Medicine from Pharm.D?

Pre-Med & Medical School Pre-Med Topics
1

<p>I was accepted to the Rutgers Pharmacy Honors program which, for those who don't know, is 2+4 school with somewhat guaranteed admittance to the 4 year school assuming you maintain certain grade requirements. I originally applied as a backup, but it's beginning to interest me a great deal. My main goal for post-college was/is to go to medical school.</p>

<p>Now I'm wondering if I can follow the pre-Pharm path for the required two years, go to the 4 year Pharmacy school, then apply to a medical school with a Pharm.D under my belt. Does this doctorate improve my standings in the eyes of the med-school admissions board? Will most of the pre-Pharm classes be the same as typical Pre-med requirements? Will I be able to get all the necessary pre-med requirements in during those two years that I do pre-Pharm?</p>

<p>Basically what I'm wondering if it's possible to line myself up to go to Med school after finishing Pharm school.</p>

2

<p>Why would you want to waste 2 years in Pharm school when your ultimate goal is to get into med school?</p>

3

<p>If I got my Pharm.D, I could work part time making good money while going to Med School, and having a Pharmacy degree and MD gives me flexebility. It also gives me something to fall back on.</p>

4

<p>In addition to my initial question, and possibly more importantly, will Medical Schools admit you with a PharmD in place of a BS, since the 2+4 doesn't result in a BS (right?)?</p>

5

<p>1.) I don't think you'll be working much on the side in medical school.
2.) No, probably they'd be very unhappy with this.
3.) Medical schools, from my anecdotal experiences, are very snobby about people who have other health-professions career training. (And, in my opinion, justifiably so.) I have no evidence to support this claim.</p>

6

<p>i would not recommend it. ditto everything BDM said, but I actually KNOW someone who tried to do this. Just because its pre-pharm doesn't mean its gonna be easy. In fact its really hard on your gpa because they will be cramming TONS of stuff into the 2 years before pharm school.</p>

<p>also, the pharm field NEEDS people, so i don't know how receptive the medical (MD) field will be to take from the pharmacy field. If you are really keen on doing this, then just go for it. Just reason it out before you do: you wanna be a pharmacist or a doctor? It's gonna be hard to be both (my dad's a pharmacist and he doesn't know ANYONE who is both).</p>

7

<p>While I currently know two PharmD's who are now medical students, they both worked as pharmacists for 4-6 years each before deciding to apply for medical school, which was not their original intent. They chose to go to medical school because they realized through their work as pharmacists, that they really enjoyed particular patient populations and problems. However they were limited by pharmacy in actually dealing with those at a level of depth they desired. That's why they altered their career. But they both had started out as only wanting to be pharmacists.</p>

<p>However, you, with the intent to go to med school have no compelling story to justify a medical school to admit you when you already have an advanced degree in a field of health care. </p>

<p>If you want to go to medical school, GO THERE. You're trying to circumvent a system that can't be circumvented and in doing so will hurt your chances.</p>

<p>Additionally, you are taking a spot in this Pharm school program when you don't intend to make good use of it. There are plenty of kids out there who would love to be in your position because THEY WANT TO BE PHARMACISTS! You apparently DON'T. I think the only proper thing to do is to give up your spot...</p>

8

<p>I can see that the consensus on this thread is that Adcoms do not like it if you have a Pharm D and are applying for medical school.
That kind of sucks cause that was what I wanted to do also....
However I really, really want to become a doctor, whether I have or dont have a Pharm D...</p>

<p>If all Medical School Requirements are fulfilled, Does having a Pharm D really adversely affect one's application to Med School, as described in this post?</p>

9

<p>Also, lets say I did have a compelling story to justify a medical school to admit me when I already have an advanced degree in a field of health care. </p>

<p>Wouldn't a Pharm D only help??? no harm right?</p>

<p>:)</p>

10

<p>Also, "Medical schools, from my anecdotal experiences, are very snobby about people who have other health-professions career training. " </p>

<p>Bluedevilmike, can you elaborate on this claim? Why are they so snobby about people with other health professions career training... ?</p>

11

<p>i have to disagree with the general tone of the respondents on this thread. </p>

<p>people who typically deny the significance of graduate degrees are those who don't have one themselves. once u have one, u'll realize its value. for instance, lots of Pre-Meds don't consider it fair that students holding Masters Degrees (e.g. in biology) are sometimes given advantage in the med application process (since they are typically viewed as students who weren't successful applicants the first time through). once u do a graduate degree though, u'll realize how much value it DOES have. it means something, that u completed a Masters of Science. it means u worked hard, learned a skill, and have a specific relevant skill set to medicine. why is that a bad thing?</p>

<p>using the same logic, who do u think will be better prepared for a medical education? some pre-med B.S. student who never did anything but study until the age of 22, OR, someone who applied themselves, learned tons (clinical too) regarding human physiology, pharmacology etc. and has the full skill set of a professional pharmacist. that person also proved themselves academically by acquiring a rigorous degree over 4 years. seems like a no-brainer to me. </p>

<p>a few points here:</p>

<p>-PharmD applicants into medical school are quite rare.</p>

<p>-with the possible exception of dental school, i can't think of any better preparation for Medical School than Pharmacy School. </p>

<p>-i think the ideal medical school class is one where everyone did a PharmD as their undergrad degree.</p>

<p>u'll have to show a compelling reason why the M.D. is useful to u, but if that condition is met (and the GPA condition is met also - definitely a challenge if u go through a pharmacy curriculum), then i think any MD class will be happy to have a few Pharmacists among their cohorts. imagine how that PharmD will kick@ss during 3rd year clinical rotations...</p>

<p>medical school admissions committees encourage applicants. they aren't as cynical as those pre-meds who post here, and certainly will not be cynical to an applicant holding a PharmD degree who shows interest in attending their program.</p>

<p>there is strength in diversity.</p>

12

<p>i should just add that the perception of medical school from pre-meds VS. graduates is quite different.</p>

<p>pre-meds view medical school admission as a reward for hard work and a sign of distinction.</p>

<p>MDs just want to admit people with the best chance of succeeding in their curriculum and becoming competent doctors. they aren't there to "reward" people whom they view as the most awesome.</p>

<p>producing doctors isn't about trying to find a way to distinguish the most outstanding people in a population. its about trying to produce good doctors. they have many applicants, so they can be selective, and use a system of meritocracy to choose. as such, the perception is that its about trying to reward the most outstanding students. but it isn't. its not about trying to conduct a competition of excellence and crowning a winner. but pre-meds will tell u it is.</p>

<p>don't ask a pre-med about what it takes to be a doctor. they don't know.</p>

13

<p>1.) The respondents on this thread include two medical students, so the attacks against our comments based on our background need to be broadened if you want to include us.</p>

<p>2.) Generally, physicians and other members of the allied health professions tend to feel each that their profession is "superior" to the others -- and it's certainly true that the disciplines studied are quite different.</p>

<p>I can tell you that medical schools prefer non-vocational majors -- English over Journalistic Writing, Biochemistry over Medical Assistant degrees, etc.</p>

<p>3.) Now, if you're asking about a BS (i.e. Chemistry), PharmD relative to a straight BS, this is a much harder question to answer. But I'm guessing that's not what you're asking.</p>

<p>I still actually think there might be a mild disadvantage for professional snobbery reasons, but in any case, unless this is what you want to know, it's a moot point.</p>

<p>4.) You need a bachelor's degree in a liberal arts subject. Is this always overcomeable? Sure. Nothing is ever really set in stone, but that doesn't mean it won't be an obstacle.</p>

<p>5.) Remember, specialized health professions majors have the lowest scores on the MCAT. Is there a selection bias? I don't know -- but it might be indicative of the kind of training that they're getting really being genuinely different from a premedical education/way of thinking.</p>

14

<p>I've worked in a large teaching hospital for many years as a Medical Technologist in the microbiology sections of the clinical lab.
I have encountered MANY doctors on staff that began their careers in allied health professions before switching over to get their MD.
These are department heads, sections chairs, etc....very accomplished individuals.
The lab director has a PhD in Physics and an MD; a much admired family practice MD began as a Med Tech; my kids' pediatrician started life as a PhD in Chemistry, etc,etc.
I can't believe there is some prejudice against pharmacists in med school admissions.</p>

15

<p>I'm glad to see that there are some other opinions and views on this issue.</p>

<p>I don't plan to substitute my Pharm D for a bachelor's degree.
I intend to get a degree in either biology, or chemistry, as well as get my PharmD. </p>

<p>And of course, I will study up on the material on the MCAT, as well as make sure I am educated as far as humanities go. </p>

<p>I know its going to be tough, but I'm going to try and get a really good GPA, so I can try and make it into Med School, because that's really what I want to do.
:)</p>

16

<p>The two PhD's are certainly not what we're talking about here. The Med Tech might be in the relevant category -- not sure whether what his/her undergraduate education was.</p>

17

<p>bluedevilmike-
For the record: Medical Technology= B.S., equivalent to B.S. in Biology or Chemistry.</p>

18

<p>1.) In this case, then, this does seem to represent an exception to the argument I've been making. Which is okay, exceptions happen. But I maintain my position that schools will prefer BS's in the liberal arts over vocational majors (i.e. medical technology) and that I suspect there exists some looking-down-upon other medical professions.</p>

<p>2.) If you want a BS and a PharmD, that's going to take you 8 years. Why not just go the four and try for the MD?</p>

19

<p>Well, the thing is that I got into a 3 + 3 Pharm D, program. And with careful planning, I can earn a bachelor's degree in those 3 years of undergrad. </p>

<p>I chose this route just to avoid the competition that can be involved among pre-meds, and I realize how hard it is to get into med school, so I thought about taking a different approach. Also, I figured Pharm D was pertinent to the Medical Field, and would also be an asset. </p>

<p>And in this case it would be a difference of two years.</p>

20

<p>1.) If you would be permitted to opt out after the three years, then it's not a difference of two years; it's a difference of three.</p>

<p>2.) They accelerated the doctoral degree, too? Is this common among Pharmacy programs?</p>