College major

[matas]

Originally posted by: Pippy

Originally posted by: matas
After taking computer science 2 (intro to java) I decided to stay away from engineering and computer majors, because I've heard that engineers have to program.. I am thinking about pharmD major, or some pharmaceutical research major. To become a pharmD, I have to take 2 years worth of pre-pharms courses and another 6 years after it. There is only one college in New Jersey that offers pharmacy degree. It's Rutgers, a state university. There are a lot of pre-pharms school tho. I guess it would be a good idea to go to some other college for pre-pharm and then transfer to Rutgers? I don't really like Rutgers, but it would be cheaper than other out of state schools. How hard is the pharmacy field? Not sure if I am going to get normal replies here at atot.

This looks straight out of my book. I came into WPI originally as a computer science major. Took 2 CS courses [intro to programming (scheme) and Java]. I got an A on my first one and dropped Java. I started taking bio classes for the hell of it and liked it. I'm finishing my junior year and my plan is to apply to pharm school. I've finished pretty much all of my pre-requisites, I only have to take a few humanity electives for certain schools that require it. Transferring into a 6-year pharm-d program is very very hard. I have a 3.8 and solid recommendations and didn't get in. Best bet is to finish your undergraduate and apply to a 4-year graduate program (UF, UT Austin, UC (various), UA) Pretty much a bunch of southern state universities. Also A good bit of these schools don't require the PCAT. They tend to be the higher tier schools. My plan is to apply to the non PCAT schools, if I don't get into any I'll work for a year and study for the PCAT and then apply to the remaining schools.

To the guy that said major in math and minor in biology, he is very correct. Biostaticians and Bioinformatics get paid A LOT. A bachelors and a few year's experience nets you 80K+. I can't imagine what PhD's make. So if you have that skill set, I'd choose that over pharmacy. I happen to suck at math and CS, so...

If you're worried about in-state tuition. Apply to the schools, defer for a year, work, then attend.

Never heard of Biostaticians and Bioinformatics, what do they do?

 

[Elderly Newt]

The pharmD program is a 6 year program, not 8. Two years of prepharm and 4 years of the professional program. How the program works depends on where you go; some schools accept you into the pharmD program as a freshman - you don't need to apply again. Others will take you as prepharm for your freshman and sophomore years, and then make you apply again to get into pharmacy school for the last 4 years. I'm pretty sure Rutgers takes you right as a freshman, so they probably won't accept transfers midway through the program, which means you couldn't take prepharm courses elsewhere. You'd have to be at Rutgers the whole 6 years.

The pharmD is quite a commitment and is a challenging road, but it's very rewarding at the same time. interchange suggested http://www.studentdoctor.net/, which is a good resource for learning more about various medical fields from a student's perspective.

 

[matas]

oh I read somewhere it was 8, ok.

 

[Kindjal]

At Ohio State, a PharmD. takes 8 years (4 yrs for a B.S. + 4 yrs of pharmacy coursework) to complete. Most pharmacy schools have a six-year program.

 

[imported_Lothar]

Originally posted by: ed21x
as much as everyone keeps saying pharmacists are 'in demand,' the reality is that the market is approaching saturation, the same with nursing. if you are looking to become a pharmacists in 8 years, it might not be the wisest of choice considering the numbers being churned out right now. I would recommend straight up medicine. Going into medical school gives you the luxury of gauging your residency interests later on so you can direct your career choice within the number of years before you enter the market.

I expect there will be a surplus of pharmacists by 2015. With the amount of private degree mills popping up it wouldn't be a surprise to come to that conclusion.
In 2000, there were only 81 accredited pharmacy schools...Now, only eight years later, there are 112 accredited schools and programs. With 11,200 pharmacists graduating every year, the demand for pharmacists will evaporate within a few years thanks to the half dozen "for profit" diploma mills being built every year.

It is my hope there will be a surplus, so that people who are choosing pharmacy only for the "easy" money involved will be kicked to the curb and won't be able to pay their $150k+ student loans leaving only others who actually care about the profession and not just money.

 

[imported_Lothar]

Originally posted by: interchange
studentdoctor.net has some pharm stuff (check out the forums). Best place for aspiring health professionals bar none.

:thumbsup:
Yep.

 

[uclaLabrat]

If you're looking to do a 4 year degree, the best majors I think would be either biochem or chem, with biochem being slightly preferred.

 

[Rockinacoustic]

Pharmacy is very in depth in chemistry. If you don't like Organic and Biochemistry (and I mean the course, not the generalized subject in any intro Bio course) then you may not enjoy the road to becoming a Pharmacist.

If you are interested research, Pharmacology and Medicial Chemistry are two popular fields to look into.

 

[Rockinacoustic]

Originally posted by: Farang
Just major in math with a minor in biology, get good grades, and all doors will be opened to you.

I'd say this is only true for bioinformatics/biostatistics and structural biology. Both of which a booming fields however.

 

[jc582]

Rutgers Pharmacy is a 6 year program. I'm pretty sure you can't transfer into it (from a different school), so you need to start as a freshmen.

 

[Babbles]

Originally posted by: invidia

Originally posted by: RKS

Originally posted by: matas
What are my other options besides a major in a medical field?

well if you are asian then the only other honorable option is engineering. my kids have the option of being anything they want as long as it is an MD, PhD (engineer) or as a last resort, J

PhD in physics gives way more diversity than in engineering. Every science research group has a physicist.

Why JD for last resort?

Maybe in academia, but as somebody who has worked in the industry for ten years my experience is that this is in no way true at all.

Originally posted by: uclaLabrat
If you're looking to do a 4 year degree, the best majors I think would be either biochem or chem, with biochem being slightly preferred.

Science jobs are sucking ass big time. A B.S. in biochem, chem, or biology is not really great - I don't know of any preference for biochem. Chemical engineering, though, is usually in demand so that could be an option.


Anyhow, as far as I know a PharmD program is four years. The prereqs can be done in two - it is not necessarily you need just two years of college but rather you have to have X many hours in biology, Y hours in chemistry, and Z hours in other stuff. You can get a bachelor's prior to enrolling into pharmacy school, but as far as I am aware that is not an absolute requirement.

 

[Circlenaut]

Originally posted by: Babbles

Originally posted by: invidia

Originally posted by: RKS

Originally posted by: matas
What are my other options besides a major in a medical field?

well if you are asian then the only other honorable option is engineering. my kids have the option of being anything they want as long as it is an MD, PhD (engineer) or as a last resort, J

PhD in physics gives way more diversity than in engineering. Every science research group has a physicist.

Why JD for last resort?

Maybe in academia, but as somebody who has worked in the industry for ten years my experience is that this is in no way true at all.

Originally posted by: uclaLabrat
If you're looking to do a 4 year degree, the best majors I think would be either biochem or chem, with biochem being slightly preferred.

Science jobs are sucking ass big time. A B.S. in biochem, chem, or biology is not really great - I don't know of any preference for biochem. Chemical engineering, though, is usually in demand so that could be an option.


Anyhow, as far as I know a PharmD program is four years. The prereqs can be done in two - it is not necessarily you need just two years of college but rather you have to have X many hours in biology, Y hours in chemistry, and Z hours in other stuff. You can get a bachelor's prior to enrolling into pharmacy school, but as far as I am aware that is not an absolute requirement.

It's not a requirement but it's a large leg up compared to other people applying. Also some schools require MORE pre-reqs if you don't have a B.S.

 

[Circlenaut]

Originally posted by: matas

Originally posted by: Pippy

Originally posted by: matas
After taking computer science 2 (intro to java) I decided to stay away from engineering and computer majors, because I've heard that engineers have to program.. I am thinking about pharmD major, or some pharmaceutical research major. To become a pharmD, I have to take 2 years worth of pre-pharms courses and another 6 years after it. There is only one college in New Jersey that offers pharmacy degree. It's Rutgers, a state university. There are a lot of pre-pharms school tho. I guess it would be a good idea to go to some other college for pre-pharm and then transfer to Rutgers? I don't really like Rutgers, but it would be cheaper than other out of state schools. How hard is the pharmacy field? Not sure if I am going to get normal replies here at atot.

This looks straight out of my book. I came into WPI originally as a computer science major. Took 2 CS courses [intro to programming (scheme) and Java]. I got an A on my first one and dropped Java. I started taking bio classes for the hell of it and liked it. I'm finishing my junior year and my plan is to apply to pharm school. I've finished pretty much all of my pre-requisites, I only have to take a few humanity electives for certain schools that require it. Transferring into a 6-year pharm-d program is very very hard. I have a 3.8 and solid recommendations and didn't get in. Best bet is to finish your undergraduate and apply to a 4-year graduate program (UF, UT Austin, UC (various), UA) Pretty much a bunch of southern state universities. Also A good bit of these schools don't require the PCAT. They tend to be the higher tier schools. My plan is to apply to the non PCAT schools, if I don't get into any I'll work for a year and study for the PCAT and then apply to the remaining schools.

To the guy that said major in math and minor in biology, he is very correct. Biostaticians and Bioinformatics get paid A LOT. A bachelors and a few year's experience nets you 80K+. I can't imagine what PhD's make. So if you have that skill set, I'd choose that over pharmacy. I happen to suck at math and CS, so...

If you're worried about in-state tuition. Apply to the schools, defer for a year, work, then attend.

Never heard of Biostaticians and Bioinformatics, what do they do?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bioinformatics