On ne sait jamais!

So, here's my essay to get into pharmacy school. Feel free to leave any comments, criticisms, etc. that you might have. Don't hesitate to be brutal. I need your feedback.

Here are the instructions for the essay. Remember, 4500 characters is a lot less than it seems.

INSTRUCTIONS: Your Personal Essay should address why you selected pharmacy as a career and how the Doctor of Pharmacy degree relates to your immediate and long-term professional goals. Describe how your personal, educational, and professional background will help you achieve your goals. The personal essay is an important part of your application for admission and provides you with an opportunity for you to clearly and effectively express your ideas.

You are encouraged to compose your essay in a text-only word processor (e.g., Notepad), review your essay for errors, then cut and paste the final version into the text box above. Click the Save button and then return to the Personal Essay to review the formatting of your text. You are limited to approximately 1 page (4500 characters, including spaces). Some formatting characters used in programs like Word (angled quotes, accents, special characters) will not display properly. Take care to review your final text and to make the necessary corrections to the format.

-----------------------------ESSAY-----------------------------


I believe I can say with a fair degree of certainty that I am one of few pharmacy school applicants that you’ll see this year with a degree in photography. Unlike probably many of your applicants, I haven’t always known that I wanted to be a pharmacist, at least consciously. My journey began with me desiring to be a neurologist; from there, a twist of events lead me into art, what I believe is one of my God-given passions. But after spending a year living in Scotland, going to art school and working professionally, I discovered that an art career was not all that I had imagined. When I was forced to do something I normally got inspired to do, I realized this career was not for me. About halfway through my year abroad however, I discovered that I was still quite interested in medicine. I loved biology, and was fascinated by chemistry. When I got back home, I decided that I would start taking pre-med classes, while finishing up my bachelor’s. I began learning everything I could about being a doctor, but as I did, I began to have a familiar sinking feeling again. Medicine was not only a career, but also a lifestyle. I began to seriously question my interest. I loved medicine, but was I really willing to give up my idea of a family, the ability to spend a moderate amount of time playing with my children and loving my wife? I felt a resounding “no” from deep within me.

At this point, a memory from my childhood emerged into my subconscious. I remembered myself as a little boy playing with a chemistry kit my parents had given me. It was very basic, with a few compounds, and allowed me to make my own “goo.” But I spent hours with it, attempting to make something that smelled bad, turned funny colors, or exploded. I began to review my past, remembering instances where as a young boy, I recited to my doctor the exact name and dosage of a topical that I was using. I remembered, as a teenager, being a chemistry class aide, and how I loved setting up for experiments with liquid nitrogen and making esters that smelled like fruits. At some point it hit me, all at once, like the most obvious thing in the world: I could be a pharmacist! It was like a revelation that had been staring me in the face for years, and I was amazed at how it had taken me so long to realize it. I began trying to learn as much as I could about pharmacy. At the time I was working at Children’s Hospital in Birmingham, volunteering in Behavioral Health. I loved the little bit of time I got to spend with these children weekly, coloring or playing dominoes. When I graduated and moved back to Montgomery, I was able to get a job as a pharmacy technician at a major institutional pharmacy. Although we work at a fast pace, and I’m probably learning a bit less about medicine than I would at a retail pharmacy, I love my job and I absolutely love medicine. Since we handle thousands of scripts every day, I get to work with a wide variety of medicine and preparations, which has further strengthened my love of medicine. In addition, the classes I am taking to finish my prerequisites have been fascinating, and the magnificent complexity of even the simplest bodily function continues to amaze me.

I realize that a big part of this essay is supposed to be my long-term career goals and ambitions, and that I have spent a much of it simply discussing my background. But I believe by observing my background, one of my strongest qualities is revealed: I know that I want to be a pharmacist. I have no doubts or fears in my heart about this career. I know that God Himself has chosen this career path for me. I’ve gone through quite a lot to get here, and because of that, I have strengthened my certainty that this is where I am meant to be. I’m not choosing pharmacy for the money, or for the title. I am choosing pharmacy because it meets and fulfills the desires of my heart for my life. I strongly desire to one day be a pediatric pharmacist, working in a hospital. I believe with my whole heart that children should never have to suffer from anything and my desire is to help be a part of their relief and healing process.

I ask that you do not look at my previous choices as me being uncertain or unstable, but rather, as quests that have lead me to a fulfillment of my desire, on the journey that God has laid out for my life. I will do my absolute best to help people if I am granted the ability to do so, and I will be forever grateful to the institution that allows me these privileges.

THE END [that's not actually a part of my essay, genius]

------------------
“If I stand here, I can see the Little Red Haired girl when she comes out of her house... Of course, if she sees me peeking around this tree, she'll think I'm the dumbest person in the world... But if I don't peek around the tree, I'll never see her... Which means I probably AM the dumbest person in the world... which explains why I'm standing in a batch of poison oak.” - Charley Brown