TX Tech 2008

[Achilleus]

i agree with pharm friend!! it was great meeting those who interviewed on the 8th. in case you're wondering who I am, I'm the guy who missed his physics class on the day of the interview lol =D

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[RXdoctor]

a friend of mine had her interview yesterday, she is in full panic mode today. I had to remind her that atleast she got the interview, I am still sitting on the side lines waiting to hear something. I have to remember that I have never been first pick at anything, but I dont care if I am the last one in either, I just wanna go to Pharmacy school!!

 

[pearbeary18]

Imperalito...no I was not at the Abilene site...I'm at Amarillo. To those who thought they did horrible at the interview..I felt the same last year. But rest assured, what Mike says about early admission is completely true. Hey, to those of you guys who are interviewing in Amarillo the next few weeks...I am considering maybe meeting you guys for dinner or something on Thurs night. I completely understand that getting dinner is a pain since you don't have a car. So I guess let me know if anyone is interested..and I'll talk to some of my fellow P1's about it.

Yeah, I totally felt like I didn't do as well as I hoped. I was expecting them to ask all the normal interview questions like the ones people have posted up in the past. So exactly how badly do you have to bomb the interview in order not to be considered?

One thing I loved: everyone including all the other interviewees were really nice. They might even be nicer than the faculty & students at UH.

 

[Knickerbocker]

Without giving any details... How did you guys do on that logic test? I think that I needed about two hours to complete it properly.

 

[Ethyl Methyl]

Without giving any details... How did you guys do on that logic test? I think that I needed about two hours to complete it properly.

I had 6 more questions left 3 minutes before the time was up. I ended up guessing on all of them . It doesn't matter, I think I guessed on most of them anyway .

One thing I loved: everyone including all the other interviewees were really nice. They might even be nicer than the faculty & students at UH.

I think I had a much better time at the UH interview. The staff and faculty were all super nice. It was also much more relaxed. The Tech interview was so business like. But that's just my personal opinion. Of course, my signature suggests my bias.

 

[Achilleus]

I really like the faculty and staff at Tech. During our group exercise.. the faculty members were making tons of jokes and playing around haha. it was difficult but i had a fun time. that IT guy was awesome!!! the thing about Tech is that that curriculum seems harder than that at UH. I mean 23 hours your first semester kinda sorta is suicide. but hey.. it's all worth it in the end =)

 

[Knickerbocker]

People on here have complained about the Dell thing in the past, but I agree, that IT guy was great.

 

[imperialto]

i thought the logic test was interesting to say the least... i finished (but what does that really mean) with over 5 minutes remaining.

the staff and students, i found to be really interested, sincere, and tried to keep us relaxed. the person who came in to take pictures seemed intimidating in the interview.

group exercise was really fun and came out great for us.

will keep everyone posted on hopeful acceptance!

do you guys know if we can change our preferred site if we get accepted? or can we send mike an email?

 

[FlipIce]

Yeah, I totally felt like I didn't do as well as I hoped. I was expecting them to ask all the normal interview questions like the ones people have posted up in the past. So exactly how badly do you have to bomb the interview in order not to be considered?

One thing I loved: everyone including all the other interviewees were really nice. They might even be nicer than the faculty & students at UH.

Thats a hard thing to say. Tech looks at you all around..they don't simply judge you on the interview process. They thoroughly look at your essay and logics test. I truly second you on the great faculty we have at Tech..it made the deciding factor when I had to choose between pharmacy school.

 

[FlipIce]

I really like the faculty and staff at Tech. During our group exercise.. the faculty members were making tons of jokes and playing around haha. it was difficult but i had a fun time. that IT guy was awesome!!! the thing about Tech is that that curriculum seems harder than that at UH. I mean 23 hours your first semester kinda sorta is suicide. but hey.. it's all worth it in the end =)

Actually..in a regular semester...you actually only take 20 hours. 3 Credit Hours is for Bootcamp. Bootcamp is a two week course at the beginning of August where they teach you the basics. You'll have CPR training classes, a basic chemistry lab, a few classes on HIPPA and ethics, along with a few classes on Pharmacy Calculations. A final is given over the material at the very end, but its a pretty easy "A". Only freshmen take the Bootcamp course..all other pharmacy students at Tech starts school in the middle of August.

 

[FlipIce]

i thought the logic test was interesting to say the least... i finished (but what does that really mean) with over 5 minutes remaining.

the staff and students, i found to be really interested, sincere, and tried to keep us relaxed. the person who came in to take pictures seemed intimidating in the interview.

group exercise was really fun and came out great for us.

will keep everyone posted on hopeful acceptance!

do you guys know if we can change our preferred site if we get accepted? or can we send mike an email?

If you want to change your site, its best to email Mike as soon as possible. When you have been accepted, they send out an acceptance letter saying, "You have been accepted at the _________ campus". So its best to get that straightened out right away.

 

[Knickerbocker]

do you guys know if we can change our preferred site if we get accepted? or can we send mike an email?

After visiting Abilene, did you decide that you want to go there or that you'd rather go to Amarillo?

 

[Knickerbocker]

Does anyone know if we will be able to see our evaluation scores? On the pharmD admissions page, there are two items that looks like they were intended to be links, but are not:

"# Review of Application and Admissions Criteria
# Schools Evaluation of the Application"

 

[pearbeary18]

Did anyone here interview on the 15th in Amarillo? Maybe we met!

 

[Zeke1955]

Does anyone know if we will be able to see our evaluation scores? On the pharmD admissions page, there are two items that looks like they were intended to be links, but are not:

"# Review of Application and Admissions Criteria
# Schools Evaluation of the Application"

Hello all, I'm a P1 in Amarillo. The evaluation scores are not released to my knowledge. I remember I interviewed Feb 2nd last year and within about 10 days I got an e-mail to sign up for the eraider account etc. I'm not sure if you're referring to the on-line application, but my TechSIS "unofficial transcript" had some similar entries to that; I'm pretty sure they're just for record-keeping purposes and your scores are never released there (I don't think mine ever were).

To those that have already interviewed: just relax and check the on-line app/mailbox from time to time. 50% of ED interviewees get in (that's pretty good odds).

Oh, and I don't think I'll be interviewing, but if you're there Friday, I'll see you for the Q&A session =).

 

[RNtoPharmacy]

OK...I'm finished with the online application. I just need to submit it, but the application is under my unmarried name. Do you guys think it's ok to go ahead and submit my application even though it doesn't have my current married name on there? I tried to call the person in charge of changing applicant information twice, but I keep getting her voicemail. I've also e-mailed them twice.

 

[Zeke1955]

OK...I'm finished with the online application. I just need to submit it, but the application is under my unmarried name. Do you guys think it's ok to go ahead and submit my application even though it doesn't have my current married name on there? I tried to call the person in charge of changing applicant information twice, but I keep getting her voicemail. I've also e-mailed them twice.

if it were me, I wouldn't want to do ANYTHING that could result in a "I'm sorry, we misplaced your application,..." situation. I'd just submit it (the earlier, the better) with your name as is and worry about any name changes after you get and accept the the admissions offer. The only thing I could see it interfering with at that point is the background check and maybe your immunization records, both minor.

 

[RNtoPharmacy]

if it were me, I wouldn't want to do ANYTHING that could result in a "I'm sorry, we misplaced your application,..." situation. I'd just submit it (the earlier, the better) with your name as is and worry about any name changes after you get and accept the the admissions offer. The only thing I could see it interfering with at that point is the background check and maybe your immunization records, both minor.

Thanks. I think I will do that. I just don't want to be too late submitting my application. I spoke to Ms. Harrison and she said to go ahead and submit it online and just send a letter requesting a name change along with a copy of my marriage license with all the other documents I need to send by mail. Hopefully that will clear things up. Thanks for the advice!

 

[RXpress]

the thing about Tech is that that curriculum seems harder than that at UH. I mean 23 hours your first semester kinda sorta is suicide.

Ummmm "Wrong" in the words of the great cartoonist of "Ze End of the World" clip =). First, Tech doesn't have courses over the summer, so they have a few more classes during the Spring/Fall semesters. Second, at UH, some of our classes are reminiscent of your undergrad chem/ochem labs that only counted for 1 hour when it required a great deal more time to be put in. We have labs such as those required for our Organs class and Functional Group Analysis labs for our practice class, that don't receive any credit hours for completion. Not to mention our required Community Wellness Events (CWEs) that we have to complete without any given credit.

I'll refer you to Tech's course catalog: check pg. 41
http://www.ttuhsc.edu/sop/academicinfo/docs/currentcatalog/2007/catalog0708.pdf
You can see that they get more credit hours for the same classes that we take.
Here's UH's:
http://www.uh.edu/pharmacy/admissions/degreereq.htm#first

This is not to discredit Tech, but there's no reason to say that Tech is more difficult than UH. Most of the Texas Pharmacy Schools are good, they just differ in how they set up their curriculum.

 

[Aggie07]

the thing about Tech is that that curriculum seems harder than that at UH.

Edit - Okay, sorry, but it's pretty ill-informed of you to make such a statement. It would be more intelligent to look at NAPLEX pass rates than trying to compare apples and oranges like you are now. When was your interview at UH?

 

[drugdealer2011]

..

 

[FlipIce]

Edit - Okay, sorry, but it's pretty ill-informed of you to make such a statement. It would be more intelligent to look at NAPLEX pass rates than trying to compare apples and oranges like you are now. When was your interview at UH?

Hey look..you're a pharmD student and we go to different schools. I respect that UH has an awesome program over there...especially with the huge medical center in Houston. I, along with the P1's that have posted, are just trying to inform people about the Texas Tech admission process and try to help. We're not arguing about which school is better...in fact the person who thought Texas Tech had a harder curriculum was only a prepharmacy student.
Moving on...I want to let you guys know that I will be a student interviewer this coming Friday at Amarillo. I hope to see all of you guys interviewing at the free lunch and the Q&A session. Good luck to everyone!

 

[Aggie07]

FlipIce-
I was referencing a specific poster (I quoted them in my post) who I knew was a prepharm student, and if they hadn't made ignorant posts on other threads I might have been more inclined to ignore it. I think we both go to great schools, and I wasn't saying that UH was better, I was just annoyed that someone would make such an ignorant comment. Knowing the amount of work I'm sure we are both doing right now, how would you feel if someone, albeit uniformed, said your school wasn't that hard?

 

[imperialto]

yea, dont delay on anything, thats what ive learned for past 3 years applying. Ive called tech year before last about them not receiving various things and they were very friendly and allowed me to fax whatever it was to them directly.

After the time spent at Abilene, I did email mike to get me changed to that site as primary. I think class and school in general will be more beneficial with less distraction from the whole party scene on a bigger campus, for me at least. i think that abilene allows for tighter group of friends and better learning environment!

 

[ut prepharmacy]

Zeke1955, you said there is one interview session this Friday (Feb 22th), that means the invitation of interview for regular admission have been sent out already? First, sorry for the boring same old question again, you know how many students will be invited for the regular admission interviews, and how many will be accepted? I know there were about 125 students were invited for ED interview, and probably 62 students out of that will be accepted soon. so how many spots left for the regular admission? do you know how many rounds of interview are there for regular admission?

Thanks a lot.

Hello all, I'm a P1 in Amarillo. The evaluation scores are not released to my knowledge. I remember I interviewed Feb 2nd last year and within about 10 days I got an e-mail to sign up for the eraider account etc. I'm not sure if you're referring to the on-line application, but my TechSIS "unofficial transcript" had some similar entries to that; I'm pretty sure they're just for record-keeping purposes and your scores are never released there (I don't think mine ever were).

To those that have already interviewed: just relax and check the on-line app/mailbox from time to time. 50% of ED interviewees get in (that's pretty good odds).

Oh, and I don't think I'll be interviewing, but if you're there Friday, I'll see you for the Q&A session =).

 

[FlipIce]

Zeke1955, you said there is one interview session this Friday (Feb 22th), that means the invitation of interview for regular admission have been sent out already? First, sorry for the boring same old question again, you know how many students will be invited for the regular admission interviews, and how many will be accepted? I know there were about 125 students were invited for ED interview, and probably 62 students out of that will be accepted soon. so how many spots left for the regular admission? do you know how many rounds of interview are there for regular admission?

Thanks a lot.

Boy thats a good question. I know a lot of you are worried about getting interviews and how many rounds of interviews are left. Regular interviews should start pretty soon...I got the first regular interview session last year and mine was the first Friday in March. There are 130 students accepted total..that I know for sure. 90 for Amarillo and 40 for Abilene. Zeke..maybe you can expand a little bit on what you know about the application process. Hope this helps a little.

 

[ut prepharmacy]

Thank you so much, FlipIce. that helps a lot.

Boy thats a good question. I know a lot of you are worried about getting interviews and how many rounds of interviews are left. Regular interviews should start pretty soon...I got the first regular interview session last year and mine was the first Friday in March. There are 130 students accepted total..that I know for sure. 90 for Amarillo and 40 for Abilene. Zeke..maybe you can expand a little bit on what you know about the application process. Hope this helps a little.

 

[imperialto]

Zeke1955, you said there is one interview session this Friday (Feb 22th), that means the invitation of interview for regular admission have been sent out already? First, sorry for the boring same old question again, you know how many students will be invited for the regular admission interviews, and how many will be accepted? I know there were about 125 students were invited for ED interview, and probably 62 students out of that will be accepted soon. so how many spots left for the regular admission? do you know how many rounds of interview are there for regular admission?

Thanks a lot.

from what i was told from mike, might not be exact, but he said 75% are accepted from early admissions. So, 130- (130 x .75) = reg admissions accepted. think there is 10 rounds of 25 ppl

 

[RNtoPharmacy]

from what i was told from mike, might not be exact, but he said 75% are accepted from early admissions. So, 130- (130 x .75) = reg admissions accepted. think there is 10 rounds of 25 ppl

that doesn't leave much room for regular admissions that's going to be a tough competition then...

 

[ut prepharmacy]

i thought they will accept 50% from ED. they actually has 140 ED interviews instead of 125.

that doesn't leave much room for regular admissions that's going to be a tough competition then...

 

[RXdoctor]

I am sorry but I think I got lost in some of the messages here. I sent my stuff in early and they told me that they place me in regular admissions and I would not hear anything again until March 1 at the earliest. Did others already hear something? the interviews that are scheduled for March already are for the early birds right?
and for the one who got regular ad last year, you said that you had interview the first week of march, did they give you some notice, or will some people only have a week to get ready?
thanks you all for your info and help.

 

[FlipIce]

I am sorry but I think I got lost in some of the messages here. I sent my stuff in early and they told me that they place me in regular admissions and I would not hear anything again until March 1 at the earliest. Did others already hear something? the interviews that are scheduled for March already are for the early birds right?
and for the one who got regular ad last year, you said that you had interview the first week of march, did they give you some notice, or will some people only have a week to get ready?
thanks you all for your info and help.

RXdoctor..I'm not too sure about that. Tech should be starting regular admission pretty soon..you might want to call them to make sure. Last year, I heard about my interview date about a week before the actual interview. I wish they would have told me earlier because I had to book a flight and a hotel pretty quickly.

 

[FlipIce]

According to Mike...they should accept around 60-70% from ED.

i thought they will accept 50% from ED. they actually has 140 ED interviews instead of 125.

 

[RXdoctor]

Flip, I went back an looked at the email from the counselor. I said clearly that I have been place in regular addmissions which is March 1 "and you won't hear from us until after that date" so, I have some more time before I start to worry again

 

[pearbeary18]

from what i was told from mike, might not be exact, but he said 75% are accepted from early admissions. So, 130- (130 x .75) = reg admissions accepted. think there is 10 rounds of 25 ppl

He said they would accept about 70-75 people from ED, which is about half the people from the ED interviews. There will be 240 total so I think you still have a good chance although it's not as great as an ED person.

 

[RobertZimmerman]

Anyone who was at Abilene today it was great meeting you (I only know of PhamTTU) but for any others i was the short guy with sideburns and a brownish suit... and now I am exhausted but safe in the comfort of my own bed.

And quit calling us ED... not cool... that stands for something else in the medical world... well at least on the commercials.

 

[imperialto]

hey pearbeary, did u already interview? were u in abilene on the 15th?

robert zimmerman: its one heck of a relief now that its over. Now a whole new level of stress as we wait and hope

 

[RobertZimmerman]

The drive back was the most daunting part of the day for me... dodging deer north of Fredericksburg and then negotiating through San Antonio traffic... grueling. I don't feel I interviewed as well as I would like to have... but overall I think it was a pretty good day for me.

 

[Zeke1955]

Hey a few thing stand out to me here...

First of all, let me try to clear up some speculation about admissions. I believe this information to be accurate but don't take it to be official by any means:

There isn't an exact figure on how many people are admitted in the ED and "regular" admissions sessions. The admissions committee meets 3+ times (as far as I know) and admits (as they see it) the strongest applicants from those interviewed each time. Because you are interviewed earlier in ED, you are reviewed more times than those in regular admissions who interview in the later months of the process. It's not as if right before regular admissions interviews start that 75% of the seats are already taken! It is just a matter of chance -- 3+ times of being reviewed vs. 1-2 times of being reviewed. EX: I interviewed the very first slot last year and got an admissions offer from the very first round of offers. Some people from my interview date were offered admissions up to 2-3 months later. So, just do your best and be as patient as possible.

Now about difficulty: I did the Q&A session in Amarillo in the student lounge this past Friday (I was the tallest guy of us for those of you that were there) and some people asked about the difficulty and free time. It's hard to judge difficulty of coursework between schools. EX: A lot of people think of UNT as an "inferior" school, and that's how I always thought it was viewed. A lot of my classmates that went to TT, UT, A&M, etc. describe their coursework there and it doesn't sound like it was anymore challenging than what I had @ UNT.

The first semester is approximately 22 hours of coursework and the spring is 19; I've been told, that's slightly more than almost any pharmacy school does. We have a lot extracurricular activities that are designed to shape our "professionalism" and transition from a student to a professional (paraphrasing). I'm not entirely sure how this works at other schools b/c I only applied to TTUHSC after admissions staff at UH and UT told me that my chances of admission were diminished by a lack of CPhT experience.

In the Q&A session this past week, my colleagues essentially said that school was a lot harder than they expected. It's hard for me to answer that question because my out-of-class time to grade ratio requires a "results not typical" disclaimer. The first semester I spent about 10-12 hours/week outside of the school day for September and October and about 6-8 hours/week outside of the school day for November and December (finals week excluded). I ended up with 7 A's and a C+ (92 composite on the semester). I have plenty of free time to spend with my girlfriend and friends. However, I'm still "married" to school because we have a lot of extracurricular and group work assigned to us that requires at least some out-of-class time 5 days a week. One possible reason for my early success would be that I took the didactic courses (didn't take the labs): Elementary Biochemistry, Cell Biology, and Genetics in addition to my pre-reqs at UNT.

I know most people spend about 20-30 hours a week outside of school while I still do about 10-12 a week. I make A's and B's. So, it's all a matter of perspective.

A couple points that may be overlooked about TTUHSC: the absence of letter grades. Almost any B I got at UNT was an 88-89, while most of my A's were strong A's. It was disappointing that I would go into a final exam with an 89 and have to make a 95 on the final to get the A in the class. So I'd study my tail off and get a 92 on the final and end up with a B. Here, you're always encouraged to do your best because an 'A' is not an 'A.' If you get an 88 instead of a 90 in a course, it's an 88, not a 'B.' Also, professors here always create "lecture objectives" and essentially, if you can answer these objectives completely, you're prepared for exams -- it takes out the guesswork.

I hope this clears some things up. If you've got more questions, I'll be @ the Q&A and interviews again this Friday.

 

[pharmpilot]

Now about difficulty: I did the Q&A session in Amarillo in the student lounge this past Friday (I was the tallest guy of us for those of you that were there) and some people asked about the difficulty and free time.

I remember you. Thanks for the information you guys shared at the Q&A session. It was really nice to just have a chance to ask questions of someone who had recently sat where we were sitting.

This was my second visit to TTUHSC and every time I am more convinced it's the best kept secret in Texas. I'm not on "pins and needles" yet, but the interview sure did get my hopes up.

 

[RXdoctor]

Zeke,
not that I am in this category, but on the school website it says March 31, all early addmission are made; does this mean no one will hear until that day, or do they call earlier too?
I am just curious because it seems like, they are considering students who are already commited to other schools, and it leaves guys like me in the wind. so if the school knows, those people are not going to attend then they can interview more people, right?

 

[Knickerbocker]

Zeke,
not that I am in this category, but on the school website it says March 31, all early addmission are made; does this mean no one will hear until that day, or do they call earlier too?
I am just curious because it seems like, they are considering students who are already commited to other schools, and it leaves guys like me in the wind. so if the school knows, those people are not going to attend then they can interview more people, right?

I was told that they will start to come out at the end of February. So it seems that they will come out randomly through March 31st.

We were also asked to be professional about acceptances - if we don't intend to go, he asked us to write back and tell them.

 

[Zeke1955]

I was told that they will start to come out at the end of February. So it seems that they will come out randomly through March 31st.

We were also asked to be professional about acceptances - if we don't intend to go, he asked us to write back and tell them.

Yep, the acceptance letter you get says to sign and send the extra copy of the letter back to the school within 10 days. You also have to pay a placeholding fee.

(As far as I know) .....
What that March 31st date means is that those interviewed and considered for Early Decision will receive notification by that time. But if you aren't extended an offer in that timeframe, you are still eligible for review in regular admissions. There were people at my February 2nd interview date that got their acceptance letters in April.

 

[pearbeary18]

hey pearbeary, did u already interview? were u in abilene on the 15th?

robert zimmerman: its one heck of a relief now that its over. Now a whole new level of stress as we wait and hope

I was in Amarillo on the 15th. And I agree- it's tough waiting for an answer, but for now I'm not going crazy.

 

[RNtoPharmacy]

I have a quick question for you guys about LORs...the website is showing me that I have one more LOR that has not been received. Do you all know who I can speak to and ask if they have received the LOR, but just hasn't been updated yet? Also, I asked one more person to write me a LOR. Is it ok to have four? And...if this fourth letter arrives before the third letter arrives...would they consider it since there wasn't a spot for me to enter the fourth person online?

Thanks guys!

 

[RXdoctor]

you should have a counselor assigned to you, according to last names. email them and you should get a quick response.
I dont know about a 4th letter, but if they get that one before the other I suppose it will work. I know we had to list who was sending them, but there might be some wiggle room there, but dont hold me to it, just an opinion.

 

[redley]

Anyone who was at Abilene today it was great meeting you (I only know of PhamTTU) but for any others i was the short guy with sideburns and a brownish suit... and now I am exhausted but safe in the comfort of my own bed.

I was there and I think I sat next to you. I was the blonde girl in the blue shirt/black suit. The morning after the interview I woke up at like 6 am thinking of all the things I should have said and couldn't go back to sleep. March 5th can't come soon enough.

 

[cdhoward]

Anyone get an interview invitation for the regular admissions yet?

 

[pharm friend]

if i interviewed for ED on feb 15th, when should i hear from tx tech by, and do you think they will notify us by email, snail mail, or online app first? i'm so anxious!

 

[redley]

I think Mike said to start checking on March 4th. I assumed he meant check the online application, but I'm not sure. I know if you get accepted there's a link to "Review Offer of Acceptance."

I didn't get an email invite for the interview. Just the online app invite and a snail mail.