn it in by the schools' deadlines. That info should be on PharmCAS or their website. It's good to turn it in early so you are ahead of the pack and have a better chance at a spot.
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I don't get how pharmcas works...
If it has to be completed by feb. 2 how are the courses I'm planning to take going to add towards my GPA?
I think I need more EC and LOR, does that mean that I won't be able to volunteer during the summer and add those volunteering stuff to my pharmcas application? I only have 2 LORs right now and UB needs 3. I could get another one from another prof but I want to volunteer at a pharmacy to get more diversity on my application.
I'm aiming for the sept 2009 admission and not early admission.
Thanks
The application cycle is a year-long process. Applications started this past June for admission into fall 2009. Each school has their own deadline to submit the PharmCAS application (see link), and then another deadline to submit secondaries. You will have to look on the websites for non-PharmCAS schools to find their deadlines as well.
When you fill out your coursework in applications, there will be an option to designate the classes with a grade or that you plan to take it sometime this next year. Some schools will allow you to take classes until summer 2009, but others will only allow up to the spring term. You'll have to check the pharmacy schools to see what they allow. If you submit your PharmCAS now, there will be an academic update window after the fall term to put in your fall 2008 grades for the schools to see. Winter/Spring 2009 grades likely won't help your GPA much for this application cycle, however.
When you should submit your application is up to you. You can wait until the end of summer to add any volunteering, but I hear September is the start of the rush of applications. If you really want to volunteer, I would start looking NOW. It can be difficult finding any opportunities, and the summer is only coming closer to the end. The longer you wait, the greater the number of applications already submitted and reviewed by the schools (for rolling/tiered admission schools at least). I wouldn't recommend waiting until February to submit, or you risk fighting for fewer spots.
But I'm not trying for rolling admission, only for the fall 2009 admission, does that make a difference?
Thank you for your indepth reply
I could be wrong, but it sounds to me like you're unclear of what early decision and rolling admissions are. Early decision means that you're telling the school that you definitely want to go to their school if accepted. To prove your commitment, you can only apply to that one school and have to wait for their response before you can apply to others. In exchange for this commitment, you will know by this October (I think) if you were accepted for fall 2009. Early decision applications are still for the class entering NEXT year. Rolling admissions means that the school fills their spots on a first come, first serve basis. They will review applications as they are received and grant interviews accordingly, which means applying closer to the deadline forces you to compete with a larger number of applicants for fewer spots. A school with tiers (eg. UOP) uses a modified rolling admission in which there are staggered deadlines, and they look at each group of applications at a time.
Most, if not all, pharmacy schools start in the fall a year after applications begin. Whether they do early decision, rolling, or non-rolling admissions does not change this fact. I know it seems like a long time between now and fall 2009, but some schools are already looking at applications right now for next year's class. It will take several months for schools to decide who they want to admit, and many schools will be starting interviews in fall 2008.
If the school is non-rolling and only looks at the applications after the absolute deadline, you're not at a disadvantage for applying later. However, I don't know where you're you want to go, so make sure you check on the details of the schools to which you are applying. If you do apply to rolling admission schools, you need to decide whether the extra things you can add later to your application are worth having to compete with a larger number of (possibly more competitive) people.
Most, if not all, pharmacy schools start in the fall a year after applications begin. Whether they do early decision, rolling, or non-rolling admissions does not change this fact. I know it seems like a long time between now and fall 2009, but some schools are already looking at applications right now for next year's class. It will take several months for schools to decide who they want to admit, and many schools will be starting interviews in fall 2008.
If the school is non-rolling and only looks at the applications after the absolute deadline, you're not at a disadvantage for applying later. However, I don't know where you're you want to go, so make sure you check on the details of the schools to which you are applying. If you do apply to rolling admission schools, you need to decide whether the extra things you can add later to your application are worth having to compete with a larger number of (possibly more competitive) people.
So you can update your GPA with fall 2008 GPA and spring 2009 GPA even though you sent your pharmcas application? Does that mean they review your application again (if rolling admission?) after you've updated your fall 2008 GPA?
Thanks for putting so much effort into your responses mochiko, you've been of great help!
You can update fall grades through PharmCAS sometime in December even though you've submitted already during the summer, but I don't believe they do winter/spring grades. Those would probably have to be sent directly to the schools, and would most likely only be needed after you've been accepted to ensure you're finishing your pre-reqs with adequate grades. It would be so late in admissions at this point that the courses probably wouldn't help your GPA in time to matter much.
It's my understanding that they do review applications again after the fall update for rolling schools. However, I'm an applicant just like you, so I don't have the definitive word on how the schools work.
It's my understanding that they do review applications again after the fall update for rolling schools. However, I'm an applicant just like you, so I don't have the definitive word on how the schools work.
Spring grades can be used when a school makes their wait list. Depends on how the school does it.
