What are my chances?

Question: First of all I really want to thank you for your blog and I am very fortunate to have come across it. There is a lot of useful information for people like me who are trying to pursue a career in pharmacy.I do have some questions though.

I graduated with a Bachelors of Science degree in Microbiology in December 2006. My overall GPA was a 2.9 with 3.34 Science GPA. My first two years in college were pretty rough as I was still deciding what to do. When i did start taking biology and chemistry classes I really enjoyed those and it showed on my transcript for the last two years. Then I was offered a job before I even graduated, in a auto insurance company. I know..completely different. So, I took that job and am currently doing that full-time. I got married right after graduation and decided to keep working full-time to be able to afford tuition for my husband's masters degree in bioengineering. I did a lot of research and also a lot of self-evaluation and I know that I want a career in the health field. My mother is a gynecologist and I was practically raised in her clinic. I did a lot of volunteer work in high school and I am going back to that.

I am now very interested in Pharmacy as a career. I have already started studying for the PCAT. I plan to apply to Pharmacy school in 2011.-Looking at my background, do you think that I have a good chance if I excel in my PCAT?-also, I have been out of school for about 3 years now and by the time I am ready to apply it will be 5 years. Will my transcripts will still be valid and do I need a Letter of Recommendation from a professor?-By my volunteering and working with a pharmacist ( a span of 1 year), I am hoping that I can get LOR from a pharmacist and a supervisor where I volunteered.


Answer: Graduating with a degree in Microbiology is something that should help your application significantly. Your solid science GPA is a plus also. Having difficulty in your early college years is not uncommon and should be addressed in your personal statement. I know there are a couple of blog entries realting specifically to this. If you have a chance to search the blog, I would encourage you to do so.

Your PCAT will determine much of what you success will be. I would say that if you haven't taken any classes in the last 3 years, obtaining a professor LOR is probably unrealistic unless you had a very close relationship with someone. Each school will be different when determining how long ago you have completed coursework and if the credits will transfer. I would not imagine 3 years to be excessively long in this regard, but 5 years might be beyond the threshold at some schools. I recommend contacting the schools you are interested in directly and asking them.

And yes, I think it would be beneficial to get some pharmacy experience and ultimately a pharmacist LOR. Much of your success (and this goes for all applicants) in gaining acceptance into a school of pharmacy depends on the sacrifices you are willing to make. You may have a "dream" school you wish to attend. Or perhaps there is a school of pharmacy in the town where you live. If you are not accepted into your one or two most desired programs, are you willing to relocate if necessary? These are the difficult decisions that you should be thinking about and developing a plan for. Good luck.