PHARMACY AS A CAREER
A pharmacy professional has numerous options for career growth across various sectors, including pharmaceutical manufacturing, marketing, hospital pharmacy, clinical pharmacy, regulatory affairs, academics, consultancy, and opportunities abroad.
CAREER OPPORTUNITIES IN PHARMACY
1. Pharmaceutical Industries (Production, Manufacturing, Packaging, Store and Purchase, Quality Control and Quality Assurance, Research and Development)
For the production of bulk drugs, intermediates, and formulations, pharmacists are the desired technical person. The job is supervisory in nature and the initial designation as chemist, supervisor, executive, etc., varies from company to company. The candidate can even become the Manager, General Manager, Vice-President, and President (the highest position) based on his efficiency and experience.
The two major departments of any manufacturing industry are Quality Control and Quality Assurance. Some official standards for drugs and drug products with allowable limits of impurities and purities for every raw material and finished product are established. R&D department is very important in pharmaceutical industry because the discovery of a drug molecule and development of a suitable dosage form are continuous processes. Development of drug delivery systems is also necessary for better treatment of existing diseases. Therefore, many job opportunities are available in this area for which M.Pharm or M.Pharm+PhD professionals are preferred.
2. Pharmaceutical Marketing
A business cannot be continued without marketing and sales of its products. Pharmaceutical marketing and sales are technical in nature and the physician should have adequate knowledge regarding the dose, use, and contraindication of the drug prescribed by him. Pharmaceutical marketing is done by the manufacturer representative visiting the doctor. Hence, this is a specialised job, needing a person to be fully aware of the subject and a pharmacy professional can do this successfully.
3. Product Management
This is another area of marketing which is although not a field job but requires a person with some field experience. This job has excellent scope of earning if the person is gifted with innovative ideas.
4. Hospital and Clinical Pharmacy
The pharmacy professionals can also work in hospitals or drug stores as Registered Pharmacists. In many countries where this is a highly prestigious job, the pharmacist is authorised to prescribe a medicine while the physician diagnoses the disease. The pharmacist prescribes a suitable drug with proper dosage regimen (i.e., the dose, dosing frequency, and time) after considering the patient’s medical history, disease state, health condition, and incompatibility with other medicines.
5. Community Pharmacy
A pharmacist plays a vital role during the treatment of a patient through community pharmacy. The pharmacist acts as a mediator between the patient and the physician, i.e., a link between the patient and drug. A pharmacist in community pharmacy has the following roles to play:
- He counsels the patient on the use of drugs and dosage forms.
- He provides information to the patient and the medical staff about the drug/dosage form.
- He maintains the record and disease-treatment history of the patient.
- He provides training to the patient about the use of self-diagnostic kits for certain diseases (diabetes, hypertension, etc.).
- He supplies homecare dosage forms.
6. Regulatory Affairs
The main regulatory body governing the manufacture, sale, import and export of drug and drug products in India is the Drugs Control Administration. Drug Inspectors are present in each set-up who visit the retail counters, manufacturing units, etc., and draw samples for quality checks. The State Drugs Controller guides the State Directorate, and the Drugs Controller of India guides the Central Administration. The Deputy Director and Assistant Directors are present between the Director and Drug Inspector. B.Pharm is the minimum qualification eligibility for this job.
7. Academics
The pharmacy professionals have excellent opportunities in this area throughout the country. Many vacancies at different levels are still present in many government or private institutions in the country. M.Pharm is the minimum eligibility for the post of lecturer and PhD holders can even become professors.
8. Consultancy
This is an ideal opportunity to earn handsomely as a self-employed entrepreneur for pharmacy professionals who are highly technical and experienced. There is no age limit for this profession. The type of service and field, like regulatory affairs, pharmacovigilance, documentation, approval, manufacturing process know-how, analytical technique, research, market survey and sales promotion, information retrieval, data management, turn-key project, etc., decides the consultancy fee.
9. Library Information Service and Pharmaceutical Journalism
Technical information across the world should be collected by the R&D and QC departments. The information collected to match the pace of global competition should be kept updated. Therefore, library information service is another area whose demand is increasing in pharmaceutical industry. In addition to this, Bioinformatics and Electronic Data Retrieval Systems are also promising areas for the growth of a pharmacy professional.
10. Opportunities Abroad
The pharmacy professionals have golden opportunities to work abroad in countries, like U.S.A, Canada, U.K., France, Germany, Australia, African countries, Saudi Arabia, Japan, etc. These countries demand pharmacy professionals for different types of jobs, like industrial and clinical pharmacy, and academics. A person with B.Pharm degree can go to developed Western countries for higher education and can even find the highest career growth.
CAREER PROGRESSION HIERARCHY
- Entry Level: Chemist / Supervisor / Executive
- Mid Level: Manager / General Manager
- Top Level: Vice-President / President
REGULATORY AFFAIRS HIERARCHY
- Entry Level: Drug Inspector
- Mid Level: Assistant Director / Deputy Director
- State Level: State Drugs Controller
- Central Level: Drugs Controller of India
SUMMARY TABLE: CAREER OPTIONS AT A GLANCE
| Career Area | Key Roles | Minimum Qualification |
|---|---|---|
| Pharmaceutical Industry | Production, QC/QA, R&D, Packaging, Store, Purchase | B.Pharm / M.Pharm |
| Pharmaceutical Marketing | Manufacturer representative visiting doctors | B.Pharm |
| Product Management | Non-field job requiring field experience | B.Pharm + experience |
| Hospital & Clinical Pharmacy | Registered Pharmacist; prescribing medicines (in some countries) | B.Pharm / Pharm.D |
| Community Pharmacy | Patient counselling, record maintenance, homecare supplies | D.Pharm / B.Pharm |
| Regulatory Affairs | Drugs Control Administration; Inspectors | B.Pharm |
| Academics | Teaching, research | M.Pharm (Lecturer); PhD (Professor) |
| Consultancy | Self-employed technical services | Experience-based |
| Library Information & Journalism | Bioinformatics, data retrieval, technical information | B.Pharm / M.Pharm |
| Opportunities Abroad | Industrial, clinical, academic roles | B.Pharm |
