Alaska signing bonus for pharmacist rumors

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durrrrr

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I was recently talking to some classmates and one of them brought up a topic of signing bonuses for pharmacist that choose to relocate to alaska. the signing bonus this classmate told me was some ridiculous number (7 figures) and I'm not sure if it's believable or not. From my opinion, it seemed a bit excessive of a signing bonus and a quick google search gave me no answers. I was hoping could confirm that this is indeed true or if it's something made up.

thanks

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I took a graveyard hospital job for $198,000 per year with $100,000 per year retainer for 5 years. And the beauty of it was that it was tax free income. They also provided lodging and food. I ended up doing another 5 years...saved every penny and retired to Bahamas. One time I took 3 months off and got on Time Bandit for king crab fishing. They did a segment on me... about the crazy pharmacist.. That was me.
 
I took a graveyard hospital job for $198,000 per year with $100,000 per year retainer for 5 years. And the beauty of it was that it was tax free income. They also provided lodging and food. I ended up doing another 5 years...saved every penny and retired to Bahamas. One time I took 3 months off and got on Time Bandit for king crab fishing. They did a segment on me... about the crazy pharmacist.. That was me.

PM me with the details.....:)
 
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I took a graveyard hospital job for $198,000 per year with $100,000 per year retainer for 5 years. And the beauty of it was that it was tax free income. They also provided lodging and food. I ended up doing another 5 years...saved every penny and retired to Bahamas. One time I took 3 months off and got on Time Bandit for king crab fishing. They did a segment on me... about the crazy pharmacist.. That was me.


the good ole days...

:laugh:
 
No, but the relocation expenses included a 10-gauge shotgun and an Alaska hunting permit. You know, the whole teach a man to fish deal.

Is there a helicopter included for hunting?
 
No, but the relocation expenses included a 10-gauge shotgun and an Alaska hunting permit. You know, the whole teach a man to fish deal.


I opted for the fishing kit...came with several fly rods, reels, and about $2,000 worth of flies.. and every quarter, my employer paid for a fishing excursion.. I got sick of halibut and salmon. I longed for Crappie!
 
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All these talks about PMs make this sound like it's a big joke.
 
All these talks about PMs make this sound like it's a big joke.

No joke at all.

A fellow grad of mine in '07 got a sweet sign-on package that included a full set of blackout curtains for the entire house so that he can sleep during the 19+ hours of daylight in the summer. What really sealed the deal for him, though, is they promised to send the Zamboni in the winter to pick him up to go to work at the hospital.

Unlike Prazi's friend (the Wags guy in Wasilla), my friend only got $800K sign-on though. You know how it goes with those lowly inpatient pharmacists vs. retail!
 
Funny thing is.....I was born and raised in Alaska and I didn't know that they made this much.
 
I'm actually a pharmacy recruiter. Juneau, Alaska currently does not have any sign on bonuses. Average pay for retail is about $58/hr. But a little bit more north to Barrow, Alaska...now we're talking. I can get you in with $65/hr + $1.5million sign on bonus with 5 year commitment!

Forget this guy's offer... he is completely lying. $300,000 per year retention bonus is laughable for the conditions in Barrow. I would refuse for anything less than 400k per year retention plus part ownership in the Deadliest Catch production, or at MINIMUM Ice Road Truckers. Seriously.
 
Since there's such a serious shortage of pharmacists up in Alaska, anybody interested in opening a school? I think the state can easily support 100 students per year who are willing to work with multidisciplinary healthcare teams in underserved areas.
 
Since there's such a serious shortage of pharmacists up in Alaska, anybody interested in opening a school? I think the state can easily support 100 students per year who are willing to work with multidisciplinary healthcare teams in underserved areas.

What about communication with the other 48 states and travels back home?

Plus, the out of state tuition and stuff adds up to quite a bit of money. To the point where they would prefer going to a state other than Alaska if they're going out of state.
 
APU was thinking of opening one up but didn't go through it because of costs...
 
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Since there's such a serious shortage of pharmacists up in Alaska, anybody interested in opening a school? I think the state can easily support 100 students per year who are willing to work with multidisciplinary healthcare teams in underserved areas.

I got dibs on being dean!
 
i'm actually a pharmacy recruiter. Juneau, alaska currently does not have any sign on bonuses. Average pay for retail is about $58/hr. But a little bit more north to barrow, alaska...now we're talking. I can get you in with $65/hr + $1.5million sign on bonus with 5 year commitment!



sign me up!!! :)
 
Also, are there only sign on bonuses for Barrow? How about some other smaller places like Homer, AK? I wouldn't mind living anywhere in the South that is about 3-4 hours away from Anchorage. I should graduate in 2014, just weighing my options here :D
 
So if I want to move to Alaska to become a pharmacist, should I start looking into it now or just worry about it later during my 3rd and 4th years?

And if I wanted to come back to somewhere like California or New York (state), how would the transition be?

Do you know if any pharmacist who moves to Alaska wants to ever come back? :laugh:
 
Watch '30 Days of Night.' Set in Barrow. Winters are just like that-6 months of snow.
 
Watch '30 Days of Night.' Set in Barrow. Winters are just like that-6 months of snow.

that settles it I am not going to Alaska. I don't want Zombies to come after me because of the remote settings.
 
While there's something to be said about remaining in the land of brotherly cheesesteaks, I personally like the daily survival horror aspect of avoiding vampires during the winter. Parts of Philly could qualify for this too...ditto in many large cities.

The people in rural AK are really friendly, and the town is mainly natives (Esmikos). I worked one summer on the North Slope for BP, and it's a different world (in a good way). Flat tundra, with permafrost. All buildings are raised from the ground to prevent heat trasfer into the ground (and thus sinking). Tundra is like a swamp, so it's wet (temp permitting), and is the perfect breeding conditions for mosquitos. There are herds of countless caribou running across endless tundra-a powerful sight. You're above the arctic circle-far above, so there's dramatic swings in temperature. I remember July 4th, 1992-was in the 70s...then the weather quickly changed, and it snowed.

Barrow has a decent population (5K) and is approx the 15th largest incorporated city in the state. If you can handle the cold weather outside, and the winter darkness, you will have an invaluable experience for the rest of your comfortable life back east. Keep in mind that the liberty bell rings across America, including Barrow...
 
So if I want to move to Alaska to become a pharmacist, should I start looking into it now or just worry about it later during my 3rd and 4th years?

And if I wanted to come back to somewhere like California or New York (state), how would the transition be?

Do you know if any pharmacist who moves to Alaska wants to ever come back? :laugh:

I would start looking right now. You do not want to let a golden opportunity pass you by.
 
I'm actually a pharmacy recruiter. Juneau, Alaska currently does not have any sign on bonuses. Average pay for retail is about $58/hr. But a little bit more north to Barrow, Alaska...now we're talking. I can get you in with $65/hr + $1.5million sign on bonus with 5 year commitment!

I heard if you go a little farther north Santa's workshop has a position. Its for a closed door pharmacy to service all the elves. I hear you mostly dispense Adderall, Methlin and Vicodin. Pay is in the 1 to 2 million range for a 5 yaer contract with a huge sign on bonus and other perks.
 
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While there's something to be said about remaining in the land of brotherly cheesesteaks, I personally like the daily survival horror aspect of avoiding vampires during the winter. Parts of Philly could qualify for this too...ditto in many large cities.

The people in rural AK are really friendly, and the town is mainly natives (Esmikos). I worked one summer on the North Slope for BP, and it's a different world (in a good way). Flat tundra, with permafrost. All buildings are raised from the ground to prevent heat trasfer into the ground (and thus sinking). Tundra is like a swamp, so it's wet (temp permitting), and is the perfect breeding conditions for mosquitos. There are herds of countless caribou running across endless tundra-a powerful sight. You're above the arctic circle-far above, so there's dramatic swings in temperature. I remember July 4th, 1992-was in the 70s...then the weather quickly changed, and it snowed.

Barrow has a decent population (5K) and is approx the 15th largest incorporated city in the state. If you can handle the cold weather outside, and the winter darkness, you will have an invaluable experience for the rest of your comfortable life back east. Keep in mind that the liberty bell rings across America, including Barrow...

I currently live in the Southwest. If I moved to Alaska to be a pharmacist, do you think I would be more likely to want to stay or to want to come back? If I did come back, would I look at things differently?
 
I heard if you go a little farther north Santa's workshop has a position. Its for a closed door pharmacy to service all the elves. I hear you mostly dispense Adderall, Methlin and Vicodin. Pay is in the 1 to 2 million range for a 5 yaer contract with a huge sign on bonus and other perks.

Do they hire non-Catholics?
 
The North Pole village is located near Fairbanks, AK in the center of the state! Who woulda thunk it? Here's their website: http://www.northpolealaska.com/

Crazybob, not sure how it would change a person, everyone is different. Are you married, kids? Do you like hunting, fishing, gold prospecting, snow machining, skiing, etc? Meth is a major problem is small towns, with an increase in crime. Guns are prevalent, and I know many people in AK who carry hidden darringers for that someone special should they cross paths...

I visited AK last summer, and all the people I spoke to are very strong supporters of Palin. What did Palin recently call herself?
 
Lol at this entire trainwreck of a thread.
 
Crazybob, not sure how it would change a person, everyone is different. Are you married, kids? Do you like hunting, fishing, gold prospecting, snow machining, skiing, etc? Meth is a major problem is small towns, with an increase in crime. Guns are prevalent, and I know many people in AK who carry hidden darringers for that someone special should they cross paths...

Not married, no kids, but that might change by the time I graduate. I like hunting, fishing, and skiing.

The only guns I've practiced shooting are airsoft pistols :laugh: In my hometown, I haven't felt the need yet to buy guns for protection. I feel safe enough with things the way they are.

Should I try going to the shooting range like ArkansasRanger mentioned? :laugh:
 
I heard if you go a little farther north Santa's workshop has a position. Its for a closed door pharmacy to service all the elves. I hear you mostly dispense Adderall, Methlin and Vicodin. Pay is in the 1 to 2 million range for a 5 yaer contract with a huge sign on bonus and other perks.

LMFAO I thought they would be dispensing Haldol.

EDIT: does that mean your techs are going to be elves?
 
LMFAO I thought they would be dispensing Haldol.

EDIT: does that mean your techs are going to be elves?

Why do you think the salary is so high? You think retail chains here screw you on tech help, you should see what a bastard Santa is with that ****. I thought about an internship up there, but opted against it because I heard bad things from the elves about the working conditions.
 
i move to have all pharmacists' licenses revoked who spread any Alaska rumors any further.....
 
My friends just signed with Walgreens in Wasilla for 1.2 million for four years, plus relocation expenses.

;)
Must have been a UCSF graduate. Surely only a person who went to the top ranked pharmacy school could be offered that kind of cash.
 
Must have been a UCSF graduate. Surely only a person who went to the top ranked pharmacy school could be offered that kind of cash.

I'm curious....is this a serious response?
 
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