Why CA schools don't require PCAT

[chrispycow]

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hey guys I was just wondering why the CA schools don't require PCAT. tried searching thru the forums but couldn't find anything.

hope this isn't a stupid question.
thanks in advance for your input!

 

[PharmOl]

They have quite a bit more pre-requisites than some other institutions, and being a progressive school system, they believe that doing well consistently in your undergrad course load is a more adequate indicator of your potential than some standardized test under time constrains. This is my point of view.

 

[drhenPharmD]

hey guys I was just wondering why the CA schools don't require PCAT. tried searching thru the forums but couldn't find anything.

hope this isn't a stupid question.
thanks in advance for your input!

IMO, I think it makes the schools more competitive. Since they don't require the PCAT they probably get more applicants.

and it puts more pressure on GPA, LORs, ECs etc.

 

[koercive]

IMO, I think it makes the schools more competitive. Since they don't require the PCAT they probably get more applicants.

and it puts more pressure on GPA, LORs, ECs etc.

agree 100%

I asked my dean, and he does not intend on considering the PCAT in admissions anytime in the future.

 

[boltdude]

They have quite a bit more pre-requisites than some other institutions, and being a progressive school system, they believe that doing well consistently in your undergrad course load is a more adequate indicator of your potential than some standardized test under time constrains. This is my point of view.

Schools outside of CA definitely have more pre-reqs than CA schools.

 

[88888888]

Schools outside of CA definitely have more pre-reqs than CA schools.

How so? i've researched many OOS, but they seem more or less in line with CA pre-reqs

 

[boltdude]

How so? i've researched many OOS, but they seem more or less in line with CA pre-reqs

Now that I think about it, they do seem in line with OOS pre-reqs. But they definitely are not more than OOS for what it's worth.

 

[confettiflyer]

California has always done things differently. We had our own law exam, own version of NAPLEX, etc... We still retain our own law exam but now participate in the nationwide version of NAPLEX.

Apparently the same holds true with clinical practice. But anyway, to answer your question...most schools in CA don't accept the PCAT by convention, the older, core schools never did, so the newer ones don't. We generally tend to be skeptical of standardized tests. If you remember not too long ago, UC basically told the people who ran the SAT, "make these changes or lose us as a customer" hence why California single-handedly turned the SAT into a 2400 point test w/ a writing portion.

I dunno, it's hard for me to explain, if you've grown up in CA your whole life, you'll understand why in a visceral kind of way.

 

[UES Girl]

Schools outside of CA definitely have more pre-reqs than CA schools.

No way, I applied to 17 schools originally through Pharmcas - 4 instate and the rest out-of-state. In-state schools definitely required more pre-reqs - I had to take summer school aside from completing two ! majors just to finish their pre-reqs. Outstate institutions didn't even compare in terms of all the loop holes you had to jump through. University of Michigan (requiring immunology and funky statistics) was the only one that required extensive pre-reqs, the rest were pretty much completed by me finishing my BS degree.

CA's supplemental applications alone are heck of a lot more challenging than taking PCAT + any other school supplemental applications combined.

UCSF's supplemental questions: talk about the human condition and what it entails 😕

All the other out of state schools I applied to: why do you want to come to our school - piece of cake.

 

[Farmercyst]

hey guys I was just wondering why the CA schools don't require PCAT. tried searching thru the forums but couldn't find anything.

hope this isn't a stupid question.
thanks in advance for your input!

I didn't bother to ask. Not that it's a stupid question, per se, but would the answer change your decision even if you knew it?

I only applied to schools that didn't take the PCAT, (3 in CA + Oregon State) I would have applied to Colorado if I thought I could convince my wife to move out there. I just dislike standardized tests. Don't get me wrong, I got a 27 on the ACT and passed all the ACS exams I took (GChem, OChem, PChem), I just don't like taking them if I don't have to.

 

[Passion4Sci]

No one has mentioned that, by and large, you need a Bachelor's degree to compete for a slot in a Calif. school, whereas for outside-Calif. schools, that is certainly not the case (for now).

 

[boltdude]

No way, I applied to 17 schools originally through Pharmcas - 4 instate and the rest out-of-state. In-state schools definitely required more pre-reqs - I had to take summer school aside from completing two ! majors just to finish their pre-reqs. Outstate institutions didn't even compare in terms of all the loop holes you had to jump through. University of Michigan (requiring immunology and funky statistics) was the only one that required extensive pre-reqs, the rest were pretty much completed by me finishing my BS degree.

CA's supplemental applications alone are heck of a lot more challenging than taking PCAT + any other school supplemental applications combined.

UCSF's supplemental questions: talk about the human condition and what it entails 😕

All the other out of state schools I applied to: why do you want to come to our school - piece of cake.

I guess for me it was different. My Bachelor's degree seemed to take care of most (if not all) the pre-reqs for the CA schools while I had to take a lot of a-la-carte pre-reqs for the OOS schools. Expensive and annoying... 👎

 

[drhenPharmD]

No one has mentioned that, by and large, you need a Bachelor's degree to compete for a slot in a Calif. school, whereas for outside-Calif. schools, that is certainly not the case (for now).

I might be wrong. But I thought western didn't require a bachelor's.

 

[phathead]

They have quite a bit more pre-requisites than some other institutions, and being a progressive school system, they believe that doing well consistently in your undergrad course load is a more adequate indicator of your potential than some standardized test under time constrains. This is my point of view.

What if you start out rather slowly in your undergrad so that your GPA is lower than what it should be? Normally a strong score on your PCAT would help overcome that, but aren't you left in a bit of a hole under that logic?

 

[Passion4Sci]

I might be wrong. But I thought western didn't require a bachelor's.

Only a couple of schools "require" a Bachelor's degree here, but there are so few students accepted (0.5% at UCSF, for example) each year with one that it might as well be required.

 

[Tinkerbell22]

University of Florida has a really extensive supplemental, but I think it's because they only interview about 320 and accept 310. My PCAT is one of my stronger points, so I kind of wanted schools to look at it. lol

 

[chrispycow]

I didn't bother to ask. Not that it's a stupid question, per se, but would the answer change your decision even if you knew it?

I only applied to schools that didn't take the PCAT, (3 in CA + Oregon State) I would have applied to Colorado if I thought I could convince my wife to move out there. I just dislike standardized tests. Don't get me wrong, I got a 27 on the ACT and passed all the ACS exams I took (GChem, OChem, PChem), I just don't like taking them if I don't have to.

Yea I was just curious about it - the answer wouldn't change my decision. I had asked the pharmacists that I work with and they didn't have any clear cut answer. Most of them said "Hmmm that is a good question."

Anyhow thanks for all your feedback!
Btw I heard that some of the CA pharmacy schools used to have PCAT as a requirement. Is that true?