Torn between two pharmacy schools

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St. Louis College of Pharmacy. Oldest College of Pharmacy West of the Mississippi. Did go to UIC for a post grad degree program, but that was 10 years later.
 
40 K is still a lot of money, unless you would spend it on rent at the distant school
 
I second that; an extra $40,000 is no small thing, and student loan debts are set up to keep mushrooming unless you can make big payments. That would be my biggest concern.
 
OP, congratulations on your acceptance to these schools. My Dad was a pharmacist for close to 50 years and is now happily retired. However, as a Catholic pharmacist, he struggled with the need to avoid dispensing birth control. He worked at a VA hospital so his exposure to birth control was less than if he was at a Walgreens or CVS pharmacy. He discouraged his 11 kids from this noble profession, only because of the contraceptive issue. Have you given thought to this serious issue? Best to you in your chosen career.
 
We have conscience rights in Illinois, last time I checked. However, I still don’t know if I can be fired for refusing to dispense a contraceptive.
 
If you ultimately are employed in a institution or store, you must make this known to management/employer prior to facing such situations. Contraceptives are only a fraction of the ethical and moral issues you will encounter. Medications are neutral; the intended use may be a concern.

In addition to the link @TheLittleLady mentioned, I would suggest looking into student membership in the American Pharmacists Association or American Society of Health-System Pharmacists. Student membership isn’t too costly, and offers opportunities to network with peers.
 
I would say option 2 because you say you felt uneasy at option 1 despite it being cheaper. You will never learn anything valuable if it doesn’t fit your learning style, and massive classes, and you feel uneasy about it. I think it’s wiser to go option 2 despite paying more.

Anyway you can leverage school 1 against school 2 in order to get a grant or scholarship?
 
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I understand that some contraceptives have morally sound uses, but, how would I even know? As someone who is just dispensing the meds, would it be right to ask what the medicine is being used for? I always imagined it’s none of my business as the pharmacist.
 
Personally, I’d choose the larger school. If they have a good reputation and are a larger research institution, you will likely have access to better internships/residencies and other such programs. Never underestimate the value of networking either- when it’s time to find a job, professors from well known schools tend to know a lot of important people and can help you to make good connections. If the field really is getting saturated, you’ll need that.

I don’t think that the “no set office hours” thing is necessarily a plus. Professors don’t hang out all day in their offices waiting for students to show up- if there are no office hours, you’ll need to contact them to set up an appointment, and you can do that anyway at the larger institution if you can’t find time during regular office hours.

As for the research thing, I do tend to agree that sometimes quality of education suffers for undergrads, but not generally for graduate students.

Then there is the money…$40,000 (likely more due to yearly tuition increases) is not insignificant. Especially if you have any plans to marry and start a family.

However- if you think you’re likely to hate the larger school enough to drop out, then I’d say go for the program you’re most likely to stick with. Otherwise, I think the larger school is a wiser option.
 
There is much more to the practice of Pharmacy than just dispensing a product. This was once the case (50’s/60’s), but is not considered ethical or legally defensible.

Do not fret this, all this is part of education and integration into the profession. While some loudly voice issues, it isn’t worth ANY worry.
 
Okay, so I did my undergrad in one of the best schools in the nation. It was impossible for me to Network because I spent all my time studying. I also was never able to get an internship or other opportunities because I was either priced out, didn’t have time to apply, or had the door slammed in my face. Having a ton of stuff available at my school didn’t really matter because so few people at my school were able to take advantage of them. I imagine I should be able to get more opportunities at the smaller school because I’m more likely to stand out and there are really more opportunities than there are pharm students.
 
Have you thought of taking a year off before you go to pharmacy school?
 
Why would she want to do that though? She is already accepted to both…
 
Okay then. I’d say go with number one because it’ll take you more places and you’re just sacrificing a little bit of time now so that you can do more later.
 
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