Which major is better for law school: pharmacy or history? Forum

[Jackie O]

Do pharm, get a job. Forget law school. Don't be another Jackie O

pharm degree won't add much value, if any - it might make you stick out a tiny bit more (it was referenced in all of the little notes I received with my acceptances), but this could also be a bad thing (one adcomm condescendingly asked me if I knew that law school involved writing after I told him my background)

I definitely would have had a better cycle if I had a bit of a higher gpa, despite being in the top 10% at pharm school (my gpa is just under a 3.7 - this proved to be impressive to no one but myself)

[Shaggier1]

Which major is better for law school: pharmacy or history?

The one that does not require two additional years of school just for the sake of getting a "Dr." title that you will never use.

[d34d9823]

Fine, since you're clearly such a nice guy, I'll answer your original question, again, even though I have already multiple times:

A PharmD will be a small boost over a history degree, probably equivalent to that of an engineering major.

One caveat: That boost will be rendered useless if this mythical applicant (see, I know we're not talking about you now) writes his or her application in such a way that they come off as pompous and arrogant.

and even if you told me the opposite I would still give you a

Lol, you know that he's mocking you, right?

[Holly Golightly]

Do pharm, get a job. Forget law school. Don't be another Jackie O

pharm degree won't add much value, if any - it might make you stick out a tiny bit more (it was referenced in all of the little notes I received with my acceptances), but this could also be a bad thing (one adcomm condescendingly asked me if I knew that law school involved writing after I told him my background)

I definitely would have had a better cycle if I had a bit of a higher gpa, despite being in the top 10% at pharm school (my gpa is just under a 3.7 - this proved to be impressive to no one but myself)

BUT you're also going to be making sweet money while you go to law school.

[MrKappus]

3.5 in History major >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> 3.4 in Pharm.

Pharm is not as rigorous as engins (I don't even think it's close).

[Jackie O]

3.5 in History major >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> 3.4 in Pharm.

Pharm is not as rigorous as engins (I don't even think it's close).

lets not start this debate


and thank god Holly!

[drgodfather]

Fine, since you're clearly such a nice guy, I'll answer your original question, again, even though I have already multiple times:

A PharmD will be a small boost over a history degree, probably equivalent to that of an engineering major.

One caveat: That boost will be rendered useless if this mythical applicant (see, I know we're not talking about you now) writes his or her application in such a way that they come off as pompous and arrogant.

and even if you told me the opposite I would still give you a

Lol, you know that he's mocking you, right?

lol yes and I was too

Shaggier1, what makes you say that? I get the impression you have a bias against pharmacists to begin with.

[005618502]

Pharmacy major.... are you kidding me?? why would you even do it if you want to go to law school? It makes absolutly no sense. I dont understand why it would be a question.

And no the fact that it is a "DR" doesnt mean a thing, if you went to med school then it might mean something! But that may be the only thing that would waste more time then wasting 2 years for a pharmacy degree

And no pharmacy school is not even close to as difficult as and engineer degree. I started as a Biochem major and knew many Pharmacy majors as well as engineer majors, and pharmacy doesnt compare.

[MTal]

Pharmacy. That way, when you can't find a job as a lawyer, you'll have something to fall back on.

[Barolo]

GPA is GPA. The rankings are not predicated on where you got it or what you studied. Minor soft IF you sell it well (i.e. articulate why LS makes sense in light of what you have done and how your pharm degree will add to your legal ambitions). Otherwise, it's two more expensive years of school. That said, I don't see too many applications in which it would help -- doc review by day, walgreens by night???

Also, OP -- we're encouraged to be petty and snarky on this site, but not rude -- it's a very fine line.

[Jackie O]

Pharmacy major.... are you kidding me?? why would you even do it if you want to go to law school? It makes absolutly no sense. I dont understand why it would be a question.

And no the fact that it is a "DR" doesnt mean a thing, if you went to med school then it might mean something! But that may be the only thing that would waste more time then wasting 2 years for a pharmacy degree

And no pharmacy school is not even close to as difficult as and engineer degree. I started as a Biochem major and knew many Pharmacy majors as well as engineer majors, and pharmacy doesnt compare.

jt, the pharmacist --> lawyer route is not that crazy; there is even a society for it (ASPL)
there are many opportunities ranging from the FDA, patent law with pharma companies, representing pharmacists, etc

maybe in your experience it did not seem to compare because the first two years of pharmacy school are cake - it's the last 4 years (the professional years comparable to a grad school) that are rigorous. I will not make the claim that pharmacy is necessarily harder than engineering (though I think it's safe to say compared to some of the easy engineering majors) but it's definitely on the same playing field - almost all of my non-pharm friends are engineers, including my bf; I have a pretty good idea of the rigor required of both programs
please quit your sass, tyia

[DanInALionsDen]

Based on your original and subsequent posts, I don't understand whether you're asking which degree will prepare you more for law school, or which will give you a better chance of getting in.

Either way, the answer is history (assuming that you, like almost everyone else, can get a higher GPA in history than in pharm). GPA is what matters out of undergrad. Difficulty of the major is a weak soft, because ultimately, you having a difficult major doesn't undo the damage to a law school's selectivity rating that admitting a low GPA candidate will do. Law schools care about their rank.

That said, you also seem to have some sort of personality disorder.

[Barolo]

there are many opportunities ranging from the FDA, patent law with pharma companies, representing pharmacists, etc

That's a totally reasonable point...

[d34d9823]

.

[drgodfather]

That said, you also seem to have some sort of personality disorder.

Are you a psychiatrist or psychologist?




All of this seems so odd to me, law schools only care about their stats and not the kind of people that get admitted? With the logic used in this thread it makes me feel like an elementary education major with a 3.5 would be better than a pharmacy major with a 3.4. If they aren't going to analyze the candidate and only the numbers then I don't see why anyone would apply to law school, it gives me the impression they really don't care about the students.

[JordynAsh]

That said, you also seem to have some sort of personality disorder.

Are you a psychiatrist or psychologist?




All of this seems so odd to me, law schools only care about their stats and not the kind of people that get admitted? With the logic used in this thread it makes me feel like an elementary education major with a 3.5 would be better than a pharmacy major with a 3.4. If they aren't going to analyze the candidate and only the numbers then I don't see why anyone would apply to law school, it gives me the impression they really don't care about the students.

Welcome to law school admissions.

[mallard]

That said, you also seem to have some sort of personality disorder.

Are you a psychiatrist or psychologist?




All of this seems so odd to me, law schools only care about their stats and not the kind of people that get admitted? With the logic used in this thread it makes me feel like an elementary education major with a 3.5 would be better than a pharmacy major with a 3.4. If they aren't going to analyze the candidate and only the numbers then I don't see why anyone would apply to law school, it gives me the impression they really don't care about the students.

LOL, gtfo. Pharmacy isn't rocket science. It doesn't take a genius and I see no reason to think the skills needed for a PharmD overlap in any particular way with the skills needed for law school.

[Kilpatrick]

Wow you mean law school admissions is heavily numbers-based? I am amazed it only took you two weeks to figure this out.

[drgodfather]

That said, you also seem to have some sort of personality disorder.

Are you a psychiatrist or psychologist?




All of this seems so odd to me, law schools only care about their stats and not the kind of people that get admitted? With the logic used in this thread it makes me feel like an elementary education major with a 3.5 would be better than a pharmacy major with a 3.4. If they aren't going to analyze the candidate and only the numbers then I don't see why anyone would apply to law school, it gives me the impression they really don't care about the students.

LOL, gtfo. Pharmacy isn't rocket science. It doesn't take a genius and I see no reason to think the skills needed for a PharmD overlap in any particular way with the skills needed for law school.

lol don't tell me, you're a liberal arts major right? What do you know about pharmacy and the classes Jackie O and I have taken?

[drgodfather]

That said, you also seem to have some sort of personality disorder.

Are you a psychiatrist or psychologist?




All of this seems so odd to me, law schools only care about their stats and not the kind of people that get admitted? With the logic used in this thread it makes me feel like an elementary education major with a 3.5 would be better than a pharmacy major with a 3.4. If they aren't going to analyze the candidate and only the numbers then I don't see why anyone would apply to law school, it gives me the impression they really don't care about the students.

Welcome to law school admissions.

So you think my example is true?

[Jackie O]

That said, you also seem to have some sort of personality disorder.

Are you a psychiatrist or psychologist?




All of this seems so odd to me, law schools only care about their stats and not the kind of people that get admitted? With the logic used in this thread it makes me feel like an elementary education major with a 3.5 would be better than a pharmacy major with a 3.4. If they aren't going to analyze the candidate and only the numbers then I don't see why anyone would apply to law school, it gives me the impression they really don't care about the students.

oh quit your whining - law schools care about their admission stats; LSAT and gpa are the most important factors. If it comes down to you and an education major with the same numbers (assuming all else is equal) you would likely be accepted over that individual. If someone has a higher gpa than you, even if it is some BS major - it helps their stats; simply being a pharmacist is not enough of a wow factor for you to fly to the top of the applicants.

[drgodfather]

That said, you also seem to have some sort of personality disorder.

Are you a psychiatrist or psychologist?




All of this seems so odd to me, law schools only care about their stats and not the kind of people that get admitted? With the logic used in this thread it makes me feel like an elementary education major with a 3.5 would be better than a pharmacy major with a 3.4. If they aren't going to analyze the candidate and only the numbers then I don't see why anyone would apply to law school, it gives me the impression they really don't care about the students.

oh quit your whining - law schools care about their admission stats; LSAT and gpa are the most important factors. If it comes down to you and an education major with the same numbers (assuming all else is equal) you would likely be accepted over that individual. If someone has a higher gpa than you, even if it is some BS major - it helps their stats; simply being a pharmacist is not enough of a wow factor for you to fly to the top of the applicants.

Does this mentality exist in the law schools below the top 14?

[mallard]

lol don't tell me, you're a liberal arts major right? What do you know about pharmacy and the classes Jackie O and I have taken?

Please list all of the useful things from a pharmacy degree that have prepared you for law school. Then ask whether engineering, math, computer science, theoretical physics, etc. lack those things. Then ask whether history, English, philosophy, sociology, anthropology, psychology, etc. actually lack those things.

[Jackie O]

Does this mentality exist in the law schools below the top 14?

schools vary with how big of number whores they are and some are a bit more holistic where the pharmd may carry more weight, but generally yes

[JordynAsh]

That said, you also seem to have some sort of personality disorder.

Are you a psychiatrist or psychologist?




All of this seems so odd to me, law schools only care about their stats and not the kind of people that get admitted? With the logic used in this thread it makes me feel like an elementary education major with a 3.5 would be better than a pharmacy major with a 3.4. If they aren't going to analyze the candidate and only the numbers then I don't see why anyone would apply to law school, it gives me the impression they really don't care about the students.

Welcome to law school admissions.

So you think my example is true?

Law school admissions are heavily numbers based, so schools will admit applicants with higher GPAs/LSATs than those with lower stats. Having a PharmD may be a decent to good soft, but it doesn't make you a special snowflake.