<p>I've been accepted by both - NYU CAS would cost 14k per year and St. John's would cost 72k for 6 years. Right now, I feel great about being a pharmacist but the thing is, throughout these four years of high school, I've been pretty unsure about what kind of future I want, going from computers to medicine and now to pharmacy. I'm really interested in health professions, whether it be a doctor or pharmacist or researcher, but right now, a pharmacist is what I want to be. If I do go to NYU, I'd have a Pre-Med concentration setting up for Med School, but I'd have some flexibility when it comes to switching majors and so on. At St. John's Pharm program, however, you take classes that are tailored around pharmacy and nothing else. It's nearly impossible to transfer in, according to the dean of the School of Pharm and you MUST be transferring in from another pharmacy program to even apply. Plus, if I decide I don't want to be a pharmacist sometime within that time, I've lost all that time, because the classes I take for that program won't be good for any other degree. The plus is that I'd come out into a field where my position is highly sought and very well-paying. </p>
<p>Basically, this decision boils down to wanting a better education and flexibility at NYU or wanting a set path to a career I really like right now at St. John's, and with pharmacists currently being in demand right now, I feel that getting that well-paying job shouldn't be THAT hard. </p>
<p>I really think you should determine what you really want to become and love studying...I know that a job salary is part of the reason why you choose a certain major but it shouldn't be the only reason. If you can't see yourself being a pharmacist for the rest of your life, then don't go to that route because you won't be happy despite the high salary. I'm also in a similar dilemma where I'm choosing between engineering and pharmacy as a major. I'm good at physics/math but it's not something I want to do for the rest of my life. And I love chemistry, so I decided to become a pharmacist. I'm going to do a pre-pharmacy major in NYU as well (chemistry perhaps) but I decided not to go to an actual pharmacy school because I might change my mind and want to go to med school. In NYU, I have the flexibility although I do know that I want to pursue pharmacy as a profession. In reality, you'll only be studying two more years if you go to NYU as opposed to St John's 6 year program. You do 4 years to get your pre-pharmacy major. Then you can enter a Pharm.D program in a pharmacy school (not necessarily St. John's)...some other great pharmacy school such as UC San Francisco, UNC Chapel Hill, U Texas, or UMichigan. I know that they offer 4 year Pharm.D. program and that they prefer someone having an undergraduate degree before entering their doctor of pharmacy program. That's the route I'm taking right now :D.</p>
<p>The thing is though, for St. John's School of Pharmacy grad school, Pharm.D. is a 2 year program the requirement (off the site St. John's admission site) is: "(Practictioner Option) Candidate must be a graduate of an ACPE-accredited program or have a B.S. degree in Pharmacy with a license to practice pharmacy in the U.S."</p>
<p>NYU does not qualify either of those options according to a dean of the College of Arts and Sciences that I spoke to. If St. John's is like that, I think all the other pharmacy programs might just have the same policy. You're pretty much in or out when it comes to pharmacy. </p>
<p>But are you SURE that you can do that pre-pharmacy major at NYU? I've got to call up a number of schools to ask about their policy anyway, but the idea I got from talking to the dean on Accepted Students Reception Day was that we couldn't.</p>
<p>Hmmmm...well I was pretty sure until now...maybe this only applies to St. John's...</p>
<p>You see, some schools such as UNC and UCSF don't have an actual 6 year pharmacy program...you can either take their prerequisite courses for 2 years within their institution or at another university or you can have a pre-pharmacy degree (BS)...such as a degree in chemistry, biochemistry, or chemical engineering, biology, etc. Either way, you would enter a 4 year Pharm D program whether you take the 2 year route or the 4 year BS degree route. I'm pretty sure this works for most schools that have a college of pharmacy...I'm not particularly sure of St. John's though...</p>
<p>Please let me know if you're SURE that what I'm saying is wrong...because I was 95% sure until now...</p>
<p>Dont' really know as of yet, but here's something from AACP:</p>
<ol>
<li>What college courses do I need before applying to pharmacy school?
The undergraduate classes required for admission into a pharmacy degree program vary significantly from one institution to the next. Due to the variations in admission requirements and procedures among the colleges and schools of pharmacy, it is advisable to research different pharmacy programs. Visit the pharmacy school websites for course requirements. School specific information is also available on the PharmCAS site and in the AACP annual publication, Pharmacy School Admission Requirements (<a href="http://www.aacp.org/site/page.asp?TRACKID=&VID=1&CID=377&DID=3613%5B/url%5D">http://www.aacp.org/site/page.asp?TRACKID=&VID=1&CID=377&DID=3613</a>)</li>
</ol>
<p>(PSAR).</p>
<ol>
<li>Should I choose pre-pharmacy or chemistry as my college major?
You are not required to major in pre-pharmacy in college to be eligible for admission to a pharmacy degree program. Chemistry is a common major for pharmacy applicants because many of the course prerequisites for pharmacy are often incorporated into the standard chemistry curriculum. Pharmacy students, however; come from a wide variety of educational back grounds, including those who majored in English, business, communications, biology, etc. If the pharmacy prerequisite courses are not required as part of your undergraduate major, you will need to complete these courses as electives. Contact your designated pharmacy programs directly to determine whether the admissions office distinguishes between classes taken at a community college versus a four-year institution.
I think what you said is true for some institutions, but I'm only looking into NEastern schools because I'm not looking to go south past Baltimore really.</li>
</ol>
<p>Oh okay...well I did check St. John's website..and what you said was true for St. John's in particular...</p>
<p>In general, however, other pharmacy schools are okay with an applicant with a BS degree in chemistry applying to their Pharm.D. program. </p>
<p>If you want NEtern universities, what about Rutgers pharmacy school? I just checked their website and they do accept applicants with a BS degree or who have completed the prerequisite 2 year course work from another university into their 4 year Pharm.D. program. They also do have a 6 year "entry-level" Pharm D program...so what you were saying is correct. It's just that you can still enter a 4 year Pharm.D. program if you already have a degree or have completed prerequisite courses. So, you could always go to NYU and get a BS degree or you could go to NYU and complete the courses needed over two years (whichever one you choose) and then apply to a 4 year Pharm.D. program in a northeastern university such as Rutgers...I believe Stamford (in New York..not Stanford haha) has pharmacy school where you can complete a Pharm.D. program over 4 years...</p>
<p>Whatever decision you make, you'll end up being a pharmacist anyways...you'll just have more flexibility in NYU...</p>