• In order to become a pharmacist, one must complete six years of school upon high school graduation. It sounds like a long time, but bear in mind that pharmacy careers pay almost as much as physician careers. A potential pharmacist must obtain a doctor of pharmacy degree, which requires two years of pre-pharmacy school coupled with four years of pharmacy school. The curriculum at most pharmacy schools includes courses in physiology and pathophysiology, medicinal chemistry, pharmacognosy, pharmacology and toxicology. It is recommended to aspiring pharmacists to take classes that relate to math and/or the medical field while still in high school since these classes can help a student keep up with collegiate prerequisites.

• Once a student passes the basic lecture type classes in pharmacy school, he or she can move on to the labs. Pharmacy students learn to identify risk factors for disease, analyzing data based on treatment options for each illness. Pharmacy students learn how different drugs interact with each other in the body, and how to recognize and avoid potential prescription drug problems in patients. Other courses include ethics, management, pharmacy law, communications, and public health. Each of these is essential to pharmacy careers.

• Like physicians, pharmacy students are required to do internships before completing college. These internships are usually assigned by the school, performed under the supervision of professionals in the field. These internships are accomplished within the last year of pharmacy school, providing soon to be pharmacists with much needed real world experience before beginning pharmacy careers. After the end of the final year, the graduate will receive a Doctor of Pharmacy degree. But, before a person can begin to practice, he or she must be accredited by the state in which he or she resides. There are a few exams the pharmacist must pass in order to receive full licensure. They are the North American Pharmacist Licensure Examination and the Multi-state Pharmacy Jurisprudence Exam. In some areas there is even an additional state exam. After passing these exams, a person if free to refer to him or herself as a fully qualified pharmacist.

Pharmacy careers are rewarding, but they are also fast paced and high stress. Everyone has had to wait on line at a pharmacy at some point in the past. When people are sick, they are also impatient. It is normal for a pharmacist to feel pressure when trying to meet everyone’s needs at the same time. People who are interested in pharmacy careers need to be highly motivated in order to deal with the demands of their work. It takes a special kind of person to work in a pharmacy, but overall, it’s worth it.

• Pharmacy technicians do not make as much money as fully qualified pharmacists, who make almost as much as physicians, but they also do not have to go to school for nearly as long. It usually takes at least six years to become a pharmacist, first with pre-pharmacy and then pharmacy school, but pharmacy technicians can finish their education in as little as two. Graduates of a pharmacy technician school are usually seeking an associate’s degree, but the type of degree earned depends upon the school and the length of the program. However, an associate’s degree is typically preferred within the field, especially for entry level positions. Classes include but are not limited to: medical and pharmaceutical technology, pharmaceutical techniques, pharmaceutical ethics, and pharmacy law. These classes are essentially the same as those required at the beginning of the pharmacist training programs. Like the pharmacists they serve, pharmacy technicians need to know how to handle many of the same on-the-job procedures, such as proper medicinal dosages.

• Before a student can graduate from a pharmacy technician program, he or she must complete a pharmacy technician internship under the supervision of an experienced pharmacist. The idea is to gain real-world experience in the field working with patients and medicines. An internship can take place anywhere that a pharmacist works, as long as that pharmacist is accredited with the state in which he or she resides. The pharmacy technician observes the pharmacist’s interaction with patients, learning to put into practice valuable career skills. Then, the pharmacist sends in reports on the student’s progress. If the student does well, he or she will be allowed to graduate.

• Upon graduation, pharmacy technicians have the option to take an exam in order to receive full accreditation. The Certification of Pharmacy Technicians or the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board each hold state exams designed to certify pharmacy technicians. The certification is optional in most states, but is required in others. In passing the exams, pharmacy technicians can hope for a boost in pay scale, and may also have an easier time securing a position. Certification makes pharmacy technicians more valuable to the profession.

Becoming a pharmacy technician is a good way to gauge whether or not one will be a successful pharmacist. While some people are career pharmacy technicians, many go back to school to become fully licensed pharmacists. And, if a technician realizes after a short time that he or she does not like the profession, it’s not like six years or so have been wasted, and there is plenty of opportunity to go back to school to pursue another career.

• Pharmacists and pharmacy technicians have a great number of responsibilities. They prepare and dispense medication and engage in patient care. They are responsible for making sure that all newly prescribed medications do not counteract with any medications a patient may currently be taking. They keep track of the drugs contained within the pharmacy, reporting weekly inventories of narcotic drugs to the state. Pharmacists and pharmacy technicians are the meat and potatoes of the pharmacy job market. Pharmacy managers perform most of the clerical work in the pharmacy, sometimes taking over inventory responsibilities for the pharmacist. Pharmacy managers make the employee schedule, handle payroll, and deal with customer complaints. They also sometimes deal with insurance companies and doctors. Pharmacy salespeople are responsible for making sure that the correct prescriptions are sold to the right clients. They handle transactions and general customer service duties.

• Pharmacy jobs are found in a variety of places. In hospitals, pharmacists prepare medications directly for the doctors who prescribe them. They work under the supervision of the Dean of Medicine, and have much more responsibility in tracking medications and dosages. In the military, pharmacists can work either directly with soldiers in combat situations, or in RX centers on military bases. In veterinary hospitals, pharmacists work directly with veterinarians to help sick animals, dispensing medications along with special instructions for the owners. It can be a real challenge trying to get a cat to take a pill. There is typically no salesperson in hospitals, veterinary hospitals, and the military since these are not the typical retail situations.

• School and science lab pharmacy jobs are unique because there is less dealing with patients and more dealing with actual medications. These jobs are more researched based, with pharmacists working to together to find additional uses for already existing medications, as well as new medications to combat more complex and not yet cured diseases. Pharmacy jobs in science labs are exciting since the everyday goal is to discover something new about medicine, testing theories and conducting research trials. Educational pharmacy jobs focus on training new students in the field, teaching them how to practice medicine in the real world.

Pharmacy jobs are as diverse as the people that work them. Some are more challenging than others, and all of them can be rewarding depending upon the type of job one chooses. Whether one prefers to work in patient care, in sales, in management, with animals, in the military, or with the medications directly, there is a perfect pharmacy job for everyone interested in the field.