6 Pharmacy Career Options to Consider

There is a wide range of pharmaceutical career paths that an individual can pursue, and it’s important to understand the differences between them so you can make the best decision on which pharmacy job suits you.

This article highlights six of the top pharmaceutical jobs available. These can range from your typical pharmacist at a drugstore to the scientists who develop new medicine.

Keep in mind that some of these jobs require a Doctor of Pharmacy, also known as a PharmD degree. Without further ado, let’s jump into the six best pharmaceutical career options you should consider. 

Critical Care Pharmacist 

Critical care pharmacists specialize in prescribing medications to critically ill patients. This specific job differs from a typical pharmacist, as critical care pharmacists must make their decisions in high-pressure situations.

For this reason, critical care pharmacists possess advanced degrees and have prior experience in other pharmaceutical jobs. If you want to learn more about what it means to be a critical care pharmacist, we recommend visiting Patrick Ladapo’s website and reading about his experiences as a critical care pharmacist. 

Clinical Pharmacist

As a clinical pharmacist, you would be working closely with physicians and patients to assist them in correctly prescribing medications to fit their needs. Clinical pharmacists don’t work under such high-pressure situations like the critical care pharmacists we went over above, but their job is still very important to our health institutions.

Clinical pharmacists often closely evaluate their patients’ medical conditions to determine whether or not they need to make changes in their medications, such as prescribing new ones or changing doses. 

Compounding Pharmacist

A niche type of pharmaceutical job is a compounding pharmacist. Unlike many other pharmacists, compounding pharmacists specialize in the process of preparing a particular form of medication to fit a patient’s needs. 

Sometimes, for example, patients are unable to swallow large pill tablets and need a different way to take the medication. A compounding pharmacist can take the pill medication and change it into dissolvable tablets or liquid so that the patient can take it.

Compounding pharmacists can manufacture discontinued medications, remove specific ingredients from medications, create custom dosage amounts, create custom flavors, and even combine different medications.

Pharmacy Clerk

Unlike the other pharmaceutical jobs we’ve gone over so far, this particular job does not require a Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD). Pharmacy clerks are the pharmacist you’re probably the most familiar with. Their responsibilities include filling prescription orders and handling customer transactions. They’re also in charge of keeping all records of prescriptions up to date.

While this job might not be your dream pharmaceutical job, it is a solid place to start and build up those all-important years of experience. To find pharmacy clerk jobs near you, check out Indeed.com’s listings.

Pharmacy Technician

No, a pharmacy technician is not the technician who fixes the lights at CVS Pharmacy (though I suppose that is technically a “Pharmacy Technician”). 

In actuality, pharmacy technicians are responsible for assisting pharmacists in clinics and other health institutions with their everyday needs. Pharmacy technicians often fill prescriptions and help customers with questions and other needs. 

Pharmacy technicians typically do not need to have a college education, though it definitely doesn’t hurt. And being a pharmacy technician is a good job to have if you’re looking to become a pharmacist in charge later on.

Pharmacologist

Pharmacologists are medical scientists who develop the drugs and medications that pharmacists prescribe. Many pharmacologist jobs require a Doctor of Pharmacy, and in some cases will require a PhD in Pharmacology.

Pharmacologists work in laboratories to research and test new medications. The purpose of this is to test how humans react to the medications. They often analyze how the medication works at a molecular level by seeing how it reacts with a human tissue sample.

Once the medication has passed the original tests, voluntary patients can then take the medication so the pharmacologist can fine-tune dosages and other details.

Wrapping It Up

With the rapid acceleration in medicine, the need for pharmacists has never been higher. Many institutions and companies need educated and experienced pharmacists to assist and advise them. 

Whether you have a Doctor of Pharmacy or have absolutely zero experience, we recommend the six best pharmaceutical jobs to pursue. Some of these jobs require education and experience, while others do not. 

Remember to pursue the job that most interests you, and don’t be discouraged if you need to work as a pharmacy clerk for a few years to get that experience.

Adam Hansen
 

Adam is a part time journalist, entrepreneur, investor and father.