2019 new grads: How has the job search been going for you?

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If you are in your 60's wait out for SS. IF you are under 30 go back to school for a actual in-demand major. If you are in-between do what the rest of us are doing. Move back home with your parents / safety net and get any job possible (preferably one at least semi related to pharmacy that could build your resume) You are light years behind on the job search as you did not work during school and network. There will be THOUSANDS of unemployed pharmacists every year and the situation will get worse every year. No one owes you a job just because you had the privilege of going to pharmacy school.

For those of us who are in our early 30's (32-33, for example) who aren't married and don't have any kids, would you recommend going back to school to maybe do a 2-year program to be able to work in a more in-demand field such as the PA profession? Or would you recommend the other strategy you suggested for people who are 30+ (to get a non-pharmacy job that hopefully has some sort of connection to the pharmacy profession)?

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For those of us who are in our early 30's (32-33, for example) who aren't married and don't have any kids, would you recommend going back to school to maybe do a 2-year program to be able to work in a more in-demand field such as the PA profession? Or would you recommend the other strategy you suggested for people who are 30+ (to get a non-pharmacy job that hopefully has some sort of connection to the pharmacy profession)?
I am in my thirties as well. It depends. I don't have enough energy left for school. I already got a 4 year BS degree in Engineering before this degree. If you have the energy to go back to school a third time then yes I would say medical school and PA school are looking good. I would avoid dental and chiropractor schools. I would also look into computer science or electrical school. I'm burnt out on school, so if I can't find work as a pharmacist that's it for me. I will work low pay jobs. My dream job is making at least 20 bucks an hour as pharmacist. Unfortunately that looks like it might not be in the cards for me but I keep applying to jobs on Indeed.
 
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I am in my thirties as well. It depends. I don't have enough energy left for school. I already got a 4 year BS degree in Engineering before this degree. If you have the energy to go back to school a third time then yes I would say medical school and PA school are looking good. I would avoid dental and chiropractor schools. I would also look into computer science or electrical school. I'm burnt out on school, so if I can't find work as a pharmacist that's it for me. I will work low pay jobs. My dream job is making at least 20 bucks an hour as pharmacist. Unfortunately that looks like it might not be in the cards for me but I keep applying to jobs on Indeed.

Personally, I don't really feel like I have the energy left for school either, but after hearing from so many recent pharmacy graduates in my region (southeast) who have had an abysmal time finding jobs, I feel like I'm burying my head in the sand if I don't at least consider going back to school to do learn to do something else. What's your opinion on doing a PGY-1 pharmacy residency, since the job market for residency-trained pharmacists is at least somewhat better than it is for those without residency training?
 
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bUt DaT jObS gRoWth when most are of the low-wage "unskilled" variety.

When the economic contraction accelerates, currently employed pharmacists will really feel the pain.
 
I am in my thirties as well. It depends. I don't have enough energy left for school. I already got a 4 year BS degree in Engineering before this degree. If you have the energy to go back to school a third time then yes I would say medical school and PA school are looking good. I would avoid dental and chiropractor schools. I would also look into computer science or electrical school. I'm burnt out on school, so if I can't find work as a pharmacist that's it for me. I will work low pay jobs. My dream job is making at least 20 bucks an hour as pharmacist. Unfortunately that looks like it might not be in the cards for me but I keep applying to jobs on Indeed.

PTCB-certified techs at Walmart in my "region" make > 20/hr (no prior pharmacy experience) and significantly more at the major health systems (especially union outfits), including Kaiser, if you can get in. We even have people with foreign pharmacy degrees (wut) looking for tech work

Kinda makes up for the COL hit of living in California. For comparison I made 10/hr as a tech in 2007.

I'm sure they pay more in the Bay Area.

So just FYI randos off the street can make $20/hr as a tech (in California) and probably more in actual health systems (not this fake-**** care clinic crap deployed by WM) if they bring valuable skills/experience. What pharmacists skills/experience are valued by chains? None.
 
Licensed in Texas since August. Nothing.

Been applying to retail (except CVS) and hospitals but no luck (even rural). Made the mistake of not applying with a cover letter, but I am now.
Don’t give up. Maybe pick something else up in the mean time and stay positive. Develop a plan A, B, C, D, E and G. Realize that it’s not the end of the world if you don’t get a pharmacy position now or in Texas and know that you can gain positive experiences from doing other things, things that might make you thank your lucky stars that you didn’t get that pharmacy job you wished for.
 
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Licensed in Texas since August. Nothing.

Been applying to retail (except CVS) and hospitals but no luck (even rural). Made the mistake of not applying with a cover letter, but I am now.

Why come here for advice if you are being picky and haven’t explored every avenue? If you are too good for CVS, then all I can say is good luck on your search.

This is the problem today; new grads feel entitled and will not work for it, especially when the times become rough.
 
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What pharmacy related jobs does everyone recommend for those of us out of work?
 
What pharmacy related jobs does everyone recommend for those of us out of work?
Pharmacy tech pharmacist, Uber driver pharmacist, pizza delivery pharmacist, grocery bag boy pharmacist, online survey-taker pharmacist, Dairy Queen pharmacist, real estate pharmacist, pharmacist career coach pharmacist, to name a few.
 
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I applied to a bunch of those and don’t hear anything back. When you’re unemployed, it’s like you’re living in a nightmare.

Uber until you get that chance that a pharmacist employer rides in your car so you can set yourself up with an informal interview right there.
Make sure to keep extra copies of your resume in the backseat pockets.
 
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I applied to a bunch of those and don’t hear anything back. When you’re unemployed, it’s like you’re living in a nightmare.
Hey karey16

Just so everyone knows this person goes forum to forum trolling and telling weird stories. This person is not a pharmacist.
 
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I applied to a bunch of those and don’t hear anything back. When you’re unemployed, it’s like you’re living in a nightmare.
It’s only a nightmare if you let your pride get the best of you. The PharmD is a VOCATIONAL degree, as in you go to pharmacy school to become a pharmacist. So if you can’t find work as a pharmacist then there is no plan B. Plan C is to go for the non-skill jobs and that is what we are recommending.
 
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It’s only a nightmare if you let your pride get the best of you. The PharmD is a VOCATIONAL degree, as in you go to pharmacy school to become a pharmacist. So if you can’t find work as a pharmacist then there is no plan B. Plan C is to go for the non-skill jobs and that is what we are recommending.
That person is NOT a pharmacist nor are they in or have ever been in pharmacy school.
 
It’s only a nightmare if you let your pride get the best of you. The PharmD is a VOCATIONAL degree, as in you go to pharmacy school to become a pharmacist. So if you can’t find work as a pharmacist then there is no plan B. Plan C is to go for the non-skill jobs and that is what we are recommending.

I guess every professional degree is a vocational degree in that case.
 
Who isn’t a pharmacist? I have a PharmD. Do they want us to post a copy of our license? Why else be sad about not being able to find a job if you weren’t one? I just really miss being a pharmacist.
 
I’m not whoever karey is, and I don’t find the humor in being unemployed. I injured my back in a car accident. I did find a job after I graduated in retail pharmacy for several years. I’m out of work now years later. I just posted because people were asking about alternate careers.
 
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I’m not whoever karey is, and I don’t find the humor in being unemployed. I injured my back in a car accident. I did find a job after I graduated in retail pharmacy. I’m out of work now years later.
You are not a pharmacist. You are an internet troll that spends your time on online forums messing with people.
 
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Kinda makes up for the COL hit of living in California. For comparison I made 10/hr as a tech in 2007.
Heh. I started at $6.15 in 2002 in the fly-over country! And back then, retail was actually a pretty pleasant work environment... from my perspective, retail didn't start to get ugly until 2010 or so.

What pharmacy related jobs does everyone recommend for those of us out of work?
I just chatted with the head of HR for one of the boutique market research firms. They are very willing to take newly minted pharmacists with strong math and presentation skills and start them at ~$90K with plenty of room to grow with experience. I know of advertising and medical education agencies that do the same... Certainly they can't absorb a lot of graduating pharmacists, but if you are already in a major city, that's an option worth exploring.

Sales rep
Hopefully you don't mean a pharma sales rep. That was a good option for pharmacists back in the 70s and 80s but not nowadays. The good ones all want experience... don't know about rent-a-rep firms, they may take someone off the street, but most pharmacy students personalities don't strike me as people who would get hired as sales reps or do well in those roles (I have met a few who would, but they were few and far between). Though maybe working at a dealership or something... One of my best friends did a bachelor's in hospitality, decided she didn't like restaurants after all, and got a job selling luxury cars instead (of course, she was a beautiful blond former ballet dancer, which helps in the luxury car sales world!).

Uber until you get that chance that a pharmacist employer rides in your car so you can set yourself up with an informal interview right there.
Make sure to keep extra copies of your resume in the backseat pockets.
Unless that someone has a job opening they are trying to fill at that very time, they at best will ask you to connect on LinkedIn and most likely forget you exist as soon as they step out of your car, at worst will remember you as a weirdo who kept imposing on their time and hold a grudge.
 
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You are not a pharmacist. Yo are an internet troll that spends your time on online forums messing with people.
I’m asking advice about finding work. I have no idea who you’re talking about. I finally had to use the ignore button.
 
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I guess every professional degree is a vocational degree in that case.
If by “professional degree” you mean “any graduate health care program” then yes I would agree with that, with the exception of the MD since it is a gold standard degree that is translatable to any sector in the broader health care industry.

If you wanted to be in the general health care industry but not do a “vocational” degree then I would pick degrees like health informatics, biostatistics, MBA or a PhD in a basic science discipline as you can pivot from industry to industry easily with these degrees.
 
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A few suggestions for those who are lucky enough to have interview scheduled. When asked “describe a time when you.....” type of questions or similar, make sure you use specific example. Don’t give a general answer. They want to see how you dealt with the situation and the outcome. You are being assessed on your customer service skill, behavior, and integrity. I was surprised how some pharmacists failed the interview so bad even with years of experience. Maybe they thought interview was supposed to be casual as 10-15 years ago. Search interview questions online, be prepared but don’t recite your answer! Get your foot in with any position: floater, hourly, prn then move to other positions when available. Remember pick up + 1flu + 1 other shot, you will be on DM radar stat. Don’t give up, keep applying (even with the same company.)
 
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Certainly not. Even among advanced degree holders. It's just that pharmacists have been spoiled for so long, reality hurts.


I have coworkers with PhDs in molecular biology, postdocs from boston, and they make $60k a year, work in hazardous conditions ( OSHA doesnt cover all labs) pharmD's have no right to complain
 
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I have coworkers with PhDs in molecular biology, postdocs from boston, and they make $60k a year, work in hazardous conditions ( OSHA doesnt cover all labs) pharmD's have no right to complain

And there are software engineers who earn six figures straight out of undergrad or even coding bootcamps. Their companies supply them gourmet meals, employee shuttles, nap pods, on site gym and daycare, etc. They do only 30 hours of actual work.

There are ways out there to achieve a cushy work-life balance. Pharmacy is certainly not one of them.
 
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preferably closer to 35. Gotta keep those health insurance policy premiums down LOL. You ever get that job in FL or you still slaving away for big blue in CO?

i'm quitting first thing new year, heading back to FL, something will pop up.... always does. may not be ideal location, but who cares anymore....its just to weather the storm while my wife and i start a business. i refuse to manage anymore.... it's ridiculous at this point......
 
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pharmacy is just not profitable like it was in the 80's ans 90's....cvs was opening up a store a week or more at some points....lol. Now it's receding. how long can these companies keep paying pharmacists 6 figures to run failing operations? The big chains know exactly what they are doing, as you can see they are ALL doing it. Over-work the staff, burn them out, and recycle for lower pay rates....it's that simple...all while cutting operating costs.....genius.
 
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What are the options?

Did you not heed the warnings decades ago?


-100 Pharmacist jobs created over the next ten years. Do you fully understand what that means? The field is highly competitive right now. I am a pharmacist but have been working at Walmart as a stocker for the last 7 months. Yes it's not ideal but it's work and the pay is decent. I get to use my pharmacy knowledge about once a month when a Walmart customer asks me where certain OTC drugs are located with our store.

Many pharmacists have it much worse than me. A few I know personally:

A pharmacist that gradtuated in 2017 folding small cardboard boxes for 10 bucks an hour.

A pharmacist who's elderly parents cosigned his massive loans. He has defaulted on the loans and the private loan owners have put a lien against his parents home and his parents may be homeless soon.

WHAT TO DO?

If you are in your 60's wait out for SS. IF you are under 30 go back to school for a actual in-demand major. If you are in-between do what the rest of us are doing. Move back home with your parents / safety net and get any job possible (preferably one at least semi related to pharmacy that could build your resume) You are light years behind on the job search as you did not work during school and network. There will be THOUSANDS of unemployed pharmacists every year and the situation will get worse every year. No one owes you a job just because you had the privilege of going to pharmacy school.

well, as a WM pharm manager i can tell you their pharmacies are going straight into the toilet as we speak..... so it's probably best you are stocking....
 
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PTCB-certified techs at Walmart in my "region" make > 20/hr (no prior pharmacy experience) and significantly more at the major health systems (especially union outfits), including Kaiser, if you can get in. We even have people with foreign pharmacy degrees (wut) looking for tech work

Kinda makes up for the COL hit of living in California. For comparison I made 10/hr as a tech in 2007.

I'm sure they pay more in the Bay Area.

So just FYI randos off the street can make $20/hr as a tech (in California) and probably more in actual health systems (not this fake-**** care clinic crap deployed by WM) if they bring valuable skills/experience. What pharmacists skills/experience are valued by chains? None.

Why does CA get paid more due to cost of living? Places like New York, Boston, Washington DC, Seattle, Hawaii etc cost just as much but they don't get close to the hourly rates as CA.
 
COL doesn't really enter into it as much as union presence
 
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Why does CA get paid more due to cost of living? Places like New York, Boston, Washington DC, Seattle, Hawaii etc cost just as much but they don't get close to the hourly rates as CA.
Did you see my taxes I get slammed with living in California? It's a lot. My ytd is 207 k but my take home is 120k after state, federal, and 401k.
Screenshot_20191218-064413.jpg
 
Why come here for advice if you are being picky and haven’t explored every avenue? If you are too good for CVS, then all I can say is good luck on your search.

This is the problem today; new grads feel entitled and will not work for it, especially when the times become rough.
I'm sorry I don't want to work for satan again. If that makes me entitled then it is what it is. I've applied daily to literally anywhere else that has an opening.
 
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I'm sorry I don't want to work for satan again. If that makes me entitled then it is what it is. I've applied daily to literally anywhere else that has an opening.

Yes, you are entitled if you are too good to even apply for the nation's biggest employer of pharmacists. Good luck.

Google Amazon warehouse worker horror stories, those guys get paid $15/hr. CVS has much better work conditions and they pay their pharmacists 4x as much.

Don't you have bills to pay? You don't sound too concerned about paying for living expenses. If I were unemployed for that long, I'd swallow my pride and do Uber, serve tables, whatever I could to get by.
 
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Yes, you are entitled if you are too good to even apply for the nation's biggest employer of pharmacists. Good luck.

Google Amazon warehouse worker horror stories, those guys get paid $15/hr. CVS has much better work conditions and they pay their pharmacists 4x as much.

Don't you have bills to pay? You don't sound too concerned about paying for living expenses. If I were unemployed for that long, I'd swallow my pride and do Uber, serve tables, whatever I could to get by.
I'm not too good for them. They're a terrible company that could not care less about their employees or patients. They're greedy from top to bottom. and I shouldn't really have to explain that. Too good for them? Ha
 
I'm not too good for them. They're a terrible company that could not care less about their employees or patients. They're greedy from top to bottom. and I shouldn't really have to explain that. Too good for them? Ha

You know in a way congrats for standing up to the man. Unfortunately someone will be at cvs toes begging for a job. Unless we do this as a whole..it will never truly work. Good luck on your job search; keep at it.
 
I'm not too good for them. They're a terrible company that could not care less about their employees or patients. They're greedy from top to bottom. and I shouldn't really have to explain that. Too good for them? Ha

How will you pay for living expenses, student loans, food etc?
 
Google Amazon warehouse worker horror stories, those guys get paid $15/hr. CVS has much better work conditions and they pay their pharmacists 4x as much.
Yes, it's reading a couple news articles about Amazon that made me realize that retail pharmacists don't have it nearly as bad we like to think. And a lot of pressure pharmacists put on themselves. The world will not crash and burn if you take 5 minutes to go to the bathroom or to step back behind the shelves and eat something. If the day is already OK, it will not get derailed by that, and if it is already a disaster, it again won't get any worse than it already is, and your suffering sure isn't going to improve it either.
 
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Yes, it's reading a couple news articles about Amazon that made me realize that retail pharmacists don't have it nearly as bad we like to think. And a lot of pressure pharmacists put on themselves. The world will not crash and burn if you take 5 minutes to go to the bathroom or to step back behind the shelves and eat something. If the day is already OK, it will not get derailed by that, and if it is already a disaster, it again won't get any worse than it already is, and your suffering sure isn't going to improve it either.
Good point. The world will not stop if you put everything on hold and take a 15 mt lunch in the break room.I tell the techs extend the wait times and tell phone ins Im in the bathroom.If anyone gives you a hard time tell them to put it in writing .How many jobs require 12 hour shifts being on your feet with zero break time?
Chains don't care.I asked them to fork up some money for some foot mats.They wouldn't do it.Why would I go an extra mile or come into work sick when they treat you this way?
 
I'm sorry I don't want to work for satan again. If that makes me entitled then it is what it is. I've applied daily to literally anywhere else that has an opening.

As much as I hate working for CVS, its better than being unemployed... So if you can't land a job after a year, are you going to give CVS a look loll? because at that point, even they won't take you.
 
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Most people have to compromise on something - be it location, commute, salary, people they work with or the nature of the job. While CVS may suck as far as the nature of the job, it doesn't have to suck on every other parameter... and in the current market for any long-unemployed new grad to hope that they don't have to compromise on anything is preposterous. I've been very lucky in that for 12 years I haven't had to compromise on anything, but now the right move for my career is taking me to a place where I am not sure I will enjoy the lifestyle (going back to urban after living semi-rural for several years). Maybe I will, maybe I won't. Ultimately, it's not like signing up with armed forces for a 20-year. You don't like a job - you start looking for another one in a year... And you will be in a stronger position having had work experience, any work experience, vs. none at all.
 
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How will you pay for living expenses, student loans, food etc?
Going back to school. Want to get a masters in informatics then if necessary apply for an informatics residency. Better late than never. I was interested in ID and informatics, but couldn't decide which one to go all in with before midyear.
 
You know in a way congrats for standing up to the man. Unfortunately someone will be at cvs toes begging for a job. Unless we do this as a whole..it will never truly work. Good luck on your job search; keep at it.
I actually had an interview for CVS's PBM telephone pharmacist position (they went through a staffing company so I didn't know it was them). After I confirmed the interview 2 weeks out with the recruiter, I bought a whole ticket/hotel reservation. CVS cancelled all the interviews a week later....

Can't say I didn't give them a chance I guess.
 
Going back to school. Want to get a masters in informatics then if necessary apply for an informatics residency. Better late than never. I was interested in ID and informatics, but couldn't decide which one to go all in with before midyear.

Lol … What? Did you at least try to pursue a PGY1 ? If you started residency, you could have used that time to think about which of the two you wanted to do and have gotten paid (even though its not a lot)… Instead, you want to pay and accrue more debt to get a masters? Are you trolling right now?
 
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I actually had an interview for CVS's PBM telephone pharmacist position (they went through a staffing company so I didn't know it was them). After I confirmed the interview 2 weeks out with the recruiter, I bought a whole ticket/hotel reservation. CVS cancelled all the interviews a week later....

Can't say I didn't give them a chance I guess.
That's not cool that the cancelled the interview on you... but PBM is not retail. What about CVS retail positions? Still passing on them because dipping into taxpayer's pocket is far more appealing?
 
Lol … What? Did you at least try to pursue a PGY1 ? If you started residency, you could have used that time to think about which of the two you wanted to do and have gotten paid (even though its not a lot)… Instead, you want to pay and accrue more debt to get a masters? Are you trolling right now?
I did try, but I didn't prepare for residency early enough in school. I didn't really take on too many leadership positions or do research so I felt like the odds of getting a residency was low. If I could start over, I would have prepared for residency from day 1 of pharmacy school.

The school I plan to go to isn't 30k like similar masters programs and my current debt is bad but I've seen much worse.
 
That's not cool that the cancelled the interview on you... but PBM is not retail. What about CVS retail positions? Still passing on them because dipping into taxpayer's pocket is far more appealing?
I'm not on unemployment. Have a good one.
 
I did try, but I didn't prepare for residency early enough in school. I didn't really take on too many leadership positions or do research so I felt like the odds of getting a residency was low. If I could start over, I would have prepared for residency from day 1 of pharmacy school.

The school I plan to go to isn't 30k like similar masters programs and my current debt is bad but I've seen much worse.

Just so you know, a masters in informatics will not benefit you for hire for an informatics pharmacist position because you still need training. What you learn in that masters program will not help you transition into an informatics pharmacist role, you'd need training regardless. Your best bet is to get into the hospital system as a pharmacist first and maybe pick up on learning the health system model, order sets/strings, epic/meditech/cerner, etc. There is virtually no chance of you getting hired at a hospital if you wait and try after that degree...
 
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