lifestyle of pharmacist (new grad, 5 years out, 10 years out, etc)

Hi everyone,

I'm considering a career in pharmacy but I'm a little turned off by the need to work nights and weekends. (I love the fact that you can make 90K or more as a new grad.) Does it freak anyone else out that they may have to work nights and weekends their whole life? How many hours a week do you work at a grocery or department store as a full-time pharmacist? What are the shifts like- 8-9 hours? What kind of benefits do you get? How hard is it to get promoted to manager level positions and what kind of pay raise and responsibilities are associated with this? And can you work less nights/weekends as you have more time at a company or work into pharmacy manager positions? During slow times at a pharmacy what do you do to keep busy? How much patient counseling and health prevention is really taking place vs. just dispensing meds.

Thanks for the info.

gsinccom said:

Hi everyone,

I'm considering a career in pharmacy but I'm a little turned off by the need to work nights and weekends. (I love the fact that you can make 90K or more as a new grad.) Does it freak anyone else out that they may have to work nights and weekends their whole life? How many hours a week do you work at a grocery or department store as a full-time pharmacist? What are the shifts like- 8-9 hours? What kind of benefits do you get? How hard is it to get promoted to manager level positions and what kind of pay raise and responsibilities are associated with this? And can you work less nights/weekends as you have more time at a company or work into pharmacy manager positions? During slow times at a pharmacy what do you do to keep busy? How much patient counseling and health prevention is really taking place vs. just dispensing meds.

Thanks for the info.

Click to expand...

I can only comment on what I've seen with CVS, but a typical store will have 2 pharmacists who split all the time between the two of them, so generally they work every other weekend. There will be some floater pharmacists in the district who can fill in little holes or cover vacations, etc. but mostly the time (which in my store is 5 14-hour shifts, a 10-hour shift, and an 8-hour shift is covered by the two. A typical base hours in my district is about 42 hours, but it varies a lot - our pharmacy manager actually has a 32 hour base now, I think, and our other pharmacist works a lot more than that because he picks up a lot of overtime at other stores. If you are at a busier store, then there might be more pharmacist overlap (hence shorter shifts), or if you are at a 24 hour store, then your shifts will depend somewhat on how the night people want to be scheduled. No, I have not seen that it helps as you are promoted/have more time with the company - unless you are a part-time pharmacist, you are pretty much going to be splitting weekends with your partner.

As a tech, I have obviously worked a lot of nights and weekends, and frankly in some respects I prefer them. You aren't as busy as during the day or during the week, and especially on the weekend, you have few doctor calls, and just generally not as much that has to be done. It really gets to be a trade-off. Yes, you might have to work weekend, but then you will have days off during the week when the rest of the world is working. I have found it very easy to schedule doctor's appointments, volunteer at my kids school, do shopping, etc. because I have at least one day off M-F.

As far as patient counseling, I think so much of it depends on the pharmacist. I have worked with some who like to counsel and do a great job with it, and others who just want to dispense. If you are in retail, then your store will sort of be your own little world, and you can to some extent run it how you want to. So, if you want to do a great job counseling you can, or if you want to sit around and talk on the phone you can too.

rxlynn said:

I can only comment on what I've seen with CVS, but a typical store will have 2 pharmacists who split all the time between the two of them, so generally they work every other weekend. There will be some floater pharmacists in the district who can fill in little holes or cover vacations, etc. but mostly the time (which in my store is 5 14-hour shifts, a 10-hour shift, and an 8-hour shift is covered by the two. A typical base hours in my district is about 42 hours, but it varies a lot - our pharmacy manager actually has a 32 hour base now, I think, and our other pharmacist works a lot more than that because he picks up a lot of overtime at other stores. If you are at a busier store, then there might be more pharmacist overlap (hence shorter shifts), or if you are at a 24 hour store, then your shifts will depend somewhat on how the night people want to be scheduled. No, I have not seen that it helps as you are promoted/have more time with the company - unless you are a part-time pharmacist, you are pretty much going to be splitting weekends with your partner.

As a tech, I have obviously worked a lot of nights and weekends, and frankly in some respects I prefer them. You aren't as busy as during the day or during the week, and especially on the weekend, you have few doctor calls, and just generally not as much that has to be done. It really gets to be a trade-off. Yes, you might have to work weekend, but then you will have days off during the week when the rest of the world is working. I have found it very easy to schedule doctor's appointments, volunteer at my kids school, do shopping, etc. because I have at least one day off M-F.

As far as patient counseling, I think so much of it depends on the pharmacist. I have worked with some who like to counsel and do a great job with it, and others who just want to dispense. If you are in retail, then your store will sort of be your own little world, and you can to some extent run it how you want to. So, if you want to do a great job counseling you can, or if you want to sit around and talk on the phone you can too.

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you make some very good points. thank you.

how are promotional opportunities awarded and how long does it take to obtain them? what are the raises in pay like as you progress up the ladder?


thanks again.

gsinccom said:

you make some very good points. thank you.

how are promotional opportunities awarded and how long does it take to obtain them? what are the raises in pay like as you progress up the ladder?


thanks again.

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don't expect too much of a difference in money as you "move up the ladder"

pharmacy caps out

Your shifts vary by location. Small independent stores may not be open as late or on weekends. Hospitals may offer specific set shifts and days. You may work five 8 hour days, four 10's, or possibly even some 12's. It all depends on where you choose to take a job and how they are set up. Most retail people will end up doing some nights and weekends, including managers.

It's pretty easy to become a retail manager, but the pay difference is not much.

gsinccom said:

Hi everyone,

I'm considering a career in pharmacy but I'm a little turned off by the need to work nights and weekends. (I love the fact that you can make 90K or more as a new grad.) Does it freak anyone else out that they may have to work nights and weekends their whole life? How many hours a week do you work at a grocery or department store as a full-time pharmacist? What are the shifts like- 8-9 hours? What kind of benefits do you get? How hard is it to get promoted to manager level positions and what kind of pay raise and responsibilities are associated with this? And can you work less nights/weekends as you have more time at a company or work into pharmacy manager positions? During slow times at a pharmacy what do you do to keep busy? How much patient counseling and health prevention is really taking place vs. just dispensing meds.

Thanks for the info.

Click to expand...

Lifestyle is largely variable. If you want the M-F 9-5 then you can get it easily working for academia, pharmaceutical industry and/or state (i.e. Mental Health Depts) or federal goverment (i.e. drug reviewer for FDA and/or clinical or administrative pharmacist working for the VA or Army hospitals). Many clinical staff in private sector hospitals also work straight M-F 9-5 or may only have to work every 3rd or 4th wknd. Long term care/home infusion also is likely to offer more regular hrs, but may also require oncall duties.

Staff pharmacists in retail and/or hospitals provide the most variability in hours (i.e. days, nights, evenings).

Having to work holidays most clinical/administrative staff in any setting don't work holidays (if they do it is typically just to handle dosing/clinical duties).

Ability to increase salary overtime depends on setting. Traditional pathway is from staff pharmacist-->assistant director-->director. Other pathways are clinical administrative routes (i.e. clinical coordinators), going into industry, moving up within pharmacy benefit management corporations (VA, Kaiser, Caremark, etc), or moving up in academia (assistant professor-->associate-->Department Head-->Dean).

Time required to achieve any of these pathways may vary within each setting but again it is on you to recognize the potential out there and finding a way to "cash in". Many of your questions appear to be geared towards retail pharmacy, possibly b/c that is the most visible portion of the profession; however, I'd only caution that the profession has so many options that may better aid you in deciding upon pharmacy vs. optometry. Depending on the changes above you, you can move up the latter fairly quickly (i.e. a few yrs) especially in retail b/c of the higher turnover rate. Avg starting salary is anywhere from 85-110k out of school depending on setting. Avg next tier (typically administration of some sort is doing anywhere from 95-120k (notice the overlap). It is rare to be doing >120 or 130k/yr as a pharmacist unless you own your own pharmacy, work in industry w/ a proven track record, are a Dean somewhere (take forever to obtain) and/or are a pharmacy director in a high paying area.

Typical benefits...private sector 2wks vacation + ~2 wks sick time (all of which typically accrues over time)

Better benefits are in VA system and/or academia (basically you just end up accruing more vacation and sick time)

Retirement benefits vary from one business to the next and healthcare is always provided. Hospitals typically provide health care from day 1 or the 1st day of the month after you are hired. Benefits in retail tend to start after a probationary period. Pay b/w hospital/retail/long term care is becoming more similar w/ less variation. Retail probably still pays the most hourly, but rarely gives shift differentials for working evenings (but may give differentials for working wknds)

Ooh, this is a nice thread. I'm sure most of us have read the pfizer manual and various other sites explaining what pharmacists do and what possibilities we may have upon attaining our degree, but it's very hard to find certain things like direct comparison and hours.

Anyway, I thought I'd throw in some more information about independent pharmacists. That is, pharmacists who are their own bosses. When I first became interested in pharmacy, I wanted to open my own pharmacy, but I'm having second thoughts. Most people say that when you first start out, you're taking on plenty of risk, and you have a large amount of hours per week. Still, if you decide to do it, in some years, you'll likely be better off.

Here's a cool link concerning independent pharmacists.
http://healthcare.monster.com/pharm/articles/independentpharm/

Also, I figured I'd probably start out doing something in retail, but I've heard that area of pharmacy can get stale pretty fast. If I do get bored with it, or just don't enjoy it as much as I'd like, taking the risk of opening a pharmacy isn't that bad.

That's the cool thing about pharmacy. You have a lot of flexibility with your degree. If you don't enjoy retail as much as you thought you might, you can always work in a clinical setting, or just try something new like opening a business.

kwizard said:

Lifestyle is largely variable. If you want the M-F 9-5 then you can get it easily working for academia, pharmaceutical industry and/or state (i.e. Mental Health Depts) or federal goverment (i.e. drug reviewer for FDA and/or clinical or administrative pharmacist working for the VA or Army hospitals). Many clinical staff in private sector hospitals also work straight M-F 9-5 or may only have to work every 3rd or 4th wknd. Long term care/home infusion also is likely to offer more regular hrs, but may also require oncall duties.

Staff pharmacists in retail and/or hospitals provide the most variability in hours (i.e. days, nights, evenings).

Having to work holidays most clinical/administrative staff in any setting don't work holidays (if they do it is typically just to handle dosing/clinical duties).

Ability to increase salary overtime depends on setting. Traditional pathway is from staff pharmacist-->assistant director-->director. Other pathways are clinical administrative routes (i.e. clinical coordinators), going into industry, moving up within pharmacy benefit management corporations (VA, Kaiser, Caremark, etc), or moving up in academia (assistant professor-->associate-->Department Head-->Dean).

Time required to achieve any of these pathways may vary within each setting but again it is on you to recognize the potential out there and finding a way to "cash in". Many of your questions appear to be geared towards retail pharmacy, possibly b/c that is the most visible portion of the profession; however, I'd only caution that the profession has so many options that may better aid you in deciding upon pharmacy vs. optometry. Depending on the changes above you, you can move up the latter fairly quickly (i.e. a few yrs) especially in retail b/c of the higher turnover rate. Avg starting salary is anywhere from 85-110k out of school depending on setting. Avg next tier (typically administration of some sort is doing anywhere from 95-120k (notice the overlap). It is rare to be doing >120 or 130k/yr as a pharmacist unless you own your own pharmacy, work in industry w/ a proven track record, are a Dean somewhere (take forever to obtain) and/or are a pharmacy director in a high paying area.

Typical benefits...private sector 2wks vacation + ~2 wks sick time (all of which typically accrues over time)

Better benefits are in VA system and/or academia (basically you just end up accruing more vacation and sick time)

Retirement benefits vary from one business to the next and healthcare is always provided. Hospitals typically provide health care from day 1 or the 1st day of the month after you are hired. Benefits in retail tend to start after a probationary period. Pay b/w hospital/retail/long term care is becoming more similar w/ less variation. Retail probably still pays the most hourly, but rarely gives shift differentials for working evenings (but may give differentials for working wknds)

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thank you for all of the helpful info.

One question. Why would one pursue management opportunities on the retail side? What does this offer the applicant other than a potential 10K salary increase?

thanks again.

also, what happens when a new grad gets hired as a staff pharmacist at the same store you are a staff pharmacist but 5 years after you? Starting salaries will be better when he/she is hired. Do you get a bump in your salary too or do they just give the new guy/gal a better pay rate? Couldn't this be a source of contention if the new grad is making more than the veteran?

gsinccom said:

thank you for all of the helpful info.

One question. Why would one pursue management opportunities on the retail side? What does this offer the applicant other than a potential 10K salary increase?

thanks again.

also, what happens when a new grad gets hired as a staff pharmacist at the same store you are a staff pharmacist but 5 years after you? Starting salaries will be better when he/she is hired. Do you get a bump in your salary too or do they just give the new guy/gal a better pay rate? Couldn't this be a source of contention if the new grad is making more than the veteran?

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Why would one pursue management in retail...I suppose the salary is one factor as you mentioned. Other factors may be burn out at staffing level, trying to make a difference on a corporate level (via integration of clinical programs and/or restructuring staffing issues) or even prestige. Everybody has different motivators that are impt to them.

Starting salary...Yep if you stay at the staff level you will eventually end up training some new grad who will often come in making more than you are (especially if demand continues to outweigh supply). If all you bank on is staffing potential and/or staying w/ one job the only consistent pay raise is the typical increase for price of living (i.e. 1-3% depending on area and company whether other bonuses are incorporated). That is just the nature of the business. The only way to get around all of this is too move up to secure higher pay (via management) or move around a lot as staff pharmacist negotiating higher pay w/ each move (may loose out on benefits w/ frequent moving (i.e. vacation accrual) but depends on 401K and negotiation abilities for vacation). After a while you'll see that you can always make more money or will eventually opt for the job situation that is most satisfying personally and professionally.

That is why I like the VA and federal system. They have steps by which you can increase pay based on clinical and/or scholarly activity (presenting at regional/national meetings, board certification, etc). Even hospitals tend to provide a little more flexibility than retail given hospitals typically have various levels of "middle management" (i.e. director of operations, clinical coordinator, Pharmacy Director, Assistant Pharmacy Director, etc.). It really just depends what makes you happy as far as which setting you'd prefer. None of them are perfect.

kwizard said:

Why would one pursue management in retail...I suppose the salary is one factor as you mentioned. Other factors may be burn out at staffing level, trying to make a difference on a corporate level (via integration of clinical programs and/or restructuring staffing issues) or even prestige. Everybody has different motivators that are impt to them.

Starting salary...Yep if you stay at the staff level you will eventually end up training some new grad who will often come in making more than you are (especially if demand continues to outweigh supply). If all you bank on is staffing potential and/or staying w/ one job the only consistent pay raise is the typical increase for price of living (i.e. 1-3% depending on area and company whether other bonuses are incorporated). That is just the nature of the business. The only way to get around all of this is too move up to secure higher pay (via management) or move around a lot as staff pharmacist negotiating higher pay w/ each move (may loose out on benefits w/ frequent moving (i.e. vacation accrual) but depends on 401K and negotiation abilities for vacation). After a while you'll see that you can always make more money or will eventually opt for the job situation that is most satisfying personally and professionally.

That is why I like the VA and federal system. They have steps by which you can increase pay based on clinical and/or scholarly activity (presenting at regional/national meetings, board certification, etc). Even hospitals tend to provide a little more flexibility than retail given hospitals typically have various levels of "middle management" (i.e. director of operations, clinical coordinator, Pharmacy Director, Assistant Pharmacy Director, etc.). It really just depends what makes you happy as far as which setting you'd prefer. None of them are perfect.

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thanks again for the info.

that has got to upset someone who was hired in 1999 at 65K/year to see a new grad coming in to the same pharmacy at 89K/year don't you think?

if you want to move up in a retail(Albertsons, for example) or community/out-patient clinic setting how long does it take to get to management? What does a pharmacy managment job consist of and how is it different than staff? I am assuming a new pharmD grad won't make more than a manager? any more information you can give me on job responsiblities as you move up and pay increases would be great.

I am not interested in working at a hospital, at least don't think I will be.

gsinccom said:

What does a pharmacy managment job consist of and how is it different than staff? I am assuming a new pharmD grad won't make more than a manager? any more information you can give me on job responsiblities as you move up and pay increases would be great.

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Some things pharmacy manager does in my pharmacy that staff pharmacist does not (unless the manager delegates!) - job review of technicians, hiring of techs when necessary, liasion with district manager when problems occur in the store, in charge of ordering CII's. That's all that comes to my mind right now. We have a scheduler in our district, so the manager is not responsible for finding coverage if we have pharmacists off.

In my area, it's not common for a pharmacy manager to make 10K more than a staff pharmacist. If the manager works over 40hr/week on a set salary, they may actually earn less per hour than a staff pharmacist. You have to watch what you get into.

New hires often bump others' wages.

gsinccom said:

thanks again for the info.

that has got to upset someone who was hired in 1999 at 65K/year to see a new grad coming in to the same pharmacy at 89K/year don't you think?

if you want to move up in a retail(Albertsons, for example) or community/out-patient clinic setting how long does it take to get to management? What does a pharmacy managment job consist of and how is it different than staff? I am assuming a new pharmD grad won't make more than a manager? any more information you can give me on job responsiblities as you move up and pay increases would be great.

I am not interested in working at a hospital, at least don't think I will be.

Click to expand...

any others insight?

thanks again rxlynn...
and how much more does you manager make and does he have less night/weekend work and does he have to put in more hours than the staff pharmDs and how long did it take and what factors were taken into account for your manager to get the promotion?

thanks again?

Generally it is less advantageous to work as a manager. Managers must ensure the shifts are covered, including coming in to work the shift themselves. Managers have to deal with the HR bunk, enforce policy, schedules and (generally) provide reviews for staff pharmacists and techs. Managers are typically held accountable for any nondirect issues in the pharmacy.

On top of that, the pharmacy managers, unlike the store managers rotate the weekends or night shifts like everyone else. You want to go into management, not to make more money (it's been a push in every retail manager I've talked to), but to potentially climb the corporate ladder. That means more management/HR/business and less public interaction.

If you want 40 hours during a business week, don't go into public retail (vs. internet retail). That's not where the market is heading.

If you are worried/concerned about making the most, I'd take a page from the tech sector in the early 90s. Work at a job for a couple of years and then switch to another company. Find your own 401k and then roll the old companies 401ks into that when you leave. By switching companies you start at the higher salaries and depend less on raises to even things out. You are likely to burn bridges, but you'll always be making close to the most money available.

KUMoose said:

Generally it is less advantageous to work as a manager. Managers must ensure the shifts are covered, including coming in to work the shift themselves. Managers have to deal with the HR bunk, enforce policy, schedules and (generally) provide reviews for staff pharmacists and techs. Managers are typically held accountable for any nondirect issues in the pharmacy.

On top of that, the pharmacy managers, unlike the store managers rotate the weekends or night shifts like everyone else. You want to go into management, not to make more money (it's been a push in every retail manager I've talked to), but to potentially climb the corporate ladder. That means more management/HR/business and less public interaction.

If you want 40 hours during a business week, don't go into public retail (vs. internet retail). That's not where the market is heading.

If you are worried/concerned about making the most, I'd take a page from the tech sector in the early 90s. Work at a job for a couple of years and then switch to another company. Find your own 401k and then roll the old companies 401ks into that when you leave. By switching companies you start at the higher salaries and depend less on raises to even things out. You are likely to burn bridges, but you'll always be making close to the most money available.

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good insight.

Will you explain "If you want 40 hours during a business week, don't go into public retail (vs. internet retail). That's not where the market is heading."

I do want 40 hours a week (or less) and public interaction so I guess managment isn't for me.

Don't you have to put in quite a few years at a place to roll the 401K?

any idea when pharmacy salaries will cap out and what $ that might be at? At the rates they are rising they'll be passing Family Practice MDs soon won't they?

bananaface said:

New hires often bump others' wages.

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will you explain this some more please.

Thank you.

gsinccom said:

will you explain this some more please.

Thank you.

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It's really an issue of supply,demand and retention. If you had worked for CVS for 5 years earning 90K and your new partner is making 98K, you would be justifiably upset. Perhaps upset enough to jump ship and work for another chain where they WILL pay you 98K + a signing bonus. The big chains realize this and want to try and keep their current pharmacists that know the computer systems/store policies, etc. But from my limited exposure to retail, store-hopping is not uncommon. (And please note the "limited" here - there are a lot of people on this board that can give you more information on retail pharmacy than I can).

Just a little anecdote: (take it with a grain of salt) I just started a job at CVS last week - I've only worked ~25 hours there so far. But in the last six months my store has had THREE PIC's. The other techs seem to really like the current PIC (I've heard horror stories about how disorganized the last two were), but they seem used to rotating pharmacists. The floater that I worked with last weekend graduated this last May. He said that he was hired straight out as the PIC at another store, but didn't like it. He's now a floater making $50/hour, but he's working 50+ hours a week. However, he's young and unmarried (he's a month older than me - it's sad), so he doesn't mind right now. When he was asking me about what I wanted to do with pharmacy, I mentioned that I was interested in the clinical side. He said "Go clinical. I feel like I'm getting dumber every day that I work in retail."

gsinccom, it seems to me that you're leaning towards retail, which is fine (that's where most of the jobs are anyway), but it might be really hard to find a job where you never work nights/weekends. Our new PIC is actually part-time (she works 30 hours a week so that she can spend more time with her kids) and she makes up the schedule. But even she has to work Monday nights and the occasional weekend - it's just a reality.

gsinccom said:

good insight.

Will you explain "If you want 40 hours during a business week, don't go into public retail (vs. internet retail). That's not where the market is heading."

I do want 40 hours a week (or less) and public interaction so I guess managment isn't for me.

Don't you have to put in quite a few years at a place to roll the 401K?

any idea when pharmacy salaries will cap out and what $ that might be at? At the rates they are rising they'll be passing Family Practice MDs soon won't they?

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thanks moxxie.

any thoughts on this one?

gsinccom said:

any others insight?

thanks again rxlynn...
and how much more does you manager make and does he have less night/weekend work and does he have to put in more hours than the staff pharmDs and how long did it take and what factors were taken into account for your manager to get the promotion?

thanks again?

Click to expand...

No idea of salary.
She does have less night work but that is partly because she dropped her base hours after she had a child last year. Otherwise, she would have the same as our other pharmacist. She and I had a discussion the other day about how did she get the manager job - basically she showed up when they had an opening, and the other pharmacist that was already at the store didn't really want to be the PIC, so they asked her if she wanted it. She had already had maybe 5 years or so experience with another chain, and had done a bit of management with them when a pharmacist had left. But, bottom line, it's not like it was some huge promotion for her and it didn't really change much (if anything) about her day-to-day work.

I think I mentioned it before, but it bears repeating - unless you are at a really busy retail store, it will be mostly just 2 pharmacists - a good reason to make sure that you like your partner and that you will have similar ideas about scheduling and how to run the pharmacy.

Moxxie said:

It's really an issue of supply,demand and retention. If you had worked for CVS for 5 years earning 90K and your new partner is making 98K, you would be justifiably upset. Perhaps upset enough to jump ship and work for another chain where they WILL pay you 98K + a signing bonus. The big chains realize this and want to try and keep their current pharmacists that know the computer systems/store policies, etc. But from my limited exposure to retail, store-hopping is not uncommon. (And please note the "limited" here - there are a lot of people on this board that can give you more information on retail pharmacy than I can).

Just a little anecdote: (take it with a grain of salt) I just started a job at CVS last week - I've only worked ~25 hours there so far. But in the last six months my store has had THREE PIC's. The other techs seem to really like the current PIC (I've heard horror stories about how disorganized the last two were), but they seem used to rotating pharmacists. The floater that I worked with last weekend graduated this last May. He said that he was hired straight out as the PIC at another store, but didn't like it. He's now a floater making $50/hour, but he's working 50+ hours a week. However, he's young and unmarried (he's a month older than me - it's sad), so he doesn't mind right now. When he was asking me about what I wanted to do with pharmacy, I mentioned that I was interested in the clinical side. He said "Go clinical. I feel like I'm getting dumber every day that I work in retail."

gsinccom, it seems to me that you're leaning towards retail, which is fine (that's where most of the jobs are anyway), but it might be really hard to find a job where you never work nights/weekends. Our new PIC is actually part-time (she works 30 hours a week so that she can spend more time with her kids) and she makes up the schedule. But even she has to work Monday nights and the occasional weekend - it's just a reality.

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Is your PIC paid time and a half for anything over 40hrs?

highlyfavored said:

Is your PIC paid time and a half for anything over 40hrs?

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I have no idea what the overtime pay rate is, but the floater that I worked with (the one working >50 hours/week) did say that he didn't get overtime until he had worked more than 44 hours in a week. 😕

you are worried about working weekends???? Um, welcome to health care!

ChicagoPillBox said:

you are worried about working weekends???? Um, welcome to health care!

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Not all healthcare professionals work wkends.

answered questions

Most general clinical positions don't require residencies, at most a one year pharmacy practice. The ones that do are the highly specialized fields like oncology, cardiology, ICU, etc. To do those you generally need a one year pharmacy practice residency, and a one year speciality one in your selected field.

iheartpandp said:

I have a few questions that I would like to add to the discussion.

How much is liablility insurance for a pharmacist and is it different if you are in retail or hospital?

How much do you actually take home of your paycheck after taxes?

Do most pharmacy jobs come with good benefits?

I'm confused about residency. Is it required to have residency to work in everything except retail or is that just for clinical pharmacists and what if you were consulting? Would that require a residency? And do you need something like an MBA to do that? I have also heard that they may increase the requirements to two years for certain positions?

Also how hard is it to get a job in a hospital as either a simple dispensing pharmacist or clinical?

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Liability insurance is dirt cheap, about $50 per year I think. The insurance is the same for retail or hospital.

How much you take home after taxes will vary. My husband makes 100K, puts into his 401K, we itemize deductions, etc. Once we get our tax refund, it works out that he only pays about 5K in income tax.

All the pharmacy jobs I've seen have decent benefits: stock purchase plans, 401K matching, health insurance, etc.

At the major hospital chains (at least in my area), clinical positions require a one year residency. Even staff positions require one full year of hospital experience. A good way to get that experience is to do a residency. Some hospitals promote staff pharmacists to clinical positions, so you can start as a staff pharmacist then move into clinical.

To become a consulting pharmacist, you must be licensed as a consultant. There's some extra hoops you have to jump through.

You don't need an MBA for anything.

dgroulx said:

You don't need an MBA for anything.

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To say that you don't need an MBA for anything isn't really true. For retail or clinical work an MBA is overkill. But if you are serious about getting into high level positions at drug companies or into corporate management for a big pharmacy chain MBA is suggested, if not basically required.

patmcd said:

To say that you don't need an MBA for anything isn't really true. For retail or clinical work an MBA is overkill. But if you are serious about getting into high level positions at drug companies or into corporate management for a big pharmacy chain MBA is suggested, if not basically required.

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There are so few of those positions available and to get into one it's more of who you know rather than what your degree is. Once you have enough experience to do the job, the degree is meaningless. Employers look more at experience.

At my store, the pharmacist makes $10 more per hour over their regular rate for anything worked over 40 hours. They do not get time +1/2. Management takes a lot more crap from the DM's and store management where I am, too. They have to hear more about techs crying over who gets better hours, etc. I, personally do not see any real advantage to being PIC, and do not want it. The company I am with does not start new pharmacists at a higher rate than the current pharmacists, and raises are blanketed company wide for the pharmacists, staff and management alike.

Both of the rph's that I work with are comfortable in their lifestyles, but not lavish, or living beyond their means. Neither are Pharm D's, but that would not change their pay rate either.

Some companies do pay more for that Pharm D, or the PIC position, I'm sure.


If you are looking for 9-5, Monday through Friday and no nights or weekends....there is always detail work....ugh. 🙄

Very interesting discussion. Here's my question: what kind of vacation time does a pharmacist get? I would imagine that it would be hard to give retail pharmacists much vacation at a retail store if there are 2 pharmacists covering the whole store. How many weeks does a starting pharmacist get? How about after 5-10 years - does it get better? How about an industry or hospital pharmacist?

luke77 said:

Very interesting discussion. Here's my question: what kind of vacation time does a pharmacist get? I would imagine that it would be hard to give retail pharmacists much vacation at a retail store if there are 2 pharmacists covering the whole store. How many weeks does a starting pharmacist get? How about after 5-10 years - does it get better? How about an industry or hospital pharmacist?

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You start with 2 weeks a year, progress to 3 weeks a year. I don't personally know anyone who is getting more than 3 weeks, but that doesn't mean it doesn't happen. It's up to the pharmacy to provide coverage while you are gone. There are plenty of pharmacists wanting to pick up an extra day on their day off. Every day at a pharmacy, you'll see a list of open days where they need people to fill in. At Walgreens, new hires are floaters for 6 months. All they do is fill in where they are needed.

At the hospital I was just at, it worked a little differently. When a staff pharmacist went on vacation, the clinical pharmacist had to take over their duties. This left no one doing clinical. They were in the process of trying to hire new people so this didn't happen. It took them over a year to fill 2 positions.

luke77 said:

Very interesting discussion. Here's my question: what kind of vacation time does a pharmacist get? I would imagine that it would be hard to give retail pharmacists much vacation at a retail store if there are 2 pharmacists covering the whole store. How many weeks does a starting pharmacist get? How about after 5-10 years - does it get better? How about an industry or hospital pharmacist?

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The short answer is that it varies. Benefits in retails are fairly consistent across the board, but every now and then some exceptions are out there simply due to negotiations upon hire depending on how desperate the store is to fill the spot. As previous post said, typical vacation in retail is 2-3 wks.

However, please note that benefits vary w/ the setting (i.e. retail vs hospital vs long term care vs federal government/armed forces).

Another concern you should have is in regards to an extended leave program. All companies are required to hold your job open for a certain period (I think 6 mos) after a debillitating injury (i.e. strock, heart attack, etc), but you would also want to get paid during this period as well. Long term and short term disability are common in most companies, but reality is that neither of these options pay you your full salary (typically only pay 60% of salary). So in these instances your vacation and/or sick time becomes very important. Most retail and/or long term care/home infusion places often give 2wks of vacation + 5-15 days of sick. The sick often accumulates up to 15 days (at 5 days/yr) and vacation typically stays the same until you get to your 6th yr of employment. Please note that this varies w/ company, but typically during your 6th or 11th yr you get that extra wk of vacation typically totalling 3 wks. Then possibly after 10 or 15 yr you just might get 4 wks of vacation.

How does this compares w/ other sectors...Well in hospitals the initial 2 wks vacation + 2 wks sick and possibly 1-3 personal days is fairly standard. Many hospitals have started to use a general PTO system (i.e. paid time off). This system gives you 4wks vacation that accumulates over your 1st yr of service as opposed to accumulating 2 wks of vacation and 2 wks of sick separately they will let you decide how you use your days. After all how many people are really sick for 2wks every year so if you want to use all 4wks for vacation then you can do so? Nonetheless some hospitals have a system where anytime not used at the end of the year (sick, vacation, or PTO) accumulates into an extended leave bank w/ no cap on it so you won't have to go into your disability coverage assuming you carry over enough hrs(for maternity leave or chronic illness (stroke, heart attack etc)). Other options are to pay any unused time out at the end of the yr or you can just loose it all together. Retail is typically use it or loose it or some do have a minimal accumulation system from yr to yr but extended leave really varies.

After 5-10 yrs depending on company you then typically start to accrue an extra wk of vacation and may max out at 4-5 wks of vacation at ~20yrs (some may accrue 6wks after 20-25yrs) of service (depending how they work your sick leave into there).

Federal sector (Veterans hospitals/Armed forces/FDA/Etc). You typically start out w/ 13 days of sick and 13 days of vacation. Any unused time accrues to a max of 6 wks for vacation and no maximum on your sick leave. That is only for the first 2-3 yrs. In the 3rd or 4th year (one of the two, sorry I can't remember) you then start to get an increase to accumulate 19 days of vacation per year and I think sick time continues to accrue at same rate. Either way depending how sick you are or how much vacation you take it only takes a yr or 3-4yrs for the 6wks of vacation to fill up and any time you take will quickly re-accumulate.

So there is a fair amount of variation in benefits comparing sectors. Pay amongst sectors varies as well w/ retail always paying the most on the avg, but depending on hospitals and VAs in the area the pay is quite comparable. As far as being pulled as a clinical pharmacist to staff to cover for other people on vacation this varies also w/ facility and how well they are staffed. If staffing is an issue then yes you will get pulled. If it isn't then you won't get pulled. Another factor would be how much in demand are clinical services. If you are doing inpt anticoag w/ some days in the clinic they will try every means, but to pull you as your clinical responsibilities may outweigh immediate staffing concerns. It just depends so it is really kind of on you to find out what is best for your and to figure out what experience/training best suits you and how will apply it to make it worthwhile (whether it be a MBA/MPH/ residency/ or just yrs of practice and experience)

luke77 said:

Very interesting discussion. Here's my question: what kind of vacation time does a pharmacist get? I would imagine that it would be hard to give retail pharmacists much vacation at a retail store if there are 2 pharmacists covering the whole store. How many weeks does a starting pharmacist get? How about after 5-10 years - does it get better? How about an industry or hospital pharmacist?

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For retail, I think 2 weeks per year is pretty standard for new hires. I know someone who was able to negotiate starting with an extra week - he already had experience with another pharmacy, so was going to lose vacation when he came to CVS unless he negotiated that extra week. At CVS, the pharmacists do get paid out at the end of the year if they don't use all their vacation. For us techs, it's use it or lose it! CVS goes to 3 weeks of vacation at 4 years of service, I believe.

I'll add a little of my experience, but Kwizard had great, insightful comments. I've been a pharmacist for 29 years in CA. I've done hospital, retail & home infusion pharmacy and taught a bit in both pharmacy & tech schools. The only time I did not work every other weekend was when I worked homecare. That was because I was needed to be available for discharge planning during the week. Otherwise, I've worked every other weekend & alternate major holidays.

As for my income - new graduates or new hires incomes have never exceeded mine. Pay schedules are very available and new hires only were started at a higher than the minimum if they came with experience. However, the maximum of the pay scale is reached within 2 years of hire and the increases after that are based upon cost of living or market adjustments.

Benefits - I have 2 major retirements - 20+ years in hospital pharmacy which includes a defined benefit plan and a 403B (which is the same as a 401K except for nonprofits) & 7+ years in retail (again...retirement plan, defined contribution this time & a 401K). Vacation is pretty similar - 2wks @ 1&2 years, 3wks @ 3&4 years, 4wks @ 5&6 years & 5wks @ 7 & beyond. Sick leave very liberal - I've used it up over the years for maternity leave & surgical leaves, but it has always accured very fast (& I'm rarely sick). I found healthcare benefits have been better for retail than for hospital.

In all my professional circumstances, I've found many clinical opportunities & have had encouraging & supportive management to allow my involvement to be as involved as I've wanted it to be. The only place I would disagree with Kwizard is the federal employment in my state. I have a VA very close & most of my colleagues don't want to work there because the pay is so much lower, however they do have great benefits. I can't remember all the other questions which were asked, but PM me if I can answer any questions. Good luck!