Going back to college - Need HELP!!!

[chell]

Since my life has been turned upside down over the last few months I am considering going back to college.

Where can I find the best help for financial aid? I'm looking on-line but some of it is so overwhelming.

There has to be something to help a woman get a Pharmacy degree, especially since you don't see too many women Pharmacists and they don't expect to have enough people in the field over the years. Can you help me with this? Do you know where more detailed info is?

I've been reading all kinds of stuff tonight but still haven't found what I'm looking for.

Have you gone back to college in your 30's or later? What was it like? What would have made it better or easier on you? What should I know trying to go into this?

 

[Caradana]

Pharm.D is a six-year program, and pretty challenging. Do you have a science background - have you taken any chemistry?

 

[New England Eeyore]

There has to be something to help a woman get a Pharmacy degree, especially since you don't see too many women Pharmacists and they don't expect to have enough people in the field over the years. Can you help me with this? Do you know where more detailed info is?

I don't think you're going to find any specific aid for this. In my geographic area the male/female ratio is pretty close to 50/50. They don't recruit women specifically. I would start with the colleges themselves. Just keep in mind that pharmacy is a 6 year degree so student loans can become enormous. If there are any state schools that offer the degree that'd be your best bet.

Some pharmacy chains do offer tuition reimbursement. This is mainly for existing pharmacy technicians or students that they recruit before the end of the six years with a promise to pay off their loans if they work for them when they graduate.

Good luck! If you have any specific questions about the field or the degree, feel free to PM me. I went to college right out of high school, but in my graduating class there was a fair percentage of older adult students. This was right before the demand for pharmacists skyrocketed.

 

[ericamanda01]

The first thing you should do is check with your school. Then go to http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/index.htm and fill out the financial aid info. I know it looks overwelming, but trust me they won't ask anything you wouldn't know or have access to, ie tax returns. You wouldn't believe the amount of scholarships for. Heck I saw a scholarship for tall people. No joke, people over 6 feet. There is a ton of things to help with school costs. Good luck.

 

[horseshowmom]

I agree with checking with the student financial aid office at the school you want to attend. That would be your best bet.

My DD is in pharmacy school now. She is an Early Entry student (which means that even though she's a freshman, she's already admitted to the pharmacy school - as long as her GPA stays up ).

Her EE class of 50 students is made up of 37 females and 13 males. Approx. 20% of the class lost their EE status after the first semester (due to grades).

While DD's fortunate to have a large dollar amount of scholarships, many of the others in her EE group got very little financial aid (other than loans). Keep in mind that these were exemplary students to have gotten chosen for EE to start with. Finding aid can be really tough.

Good luck!

 

[chell]

Thanks everyone!

Wonder if they have scholarships for short people too?

 

[chell]

Tomorrow I am meeting with someone from the financial aid office.

Becoming a Pharmacist is my dream job and I know it is a long haul, but I'm willing to make the trek if I can find the right assistance.

Of course there are several other areas I am interested in as well. As long as I end up doing something to help others I'll be just fine.

 

[horseshowmom]

It is a long, hard haul, but the salary makes it worthwhile once you're out. Even the student who finishes at the bottom of the class, will have more than enough offers due to the shortage.

Competition to get in is fierce. For DD's EE class, there were students from all over the country who went through the application process and were at interview day. One of them told DD that this was the 3rd EE program they had interviewed for with the hopes of getting admitted into at least one of them.

DD said that this year's regular entry class (which would be Juniors), had many individuals who already had degrees (an electrical engineer with a M.S., and several with doctorate degrees). They got extra points in the process for having the degrees.

If you are determined that this is what you want, by all means, go for it. Good luck!

 

[sk8belle]

Have you tried FastWeb? I've only done a little exploring with it as I still need to take my GRE, but it seems like it might be a good resource.

Good luck!