Can I do this? Get a ASN in Nursing become an RN than go to school to become a Pharmacist?

Question

Dear Readers,
I want to go to college and take the RN program, it is @ a two year program that requires general education too. Is it possible to be admitted into a program for Pharmacists after I complete a ASN and become an RN?

If my steps seem right can you break them down to me again :) if you know what im talking about, any Pharmacists who were previously RN's please comment.

Answer 1

Some of the requirements for nursing and pharmacy overlap, but pre-pharmacy requires a full year of chmistry, a full year of organic chemistry, and biochemistry, as well as more math than nursing. So, you will have to check carefully at the College of Pharmacy that you want to enter, to be sure that you have the exact, correct prerequisites.

You can check the Pharmacy schools by looking at the website of the Association of American Colleges of Pharmacy. They have links to every accredited US College of Pharmacy and you can read the exact authoritative facts for each one of them you are interested in.

This is a tough set of courses that you are planning to take., Good luck!

Answer 2

Yes, you can pursue a PharmD after your ASN. However, I would continue on to get my BSN if I were you, as most PharmD programs require that you earn your Bachelor's Degree (in some area) by the third year of the PharmD program.

I would major in Nursing, and minor in Pre-Pharmacy. That way you will be able to cover your Pre-Pharm requirements.

I have thought about doing the same thing, and if you do a Google search for RN,PharmD or RN/PharmD there will be a few hits that you can use for resources.

Answer 3

Kudos to you for wanting to break outside of the box!

I did some online research, and nowhere did I find that it is forbidden for pharmacists to have nursing degrees. :P

Here's a brief article about educational requirements for pharmacists:
http://stats.bls.gov/oco/ocos079.htm#training

Here's the way I see it:
You can do whatever you want to do. Period. Even if they tell you you can't. It seems to me that you'd be more valuable with a nursing degree--you may see things from a different perspective and that could be very helpful.

You go after what you want, and phooey on anyone who says it's against the rules. Do it anyway. It's in your heart, right? Do it.

In fact, I'd recommend working as a nurse for a while--maybe while you're pursuing your pharmacist's degree? (Not sure how easy that would be....)

But if you have that experience under your belt, you're going to be aware of things that other pharmacists are oblivious to.
I don't know exactly what those things would be--I'm not in the medical profession--but I do know that you'd come away from that job with a unique perspective.

Do it, do it, do it!
I'm rooting for you :)