I’m in Army ROTC right now trying to get a contract and scholarship but lately I haven’t been to sure if it is something I want to commit to. My number one goal has always been to become a Pharmacist and joining the military has always been something that I’ve been interested in since I was little. My main reason for staying in ROTC is because I know I’ll have a job lined up for me once I graduate college, I’ll be financially stable for at least 4-6 years and the rest of my life, and just the sense of family that I have with my ROTC friends. I also know that joining the military will set me back from being a pharmacist but will also help me pay for pharmacy school and gain leadership and teamwork skills along with others you can posses by being in the military? Do you guys think I should go with military first and then pharmacy school or follow my plans and go straight to pharmacy school after undergrad?
Do you have all the pre-reqs for pharmacy school now or at least by the time you graduate?
I’m assuming you’re a freshman right now since you’re still looking at contacting and/or scholarship.
If you can get your PharmD in 6 years, then I would go straight through undergrad to grad school.
Otherwise, you would do 4 years undergrad, go to the military, and then 4 years PharmD school. That’s 8 years worth of schooling vs 6 years.
If you can get the Army to pay for all of undergrad or some portion of it, then I would take the ROTC scholarship, do your commitment in the Army, then go get your PharmD. To increase your chances of getting picked up for grad school, I would request to be branched medical service corps.
Who knows? You may be able to get the Army to pay for PharmD school.
The Army could give you an educational delay for 4 years after undergrad to get your PharmD but I’m not sure they allow it for that degree. I know they give an ed delay for medical and dental school but not sure about PharmD. I can ask though.