Don't become a Pharmacist

Ignore the 1-2 year minimum and apply. There's more important things like professionalism, intelligence and willingness to learn that will land her the job. Don't be intimidated, I've seen several pharmacists make the transition from retail to hospital. They never go back...to retail.

Molly in Rockford, Illinois said: Ignore the 1-2 year minimum and apply. There's more important things like professionalism, intelligence and willingness to learn that will land her the job. Don't be intimidated, I've seen several pharmacists make the transition from retail to hospital. They never go back...to retail.

You're right about other attributes being important. And one would think they would consider them. However reality is that in this world of Human Resource filtering out key words and only objective requirements (as opposed to subjective and substantive) being considered, real quality candidates hardly ever get a leg in. Everything has become a game of sorts. Really sad...and frustrating.

@atomik_chik for Army what are age restrictions? Thank you!

To all the people who will read about the glut of pharmacists, the thousands of pharmacists who do not have jobs, the worse conditions that may occur if schools continue to be built and still want to go into Pharmacy, you are a fool. You are like the guy that kept building wagon wheels when autos sped down the road in front of his shop. He did not get it and you don't ether. I speak from 35 yrs. experience in saying that pharmacy is not and will never be what it was. Chains ruined it and will continue to ruin it. They can not wait to put techs in whenever to replace what a pharmacist does. And, there lies the problem. What we do can be done by any imbecile. We are a quasi profession tied to a product serving a public that increasingly gets all its info from other sources. I am afraid we are like the wagon wheel builder and soon will be gone with the wind.

out of work 5 months now,less and less ads in the paper for hospital rph's.retail jobs dont even exist........even jobs in rural areas dont exist....read about walgreens project one...rph's are gonna be cut...even read about walgreens edison project...front managers are gonna lose jobs...............any suggestions???

She is going to have a tough time if she resides in IL. I am sorry for being blunt We have too many pharmacists in this State. The new grads are out every summer. I am not aware of any program. But I was just wondering if she could volunteer in the hospital to show them how dedicated she is. Maybe they will consider her for that reason. The chance of getting a job in the hospital in Chicago that I heard of was 1 to 45. And the applicants have all done 2 years residency.
I am sorry that I don't have good tips. I live in IL too. I am done looking for a job in hospital, I am going back to school to reinvent myself to be informatics pharmacist, if possible.
Good luck to you guys.

Itwasgoodforawhile a in Chicago, Illinois said: She is going to have a tough time if she resides in IL. I am sorry for being blunt We have too many pharmacists in this State. The new grads are out every summer. I am not aware of any program. But I was just wondering if she could volunteer in the hospital to show them how dedicated she is. Maybe they will consider her for that reason. The chance of getting a job in the hospital in Chicago that I heard of was 1 to 45. And the applicants have all done 2 years residency.
I am sorry that I don't have good tips. I live in IL too. I am done looking for a job in hospital, I am going back to school to reinvent myself to be informatics pharmacist, if possible.
Good luck to you guys.

wish i could...im 54 years young and screwed...no jobs at all anywhere for retail and hospital will not acknowledge you unless you have experience...guess its time to start selling appliances at hh gregg!!!!!

Army Health Care Recruiter in Los Angeles, California said: For all of you who are looking for jobs, have you considered the Army? We are currently looking for licensed Pharmacist's. We have several incentives available right now from Loan Repayment to accessions bonuses. Active duty is closed at the moment but should reopen in October but we do have Reserve slots available. If you would like more information, please email me @ atomik_chic@yahoo.com.
You have to be a US citizen (Active) or at Permanent Resident (Reserves); must have graduated from an accredited program (US or Puerto Rico; No critical medical issues; No significant law violations (speeding tickets are ok); meet height/weight/age requirements

Thank you for your effort. I was curious about this portion of the USJOBS.GOV posting:
The initial length of an overseas tour is 2 or 3 years depending upon location.

Does this mean you will work in a foreign desert for 2 to 3 years before you get placed at the location you originally applied for? How could they know that that position will be available then?

I graduated UGA back in 1988, when there was a shortage of RPh's, and worked retail. It was a decent gig, although it's a stressful job. Be aware, students and prospective students, that some of the big chains don't offer long-term disability due to mental illness. I was diagnosed with bipolar in 2007. Doc says the long hours and stress contributed. I thought I had good benefits with CVS but not so. They'll work you half to death, and when you burn out they'll drop you like yesterday's garbage. You don't see too many happy, well-adjusted, middle-aged pharmacists. Think about that.

Worrying about a pharmacy job is going to be the least of our worries when the whole economic fabric of our society rips. Food and water will be a luxury. The only way the economy will ever correct is to let it self correct. That means that debt will have to be wrung out of the system like dirty water in a dish rag. That never happens without tremendous consequences for society. It happened in the 1920's and it will happen as sure as the sunrise in the months or years to come. The world's economies are on the life support because of the funny money our government continues to burn up the presses with. Math is, believe it or not, an exact science. When we finally can print no more, the walls will collapse.The math will have the last word no matter what our goofy politicians have to say.

This site will enlighten many as to why we are in for a horrendous future.
theeconomiccollapseblog.com/

Out of curiosity, how may of you worked while in pharmacy school? I find that the complaints here about the job (stressful, long hours, unrealistic expectations, etc) are pretty much reality in ANY field today. I find that most of my friends who are in professions such as pharmacy, medicine, public health or any of the health sciences generally went from high school to university without any real working experience and this has contributed to a trend in them romanticizing what a "job" is. Maybe the schooling sold you a story about a job where you float in, make tons of money, have tons of respect and do little work? The only thing I can attritibute this attitude to is lack of working experience in a real profession.

I am not in Pharmacy and I am not disputing that it seems to be a bit of a gong show, but can you honestly name one profession that isn't? Everyone feels under-valued, under-appreciated, and under-compensated. For those reading this thread who are considering pharmacy I recommend,as I would in any field, to do your due diligence. This means talking to pharmacists to get an idea of what it is they do daily before you enter into a school. Like ANY profession, what you learn while in school usually doesnt reflect the daily working reality of the job.

MBA in Edmonton, Alberta said: Out of curiosity, how may of you worked while in pharmacy school? I find that the complaints here about the job (stressful, long hours, unrealistic expectations, etc) are pretty much reality in ANY field today. I find that most of my friends who are in professions such as pharmacy, medicine, public health or any of the health sciences generally went from high school to university without any real working experience and this has contributed to a trend in them romanticizing what a "job" is.

When in pharmacy school and in correspondence with professional bodies we are/were always reminded that pharmaceuticals were not normal items of commerce. There are so many different aspects of supplying medicines to patients such as legal, ethical, confidentiality, medical, clinical, suitability, patient age, allergy etc etc. All of these aspects and more have to be considered by the pharmacist before a supply, it's not like picking a can of Heinz Baked Beans off a supermarket shelf, hence why they can not be classed as normal items of commerce. Yet, district managers and all other big wigs force ever increasing targets and demands on us to increase turnover and numbers with the threat of discipline if we don't. This is immoral at best and flies in the face of whatever we were taught at pharmacy school.

Come on, MD's can only write a finite number of Rx's but our DMs want us dispense an infinite number with their ridiculous targets. The use of medicines should always be kept to a minimum, try telling this to WAG, CVS they want us to force a multitude of drugs down every patients throat.

So to return to your point, I don't think many of us had unrealistic career ambitions when we entered pharmacy, I think we all went in thinking we were entering an ethical, caring profession. I for one didn't expect to be under as severe a commercial and unethical pressure as is currently the norm.

Not being in the field, I am curious to know how the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (or whatever the official accreditation body is) stands on these issues. Why are they not out there fighting for your rights or advocating for a better working environment/standards?

In my previous post, I wasn't trying to imply that anyone's ambitions for their career were unrealistic and I'm sorry if it came across that way. I was just wondering how many people looked into the reality of the situation. When I was beginning University (10 years ago), I looked into pharmacy as a career path and I met with 3 different "types" of pharmacists: One who worked on a ward in the University hospital, one who worked in research (not drug development, but assisting investigator-initiated clinical trials), and one from a grocery store. The two from the hospital/research setting seemed generally satisfied, the one from the grocery store actually broke down crying and basically begged me to reconsider my future career choice.

I guess I was trying to ask everyone to consider whether they had:

1 - truly "worked" in a career (not just a job as I think they are quite different).

2 - investigated the day-to-day working reality, not just what teachers and recruiters claim to be "reality" (Again, often quite different IMO).

I find that, especially in the younger generation (which at 28, I consider myself to be a part of) expectations about work enviroments are a out of touch with reality. I am not sure if we were all taught to be incredibly idealistic or what, but I notice that the younger people I work with are all incredibly disillusioned and none of us thought working life would be this way. I guess my real point is I dont think you guys in pharmacy are alone in finding that you are overworked, are put in morally questionable circumstances at your jobs, and are generally questioning how the "system" got this way. I think society at large is finding there are flaws

5-10 years ago it was extremely difficult to recruit pharmacy students into serving in any of the Uniformed services, the initial pay is so much lower than what private sector chains offer. It has completely reversed in the last few years, however, students used to ask, "What is in it for me to go the military career route?" Now they are begging to get in. It has taken me about 10 years to get to the same level of pay that retail is paying, but with 20 year retirement, tax free housing allowance, good hours, great annual and sick leave, awesome benefits, etc, I have not regretted my decision for even an instant.

David in Atlanta, Georgia said: Worrying about a pharmacy job is going to be the least of our worries when the whole economic fabric of our society rips. Food and water will be a luxury. The only way the economy will ever correct is to let it self correct. That means that debt will have to be wrung out of the system like dirty water in a dish rag. That never happens without tremendous consequences for society. It happened in the 1920's and it will happen as sure as the sunrise in the months or years to come. The world's economies are on the life support because of the funny money our government continues to burn up the presses with. Math is, believe it or not, an exact science. When we finally can print no more, the walls will collapse.The math will have the last word no matter what our goofy politicians have to say.

This site will enlighten many as to why we are in for a horrendous future.
theeconomiccollapseblog.com/

I work when I can, But you are right. I'm certain you have watched this video as well
www.youtube.com/user/TruthNeverTold/featured
it's going to be tough... Central Bankers do it to countries... Argentina, Mexico back in the 1990's , America....
This is also an informative video to watch
www.youtube.com/watch?v=gY1EcCUu5nw
I don't expect the drug shortage problem to get any better eithier....
Learn to live with less, and prepare, APMEX, food, ect. Trust your instincts.

BC is a pretty good place to practice, money for med reviews, adaptations, renewals, refusal to fills. Provincial DIS. Provincial coverage for smoking cessation products. Jobs and good pay, just go outside of Vancouver area. Have to OK with evil socialist medicine, though.

Hi everyone,
I'm a newly graduated Pharmacist in Australia. We currently have huge issues in our profession - ranging from the oversupply of pharmacists graduating (including universities accepting overseas students for their $$, who then apply for permanent residence) which has led to lower wages due to decrease in demand, to the introduction of changes in dispensing laws, which will see lowering profits for pharmacist owners.

I am on an extremely low wage, and read that in the US, pharmacists get paid a lot more, so I was researching how to become a pharmacist in the States, but it appears that job positions are about as competitive there as it is here. I was lucky to get a job in my city after months of persistence. My boss advertised for a pharmacy assistant position and received 100s of applicants; a lot of them from pharmacists! So if you're a pharmacist and still on a good wage, at least you're not stuck in Australia where

...where the working conditions are just as lousy, the competition is high, and you could probably be earning more if you stayed at McDonalds and became a manager.

not sure what is wrong with my Internet browser at the moment, but the last sentence should read "where the working conditions are just as lousy, the competition is high, and you could probably be earning more working your way up to a managerial position at McDonalds.

I dont understand what kind of profession this is where every pharmacist(chemist ie) are having a problems with employment. We have no protection from our associations that have no problems accrediting as many pharmacy schools as possible and allowing the market to be flooded with an over flowing amt of new graduates( the schools have no problems telling tales of job security and over inflated salaries) Yet I find i very upseting that Europe and other places seem to have the same issues. I think this is a beautiful profession and I was blessed to be able to pursue it. I hope that this crisis is over when the new national healthcare comes into place and I hope that the international situation is over in the near future. Until than keep the faith.

You old socialist you. You firmly believe in government control of health care. If nat. health care is so great, why do people from all over the socialist world come to the USA for first rate care. The proof is in the pudding my friend. You and all your socialist friends are deceived. Socialism is a failure from the beginning. Look at the old Soviet Union and their old system. It did not work then, it will not work now and it will still be crap in the future. You, sir are an idiot who does not look at facts.

Oath of Maimonides

The eternal providence has appointed me to watch over the life and health of Thy creatures. May the love for my art actuate me at all time; may neither avarice nor miserliness, nor thirst for glory or for a great reputation engage my mind; for the enemies of truth and philanthropy could easily decieve me and make me forgetful of my lofty aim of doing good to Thy children.

May I never see in the patient anything but a fellow creature in pain.

Grant me the strength, time and opportunity always to correct what I have aquired, always to extendits domain; for knowledge is immense and the spirit of man can extend indefintely to enrich itself daily with new requirements.

Today he can discover his errors of yesterday and tomorrow he can obtain a new light on what he thinks himself sure of today. Oh, God, Thou has appointed me to watch over the life and death of Thy creatures; here am I ready for my vocation and now I turn unto my calling.

So, I guess it comes down to the words that ring true to you.

If the oath is something you can relate to, the please, pursue pharmacy. If you can tolerate the BS that comes along with it (can be quite a bit), and still are able to help people, I promise that you will always be able to find a job. If you are in it for the right reasons you will find great rewards.

If you identify more with my friend David, or you think pharmacy is easy money, then for the love of all that is good, DON'T BECOME A PHARMACIST. You will be miserable. People who are in pharmacy for themselves are easy to spot and plentiful nowadays, so it will be hard to find work.

We can train monkeys to count pills. Soon, I will be training my techs to check prescriptions. Meanwhile, I will be practicing pharmacy by actually helping people. If you don't get that, go be an economist or a banker, as I hear that the capitalist thing is going super awesome.

You miss the whole point. All of us at one time have served and helped the public. That is not the issue. Lack of jobs, and opportunity are the issues that have been brought about by increased admission, and class size and an economic depression. For that matter, no matter how noble, from the surgeon on down, take away the money, and nobody does anything for anybody. That is just a fact no matter how altruistic you are. If you doubt that go work for free and prove me wrong.

Yeah everyone keeps going on about if you are talented, make yourself stick out and work hard you will make it. If everyone works hard, shows talent blah blah blah there will be even stiffer competition for jobs and a lot of hard working, talented, stand outs are going to be left disappointed. Bottom line is no matter how talented you are there is still the chance you won't get a job, there is only a finite number of posts become available each year

although I do believed the validity of the statements here regarding the profession of pharmacy, I would also like to point out something for those student who are considering pharmacy but are scared by all these negative posts. I would like to say that although the statements here are most likely true, they are also biased and does not show all the perspectives of the pharmacy profession. It is biased in that pharmacists who are having a tough time in their jobs or out of jobs are more likely to take to the forums like these to vent their frustration, while pharmacists who are doing well at the moment are less likely to go to forums like these just to say hey look at me, I am doing so well. which is a reason why there is overwhelmingly negative statements here.

as for pharmacy, there is definitely a dramatic increase in competition for job positions as result of the slowing economy and all those new schools popping up everywhere. for those of you who expect to come to pharmacy and find a job making a 100k salary easliy, your dreaming. but for those of you who are more in touch with reality, who expect to work hard and be persistent, pharmacy is not a dead profession.

and also if you have talents such as able to speak multiple languages, its a great asset in landing you a job. i noe a friend who speaks chinese, spanish, japanese, and english of course found a job near NYC right after graduation. he crazy, lol, but if u noe a foreign language such as spanish, it will help a lot too.

Hi, I'm an American citizen. I was born in Argentina and hold a Pharmacy degree from there. I studied for the FPGEEC which I hold. I believe I wasted my time, brain and money pursuing the FPGEEC. For what I read working in a retail pharmacy can be disgusting, I don't want put up with that.
I can't believe American Pharmacist are confined to an stupid retail Pharmacy square box when there are plenty of positions well paid in the Pharmaceutical industry. I work as a scientist for a multinational pharmaceutical company where many of the formulators hold bachelors in civil engineer or degrees that have nothing to do with it….. Worldwide Pharmacists are responsible for the medicine’s safety (QC< QA jobs) and compounding (Research jobs) (IT"S THE BASIC OF PHARMACY) I can believe American pharmacist abandon this area. If Pharmacists come back to the industry (In my country the pharmaceutical industry by law is controlled by pharmacists) the demand of pharmacist will be huge and Pharmacist will have a variety of jobs to choose from.
I just wanted to express my point of view. Sorry for typos, I drafted this quickly while at work.

My husband finished pharmacy school in 2010 and ever since then we have been living with my parents because all he can find to work at is fill in hrs. We can't even afford to buy a trailer to live in and seriously considering applying for food stamps. I'm 36 years old and I have a masters degree in psychology, which by the way is a bull shi- field as well, but I can't find nothing to work at either.

Here's a funny. The oath that you all take, should've been, do you want fries with that?

Interesting comments. I have been a practicing pharmacist going on 35 years. I wish every day I could find another job. The last 5 years I have seen a steady decline in our profession. Now we are forced to give immunizations, (in between filling scripts) and its not going to get better. The corporate guys just watch the bottom line and have no clue about pharmacists feelings or stress levels. Customers/patients try to treat us like clerks and want everything on their terms. There's no more professionalism in our profession.
Twelve or more hours per day, no lunch break, now we are being forced to work Sunday and Holidays..I haven't worked a Sunday or holiday in over 20 years. But now only a hand full of pharmacies are closed on Sunday and holidays. This is because of corporate greed in my opinion, not because of so-called better customer service. We offer free gas for Rx transfers which just adds more work to my day.
Every thing corporate does is to increase profits. Consequently it just makes my job that much more stressful and difficult.
Society as a whole is just getting crazy with this "kiss the customers ass" concept. Good customer service doesn't come from ass-kissing. It comes from treating your employees fairly and with respect.
My philosophy has always been, keep your employees happy and your customers will be happy. But I'm seeing the destruction of the profession that I once loved so dearly. May it rest in peace.
I once actually looked forward to going to work each day. Now those days are gone.

Jenke in Grand Prairie, Texas said: Been working as a pharmacist for 15 years, I make 120K working for Wags.

Money is great, you work hard, but what do you expect making over 100K straight without overtime.

So everyone quit pharmacy and make 50-60K a year, I will stick with my 120K.

I would gladly take 50-60K per year and give up working 12 hour shifts, listening to my bitchy unappreciative customers and bosses, and working Sundays and holidays. See if you change your mind after another 20 years.

Wow. I was accepted into the St. Louis College of Pharmacy, have mailed my deposit, and am now considering not going. The money was the big draw for me, along with the respect I though would come with the profession. Is pharmacy really as bad as you all say? My sister-in-law is a pharmacist at a private retail pharmacy and she likes it. She graduated from STLCOP. She's going to let me job-shadow her to see if I like it. How can I get experience in a hospital to see if I like that better? Does anyone know what the market's like in Missouri right now?
I'm so worried about not being able to find a job after school! I always wanted to join the Air Force, anyway, but decided to do this because my family is more supportive and the money's better. Should I just forget about pharm school and enlist? Any advice is appreciated!

If you haven't noticed almost all of the posts here are from retail pharmacists. Stay clear of retail. There are many other opportunities available. Hospital pharmacy is by far a better job and infinitely more interesting than retail. Yes, pharmacy is still a good profession.

Tom Murphy PharmD in Frisco, Texas said: Just graduated, work at LTC (long term care) facilty, love my job. I start at 106K a year.

There are jobs out there, you just have to do your research. I am in the highest tax bracket and I just graduated.....not many degrees can say that.

More schools will open and there will be tons of students that will be applying because of the 100K+/year salary...

Which LTC pharmacy do you work at? There seems to be a lack of jobs in the DFW area too, just like most large cities in the US.

TheRealDeal in Atlanta, Georgia said: Which LTC pharmacy do you work at? There seems to be a lack of jobs in the DFW area too, just like most large cities in the US.

they love to feast on the young wait about 6 months to a year and let us know

ARoark in Wright City, Missouri - Personally, I would rather choose to do something I enjoy, even if it means I will be paid less.

It might be worth asking your sister-in-law to give you some time doing work experience or spending time with her at work so you have a better idea of what you're getting into. She may have connections to hospital pharmacists as well??

Many young people, including myself, fell into the trap of choosing what seemed like an appealing career at the time due to popularity and stereotypes, but not actually knowing enough about it. But you never know, you may find that pharmacy is perfect for you :)

My daughter is finishing up her 2nd year of PharmD at UK and will graduate with over $100,000 worth of loans. This is the first I'd heard of a glut in the pharmacist market but it doesn't surprise me. I've been an RN since 1979 and despite the chronic talk of nursing shortages, I've seen several periods of time when the job situation was tough..... esp. for new grads. Now is one of them. I've applied for several jobs and each one I hear that they are interviewing others, tell me they have a stack of 40 resumes. And a couple of these were really crummy jobs. I'm disabled, and have been unemployed for two years. So I believe everything that is posted here. Of course, I worry about my daughter with her high dollar non-dischargeable loans. At least I never had any loans to repay when I got my BSN. The student loan situation in this country is a crime. I've offered to help my daughter. She won't accept my help. She is clueless as to the value of money and paying off loans, never having had a loan before. She went into it thinking she'd be rich, the loans would be no sweat, reinforced by her older sister and spendthrift father. I worry about her, a lot.

I have a question for the fine folks here. I read with the ACA, or maybe before, that if you work in underserved areas that you can get at least a good portion of your loans forgiven. Does anybody know anything about those programs? Is competition also fierce for them? Is the work any better? I hear you about retail. I feel sorry for my local pharmacists, but then I've been there as a nurse. The last rx I picked up, I even offered to come behind the counter and help out, the pharmacist was working alone. Phone ringing, putting calls into insurance companies or whoever it was, several people waiting, customers wanting information or just to chat, drive thru going, you know the drill. I knew I couldn't really do it, but I would have helped him out if Walgreen's would have allowed it (cont.)

I also have one piece of advice. The companies do NOT own you and whatever you do, don't do anything that will compromise your license. No job is worth it. You worked too hard to blow it for any employer. Been there an done that, in my last job, which I actually ultimately lost. The other nurse and I were expected to dispense medications, as in count out the pills, label them, and give them to our clients. I was doing community mental health. They'd been doing it there for three years. I did end the practice when I went to corporate and let them know that one of our competitors in the eastern part of the state had been permanently shut down over the practice when a disgruntled (and apparently knowledgeable) client reported them to the Board of Pharmacy. The RN's lost their licenses. The company didn't care if we were risking our licenses, they already knew that, but the prospect of being shut down grabbed their attention. We were making them money. Unfortunately, the same outspokenness that got the practice ended, got me into other hot water. :( But my license is intact, if I could find a job. In a different job market, they'd be willing to accommodate the difficulties posed by my disability (former bosses all agree I'm an excellent nurse, and the clients love me), which are not a huge deal, so someday.

Good luck to both current and future pharmacists here. I have a lot of respect for your profession. If there is any question/concern about a prescribed med, I always recommend to clients and young nurses that they seek the advice of the pharmacist as the first stop as they are the most knowledgeable. And my own two cents... I agree that working in a hospital would beat the heck out of working at a retail chain, even for less pay. After all, you get to talk to us nurses! (Its the opposite for nurses who make MORE pay working at hospitals but I know its not worth it to me. I lasted 2 months on a med-surg floor, no pay is enough.)

I have been a pharmacist for more than 30 years. I got my BS in Pharmacy from Rutgers in 1976 and my PharmD from University of Florida in 2001. I am contemplating retirement in 2018. Let me share some things I learned about our august profession over the years.

First off, I do not nor never will regret my career as a pharmacist. It has been GREAT (not perfect, but great). That being said, the career decisions you make NOW will dictate the satifaction with your profession later. So here, goes:

1. AVOID retail pharmacy at all costs. GOD BLESS any of our colleagues who can put up with those conditions, especially with the chains. The money is the best but there is a reason why .... The companies wouldn't have any pharmacists if they didn't pay well.

2. Find a residency (PGY1 at minimum and PGY2 if possible). If you are going to compete for position, you need the best resume possible.

3. I spent my entire career in hospital pharmacy and have loved it. I have been at my current position here in NV for more than 20 years. I started as a contractor with Cardinal (will mention later) and stayed with the facility after the contract was dropped. The physicians know me and respect my opinion.

4. Get training and experience with CPOE systems. Epic, Allscripts , Cerner or anything. The IT pharmacist opportunities are going to explode.

5. Avoid going into middle management. These are the first folks that the bean counters get rid of. Unless you like working with budgets, whiny MBAs, or like to deal with personnel issues, that job sucks. I like being in a position where my presence is required by law for the department to be open.

6. Consider working in the Federal sector. The VA and the USPHS are GREAT career pathways. With the military and USPHS pathways you make less money for the first 7 or so years until you reach O4 then your income increases past your colleagues in the private sector. (will continue)

6 (continued). The military retirement plan (20 years at half pay and 30 years at 3/4 pay) cannot be beat. I wish I had done USPHS early on. The Fed can and will offer student loan forgiveness (you may find yourself stationed in Fotsonyots, Alaska, though). Some states will also offer this if you would practice in an underserved area for a period of time.

7. Look at pharmacy management companies. I worked for Cardinal Health for 19 years and they treated me well. Once you establish yourself with them, you have opportunity for promotion and relocation with the company. They will pay for the relocation.

8. Consider getting certified in Nuclear Pharmacy. This is a well paying field. The hours are "different", however.

9. If you are single, or don't mind travel, consider traveling positions for 13 week assignments. The pay for room, board, travel and licensure in many cases. This way you can find what you like and seek permanent assigment. Moving expenses are (usually) included. There many agencies, i.e. Advocaterx, Cameron, RPhOnTheGo, etc.

Don't give up on your profession, retail is not the only choice.

Ted

BTW, more and more hospitals are requiring residencies or several years of experience in hospital pharmacy. LTC pharmacy is usually either 'closed door' or like hospital pharmacy in the case of sub-acute care facilities. The more experience you have in computer systems or automation (i.e., Pyxis) the better.

There are some hospitals, obviously, that are not as good to work at as others. If a hospital in your area has "many" openings for pharmacists compared to others, you have to wonder why.

I have to feel for you "newbys" because you all are competing for the best jobs/residencies. The key is to make yourself marketable. Get a residency (any residency). If you are currently a technician who is in pharmacy school, get as much acute care technician time as possible. This all counts on your resume and may help you secure a position later. We have hired as pharmacists many former technicians who worked for us.

drtmbrx in Reno, Nevada said:
4. Get training and experience with CPOE systems. Epic, Allscripts , Cerner or anything. The IT pharmacist opportunities are going to explode.
(will continue)

Cool advice.. What else do you know about IT opportunities? Do you really think they will explode in the future? My worry is once you do that for a long time, you won't be able to get a dispensing position if you want to get back into it later?

I built the pharmacy portion of the Allscripts system at this facility. Someone with clinical knowledge will always need to be available to update the systems and add new drugs as well as new order sets. It is dynamic rather than static. For the most part, it is not a full time job (although it can be). When I am not building the system, I practice clinical pharmacy in the hospital workflow.

And thats why you don't work for CVS or walgreens

I really want to become a pharmacist, my goal is to be an track star and each day I recite these lines"" LET ME TELL YOU SOMETHING YOU ALREADY KNOW, THE WORLD AIN'T ALL SUNSHINE OR RAINBOW IT'S A VERY MEAN AND NASTY PLACE AND i DON'T CARE HOW TOUGH YOU ARE IT WILL BEAT YOU TO YOUR KNEE AND KEEP YOU THERE IF YOU LET IT.. YOU FEAR NOBODY, IS GONNA HIT AS HARD AS LIFE, IT ANI'T ABOUT HOW HARD YOU HIT IT'S ABOUT HOW MUCH YOU CAN TAKE AND KEEP MOVING FORWARD THAT HOW WIINER ARE BORN. IF IT WASN'T GO THROUGH ALL THE BATTLE YOU BEEN NO ONES GOT THE RIGHT TO STOP YOU ... DREAM BIG AND NEVER GIVE UP <3

You Sir are a poetic nincompoop!

Itwasgoodforawhile a in Chicago, Illinois said: how can being reprmand affect my job serach. worker comp, got fired for that but they have to make me look incompetent first.

Most companies will only give your dates of employment and whether or not you are eligible for rehire. HR departments will not give out any other information. They are afraid that they will be sued and rightfully so.

MBA in Edmonton, Alberta said: Out of curiosity, how may of you worked while in pharmacy school? I find that the complaints here about the job (stressful, long hours, unrealistic expectations, etc) are pretty much reality in ANY field today. I find that most of my friends who are in professions such as pharmacy, medicine, public health or any of the health sciences generally went from high school to university without any real working experience and this has contributed to a trend in them romanticizing what a "job" is. Maybe the schooling sold you a story about a job where you float in, make tons of money, have tons of respect and do little work? The only thing I can attritibute this attitude to is lack of working experience in a real profession.

I am not in Pharmacy and I am not disputing that it seems to be a bit of a gong show, but can you honestly name one profession that isn't? Everyone feels under-valued, under-appreciated, and under-compensated. For those reading this thread who are considering pharmacy I recommend,as I would in any field, to do your due diligence. This means talking to pharmacists to get an idea of what it is they do daily before you enter into a school. Like ANY profession, what you learn while in school usually doesnt reflect the daily working reality of the job.

I disagree with this comment. At pharmacy school, they teach you all the clinical knowledge in the world and paint a beautiful picture of pharmacy, if you go in to retail pharmacy, you relise youve made the biggest mistake of your life, however if you go into other areas like hospital or industry, you relise that ppharmacy is an amazing proffession so for anyone considering pharmacy, make sure you avoid retail. Im a pharmacist who graduated sortly and i can tell you the job market is soo tight right now! Ive just got a job on research with a university, the pay isnt great but hey i get a lunch break, get to sit down, and get respect, as opposed to retail!!

Also jobs that pay well and get respect are out there. My sister is a dentist and my brother is s civil engineer. Both have jobs that pay really well ($100,000 yearly +), get respect and both of my siblings love there jobs, they say the stress is minimal and are respected in there role. So there are jobs that pay well and are respected. But you gotta work hard to get the money. Pharmacy is a great career if you look outside retail and use your skills!! Im currently aiming to become a clinical research pharmacist!!

Want fries with that big Mac? Pharmacy was at one time a big paying career, now days you can nearly pay your car payment and go to the fuc-ing grocery store. I wish to god my husband had never went into pharmacy school. Instead of helping us,it has only made things harder. Student loan is 1,300.00 mthly and 40 percent taxes coming out. So wish he would've just gotten a normal ass job.