Pharmacists – Careers in Medicine And Medication

Industry Outlook for Pharmacists

Employment opportunities are expected to be extremely favorable for pharmaceutical jobs in the coming years. There is a strong demand for pharmacy jobs and frequently not enough qualified candidates to fill open positions.

As a larger population begins to move into their senior years, the demand for qualified pharmacists should only increase

Due to the strong demand for pharmacy positions and the education and knowledge required to competently perform the job, salary opportunities are normally quite high. This is usually balanced with the fact that they may work long hours, nights, weekends and holidays.

Employment Prospects for Pharmacy Careers

There are a significant number of employment prospects for pharmaceutical positions. The most common field that comes to mind for most people is retail pharmacy. More than half of the total number of pharmacists employed across the nation, do work in a retail pharmacy environment.

There are many other, more lucrative employment prospects for pharmacists …

Almost all hospitals employ pharmacists to handle the medication needs of their patients

As the demand for pharmacists continue to grow, nontraditional fields are opening up. Some choose to enter the following fields:

Research
Health Insurance Companies
Marketing and Sales
Education

Job Search for Pharmacists

There are a number of ways pharmacists and recent graduates from schools of pharmacy can go about finding open job opportunities …

Career centers at alma maters
Professional affiliations
Websites dedicated to the purpose of posting these positions
Networking within the industry is also a good option

Cover Letters for Careers in Pharmacy

The cover letter does not differ much from the cover letter used by other job seekers. It should be professional in tone and nature; state the reason the job seeker is writing and how they heard about the position.

As the resume contains such specific skill, education and experience information; the cover letter is a good opportunity for the job seeker to hone in on their people skills, and specific accomplishments within prior organizations.

As always, the cover letter should close with a reference to an interview.

Resumes for Pharmacy Jobs

The resume will generally need to be very specific in regards to:

The environment the job seeker has worked in
Detailed work experience
Specific degree they have earned
Extremely detailed information regarding their skills

This should be an entire sub-set on the resume, stating the name of the skill, the level of proficiency the job seeker has attained and the amount of experience they have in this skill and the last time it was used.

A chronological resume or a CV resume will work well for a pharmacists resume

Any additional skills such as foreign languages spoken is also very beneficial ...

As there is so much critical information that needs to be covered, it is acceptable to deviate from the standard one page...

... It is better to deviate than leave out critical data.

Training & Qualifications

In order to become a pharmacist, candidates need to have:

College degree
Passed a state examination and obtain a license
The college attended must be a certified and accredited college of pharmacy, approved by the American Council on Pharmaceutical Education (ACPE)

The student will need to pass two examinations before becoming licensed to work as a pharmacist. These are the North American Pharmacist Licensure Exam and the Multi-state Pharmacy Jurisprudence Exam.

This is true in every state except California, who has their own pharmacy exam

There may be additional exams besides the NAPLE and the MPJE required in certain states. After licensure is granted, some states require continuous re-exam in order to maintain the license.

Some states allow a pharmacist to be licensed to practice in more than one state

The best option for a person interested in this type of career, is to seek information from the State Board of Pharmacy for their state in order to determine which rules and regulations will apply to their situation.

Colleges and universities offering pharmacy programs require prior admittance and some may require the successful completion of Pharmacy College Admissions Test.

There are currently about 85 schools across the nation with pharmacy programs accredited by ACPE. These schools confer a degree of Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.) upon successful completion of the program. Pharmacy programs leading to a Pharm.D. are generally at least five to six years in length.

Programs include undergraduate study as well as curriculum that relates specifically to the degree. These classes usually contain a high degree of chemistry classes as well as requisite i>pharmacology classes. Students in a pharmacy program will also be involved in internships where they will be performing job related tasks in real world settings.

Prior to 2005, students had the option of obtaining a Bachelor of Pharmacy degree. While this has been grandfathered for students already enrolled in the program, no new Bachelor of Pharmacy degrees will be awarded after 2005. Students interested in this career field will need to select the Doctor of Pharmacy degree.

Good luck in your search for a pharmaceutical career!