Pharmacy School

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Hello All.
I have decided I wanted to be a pharmacist because of my love for science and helping people (the income doesn't hurt though lol) I live in NJ. BUt i need some help.
Realisticly, I am hoping to get into one of my top three choices : Rutgers, Northeastern, URI.
From people who have been accepted to any of these schools or know anything about their pharmacy program, I would kinda like to know if I have a realistic shot at being accepted...Here are my credentials I boast.
-4.45 Weighted GPA
-10 out of 323 in class
-waiting on SAT scores
-Class President all 4 years of High School
-Varsity Football Captain 1 year and Varsity Hockey Captain - 2 years
-Job all four years in high school
-National Honors Society
-Clubs, such as AV Club
-Honors all four years with AP Chem, AP Calc, AP English, AP Physics, and Anatomy</p>

<p>I'm sure I'm forgetting some other things that go on the application but those are the majors. Thanks for all and any help
-Billy</p>

2

<p>I think you have a great shot at all three.</p>

3

<p>Well Rutgers is my number one because its cheaper since I live in NJ and it’s close to home. Thanks for giving me some optimism I doubt myself a lot lol any reason behind your thinking ? Each school only accepts around 200 into the 0+6 Pharm program out of like 3500 applicants.</p>

4

<p>Bump …</p>

5

<p>I graduated from a university earlier this month with a bachelor’s degree in Biology and a minor in Chemistry. My intent was to go to pharmacy school; I applied to 3 schools and got 3 rejections. Any help as to what I should have done differently? How many schools should I have applied to? My GPA is 3.4.</p>

<p>Does anyone know if I can still get into a Pharm D program for the Fall 2009?</p>

<p>If so, where and what do I need to do?</p>

<p>Also, I am currently employed as a certified Pharm Tech with Walgreens. I am kind of at a loss as to what else they are looking for. I have been with Walgreens for over a year and have had my certification for about a year.</p>

6

<p>hmm you have a 4.45 weighted GPA and top 10 in your class…so why are you looking at Rutgers, Northeastern. and URI of all places.</p>

<p>Shoot a little higher and look at these schools. I think that these schools are definitely better than all the schools you are currently looking at.
UNC-Chapel Hill
University Of Minnesota
University Of Texas - Austin
Ohio State University
University Of Kentucky
University Of Michigan - Ann Arbor
University Of Washington
Purdue University
University Of Arizona
University Of Florida
University Of Illinois-Chicago
University Of Maryland-Baltimore
University Of Wisconsin- Madison</p>

7

<p>I agree with pierre0913. I was going to suggest looking at UConn’s exceptional pharmacy program, seeing as you want to stay in the tri-state area.</p>

8

<p>OP is looking at 0-6 PharmD programs. Pierre suggested good schools, but, afaik, all are 2+4 schools and many have very low acceptance rates for OOS PharmD candidates. I know UNC and UK specifically will not take more than 20% OOS, and that’s for a class of around 125/year! Also, some of these schools favor candidates who have B.S. degrees, so competition for a kid with two years of prerequisites is a little crazy when you factor in application fees, mandatory interviews, etc. Some do not give preference to their own pre-pharms or offer early assurance guarantees.</p>

<p>Rutgers is a very well-respected pharmacy school, in a good “Pharm-belt” location for retail, clinical, or research rotations. If your scores come back in the 1300+ range (maybe a bit lower even considering you’re instate), I’d say you definitely have a good chance. Ditto for Northeastern, but please don’t fall in love here if you need financial aid! I don’t know alot about URI, other than they accept 100/year and last year’s group averaged 1330 SAT and 4.1 GPA. And it’s over $37K/year OOS and likely to climb given RI’s budget woes.</p>

<p>There are some good schools which are technically 2+4, but do offer guarantees and preference to their own students. Univ. of Buffalo is very well known, has a PCAT-optional EA guarantee, and will offer merit money (even though they’re very reasonable to begin with). Pitt is another, I believe. If you’re willing to consider central PA, my D really liked Wilkes who offers a very good guaranteed entry and you’d probably receive decent merit aid there (I think around $13K). It’s a fairly small school, very nice setting and dorms, about 80 in each PharmD class. You do have to apply asap as there’s a two-step app process (they start accepting apps in the summer and the first one is very simple), and a mandatory interview. Last year their class was full by November.</p>

<p>If you’d like more info, my D went through the process with UB (her final pick), ACP, Duquesne, Wilkes, St John’s, USP, MCPHS, and Butler. You might also look for info here:
[Student</a> Doctor Network Forums](<a href=“http://■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■/index.php]Student”>Student Doctor Network Communities | Student Doctor Network)</p>

9

<p>One more suggestion, all the pharmacy schools like to see relevant experience, even for an incoming freshman (Wilkes requires 8 hours). If possible, try to shadow a pharmacist for at least a day or two. Avoid the big chain retail places - they won’t let anyone under 18 behind the counter and are neck deep in PharmD interns anyway. Hospitals are generally a better bet, perhaps your HS has a program that can set you up. D was able to do about 60 hours hospital and 8 hours retail (privately owned) last summer which gave her a good essay topic (they all want to know “Why pharmacy?”) and a professional LOR. Got great comments from adcoms with her acceptances as a result.</p>

10

<p>Kibrant - </p>

<p>What was your PharmCas score? Pharmacy Schools weight that score very heavily (my kid was offered interviews at every pharmacy school where he applied with an 85 Composite). Are you applying to the most competitive schools, or being less selective? Is your 3.4 a science GPA or a cumulative GPA (they will look at the GPA for the science prerequisites differently).</p>

<p>If your Pharmas score was over 80 and your science GPA was 3.4 or higher, you should have received interviews from your applications. The next question would be whether you bombed the interviews, or if your personal statement discloses something that they don’t like. See if you can get a prepharm advisor to look at your personal statement to give you advice on it. You can prepare for the interviews by looking at the Student Doctor Network referenced by sk8rmom. Many prepharm students on that site very generously post the interview questions that they encountered at each school, so you can actually study for the interviews and know what to expect. My kid applied to 5 schools. From the Student Doctor Network, it appeared that 5-8 schools was pretty average for applications.</p>

<p>Sk8rmom - Congratulations to your D on selecting UB! My kid will be going through his white coat ceremony there in August.</p>

11

<p>Thanks, I met with an advisor today and he said their decision was based on my PCAT score. I have taken the test a couple of times and have only made a slight improvement. Any suggestions on how to improve this score, I have the book and have studied it. Are there tutors for this kind of test out there?</p>

12

<p>Thanks, Neonzeus, it ended up being a great offer financially for a great program, and fairly close to home :slight_smile: She’s just hoping and praying she can keep the 3.5. If not, I’m sure she’ll be tearing her hair out at the thought of another application round! Where did your S interview, btw? So glad he ended up staying at UB. Thanks for the many times you offered advice…it was so helpful!</p>

<p>klbrant, please see the SDN pre-pharm forum for those PCAT recommendations - there are a ton of threads on that subject there. I think Kaplan offers a review course, which some take, but have seen alot of other suggestions there as well.</p>

13

<p>Kibrant: </p>

<p>Some schools limit the number of times you can take the test, or will average your scores. They may view consistent scores as being indicative of your ability to succeed in the pharmacy program. You will have to research how each school that you are considering weights multiple scores, and how many test scores they will even consider. Your prepharm advisor might be able to tell you where you could have a chance. You can get a feel for which scores might get you an interview on the Student Doctor website suggested by sk8rmom, where prepharm students report their successes and rejections. You may have to be very selective about which schools you try to get into. There are some newer pharmacy schools that may be a little more flexible when selecting candidates. </p>

<p>My kid took a lot of practice tests and studied, studied, studied. I believe there’s a Kaplan program for the PCAT, but my kid didn’t know anyone that took it. </p>

<p>Sk8rMom - my kid turned down his interviews and withdrew his apps when he got into SUNY Buffalo. He had applied widely to increase his chances of interviews since he didn’t know whether his PCAT score would be ok or not.</p>