Any pharmacists in the forum? (Dealing cocaine does not count) - Page 2

Yea I read all of it. It seems most pharmacy schools are become more selective and favoring students who have a four year degree more than students who do 2+4. USC actually requires students to have a B.S. to qualify for acceptance. I don't think I can do the 2+4 path because for me, it'd be more like a 3+4 path since I will be unable to take any pre-req classes this year. A semester has passed, and the spring semester is full of II classes. I don't think it'd be a good idea to take a II class without taking BioI/ChemI. In order to complete the pre-reqs, I'd have to then spend an extra year so it'll be 3+4. In that case, I might as well finish UG and get a B.S. in biology. It sucks to know that the market could radically change in the time I spend in school. I mean, I bet a reason why students decided to go to law school in 1999-2001 was because the legal market was booming. There were so many bonuses for lawyers in 2000. Now, 9-10 years after these students applied, the legal market is shit. That could happen to pharmacists too. I would spend 7-9 years in preparation for the NAPLEX and then graduate in time to see some sort of failing pharmaceutical market. Of course, that's a big IF. I'm hoping this "IF" doesn't happen and I don't think it will. It doesn't seem like the healthcare career is going down any time soon; with healthcare reform, there would only be more patients and for retail pharmacists, more customers. As noted in your blog, pharmacist interest groups (?) are pushing for more active roles in the treatment of patients and I'm digging such a reform. I've done some research on schools, and I think the schools that I'll apply to would be LIU and Rutgers. I'd love to apply to Northeastern and STJohns, but it seems that they only have 0+6 programs. I'm somewhat attached to NYC so I am unsure if I'd like moving so far to go to school. Living in the Bronx for Fordham was already a big change from my nice Brooklyn neighborhood. If you don't mind me asking, I don't think you mentioned which school you were going to (or maybe I missed that part). Where do you go and do you like it?

Most pre-reqs do not require biochem, so if I do continue with a premed path, my year would be like this. Sophomore year- Bio I/II, Chem I/II Sophomore Summer- Orgo chemI/II Junior year-Bio major classes+ PhysicsI/II Senior year-finish up bio major classes. I think I can do it+I'm willing to do it. I'm guessing most students in pre-med don't have a science background either aside from high school science so I don't think I'll be the only one. TBH, I believe myself to be the typical Asian which is aiming for the career of a lawyer, physician or accountant. I've had changes in my "dream job" throughout my life and at one point I did want to be a doctor. Not to sound too cheesy, but I admired the fact that they could help people while making money. Also, throughout childhood, I was constantly sick and without going into detail, I've been into the OR more than once. These experiences made me want to be a doctor more (hell, I was sick so often that soon I could tell which prescriptions my doctor would write me). But then, I realized that I hated math and the strong math requirement+grueling medical school+years of residency scared me away. I took several law classes in high school (criminal, civil, constitutional) and I enjoyed all of them. My mind was then set on becoming a lawyer from high school until now. But with the job market as it is, I don't know if I have the guts and glory mentality to continue down such an uncertain path. I began to doubt myself in regards to my talents of a lawyer and if I would get a high enough GPA for T14. The horror stories and the ridiculous hours scared me away even more. I guess what I'm trying to say is, I confess myself to be a person who's too scared to wholeheartedly devote myself to one thing. While one side of me would want to just continue down the path of being an attorney, another side of me is telling me not to do it for the sake of economic security. I mean, having a JD doesn't pay my bills. Having a job pays my bills. Right now, it sounds like "If you're a decent lawyer, you will have a hard time finding a job especially in NYC. If you're a decent pharmacist, you will more or less be guaranteed a job." I've looked into the job of a clinical pharmacist and I like how it sounds. I can help people who need the right drugs to help them and I will be able to work much sooner than a doctor. Sorry for the long wall of text, but I'd like to thank those who replied for their insight and advice!

Well, though I didn't have a big interest in the sciences (other than a dream of being a doctor), I never found any high school science class hard. HS physics was one of my favorite classes (due to a good teacher and because I got good grades). Of course, I understand there is a huge difference between HS bio and college level bio too. I could take the Bio/chem I classes in sophomore year and then I'd have a few weeks time to decide if I want to drop the class or not without inferring any mark on my transcript. The only downside to that would be that if I decide that I am super un-fit for bio/chem, it'd be a pain to get into a diff science class. And the more immediate problem would be if I was set for pre-med, I'd have to take calc now when spring semester rolls in or else I don't know when else I could fit that class in. I remember calc is required for physics which I would take in junior year and I'd have no time in sophomore year or sophomore summer to take the calc class. I've given it more thought and I'm seriously leaning towards being a clinical pharmacist. I like what I'd do (helping people in a hospital setting) without the long residency doctors would need to do. If I could set my heart on being a clinical pharmacist, I'll tough out pre-med courses no matter what.