When a person normally thinks of a pharmacist, the idea of dispensing prescription medications and working in a community pharmacy, such as CVS or Publix, comes to mind. But the field of pharmacy goes much deeper than that.
Pharmacy has a very broad range of occupations, and all pharmacists provide a spectrum of services depending on their practice setting.
In the PHAR 401 - Introduction to Pharmacy in the United States course, offered at the University of South Carolina for undergraduate students of any major, we took a deep dive into the large variety of pharmacy careers.
Students at USC are presented with a wide variety of careers made possible with a single Pharm.D. degree ...
In class, Dr. Amy Grant led a presentation on over twenty different types of pharmaceutical professions including their critical factors, advantages, and disadvantages.
Personally, the top careers that interested me were community pharmacy, clinical specialties, corporate management, pharmaceutical industry, and pharmacy law.
To start off with the careers involving patient care, community pharmacist and clinical pharmacy specialist were at the top of my list.
Working with patients can be an amazing, uplifting experience for some, and an advantage - along with applying medical knowledge, having direct relationships with patients, flexible work hours, and a unique practice environment. However, the disadvantages could include long hours or limited breaks, paperwork and working through billing or insurance problems.
While patient relations can be amazing, it also isn’t for everyone.
That’s where some other paths like corporate management, pharmaceutical industry, and pharmacy law come into play.
What grabbed my attention about these careers was the potential to impact public health and patient safety, having the choice to work remotely or travel, and using innovative thinking while still applying scientific knowledge. The downsides to these types of careers might be bureaucracy or politics in the workplace and added stress from handling interpersonal conflicts.
With the amazing guidance and assistance from the College of Pharmacy’s academic advisors and professors, students at USC are presented with a wide variety of careers made possible with a single Pharm.D. degree.
The College of Pharmacy makes it easy for students to graduate with the professionalism and capabilities needed to advance the pharmacy profession, no matter what career path you choose to go down.
Topics: Student Experience, 2022-23 Creators@COP