Alternative Pharmacy Careers

[alterpharm]

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Alright, so I'm pretty sure that by the time that I graduate, retail pharmacy will be destroyed by an oversupply of pharmacists, mail order, telepharmacy, online pharmacies, etc. and I won't be making 125k+ fresh out of school like some of the people are today.

So, I really need to start thinking about my future again.
Here are some things that I've considered:
> Fellowship in pharmacy and then PharmD/MBA or PharmD/MHA (health admin) after working in the pharmaceutical industry. Then, working towards a stable executive position.
> PharmD/JD (Feasible for me, although not as preferred).
> Become a doctor (even though I really don't want to do this).

BUT, my main question here is:
Is there any Pharmacy related career that involves extensive use/knowledge of computers. I'm asking because I'm really interested and good in computers. So if there was any job that required a PharmD/MS in computer science, that would be swell...

I also wouldn't mind some kind of pharmacy/finance related career.

Once again, my interests are science/pharmacy/medicine, computers, and accounting/management/finance. I'm just looking for a stable long term job that pays $100k+. Hard work is not a problem, I can do that. However, I do not want to spend forever in schooling like doctors, where you need to spend like 8-10 years after getting a bachelor's in order to become a specialist making good money.

I just need some career insight and yes, I did search the forum, google, etc.

 

[xraided]

dropout of pharmacy school and become a doctor.

 

[Farmercyst]

Alright, so I'm pretty sure that by the time that I graduate, retail pharmacy will be destroyed by an oversupply of pharmacists, mail order, telepharmacy, online pharmacies, etc. and I won't be making 125k+ fresh out of school like some of the people are today.

So, I really need to start thinking about my future again.
Here are some things that I've considered:
> Fellowship in pharmacy and then PharmD/MBA or PharmD/MHA (health admin) after working in the pharmaceutical industry. Then, working towards a stable executive position.
> PharmD/JD (Feasible for me, although not as preferred).
> Become a doctor (even though I really don't want to do this).

BUT, my main question here is:
Is there any Pharmacy related career that involves extensive use/knowledge of computers. I'm asking because I'm really interested and good in computers. So if there was any job that required a PharmD/MS in computer science, that would be swell...

I also wouldn't mind some kind of pharmacy/finance related career.

Once again, my interests are science/pharmacy/medicine, computers, and accounting/management/finance. I'm just looking for a stable long term job that pays $100k+. Hard work is not a problem, I can do that. However, I do not want to spend forever in schooling like doctors, where you need to spend like 8-10 years after getting a bachelor's in order to become a specialist making good money.

I just need some career insight and yes, I did search the forum, google, etc.

If you have extensive knowledge of computers/computer systems then there are several hospitals that could use you on a consulting basis as they upgrade software. I know a DOP that was talking the other day about how they need pharmacists who are knowledgeable enough in systems and in pharmacy to let the IT guys who do the 3rd party programming know what the needs for the pharmacy department are, how to integrate them within the pharmacy dept, and how to implement roll-out of new systems. I haven't heard of people advertising for IT pharmacists, but if you can get a reputation as such, your hirablility (word?) should increase.

 

[bigpharmD]

you could blog

 

[pharmacyanalyst]

Go to managed care websites (Aetna, Humana, WellPoint, Etc) and seach by PharmD. There are alot of options out there (well, more when we aren't in a recession).

 

[prevacid]

If you have extensive knowledge of computers/computer systems then there are several hospitals that could use you on a consulting basis as they upgrade software. I know a DOP that was talking the other day about how they need pharmacists who are knowledgeable enough in systems and in pharmacy to let the IT guys who do the 3rd party programming know what the needs for the pharmacy department are, how to integrate them within the pharmacy dept, and how to implement roll-out of new systems. I haven't heard of people advertising for IT pharmacists, but if you can get a reputation as such, your hirablility (word?) should increase.

i recommend the same thing

 

[alterpharm]

Does anyone know how much you could get paid in the pharmaceutical industry immediately after finishing a top fellowship program, like say the one at Rutgers? Are there any salary figures?

What geographic locations would someone likely have to move to in order to work at one of these pharmaceutical companies?

Also, I know that you have the chance to move up the corporate ladder. Can anyone give me some more information about this? Is an MBA a strict requirement?
I looked at the pharmaceutical industry 101 thread. However, I feel that it is too vague although that may be because "working in the industry" is too broad a topic.

 

[Farmercyst]

Does anyone know how much you could get paid in the pharmaceutical industry immediately after finishing a top fellowship program, like say the one at Rutgers? Are there any salary figures?

What geographic locations would someone likely have to move to in order to work at one of these pharmaceutical companies?

Also, I know that you have the chance to move up the corporate ladder. Can anyone give me some more information about this? Is an MBA a strict requirement?
I looked at the pharmaceutical industry 101 thread. However, I feel that it is too vague although that may be because "working in the industry" is too broad a topic.

No offense, but you'd have to be pretty lucky to get in there. Unless you've got top grades, good LORs, and/or decent connections.

 

[alterpharm]

No offense, but you'd have to be pretty lucky to get in there. Unless you've got top grades, good LORs, and/or decent connections.

Could you please delineate how one would be a powerful candidate for a fellowship program like the one Rutgers has?
GPA>3.7
Good LORs
what else?

I looked at Rutger's site but they don't really have anything telling you what they're looking for in terms of student abilities.
http://pharmafellows.rutgers.edu/faq.php

Thanks for the info!

 

[deleted205891]

Could you please delineate how one would be a powerful candidate for a fellowship program like the one Rutgers has?
GPA>3.7
Good LORs
what else?

I looked at Rutger's site but they don't really have anything telling you what they're looking for in terms of student abilities.
http://pharmafellows.rutgers.edu/faq.php

Thanks for the info!

We had a guy come in and talk about fellowships. This guy didn't go to the Rutgers one, but he was finishing up a different industry fellowship (J&J, I believe). He tried to sound positive, but he said he hadn't found a job and will probably work as a contractor.

 

[deleted129840]

Go to managed care websites (Aetna, Humana, WellPoint, Etc) and seach by PharmD. There are alot of options out there (well, more when we aren't in a recession).

Although knowledge "across the aisle" is always helpful, note that for IT jobs the closest thing to this kind of job description that I have ever seen has been for clinical specialists (PharmDs, BSNs, etc) to work in consulting roles to an IT team (i.e., you would be advising on pharmaceutical knowledge, not manipulating data). Unless things change in a big way, it wouldn't really make sense for an employer to pay you a pharmacist's salary to do non-pharmacy work that could be done by a BS in CS graduate.

Also, keep in mind that the entrance requirements for the MS in computer science are usually pretty stringent--unless you have a related major (usually CS, math, or engineering), maybe you are thinking more of an IT management MBA?

 

[alterpharm]

Thanks a lot for your help guys.
It seems that I might try to get into industry or mail-order.
I will try my best to get into a fellowship.
However, if job prospects do not seem too good by the time I graduate (5yrs from now), then I will just go down the MD pathway and be old as hell by the time I become a specialized doctor making bank.

 

[p-rog]

We had a guy come in and talk about fellowships. This guy didn't go to the Rutgers one, but he was finishing up a different industry fellowship (J&J, I believe). He tried to sound positive, but he said he hadn't found a job and will probably work as a contractor.

Just curious, do you happen to remember what area he did his fellowship in (i.e. reg. afairs, MSL)?

 

[rphello]

Pharmacy informatics may work well for you. I had an informatics rotation, and I'm interested in this specialty. My preceptor mostly managed remote med carts and order sets via MEDITECH, and he was heavily involved with bar coding, CPOE and EHR. He spent his days directly in front of the computer but he did no order entry. There are residencies for informatics, most of which are PGY2.

http://www.himss.org/ASP/topics_pharmacyinformatics.asp

 

[alterpharm]

Pharmacy informatics may work well for you. I had an informatics rotation, and I'm interested in this specialty. My preceptor mostly managed remote med carts and order sets via MEDITECH, and he was heavily involved with bar coding, CPOE and EHR. He spent his days directly in front of the computer but he did no order entry. There are residencies for informatics, most of which are PGY2.

http://www.himss.org/ASP/topics_pharmacyinformatics.asp

I don't know how to thank you.
This sounds really interesting and I'll be looking into it a lot more.
Once again, thank you!

 

[deleted205891]

Just curious, do you happen to remember what area he did his fellowship in (i.e. reg. afairs, MSL)?

Drug safety.

 

[PharmaTope]

dropout of pharmacy school and become a doctor.

best advice in this thread (serious)

 

[bigpharmD]

I dont have as much gloom as you but this is a good option for some people...the thought of going back to take pre-reqs and study biochem etc makes me wanna vom personally....and i generally like my job and dont want another 300 grand in student loans...i now have medical/healthcare knowledge...when i go to get another degree it will be something to broaden my knowledge of outside areas

 

[rxlynn]

Pharmacy informatics may work well for you. I had an informatics rotation, and I'm interested in this specialty. My preceptor mostly managed remote med carts and order sets via MEDITECH, and he was heavily involved with bar coding, CPOE and EHR. He spent his days directly in front of the computer but he did no order entry. There are residencies for informatics, most of which are PGY2.

http://www.himss.org/ASP/topics_pharmacyinformatics.asp

Second this advice - I heard somebody talk about informatics when I was a P1, and it seemed like a really interesting thing IF you liked computers (which I certainly don't). It's also been my observation that (not to bash anybody here) pharmacy people in general don't always have good computer skills, especially on the hardware end. I've seen pharmacists (mostly older) who acted like they were paralyzed when the printer jammed. So, it might take some looking around, but if you have the computer plus pharmacy skills I think it would be a good combo.

 

[elepharm]

Does anyone know how much you could get paid in the pharmaceutical industry immediately after finishing a top fellowship program, like say the one at Rutgers? Are there any salary figures?

What geographic locations would someone likely have to move to in order to work at one of these pharmaceutical companies?

Also, I know that you have the chance to move up the corporate ladder. Can anyone give me some more information about this? Is an MBA a strict requirement?
I looked at the pharmaceutical industry 101 thread. However, I feel that it is too vague although that may be because "working in the industry" is too broad a topic.

I finished the Rutgers Fellowship Program and started well above 100K, which is standard with the ranges (between 95-115k). It depends on the company and position.

MBA is not required to move up in your career, but it can benefit if you can justify in interviews how it sets you apart and makes you a better candidate than the rest.

Regarding being hard to get it. As long as you have a good CV with activities that set you apart from all the other candidates, you have a good shot. More importantly, being able to interview well and express why you are interested in industry and the position(s) you are applying for. A narrowed choice of positions will make you appear more focused and stronger to the interviewers. The GPA is not looked at during interviews, but you won't get the position without a PharmD, so you have to graduate... The strongest candidates interview well and understood the positions and why they were interested in industry and had activity and CV content to back that up. Good luck!

 

[MountainPharmD]

I finished the Rutgers Fellowship Program and started well above 100K, which is standard with the ranges (between 95-115k). It depends on the company and position.

MBA is not required to move up in your career, but it can benefit if you can justify in interviews how it sets you apart and makes you a better candidate than the rest.

Regarding being hard to get it. As long as you have a good CV with activities that set you apart from all the other candidates, you have a good shot. More importantly, being able to interview well and express why you are interested in industry and the position(s) you are applying for. A narrowed choice of positions will make you appear more focused and stronger to the interviewers. The GPA is not looked at during interviews, but you won't get the position without a PharmD, so you have to graduate... The strongest candidates interview well and understood the positions and why they were interested in industry and had activity and CV content to back that up. Good luck!

Sweet you just replied to a thread that was started in 2009. I am sure the OP appreciates your timely advice.

 

[Travex]

Thanks a lot for your help guys.
It seems that I might try to get into industry or mail-order.
I will try my best to get into a fellowship.
However, if job prospects do not seem too good by the time I graduate (5yrs from now), then I will just go down the MD pathway and be old as hell by the time I become a specialized doctor making bank.

OP isn't due to graduate for a few years so that advice might still help if he ever makes it back here to check the thread!

 

[BidingMyTime]

OP isn't due to graduate for a few years so that advice might still help if he ever makes it back here to check the thread!

Math isn't my strong point, but OP said "by the time I graduate (5yrs from now)" and I do believe that 2009 was 5 years ago, so I'm not sure what you mean by the OP "isn't due to graduate for a few years."

 

[Travex]

2013-2009 = 4! But I guess we are both wrong because it's one year not "a few".

 

[pharm B]

Pharmacy informatics may work well for you. I had an informatics rotation, and I'm interested in this specialty. My preceptor mostly managed remote med carts and order sets via MEDITECH, and he was heavily involved with bar coding, CPOE and EHR. He spent his days directly in front of the computer but he did no order entry. There are residencies for informatics, most of which are PGY2.

http://www.himss.org/ASP/topics_pharmacyinformatics.asp

n=2, but I've seen two pharmacists in completely different health systems get "tapped" to be the new Informatics Pharmacist. One got OJT, the other got formal training for EPIC (the EMR of choice for that system). Seems like it's a wager, though, since these particular pharmacists basically did little/no order entry after a while. Which is all well and good...

Until that train runs out of track and you're looking for your next position. 😳

 

[Lnsean]

OP isn't due to graduate for a few years so that advice might still help if he ever makes it back here to check the thread!

doesn't matter..i highly doubt OP could get into Rutgers Fellowship program anyway.

 

[knight on horse]

I finished the Rutgers Fellowship Program and started well above 100K, which is standard with the ranges (between 95-115k). It depends on the company and position.

MBA is not required to move up in your career, but it can benefit if you can justify in interviews how it sets you apart and makes you a better candidate than the rest.

Regarding being hard to get it. As long as you have a good CV with activities that set you apart from all the other candidates, you have a good shot. More importantly, being able to interview well and express why you are interested in industry and the position(s) you are applying for. A narrowed choice of positions will make you appear more focused and stronger to the interviewers. The GPA is not looked at during interviews, but you won't get the position without a PharmD, so you have to graduate... The strongest candidates interview well and understood the positions and why they were interested in industry and had activity and CV content to back that up. Good luck!

Sounds great.

Too bad I have no activities back me up, except PCAT percentile. I will just have to get plenty of sleep and ace interviews, and perhaps retake the NAPLEX