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Hey guys, my grades aren't really stellar and I'm a HS senior but to be honest I can really care less where I go to college as long as it has -some- name to it.
For example, I really want to go to Uni in Colorado but as much as I'd love to go to community college for a year and transfer to Colorado College, I just can't afford the more prestigeous schools (Uni of Denver, Colorado College etc)
I'm planning to go into Pre-Pharmacy and majoring in Biology and I can really care less where I go to college because I feel like an education is an education. I thrive on smaller classroom sizes and the big lecture halls just don't do it for me. Is this a mistake? Should I stress about prestige of a school?
Thanks in advance, any other additional advice you'd like to give me would be loved!
You need to stop caring less and start thinking more. You know what's best for you. If you thrive in a smaller setting, then go to a smaller college. If you can't afford a big-name university, don't put yourself in massive debt to go to one. If you're good at what you do, you'll stand out over someone with a "name" on their degree who doesn't do as well as you!
Hey guys, my grades aren't really stellar and I'm a HS senior but to be honest I can really care less where I go to college as long as it has -some- name to it.
For example, I really want to go to Uni in Colorado but as much as I'd love to go to community college for a year and transfer to Colorado College, I just can't afford the more prestigeous schools (Uni of Denver, Colorado College etc)
I'm planning to go into Pre-Pharmacy and majoring in Biology and I can really care less where I go to college because I feel like an education is an education. I thrive on smaller classroom sizes and the big lecture halls just don't do it for me. Is this a mistake? Should I stress about prestige of a school?
Thanks in advance, any other additional advice you'd like to give me would be loved!
Prestige will not matter if you want to pursue pharmacology in grad school. What would matter, regardless of where you attend undergrad, is what courses you take and your GPA. While you can enter pharma through biology, doing biochem would make more sense.
If you are insistent on the biology track (my guess because you think it is the easiest science), you would need to take more math and chemistry than required for your major. Most biology majors these days only require one semester of calculus and either basic statistics or biostats; at least at the "non-top tier" schools. You should take calculus through to calc III, but can get away with just doing calc I and calc II.
Your basic biology track will also require general chem I and II and then organic chem I and II. You should take biochem, advanced biochem, if offered, and analytical chemistry as electives. Also, if the school offers it, you should take something along the lines of a molecular techniques course (which is essentially lab, not lecture) that teaches you specific laboratory techniques.
And, the most important thing you can do would be to get involved in research by your junior year at the latest.
You should only care about prestige to the point it actually affects your intended career. If pharmacology is like most fields, where you went to undergrad won't really matter so long as you went to a good enough school and took advantages of all the resources it had to offer. If you want to get the bangingest bang for your buckity buck, do the classic 2+2 between your local community college and Colorado State or CU-Boulder.
First of, thanks everyone for taking the time to reply!
K-Luv, you do have a point about the Biochemistry. To be honest, I was battling between the two but I figured if for some reason I don't want to indulge in that field anymore I can fall back on my Bio degree and try out Ph.D in Herpetology as a backup. I'll definitely consider it, but I don't have the strongest background in math except Algebra. I know it sounds odd, someone who isn't really a math person wanting to go into Pharmacy or Pharmacology which is why I'm sort of looking away at Biochemistry because I might not have the pre-reqs for it (I'm not even in Trig)... but I believe I have the drive to turn that around.
Heavenwood and Amisi, thanks! I really stress about student debt and I want to do what's best for me educationally AND financially. As long as prestige won't hinder my chances at getting hired, then I will continue to just not care and do what is best for me.
I don't know about pharmacology, but most pharmacy schools only require 1 semester of calculus and a semester of stats (along with general and organic chemistry, biology, anatomy and physiology, economics, and other assorted courses) as well as a certain number of documented hours volunteering/shadowing a pharmacist. The prerequisite requirements very by school, so it helps to have a pretty good idea of which pharmacy school you will eventually want to apply to. Here is the list published by the AACP http://www.aacp.org/resources/studen...narratives.pdf
It's getting more and more competitive to get accepted, so a high GPA and PCAT scores are very necessary.
Don't worry about going to a prestigious college. What's important is that you get the skills you need for a career and that you can apply them at a future job.
I'd have to disagree with the above posters. Going to a prestigious school DOES matter, just not as much as getting a high PCAT / GPA is.
Also, biochem is a good idea for pharmacy. Calc for bio majors is pretty easy (it's not going to be the same as the engineering track). Anyone who has issues with basic calc probably shouldn't be a pharmacist anyway.. you'll need those skills for p-chem and physics. However, I'm sure you'll be fine.. don't psych yourself out.
K-Luv gave you some really good and specific advice a couple posts up. A straight bio degree isn't worth nearly as much as a biochem / chem or bioengineering type degree. Picking up a couple computer courses will also give you an option for bioinformatics (really high paid bio profession), and the specialized tools you use are pretty easy to pick up.
Honestly prestige matters a little. No it doesn't need to be Ivy League - or anywhere close, but a solid college is a good choice.
People seem to rum in extremes when it comes to this issue. Ivy or Community - with very little inbetween.
I like all those wonderful in between colleges.
And for heaven's sake, avoid colleges with bad reps! There are so many struggling private religious colleges that seem to appeal to parents because they are private. They are not usually good. They are expensive and don't have a lot of money to hand out.
I think pretty much any university that is accredited is probably just fine. You don't need an Ivy League education but you also don't want to go to some school like Bob Jones University either.
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