Job Situation Entire U.S.

Started by minoos
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minoos

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Hello everyone there seems to be a lot of questions about job availability in different areas.So how about a thread where people can give information about the area they practice in.For example I am in Phoenix and its kind of saturated and it will be a lot worse when walgreens POWER starts.This information might help people who are graduating and looking for a job.
 
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Still jobs in Texas. But I'd be little more selective. I certainly see a lot of 20 year retail veterans wanting to move inpatient.. but kids with inpatient experience or residency are getting hired.
 
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the west coast was doing the "clinical" thing long before the east coast had ever heard of it. I had a couple professors who graduated from UCSF in the 60s who explained their program. It was pretty cool.
 
Remember SDN1977? She graduated in 1977..and she was highly clinically trained.. During that time, USC was ahead of UCSF..only when my class got started, we started to suck..
 
type b pharmD said:
i wonder if this has anything to do with around 8,000 open pharmacist jobs suddenly being filled due to new grads.
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It existed before that. People in my class who want to stay in this city are having trouble finding jobs. Walgreens is only giving floater positions, with no hour guarantee, to new grads, with priority to those who worked for them before. There was a single hospital position taken by a new grad, and she beat out residents for that spot (she had interned there for a couple years). It's not pretty out there.
 
Carboxide said:
I want to work in Michigan. This is probably good for me, right? Since no one else wants to live there?
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Wrong. Market is saturated here as well, especially in metro Detroit area. Why people wouldn't want to live here? Everything is so cheap here. With Rph salary you are almost rich here...
 
konkan said:
Wrong. Market is saturated here as well, especially in metro Detroit area. Why people wouldn't want to live here? Everything is so cheap here. With Rph salary you are almost rich here...
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I wouldn't mind living rurally. In fact I'm interested in either the UP or kzoo area.

Sad, though.
 
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The fact that there seems to be someone from every city who openly states that there's saturation there makes me wonder how many of the claims are legit and how many are circumstantial. I mentioned on another post that anecdotal evidence is not always concrete. If you're looking for a specific job, and it's not available in an area, you're going to move elsewhere under the pretense of "I couldn't find a job", when in reality, there may have been plenty of jobs available (maybe even some that didn't involve an underfunded Rite-Aid that gets robbed eight times per year), just not the exact fit you were looking for. And besides, many of these newer schools that are supposedly the cause of saturation haven't pumped out that many graduates yet.

More to the point, let's have some fun with this. I hear Fairbanks is a pretty nice place to work, as are Bismarck and Pierre. Or, for that matter, what about Canada? You know, Nunavut doesn't even have a pharmacy school, there's got to be at least a job or two available in the big city up there!
 
What I've gathered from talking to a few people is that it still isn't that hard to find a job (compared to other professions), but that there are enough people now that employers can be a little more selective on who they hire. From this thread I've gathered that big cities are harder to find jobs in. I;ve been told that here in the south they have a hard time finding rural area pharmacists. So what of the suburban areas? I've still got a long way to go, but what are the chances of finding something rural or suburban, that happens to be somewhat near a city?
 
NJAC, i had no idea it was that bad over there, i remember when the sups were hiring RPhs like crazy during our 2nd and 3rd year. wasnt the person who got the job trying to get into med school? That is awesome, she got the job over the residents, it looks like even a residency doesnt guarantee you much anymore,
I am really thankful l i have a few options here once i get my license.
 
IrishHammer said:
The fact that there seems to be someone from every city who openly states that there's saturation there makes me wonder how many of the claims are legit and how many are circumstantial. I mentioned on another post that anecdotal evidence is not always concrete. If you're looking for a specific job, and it's not available in an area, you're going to move elsewhere under the pretense of "I couldn't find a job", when in reality, there may have been plenty of jobs available (maybe even some that didn't involve an underfunded Rite-Aid that gets robbed eight times per year), just not the exact fit you were looking for. And besides, many of these newer schools that are supposedly the cause of saturation haven't pumped out that many graduates yet.

More to the point, let's have some fun with this. I hear Fairbanks is a pretty nice place to work, as are Bismarck and Pierre. Or, for that matter, what about Canada? You know, Nunavut doesn't even have a pharmacy school, there's got to be at least a job or two available in the big city up there!
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As somebody who is class of 2013, you probably have no real work related experience much less professional experience. I can not wait until it is 2013 so I can see you here grumbling that there are no jobs for you or your classmates. There are still a lot of 09 graduates without jobs looking. You will be competing against them.

Heck... I am not going to lie. I have to take things up the ass because I know I will not only be competing against this years graduate who wants my spot... but also last years.
 
xraided81 said:
NJAC, i had no idea it was that bad over there, i remember when the sups were hiring RPhs like crazy during our 2nd and 3rd year. wasnt the person who got the job trying to get into med school? That is awesome, she got the job over the residents, it looks like even a residency doesnt guarantee you much anymore,
I am really thankful l i have a few options here once i get my license.
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yup, there is a hiring freeze here. They're pretty much regretting hiring all of those *****s with a heartbeat and a license. Oh well, I'm out of here!

But yes, you're thinking of the correct person. There's a bit of contention going on with that situation, but the inpatient supervisors stood up for her and I'm proud they did. 😍
 
njac said:
yup, there is a hiring freeze here. They're pretty much regretting hiring all of those *****s with a heartbeat and a license. Oh well, I'm out of here!

But yes, you're thinking of the correct person. There's a bit of contention going on with that situation, but the inpatient supervisors stood up for her and I'm proud they did. 😍
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Actually in a few of the NYC hospitals (not going to mention names), they are using the economy as an excuse to get rid of bad pharmacists even though it is only a few. Cant say the same for nurses and other support staffs though.
 
Aznfarmerboi said:
As somebody who is class of 2013, you probably have no real work related experience much less professional experience. I can not wait until it is 2013 so I can see you here grumbling that there are no jobs for you or your classmates. There are still a lot of 09 graduates without jobs looking. You will be competing against them.

Heck... I am not going to lie. I have to take things up the ass because I know I will not only be competing against this years graduate who wants my spot... but also last years.
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I'm going to stop this right now and spoil the ending for everyone. Here's how this would have progressed. I'm going to mention that I already know my personal situation, and have already started networking with local pharmacies. So despite what's going on on the macro level, I'll still have a job. Someone's response to this will be to tell me to stop being selfish and that there still is a problem, to which I'll agree but also admit that the problem won't affect me and that market forces will eventually even everything out.
 
IrishHammer said:
I'm going to stop this right now and spoil the ending for everyone. Here's how this would have progressed. I'm going to mention that I already know my personal situation, and have already started networking with local pharmacies. So despite what's going on on the macro level, I'll still have a job. Someone's response to this will be to tell me to stop being selfish and that there still is a problem, to which I'll agree but also admit that the problem won't affect me and that market forces will eventually even everything out.
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Thats funny. I actually talked to a new graduate a few days ago who said that she has been networking and working for (Independents) since high school... guess what? Not even the independent where she has put in many hours since high school can help her out pt.

I also talked to a few top notch hospital graduate interns and their DOP just told them that they wont be hiring this year despite them being there for 4 years...
 
Aznfarmerboi said:
Thats funny. I actually talked to a new graduate a few days ago who said that she has been networking and working for (Independents) since high school... guess what? Not even the independent where she has put in many hours since high school can help her out pt.

I also talked to a few top notch hospital graduate interns and their DOP just told them that they wont be hiring this year despite them being there for 4 years...
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From what I've seen, independents don't bring on new pharmacists all that often, so your first scenario doesn't surprise me.

As for your second scenario, many people on this forum have mentioned hospitals in their area having hiring freezes, so that doesn't surprise me either.

What is the reason that everybody on this forum seems dead set on telling me, a person they know nothing about, that I'll be unemployed in 4 years? I'd really like to know.
 
SpirivaSunrise said:
Who said that??
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Okay, so that was a bit of an exaggeration. However, more often than not, when these debates about saturation spark up and I put in my two cents, the consensus from replies is that I won't personally have a job. Most of the reasoning is based on assumptions and the job situation on a macro level, both of which are usually a poor basis to form arguments on.

I have looked into the job situation in my area and know what's going on. My posts on this topic are there to inform the percentage of pharmacy students who frequent this forum that it's not the end of the world, and a little bit of research and some flexibility can go a long way in helping your future. However, the typical response is "Well you won't have a job because *insert irrelevant anecdote*".
 
IrishHammer said:
The fact that there seems to be someone from every city who openly states that there's saturation there makes me wonder how many of the claims are legit and how many are circumstantial. I mentioned on another post that anecdotal evidence is not always concrete. If you're looking for a specific job, and it's not available in an area, you're going to move elsewhere under the pretense of "I couldn't find a job", when in reality, there may have been plenty of jobs available (maybe even some that didn't involve an underfunded Rite-Aid that gets robbed eight times per year), just not the exact fit you were looking for. And besides, many of these newer schools that are supposedly the cause of saturation haven't pumped out that many graduates yet.

More to the point, let's have some fun with this. I hear Fairbanks is a pretty nice place to work, as are Bismarck and Pierre. Or, for that matter, what about Canada? You know, Nunavut doesn't even have a pharmacy school, there's got to be at least a job or two available in the big city up there!
Click to expand...
I hate to say this, but you give the impression of someone who is unwilling to ever consider the alternative position. The fact that multiple people from "every city who openly state that there is saturation," makes you wonder if they are legit or only circumstantial? Really? Do you really think it is just a coincidence?
 
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ffpickle said:
I hate to say this, but you give the impression of someone who is unwilling to ever consider the alternative position. The fact that multiple people from "every city who openly state that there is saturation," makes you wonder if they are legit or only circumstantial? Really? Do you really think it is just a coincidence?
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Don't get me wrong, I don't doubt that there are cities where the market is saturated. However, every person offers the same anecdote as proof. "Well, I have a job here, but I know a guy who doesn't, it's saturated here too." Okay. Did they want a hospital position? Many hospitals are in hiring freezes because of the economy. Did they want to work within a certain part of a metro area, or were they willing to work in the suburbs? This is not a black and white issue of "There's either jobs or not"; if a student is really considering pharmacy as a career and wants to work in a specific spot, it's worth his while to do some digging on his own and find out about an area. This is not a "I can work anywhere I want" sentiment, simply a suggestion that if you're going into the field, know firsthand what you're getting into.
 
IrishHammer said:
Don't get me wrong, I don't doubt that there are cities where the market is saturated. However, every person offers the same anecdote as proof. "Well, I have a job here, but I know a guy who doesn't, it's saturated here too." Okay. Did they want a hospital position? Many hospitals are in hiring freezes because of the economy. Did they want to work within a certain part of a metro area, or were they willing to work in the suburbs? This is not a black and white issue of "There's either jobs or not"; if a student is really considering pharmacy as a career and wants to work in a specific spot, it's worth his while to do some digging on his own and find out about an area. This is not a "I can work anywhere I want" sentiment, simply a suggestion that if you're going into the field, know firsthand what you're getting into.
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yeah i agree with irish hammer. People here arent labor statisticians. Anecdotal evidence has a tendency to be most flawed when the persons involved have a significant emotional or personal investment in the situation or outcome. All it takes is one person unable to get the job they had banked on getting, and they will be pissed off enough to say "there's a saturation!!!"

I will accept the saturation argument when someone can verify for me with either hard evidence or with a vast majority of anecdotes (many people) that there are indeed no locations hiring, whether it be retail in a suburb, ghetto, downtown area, ltc, hospital, clinical, managed care, home infusion, and mail order pharmacies are all not hiring.

There are obviously some areas that are "saturated" but actually people are still getting jobs there. There have been 3 or 4 people in the last couple of months that have mentioned getting or finding jobs in markets such as orange county or NYC, so obviously it's not that there are simply no companies hiring, it's just much, much harder than before, and, wow, maybe pharmacy isnt a ticket to your dream job anymore.. Guess what, 99% of people in the world settle for something besides their dream job.

I do feel lucky though that I want to work in the rural midwest when i'm done. Maybe more people will be forced to move there and experience how nice it is and the midwest will be more appreciated !:xf:
 
type b pharmD said:
yeah i agree with irish hammer. People here arent labor statisticians. Anecdotal evidence has a tendency to be most flawed when the persons involved have a significant emotional or personal investment in the situation or outcome. All it takes is one person unable to get the job they had banked on getting, and they will be pissed off enough to say "there's a saturation!!!"

I will accept the saturation argument when someone can verify for me with either hard evidence or with a vast majority of anecdotes (many people) that there are indeed no locations hiring, whether it be retail in a suburb, ghetto, downtown area, ltc, hospital, clinical, managed care, home infusion, and mail order pharmacies are all not hiring.

There are obviously some areas that are "saturated" but actually people are still getting jobs there. There have been 3 or 4 people in the last couple of months that have mentioned getting or finding jobs in markets such as orange county or NYC, so obviously it's not that there are simply no companies hiring, it's just much, much harder than before, and, wow, maybe pharmacy isnt a ticket to your dream job anymore.. Guess what, 99% of people in the world settle for something besides their dream job.

I do feel lucky though that I want to work in the rural midwest when i'm done. Maybe more people will be forced to move there and experience how nice it is and the midwest will be more appreciated !:xf:
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I agree. If you don't need to be constantly entertained with fancy things/places 100% of the time, it's a pretty nice place. Plus there's basically no crime ever and living is dirt cheap.
 
From talking to my classmates here in Phoenix, lots of us are without job offers. You better hope the economy gets better because with the Walgreen's Power Rollout, it's going to get really ugly. Try having 130K in debt, and washing dishes. Can anyone say computer science????
 
type b pharmD said:
I do feel lucky though that I want to work in the rural midwest when i'm done. Maybe more people will be forced to move there and experience how nice it is and the midwest will be more appreciated !:xf:
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**** that, let them keep scratching for jobs in the oversaturated cities whilst thinking that rural areas and the entire midwest are Godforsaken death traps. You know better, and besides, that's job security. 👍
 
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