What major should I take to become a Pharmacist?
Most pre-pharm do chemistry, biochemistry etc. Some places have an actual pharmacology major or even pre-pharm major. It would depend on your university. You can look at a few pharm school web sites to get a general feel for what they are asking for. You major in the major that includes the most amount of pre-reqs needed for a career and provides the best background for the {pharm} program. Minors are usually a small collection of classes that either are just for interest or complement the major to some degree, they are not enough to qualify you to have extensive knowledge in that area. Math is probably not a good major for pharmacy as there is no chem or bio at all in that major. You do not need a class in imaginary numbers to be a pharmacist.
What should i Become: Pharmacist or Lawyer?
HAHA, good question kiddo. I just graduated from law school in LA and I have two sibblings that are pharmacists, and one that is a physican (MD). We constantly talk about the pros and cons of our prospective and current carrers. My twin brother is actually in his last year of pharm school. Anyways, here it goes. Pharmacist: Pros: great starting pay, 100k+, job security- the demand will outlast the supply for a long time, easy work, Cons: some question if its a "real" profession, by this, what I mean is that pharmacist does not have the autonomy of other profession (think MD and lawyers), they do not get the "prestigee" that most feel they deserve, and in a lot of states they have no lunch break, and although their pay starts high, they reach a ceiling quite quickly Lawyers Pros: average salary is high 118k, a lot of autonomy in work, your work makes you feel important, a lot of respect(or hatred, haha) when you tell ppl that you are a lawyer, and a lot of room for growth, only 3 years of law school Cons: A LOT of debt (most will owe 120k+), crazy competition both for work and during work, no job security, a lot of stress, lawyers are the most unhealthy, lonliest, and most likely to commit suicide of all profession. starting pay is often LOW, 70k, although some start with 160k I hope this helped, I choice Law, and sometimes have regretted it, in fact a lot of classmates share the same sentiment. The law profession is hard, takes a lot of dedication, and requires a certain personality. It is harder to become a lawyer. I dont know what your definnition of "good" lifestyle is but the pharmacist does not require so much hours . All total, I would still pick the law profession but thats me. Gluck kid, I suggest once you enter college go towards the path of pharmacy cause there is no particular class requirement for law school.
I want to become a pharmacist?
how hard is the school? just give me some adivce im still very young 16 but it is something i am veryy veryy interested in any advice you could give me or schools i should check out i live near philedelphia pa anything would help good job or not how hard is it all that fun stuff thank youuuu :]
Becoming a pharmacist?
You can't go directly into pharmacy school. You need to complete a bachelors degree or at least the majority of it. The college will give a list of prerequisites you need to have completely usually something like this: Math (through Calc I or Calc II) BIOLOGY microbiology anatomy physiology at least 2 upper division (3000 level or above) bio courses such as genetics, cell biology, virology, something along those lines CHEMISTRY general chem I & II Organic I & II Some schools make you take Biochemistry as well English 2 semesters of college level english (probably a freshman comp I and II course) and general freshman courses such as history, government etc. After you have taken those courses you need to take whats called the PCAT it is a pharmacy entrance exam. Not all pharmacy schools require them but its a plus. Usually you need to make a minimum of a 50 on it. They usually want you to have SOME experience in a pharmacy setting, even if its just interviewing a pharmacist Pharmacy schools are not only difficult but very competitive! They want to select people into the programs that they know will complete them!! There is no bachelors in pharmacy or masters in pharmacy, once you complete a pharmacy school you have a PharmD degree, a doctor of pharmacy. You CAN get a phD though Hope this helps!! BTW many people just complete 2 years at community college and apply, it saves a lot of time and money but you will really have to buckle down and learn the classes seriously! best of luck! As for movie out of the country though... American degrees are fairly employable, but every country has its own standards. Mostly likely you would have to take a licensing exam in the other country even if you had taken one in the US. But you can always volunteer outside the US which is a wonderful thing to do. GPA - aim for a 3.7 or above!
How long does it take to become a pharmacist?
Only Sandra had a good answer. I'll try and break it down simply. To be a pharmacist in the US, you need to go to pharmacy school which is a grad school. Pharmacy schools, like other medically related grad schools, have a certain list of required courses they want you to take before you start pharmacy school (see each individual pharm school for their specific list). Pharmacy school normally lasts 4 years. Schools like Univ of Pacific in California last only 3 years because they are year round and don't have a summer break like "regular" pharmacy schools. Now, technically, pharmacy schools don't require you to get a bachelors degree. It only takes 2 years to finish all those required courses. If you wanted to speed through, it'd take you 5 years (2 yrs in undergrad, and then 3 yrs at a school like UOP). Or, 6 years at a regular schedule pharm school. However, pharmacy is extremely competitive. So, many applicants get a bachelors degree (4 yrs or so) before applying to pharm school in order to look better on the application. Doing that, it'd take you 8 yrs (4 undergrad, 4 pharm school) or 7 at a school like UOP. In a state like CA, it's quite competitive so having a 4 yr bachelors degree seems to be the norm rather than the exception.
How hard is becoming a pharmacist?
I am actually getting into pharmacy myself. I've done a lot of research and it takes two years of pre-requisites in any college. Wether it is a community college or university. Pre-requisites mostly consist of all the sciences (Chemistry, Biology, Anatomy, and Physics) as well as calculus and english. After he graduates from two years of college he can then move onto Pharmacy school which is four years long. The name of the pharmacy program is called PharmD. These days pharmacists graduate with a PharmD rather than a bachelor's or master's degree in pharmacy. It is a much better degree to achieve than any other degree in pharmacy. His home-schooling should not effect him at all. As long as he keeps a high Grade point average score and possibly keep himself involved in extra curricular activities as well as volunteer work then he should have no problem getting into the PharmD program. I've also researched the salary which you can look up on www.salary.com and type in the zip code of where he plans on working in the future. Retail Pharmacists can start off anywhere between $100,000/year to $200,000.00. Opening up your own pharmacy, you can make more money by doing that, well because it's your own business. Pharmacists can also work in hospitals or clinics. The only great thing about working at a major retail pharmacy like (CVS or Walgreens) are the benefits and more opportunity to advance. Hospital pharmacists work longer hours so they have more respect but lesser pay. California is considered one of the states where pharmacists can earn more salary. Just keep in mind that it takes a lot of dedication and patience to get through with this program. Chemistry is one of the hardest sciences to study and that is why pharmacists get paid very well. Good luck to him!
Should I become a pharmacist or a physician?
I am a Pharmacist. It really depends on what you want out of your career. If I had it to do over again, I would probably would not go into Pharmacy. The P-Schools will tell you how your clinical expertise will be so wonderful and valuable. In reality, it depends on what your practice setting is, but most of your time will be spent getting yelled at by patients about how much their meds cost, arguing with insurance companies about coverage or trying multiple times to get a clarification back from a doctors office. The job requires massive training and a strong ego - most people see Pharmacists as little more than a pill counter. The salaries in my experience are diff from other poster. Min of $100K for Pharmacist, but much more for Anesthesiologist. If I had to do it again, I would do something like Dentist or Podiatrist - more autonomy (most Pharmacy jobs these days are employee jobs), more money and less aggravation. All in all, the money's good, but you are dead wrong on the hours. A Pharmacist position without nights and/or weekends is few and far between. If you are looking to balance work/life by being a Pharmacist, you would need to look for a Part-Time job. If you husband gets benefits through his work, then it can work out well - work 20-30hrs/week and still make a decent salary, but don't fall for the song and dance that the P-Schools sell...it is a tough job with a decent but not fabulous salary and not a lot of professional rewards. Again, if I were you, I would look into another field. Honestly, who cares if you're digging around in people's mouths or feet if you can get enough satisfaction from it and are compensated enough that you are able to effectively manage work and family life. Just my two or three cents worth, but there you have it!