ivory_plr
Here it is…I currently go an undergrad school and I’m a senior now. Last year I have been accepted into an early assurance pharmacy program for after I graduate where I would go to pharmacy school for 3 years after undergrad school. I realized, however, that this place is like 8 hours away from where I live and decided that I will apply to more local schools instead and rescind my early assurance spot from that place, called “LECOM”. I am currently in the process of applying to local schools, such as Albany College of Pharmacy, Massachusetts College of Pharmacy in Worcester, Northeastern University, UCONN Pharmacy, etc. I didn’t submit the applications yet, but am practically ready to. I also took the PCAT and got 81 composite score (74-verbal, 74-bio, 41-reading, 82-math, 93-chemistry). My mom supports me in whatever it is I do, however, once she found out that some pharmacy schools (such as Albany College of Pharmacy, etc.) take kids right out of high school for a “0-6” pathway, she realized what was the sense of even going to undergrad school and wasting all that time and money when I could have just went from high school? And to be completely honest, I don’t blame her for feeling like this, I’d be angry too having to spend practically $50,000 a year for four years when I didn’t need to (but for the record, I considered being an optometrist when I was in high school and didn’t consider pharmacy at the time). Although my mom does support me in whatever I do, she firmly believes that I might as well aim for higher and become a doctor. I’ll be honest, I wouldn’t exactly call pharmacy nor doctor a “passion” of mine, but regardless, I don’t look at my career that way anyway. I definitely want to work in the healthcare field because of good job opportunities and potentially to live a financially stable life, but I truthfully can see myself as either a doctor or pharmacist. I have been also doing some extra thinking lately if I should stick with pharmacy because of the work I already put into it, or if I should switch to doctor if it’s not too late? BUT ALSO KNOW THIS…I recently called LECOM and asked the dean if it would be possible for me to switch from their pharmacy early assurance to their “D.O.” early assurance program. He said yes, but I need to shadow and get a recommendation letter from a D.O., two letters of recommendation from two science teachers, and get at least a 25 or higher on the MCAT with no sections lower than 7 … all of which needs to be submitted before December 1st…but I’m starting school again this fall and have a 16 credit workload and don’t even know how I’d study for it (it would be challenging). If I can miraculously pull all this off before the deadline, I’d be guaranteed a seat in their D.O. program. As for my pharmacy applications for local schools, everything is pretty much done (except for the supplementals) and ready to be submitted.
I would like to know what you all think of what I just told you. I feel like I am in one of the biggest binds of my life right now, and either career I can see myself doing. I want to know what you guys think I should do and I HONESTLY don’t want to hear “do what you want to do…” because, I’m just under a lot of pressure right now and not exactly sure which path to take especially because of this new opportunity that came about. Please give me a full explanation of which path you may think may be the better path to take. I’m just really in a toss up right now and need some advice and feedback. That would be most appreciated. If you need to know anything else, please tell me and I will respond back to you right away.
And by the way.... what I said about the conditions for me to switch from LECOM's pharmacy to their D.O. program, the dean said if cannot meet the conditions for the MCAT, I will not be able to enter their early assurance D.O. program NOR their early assurance pharmacy program (but like I said, this place is like 8 hours away, so the only reason I'd go that far anyway would be for their D.O. program rather than their pharmacy program).