Pharmacy Job Market/Outlook

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JakeSill said:
Good article, but did that lady really say Pharmacists are in shorter supply in Cali and Texas? Lmao
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In regards to a short supply in Texas, perhaps they're talking about the more rural areas? From what I understand, there's saturation in large cities, but the demand for pharmacists in more remote regions is higher. I know our local college of pharmacy has a special program that aims to put pharmacists in these more rural areas.
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Had not heard from anywhere in over 6 weeks. Got two emails today within an hour from two chains, so random. Hopefully interviews will go well!
 
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So I used to post here before pharmacy school but forgot my password and made a new account. Anyway... I can attest to the job market being bad if you're stubborn like me and want to stay in the city. There ARE jobs though. I can only speak for the South, but here are some recent examples -

Rite Aid was recently hiring in parts of Louisiana, Alabama, and Georgia (Albany, Augusta (2nd largest city after Atlanta), and Statesboro (less than an hour from Savannah).
One hour outside of Atlanta a very good level I trauma center and teaching hospital (MCCG) was recently hiring several staff positions (open to new grads!).
Also on USAjobs.gov they're hiring staff pharmacists at various bases in places like Savannah, GA, East coast of Florida, Tampa, etc.
If you know Spanish or French you can pretty easily find a job in Miami. Even if you don't know another language you still might find positions there (they're advertising a position there right now at the company I work for, which they don't generally do unless they need help filling spots... and this is a highly sought after grocery chain). I was also contacted about getting setting up a grad intern position there, but ended up not moving back to Florida.

ALSO... IF ANYONE IS WILLING TO MOVE TO NORTH CAROLINA- APPLY TO PUBLIX! They just entered the market in North Carolina and are recruiting pharmacists to open stores there in 2014 and 2015. Publix is one of the best places to work in retail pharmacy.

Hope that helps.
 
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Tink---I have been hounding publix recruiters etc because I would love to work there/be able to stay in Charlotte. I keep being told that they are not hiring just yet for most positions and the positions are always offered to internal candidates first (fair enough). I was trying to hold out as long as I could for Publix but cant wait around anymore for when they begin hiring. + I am a new grad so idk how high my chances are
 
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EML9255 said:
Tink---I have been hounding publix recruiters etc because I would love to work there/be able to stay in Charlotte. I keep being told that they are not hiring just yet for most positions and the positions are always offered to internal candidates first (fair enough). I was trying to hold out as long as I could for Publix but cant wait around anymore for when they begin hiring. + I am a new grad so idk how high my chances are

I have a second interview with Walgreens tomorrow for a district a little over an hour outside of Charlotte, not my ideal location but I think if i get an offer I will probably take it. Maybe I will be able to transfer back closer to home after a year or so?
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Hmm well that makes sense they're holding out since many of the stores don't open until 2015, and they do like to hire internally. They've been asking a lot (maybe all, I don't know) interns if they're willing to go there, but I don't know of anyone who has taken up that offer. My guess is that a lot of people just aren't willing to relocate to a whole different state since most employees are from elsewhere being that they just recently entered the NC market. It's worth a try if you're persistent. If you really aren't satisfied where you end up you can always transfer there if a spot opens up. I hear Walgreens is actually not bad to work for as long as your district/store isn't too crazy, and that could happen with any company.
 
I have a question and I would really appreciate everyone's advice. :)

I've been working as a grad intern for CVS for the past month now. I should be fully licensed within the next 2 weeks. To be honest, when I had originally signed on, the atmosphere, company, and employees were absolutely ideal (I know, I was definitely blind to that!). However, I feel that after working for them for about a month now, I can fully see that working for CVS is not what I had expected. I don't feel adequately trained after talking to the pharmacy manager and DM about it. I don't want to waste their training $$$ by being there nor do I want stay with the company. I'm just thinking about me and my goals and I just don't think my goals align to CVS' goals. So I'm thinking about quitting, putting in my two weeks, waiting until I get licensed, and just applying to other jobs. I just can't work for a company like this. Has anyone ever experienced the similar situation?
 
RXasaurus said:
I have a question and I would really appreciate everyone's advice. :)

I've been working as a grad intern for CVS for the past month now. I should be fully licensed within the next 2 weeks. To be honest, when I had originally signed on, the atmosphere, company, and employees were absolutely ideal (I know, I was definitely blind to that!). However, I feel that after working for them for about a month now, I can fully see that working for CVS is not what I had expected. I don't feel adequately trained after talking to the pharmacy manager and DM about it. I don't want to waste their training $$$ by being there nor do I want stay with the company. I'm just thinking about me and my goals and I just don't think my goals align to CVS' goals. So I'm thinking about quitting, putting in my two weeks, waiting until I get licensed, and just applying to other jobs. I just can't work for a company like this. Has anyone ever experienced the similar situation?
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Umm, what exactly are your goals? Sure companies differ somewhat with regard to work load, expectations, and environment, but retail is retail at the end of the day. It would help to know what it is about their goals that don't align with your own. Because if it is something that you are going to come across at pretty much any other retail chain than I'm not sure how many options there are. Are you sure you can readily find a position somewhere else?
 
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Just wait till you have another offer before leaving. Always do that!
 
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I don't think anything is any different if you want to work retail, except most people I know who've worked at CVS or Rite Aid seem to be happier at Wags or Target...but you should wait till you get an offer before you quit.
 
Tink14 said:
So I used to post here before pharmacy school but forgot my password and made a new account. Anyway... I can attest to the job market being bad if you're stubborn like me and want to stay in the city. There ARE jobs though. I can only speak for the South, but here are some recent examples -

Rite Aid was recently hiring in parts of Louisiana, Alabama, and Georgia (Albany, Augusta (2nd largest city after Atlanta), and Statesboro (less than an hour from Savannah).
One hour outside of Atlanta a very good level I trauma center and teaching hospital (MCCG) was recently hiring several staff positions (open to new grads!).
Also on USAjobs.gov they're hiring staff pharmacists at various bases in places like Savannah, GA, East coast of Florida, Tampa, etc.
If you know Spanish or French you can pretty easily find a job in Miami. Even if you don't know another language you still might find positions there (they're advertising a position there right now at the company I work for, which they don't generally do unless they need help filling spots... and this is a highly sought after grocery chain). I was also contacted about getting setting up a grad intern position there, but ended up not moving back to Florida.

ALSO... IF ANYONE IS WILLING TO MOVE TO NORTH CAROLINA- APPLY TO PUBLIX! They just entered the market in North Carolina and are recruiting pharmacists to open stores there in 2014 and 2015. Publix is one of the best places to work in retail pharmacy.

Hope that helps.
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I have applied to about 30+ hospital pharmacies within the past few weeks/months and haven't heard back from any (all over the country too). I am not sure if the hospitals even open to new grads (most don't say they aren't open to new grads, so I applied to a lot) would have a huge number of applicants with greater qualifications (PGY1, etc) that they would give more preference to, I assume this is the case, plus I know several people who have worked retail until they got a hospital position or had experience in hospital from pharmacy school (which I don't) that seems to give them a better edge than a newer grad like me. I am going to soon be (hopefully) volunteering at a large academic medical center in both a lab and with a clinical pharmacist b/c I'm taking time off for personal reasons and don't want to be doing nothing while I look. But I am concerned about getting a hospital staff position without a residency nor a pharmacy internship during school which I never got (after doing everything I can to get one). Things are looking tough and I'm getting worried.
 
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There are jobs out there.....lots of them, but peppering human resource departments with vanilla applications isn't going to land many people a job. Feet on the ground, walk into these places you want to work, get licensed in these states you're willing to work. At my wife's company they have more than one new hire that showed up WITHOUT a tech license before they were licensed, meaning they couldn't even be let into the pharmacy to start training. My wife drove over a thousand miles stopping in pharmacies along the way asking questions, "How is the market here? Would you share your DMs number? How do you like living here?' She had a few offers to choose from.

As far as holding out for hospitals without a PGY1, sure, go for it, but by not doing a residency, you knowingly made that job path much more difficult to achieve. If someone is ONLY willing to work in a hospital they should be doing a residency, as much of a crock as I think it is. If someone is willing to work anywhere, while trying to get into a hospital setting, that is more doable, but you have to be willing to work outside of NYC, Chicago, or SFO....that being said I know of a new grad walking into a suburban Chicago job last summer.

This is where all the little things add up. Plenty of new grads walk into hospital jobs, but not new grads from a generic school, with average grades, with zero hospital experience, who is not from the area, who has never stepped foot onto the hospital campus. People like to think that the quality of the school and grades don't matter. Well, most of the time they don't, but there are plenty of places they do, and I'm sure at the "unicorn jobs" they are much more of a consideration. Now your school and your grades could easily be trumped by experience, networking and/or luck, but all of this goes into the pot so to speak.

These are first year $100-$140k jobs. Jobs like that require sacrifice and grit. If you don't know what "grit" is in the hiring process, that could be part of the problem.
 
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We're hiring if anyone interested.

Non retail opportunity. For questions, send email to [email protected] Full-Time Positions available in: Texas, South Carolina,Virginia, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Southern California, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, Minnesota, Michigan, Washington, Charlotte North Carolina, Kentucky, Georgia.
 
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JustkeepLinning said:
We're hiring if anyone interested.

Recruiting New Pharmacists. Clinical Research in Pharmacogenomics. $120k+20% bonus. $600 monthly spending allowance card. Set your own schedule, off all weekends and holidays. All hotels, rental cars, and flights company covered. For questions, send email to [email protected] Full-Time Positions available in: Texas, South Carolina,Virginia, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Southern California, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, Minnesota, Michigan, Washington, Charlotte North Carolina, Kentucky, Georgia.
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:thumbup::thumbup: !!
 
I went to what is considered one of the best programs on the east coast, but my grades are pretty average and not having experience has rly killed it for me (and I did everything i could to get an internship in school...). I went to a 0-6 program and never gave a full thought as to whether I really wanted to do pharmacy. I am wishing I got my bachelors instead and took my time to shadow various professionals to figure if this profession was right for me before jumping into it.
 
KL, any job leads? You can always come to the Midwest.
 
trailerpark said:
KL, any job leads? You can always come to the Midwest.
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Thanks for asking dude. Nothing yet, but I will keep you posted. Are you in the MW? I thought you were somewhere in the south for some reason. Let me know of anything you kno of or where at in the Midwest. I'm even looking into IHS possibly.
 
kendrick lamar said:
Thanks for asking dude. Nothing yet, but I will keep you posted. Are you in the MW? I thought you were somewhere in the south for some reason. Let me know of anything you kno of or where at in the Midwest. I'm even looking into IHS possibly.
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Can you work retail?
 
rxwaiting said:
Can you work retail?
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I guess I may start my apps soon. I averted applying to retail for so long due to my bad experience at my APPE and my last year, a CVS manager told me I'll have no chance working with them if I haven't interned with a chain during school
 
kendrick lamar said:
I guess I may start my apps soon. I averted applying to retail for so long due to my bad experience at my APPE and my last year, a CVS manager told me I'll have no chance working with them if I haven't interned with a chain during school
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I hate it when Rx managers say that to people. I actually had a chain district manager say that to me as well. She told me, "your marketability exponentially decreases since you don't have any retail experience." She eventually set up an interview with me a few days later, offered me a job the following day, and I rejected it because I didn't want to work for a company that right off the bat minimizes my own accomplishments and achievements in other things despite my lack of retail experience.
 
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There are still jobs out there. An update to my situation, I quit the clinical managed care job 6 weeks in, took a month off, and had 2 offers within 2 weeks of applying using only my phone "indeed" app. With no retail experience even. It can be done!
 
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^^ just wondering what is your current student loan balance?
 
type b pharmD said:
There are still jobs out there. An update to my situation, I quit the clinical managed care job 6 weeks in, took a month off, and had 2 offers within 2 weeks of applying using only my phone "indeed" app. With no retail experience even. It can be done!
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Why switch out of managed care? Just curious as I thought it was your passion.
 
kendrick lamar said:
I guess I may start my apps soon. I averted applying to retail for so long due to my bad experience at my APPE and my last year, a CVS manager told me I'll have no chance working with them if I haven't interned with a chain during school
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Soooo basically your pride prevents your from pursuing a 6 figure job...?
 
RXasaurus said:
I hate it when Rx managers say that to people. I actually had a chain district manager say that to me as well. She told me, "your marketability exponentially decreases since you don't have any retail experience." She eventually set up an interview with me a few days later, offered me a job the following day, and I rejected it because I didn't want to work for a company that right off the bat minimizes my own accomplishments and achievements in other things despite my lack of retail experience.
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So, being told your lack of experience at doing the thing you are applying for makes you less marketable makes you not want the job? Interesting. And in what field of pharmacy is lack of experience at doing that thing considered a positive?
 
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managedcarepharmd said:
Why switch out of managed care? Just curious as I thought it was your passion.
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Just wasn't the right job , tbh. Office politics mainly, but with regard to pay/benefits, it wasn't worth the effort given what they were expecting. Myself and family consume a lot of healthcare, and the HMO I was working at somehow wasn't able to offer their employees anything above basically bronze level exchange coverage, and when all told, lack of good healthcare coverage basically ate about $20k of the annual salary.

When factoring incentives, it was an economic choice that was mandatory given the work environment. Including the better healthcare and incentive pay, now am making at least $50k more yearly , for a much easier and less hassle job.

I'm not discounting a potential return to managed care. Maybe to a company that can offer a competitive package.. but for now, am very satisfied with the switch. I do wish it could have worked out better with the MCO but it was just not in the cards at the moment, financially or personally.

At the chain I am at now, even the free (bare bones) insurance plan is better than the one at the HMO that cost $500/month in premiums. It is what it is.
 
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kendrick lamar said:
I went to what is considered one of the best programs on the east coast, but my grades are pretty average and not having experience has rly killed it for me (and I did everything i could to get an internship in school...). I went to a 0-6 program and never gave a full thought as to whether I really wanted to do pharmacy. I am wishing I got my bachelors instead and took my time to shadow various professionals to figure if this profession was right for me before jumping into it.
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Well the good news is if you do decide that pharmacy isn't for you your young enough to pursue other options. In addition, having a PharmD will definitely set you apart from candidates in other health care fields. I'm 29 and will hopefully be starting medical school next fall.
 
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I found a (non-retail) position right out of school, but it was mainly due to my performance during my APPE rotation. There were 70 applicants for the position, 20 phone interviews, and 7 in person interviews. The pay is on par with what my classmates have received from the retail market.
 
trailerpark said:
Are you sure? Seems high. You got private loans or something?
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Standard 10 year repayment plan. I think its $1600 or so but I pay a little extra. Gonna pay even more when I get some stuff paid off.

6.8% kills me! It would be $300 less if it was 3.4%..............
 
type b pharmD said:
There are still jobs out there. An update to my situation, I quit the clinical managed care job 6 weeks in, took a month off, and had 2 offers within 2 weeks of applying using only my phone "indeed" app. With no retail experience even. It can be done!
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What jobs have you applied for?
 
Rockinacoustic said:
Soooo basically your pride prevents your from pursuing a 6 figure job...?
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um lol wat makes u think it's simply about "pride"? It's the environment and the lack of adequate breaks to eat, etc that make it difficult for me too as I have diabetes. I see ppl all the time going for less than 6 figures even when they have the chance and the reasons are beyond simply pride
 
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kendrick lamar said:
What jobs have you applied for?
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Retail staff pharmacist and retail rxm/pic, Kroger , Walgreens, Safeway, staffing company, and rite aid (which normally I wouldn't touch with a 10 foot pole but it was a resort town). Mtn west, southwest, and northwest regions. I think I technically applied to like 8 positions, got 4 interviews, 2 FT offers and a per diem offer. Unfortunately burned some more bridges but not with anyone important.
 
kendrick lamar said:
um lol wat makes u think it's simply about "pride"? It's the environment and the lack of adequate breaks to eat, etc that make it difficult for me too as I have diabetes. I see ppl all the time going for less than 6 figures even when they have the chance and the reasons are beyond simply pride
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Are you currently employed?
 
kendrick lamar said:
um lol wat makes u think it's simply about "pride"? It's the environment and the lack of adequate breaks to eat, etc that make it difficult for me too as I have diabetes. I see ppl all the time going for less than 6 figures even when they have the chance and the reasons are beyond simply pride
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Have you never researched reasonable accommodations?

If DM is preventing you from being employed because of being unable to maintain blood sugar, ask for some leeway to have some food or time to test bg, these aren't exactly onerous demands on the employer, if they don't comply, you won't have to work again anyway (after lawsuit)
 
Silent Cool said:
Good god why did you pay that much for a pharmacy degree? Like, what is the point? So you don't save any money for retirement? WTF?
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It's a very long story that's been written in plenty of other posts, suffice it to say that my choices will allow me to meet my financial goals and retire early while being satisfied with my work life.
 
type b pharmD said:
Yes I will miss the company match. Won't feel too bad about retiring at age 50 though and , the $300k saved on student loans, after investment, will cover any shortfall.
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Isn't your wife sick? How are you going to get medical coverage for her when you stop working at 50?

What about your social security money when you are 65? Wouldn't it be much less since you are retiring early? Wouldn't the government also take a chunk of it because of your student loan debt?
 
BMBiology said:
Isn't your wife sick? How are you going to get medical coverage for her when you stop working at 50?

What about your social security money when you are 65? Wouldn't it be much less since you are retiring early? Wouldn't the government also take a chunk of it because of your student loan debt?
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You already know I'm not planning to collect SS. So that argument is moot.
 
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