Only 4 pharmacist job openings with Walmart in the entire state of GA?

[PAtoPharm]

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I was just browsing Walmart's healthcare jobs page (includes pharmacists, NPs, optometrists) for GA and noticed that only 4 positions are listed for pharmacists. Is this really the case, or are some positions not advertised?

https://jobs.walmart.com/us/jobs?categories=Health and Wellness&page=1&state=GA

Maybe GA is just closer than ever to reaching saturation point...

 

[dnp1123]

ouch, i feel really bad for the RPHS everywhere

i hear even california lowering retail salary to high 50s per hour.

 

[zelman]

I was just browsing Walmart's healthcare jobs page (includes pharmacists, NPs, optometrists) for GA and noticed that only 4 positions are listed for pharmacists. Is this really the case, or are some positions not advertised?

https://jobs.walmart.com/us/jobs?categories=Health and Wellness&page=1&state=GA

Maybe GA is just closer than ever to reaching saturation point...

Walmart doesn't employ a ton of pharmacists (compared to Walgreens/CVS) and they don't build new stores as often. I wouldn't expect many openings in a single state.

 

[sosoo]

since there are 4 schools in GA, Walmart will hire 1 from each.

 

[maria1oh]

Whenever I saw a job opening at cvs my sup said the spot was already assigned. they place those job ads just to make it look fair but really already have someone in mind.

 

[trailerpark]

In my Walmart district alone we have 3 staff RPH openings. I think the new H2O program pissed a lot of people off. My store tried to hire this really experienced guy but he turned down the job offer after he found out he would be floating half the time up to an hour away one way and wouldn't get paid for it. Another guy turned down an offer because he was wicked experienced as well and wouldn't start over with Walmart benefits aka 1-2 weeks vacation for new hires. Why won't Walmart match vacation benefits so we can steal good pharmacists from other stores... it's frustrating! They do the same thing with techs. They won't pay a tech a dollar more who has experience when they can just give the job to a current bonehead Walmart cashier just to save a few bucks.


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[rxdawg21]

In my Walmart district alone we have 3 staff RPH openings. I think the new H2O program pissed a lot of people off. My store tried to hire this really experienced guy but he turned down the job offer after he found out he would be floating half the time up to an hour away one way and wouldn't get paid for it. Another guy turned down an offer because he was wicked experienced as well and wouldn't start over with Walmart benefits aka 1-2 weeks vacation for new hires. Why won't Walmart match vacation benefits so we can steal good pharmacists from other stores... it's frustrating! They do the same thing with techs. They won't pay a tech a dollar more who has experience when they can just give the job to a current bonehead Walmart cashier just to save a few bucks.


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You in Georgia? Im not sure if Walmart is hiring in my area, they sure have been begging for people to cover shifts tho from Augusta to Macon to Columbus. Not sure if it's vacation, maternity leave or someone quit . Some reason all the shifts get covered

 

[PAtoPharm]

You in Georgia? Im not sure if Walmart is hiring in my area, they sure have been begging for people to cover shifts tho from Augusta to Macon to Columbus. Not sure if it's vacation, maternity leave or someone quit . Some reason all the shifts get covered

Are they hiring FT pharmacists to work exclusively in any of those districts, or are they just looking for floaters (assuming they're even hiring at all)? If they actually are hiring anyone at all, are the positions just not listed on the WM website?

 

[PAtoPharm]

In my Walmart district alone we have 3 staff RPH openings. I think the new H2O program pissed a lot of people off. My store tried to hire this really experienced guy but he turned down the job offer after he found out he would be floating half the time up to an hour away one way and wouldn't get paid for it. Another guy turned down an offer because he was wicked experienced as well and wouldn't start over with Walmart benefits aka 1-2 weeks vacation for new hires. Why won't Walmart match vacation benefits so we can steal good pharmacists from other stores... it's frustrating! They do the same thing with techs. They won't pay a tech a dollar more who has experience when they can just give the job to a current bonehead Walmart cashier just to save a few bucks.


Sent from my iPhone using SDN mobile app

I thought the new H2O system was starting new hires off at ~4 weeks of PTO per year? I think I read that on Reddit a few months ago. Does the H2O system require all new hires to float for a certain period of time before they are given their own store?

 

[PAtoPharm]

since there are 4 schools in GA, Walmart will hire 1 from each.

Not only are there 4 schools in GA, but at least two of them are graduating at least 140-150 pharmacists per year (PCOM-GA, South U.). Don't forget about Auburn's program, which is located only about 40 minutes away from the GA/AL border (so it's almost like a 5th school in GA).

 

[PAtoPharm]

Walmart doesn't employ a ton of pharmacists (compared to Walgreens/CVS) and they don't build new stores as often. I wouldn't expect many openings in a single state.

Well, one reason I'm surprised at there being only 4 openings currently is because a year ago (I.e., Oct. 2015), there were at least 4-5 pharmacist openings in my city alone, not even considering the openings that were posted for the other GA cities. So it makes me wonder why the "equilibrium" seems off this year as compared to last year at this time.

 

[mentos]

4 sounds like a lot to me. But I assume those aren't real vacancies. As someone said before they are already filled by the time it's posted.

 

[PAtoPharm]

4 sounds like a lot to me. But I assume those aren't real vacancies. As someone said before they are already filled by the time it's posted.

So I'm guessing that the only thing a pharmacy student can do to get one of those positions upon graduation is to work as a student intern with the company?

 

[rxdawg21]

So I'm guessing that the only thing a pharmacy student can do to get one of those positions upon graduation is to work as a student intern with the company?

No idea if we have jobs open or not im part time. In this market openings are all about timing, most times you either quit for a better job or are forced out. Sometimes these happen in waves and you can get your foot in the door. If you don't work for Walmart in school chances of starting with them is slim, you would have to interview and network well. Otherwise you bide your time at a chain and make good impressions, then you get a job at a good company at a store no one in the company wanted. This is key, any good store is taken by floaters and people at another store biding their time.

 

[Sine Cura]

From what I've seen, an open position will still be posted externally regardless of whether it's already filled. Anything that lasts for a significant amount of time is probably for a bad store and/or rural one.

 

[PAtoPharm]

From what I've seen, an open position will still be posted externally regardless of whether it's already filled. Anything that lasts for a significant amount of time is probably for a bad store and/or rural one.

So basically, even less desirable states like GA are now saturated in all areas except for ghetto/BFE regions. And the APhA is actually insisting on graduating an ADDITIONAL 100,000 pharmacists....

 

[Sine Cura]

I will say this, even with so many new grads some places seem impossible to fill. For example there's a Walmart in Susanville, CA (which is closer to Reno than Redding), population ~15,000, that seems to have had an open RXM position on and off for at least the past year. I wonder what sucker they made "temporary" PIC for the time being.

Neighborhood markets though almost never seem to have any persistent openings since whoever's hiring already has someone in mind and TBH they are generally just easier than supercenters. They also tend to be in urban areas. Less volume and trash customers compared to supercenters. I ****ing hate Walmarts that manage to be to "go to" for Medicaid patients.

 

[mentos]

So I'm guessing that the only thing a pharmacy student can do to get one of those positions upon graduation is to work as a student intern with the company?

That will increase your chances but you have to be real. If there's only 3 spots per district and 3+ interns per store, you know there won't be enough spots available.

 

[ldiot]

Most of these positions have someone internally penciled in months before the job is even posted. Plus half of CVS probably has an application sitting on their desk considering Walmart actually gives techs/overlap/lunch breaks. Not to mention there are a lot fewer Walmarts than CVS/WAGS

 

[PAtoPharm]

Most of these positions have someone internally penciled in months before the job is even posted. Plus half of CVS probably has an application sitting on their desk considering Walmart actually gives techs/overlap/lunch breaks. Not to mention there are a lot fewer Walmarts than CVS/WAGS

Such a drastic change from how the job market in my area (mid-tier GA city that most regard as an "undesirable" place to live) was a year ago; in fact, I recall that back then, I was posting about how Walmart, Publix, Bi-Lo, and the other chains all had openings here. But now, according to Indeed.com, the only places that have openings in my area for pharmacists are CVS and a hospital (residency and/or experience required for the hospital position). There is virtually nothing else left. I wonder how bad things will get (at least locally) by the time I'm graduating in 2020? Then again, I guess the job market here can't get much worse (unless even the CVS openings got filled as well)....

 

[rxdawg21]

Such a drastic change from how the job market in my area (mid-tier GA city that most regard as an "undesirable" place to live) was a year ago; in fact, I recall that back then, I was posting about how Walmart, Publix, Bi-Lo, and the other chains all had openings here. But now, according to Indeed.com, the only places that have openings in my area for pharmacists are CVS and a hospital (residency and/or experience required for the hospital position). There is virtually nothing else left. I wonder how bad things will get (at least locally) by the time I'm graduating in 2020? Then again, I guess the job market here can't get much worse (unless even the CVS openings got filled as well)....

I know personally that Wal-mart had all those job openings was due to a new DM and his lack of tolerance for not meeting his standards. He pushed multiple pharmacists out in both Columbus and Macon area. This happened December 2014-March 2015. Massive weeding out of pharmacists that weren't really cut out for the new direction Wal-Mart is going.

The only time I've seen outside pharmacists hired at the multiple Wal-Mart area's I have worked is due to a very undesirable store/manager position. This of course excludes new grads that also get stuck in the very same positions. I know in 2014 grad class several were made managers right away at the worst stores in the district (volume, hours, technician capability), recipe for failure. Both left for greener pastures at a regional grocery chain.

 

[PAtoPharm]

I know personally that Wal-mart had all those job openings was due to a new DM and his lack of tolerance for not meeting his standards. He pushed multiple pharmacists out in both Columbus and Macon area. This happened December 2014-March 2015. Massive weeding out of pharmacists that weren't really cut out for the new direction Wal-Mart is going.

The only time I've seen outside pharmacists hired at the multiple Wal-Mart area's I have worked is due to a very undesirable store/manager position. This of course excludes new grads that also get stuck in the very same positions. I know in 2014 grad class several were made managers right away at the worst stores in the district (volume, hours, technician capability), recipe for failure. Both left for greener pastures at a regional grocery chain.

Thanks for providing some insight on the situation with Walmart. I guess I made a mistake by assuming a year ago that all those job openings were the norm for Walmart. But it wasn't just Walmart that had lots of jobs posted last year -- there was also Publix, Winn-Dixie, etc. that were advertising jobs here. But now, if you're not willing to work for CVS, it looks like there are basically zero job openings here.

Just out of curiosity, would you mind providing some more information on the "new direction" you mentioned Walmart is going in? Does this mean more focus on meeting metrics, working with less tech help, etc.?

 

[rxdawg21]

Thanks for providing some insight on the situation with Walmart. I guess I made a mistake by assuming a year ago that all those job openings were the norm for Walmart. But it wasn't just Walmart that had lots of jobs posted last year -- there was also Publix, Winn-Dixie, etc. that were advertising jobs here. But now, if you're not willing to work for CVS, it looks like there are basically zero job openings here.

Just out of curiosity, would you mind providing some more information on the "new direction" you mentioned Walmart is going in? Does this mean more focus on meeting metrics, working with less tech help, etc.?

MTMs and flu shots are relatively new to Walmart, the ramping up of metrics is recent. Some Dm put up with more then others. That is what I mean

 

[PAtoPharm]

MTMs and flu shots are relatively new to Walmart, the ramping up of metrics is recent. Some Dm put up with more then others. That is what I mean

Thanks for clarifying. So I guess the appearance of Columbus/Auburn/LaGrange having a "good" job market a year ago was more of a temporary illusion than anything else.

 

[rxdawg21]

Thanks for clarifying. So I guess the appearance of Columbus/Auburn/LaGrange having a "good" job market a year ago was more of a temporary illusion than anything else.

Probably a multitude of factors. I can't speak for all job openings or companies. I can say that each year more and more new grads have to move to areas they don't want to, for the most part jobs in the urban areas (Columbus ga qualifies as that) are going to go to people in the company transferring or an experienced pharmacist leaving a "worse" chain. I don't see the job market stagnating or getting better until schools start reducing class sizes or closing. Maybe pharmacists role expands, I doubt it. Right now the ACA and insurance game is thinning up the margins. I see a single payer healthcare system coming sooner then later, that'll squeeze margins worse.

None of those things are going to help pharmacy and none of it is guaranteed to happen. It's my educated guess

 

[PAtoPharm]

Probably a multitude of factors. I can't speak for all job openings or companies. I can say that each year more and more new grads have to move to areas they don't want to, for the most part jobs in the urban areas (Columbus ga qualifies as that) are going to go to people in the company transferring or an experienced pharmacist leaving a "worse" chain. I don't see the job market stagnating or getting better until schools start reducing class sizes or closing. Maybe pharmacists role expands, I doubt it. Right now the ACA and insurance game is thinning up the margins. I see a single payer healthcare system coming sooner then later, that'll squeeze margins worse.

None of those things are going to help pharmacy and none of it is guaranteed to happen. It's my educated guess

Wow, I had no idea that Columbus, GA (or Macon, Albany, etc. for that matter) were considered urban areas, but I guess they are. I figured those were the cities that most new grads wanted to avoid having to move to. I am almost scared to ask -- what GA cities/towns are most new grads having to move to when they graduate? I hope you aren't going to say towns like Waycross, Tifton, Dawson, Moultrie, etc., because I could honestly never imagine being able to live in po-dunk, BFE towns like those. Maybe I should bail on pharm school now if I can't imagine moving to places like those. I saw a job ad posted for a pharmacist to work in LaGrange (pretty small town) just the other day, and even they are requiring either completion of a residency or one year of hospital-specific experience.

 

[Carol is Alpha]

. I am almost scared to ask -- what GA cities/towns are most new grads having to move to when they graduate? .

Come on, help out a gene pool, bro.

 

[Sine Cura]

"Most" new grads are going to take what the market offers. I know recent grads at Walmart who have been floating to the past three years (but at NHM), new grads working in podunk areas, and new grads working in bad stores. Have the expectation that if you're in retail you will be placed where there's a pharmacist gap.

On the other hand, if you are shown to be slow/mediocre and manage to get a job in an urban market, that might deter schedulers from putting you into more demanding locations so it might work out for you.

 

[rxdawg21]

"Most" new grads are going to take what the market offers. I know recent grads at Walmart who have been floating to the past three years (but at NHM), new grads working in podunk areas, and new grads working in bad stores. Have the expectation that if you're in retail you will be placed where there's a pharmacist gap.

On the other hand, if you are shown to be slow/mediocre and manage to get a job in an urban market, that might deter schedulers from putting you into more demanding locations so it might work out for you.

Until you stop getting the hours you need when they figure out they can just cut your hours (as wal-mart did with H2O). You can still get a job in a good area, just note that in TODAY's market that is the exception. If you are one of the fortunate few to get a retail job in say Atlanta, it is the majority of the time 30-32 hours a week position. Hopefully you do well, the manager likes you, and you get the first full time job that opens. There are no absolutes to the job market, there are exceptions, planning on being that exception while going >100k in debt isn't wise, unless you just have that burning desire to be a pharmacist.

So if TODAY is like that, and we are starting to graduate 15k new pharmacists nation wide, how is the market going to look in 4 years. The last few years have been largely helped out by a great bull stock market that has allowed older pharmacists to cut back on their hours or downright retire.

Most over achievers (or the people who expect to be an exception) are doing residencies, many do pgy2s...All this to go get a job in an area you most likely don't want to live in or in a specialty that isn't your first choice. Then hopefully a year or few down the line the job you want where you want opens and you get it with all your training/experience.

I don't get what PAto Pharm is still trying to figure out. Do you have a passion for pharmacy? Are you okay with going >100k in debt (about 2k a month for 10 year payment at 150k) to work a job that you aren't guaranteed to be where you want, get full time hours, and are definitely most likely going to be stressed.

If you are in pharmacy because it's relatively easy and is a 6 figure path, I would say no, no, no...do not go down that road, you will regret it. If you want to make 70k plus with greater advancement opportunities look into PA, NP, specialized nurse (ICU, ER), Finance, Banking, etc. You will most likely regret pharmacy if it's your backup, I want to be in healthcare and make 6 figures type job. (there are exceptions to this, you could get lucky and get a great job, just know that it is luck and probably won't happen.)

Disclaimer: Noone can predict the future, just made educated guessed based on data available in real time.

 

[quickpic007]

I was just browsing Walmart's healthcare jobs page (includes pharmacists, NPs, optometrists) for GA and noticed that only 4 positions are listed for pharmacists. Is this really the case, or are some positions not advertised?

https://jobs.walmart.com/us/jobs?categories=Health and Wellness&page=1&state=GA

Maybe GA is just closer than ever to reaching saturation point...

Just move to Alabama

PROBLEM SOLVED

 

[PAtoPharm]

Until you stop getting the hours you need when they figure out they can just cut your hours (as wal-mart did with H2O). You can still get a job in a good area, just note that in TODAY's market that is the exception. If you are one of the fortunate few to get a retail job in say Atlanta, it is the majority of the time 30-32 hours a week position. Hopefully you do well, the manager likes you, and you get the first full time job that opens. There are no absolutes to the job market, there are exceptions, planning on being that exception while going >100k in debt isn't wise, unless you just have that burning desire to be a pharmacist.

So if TODAY is like that, and we are starting to graduate 15k new pharmacists nation wide, how is the market going to look in 4 years. The last few years have been largely helped out by a great bull stock market that has allowed older pharmacists to cut back on their hours or downright retire.

Most over achievers (or the people who expect to be an exception) are doing residencies, many do pgy2s...All this to go get a job in an area you most likely don't want to live in or in a specialty that isn't your first choice. Then hopefully a year or few down the line the job you want where you want opens and you get it with all your training/experience.

I don't get what PAto Pharm is still trying to figure out. Do you have a passion for pharmacy? Are you okay with going >100k in debt (about 2k a month for 10 year payment at 150k) to work a job that you aren't guaranteed to be where you want, get full time hours, and are definitely most likely going to be stressed.

If you are in pharmacy because it's relatively easy and is a 6 figure path, I would say no, no, no...do not go down that road, you will regret it. If you want to make 70k plus with greater advancement opportunities look into PA, NP, specialized nurse (ICU, ER), Finance, Banking, etc. You will most likely regret pharmacy if it's your backup, I want to be in healthcare and make 6 figures type job. (there are exceptions to this, you could get lucky and get a great job, just know that it is luck and probably won't happen.)

Disclaimer: Noone can predict the future, just made educated guessed based on data available in real time.

I agree, PA/NP school is probably a much safer bet for a well-paying health professions job these days, although I think I would personally prefer to be an NP over being a PA since I don't care to go back to school to train to be someone else's assistant again. I also think that overall, dental school is the hands-down best program to pursue (as I've said on here before), although there's no way I'd be competitive enough to get accepted to a program at this point.

Unfortunately, I procrastinated when it came to giving up my pharmacy school seat before I matriculated into a program, so I have now been a student in both AA school and pharmacy school. Even if my grades end up being competitive enough for a direct-entry NP program after this semester, I doubt any program would be willing to take a chance on accepting me with my flip-flopper academic history.

 

[PAtoPharm]

Just move to Alabama

PROBLEM SOLVED

No way, have you seen where the majority of Walmart's Alabama job postings are for? Places like Brewton, Anniston, Andalusia, and other nightmare ultra-small towns. No thanks....

 

[quickpic007]

No way, have you seen where the majority of Walmart's Alabama job postings are for? Places like Brewton, Anniston, Andalusia, and other nightmare ultra-small towns. No thanks....

Jacksonville & Gadsden close to ATL but Ive never been

Sigh, new realty of pharmacy

 

[steveysmith54]

I also think that overall, dental school is the hands-down best program to pursue (as I've said on here before), although there's no way I'd be competitive enough to get accepted to a program at this point.
.

One profession that I do not regret going into is dentistry... The job is too labor intensive. There are older dentists out there, but I feel like the job is too hard to do as one gets older. I can't imagine the wear and tare on the: joints, back, neck, and hands that one endures being a dentist.

One thing that I didn't think abt is the importance of a career that one can do at later age. Retirement age gets pushed further and further. One older hospital director once told me your body will break down much faster than your mind.

 

[Sine Cura]

Susanville, CA RXM position now offers a 30k bonus (see flyer). There is also an opening at High Desert State Prison in Susanville, too (check out the California corrections website).

IMO this would be better than Alabama, and IMO better than Crescent City, too. Susanville is "only" 86 miles from Reno and US 395 is in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada so there would be relatively little snow in the winter.

Food for thought for desperate pharmacists. I would definitely agitate for the 401k match right away instead of waiting 1 year. Also if you have to float you are still considered "hourly" for purposes of mileage and your schedule, so if you have to travel 4 hours one way, you have to be scheduled for those 4 hours plus mileage from your home to the float store. However you can't cash out Walmart PTO as a "California pharmacist." I gave out wrong info on Reddit when I conflated the true hourly positions at Walmart with the California-designated hourly positions in CA.

 

[Carol is Alpha]

Susanville, CA RXM position now offers a 30k bonus (see flyer). There is also an opening at High Desert State Prison in Susanville, too (check out the California corrections website).

Didn't they film Human Centipede 3 there?

Can you imagine a SJW sitting thru this flick? The lines of the Bill Boss character? Dieter Laser really should have gotten an Oscar for his role.

 

[PAtoPharm]

One profession that I do not regret going into is dentistry... The job is too labor intensive. There are older dentists out there, but I feel like the job is too hard to do as one gets older. I can't imagine the wear and tare on the: joints, back, neck, and hands that one endures being a dentist.

One thing that I didn't think abt is the importance of a career that one can do at later age. Retirement age gets pushed further and further. One older hospital director once told me your body will break down much faster than your mind.

I think one of the big advantages to going into dentistry and owning your own practice is that as the practice matures, you'll get to the point of making so much money that you won't really have to worry about working until you're that old. I don't know how common this is, but someone I know who just graduated from dental school is a partner at the local dental practice my family has been going to for years, and he said one of his partners (dentist in his 50s who has been there the longest) is making between $400k-$500k/year and has been making that much for a long time. At this point, he's just doing it because he enjoys the work, because if someone has been making $400k+ for a number of years, why would you need to keep working otherwise?

So I think the nice thing about dentistry is that, once your practice has matured over a number of years and you've gotten to the point of making the really big money, you can pretty much retire whenever you want to (this is assuming that someone is diligent about saving more money as they make more money). On the other hand, even in retail pharmacy, it sounds like many/most pharmacists top out at $130k-$140k and that's it (and if they ever leave their job and start over at a new company, they make whatever a new grad would make). Guess it just depends on what level of income ceiling someone is comfortable with.

 

[steveysmith54]

I think one of the big advantages to going into dentistry and owning your own practice is that as the practice matures, you'll get to the point of making so much money that you won't really have to worry about working until you're that old. I don't know how common this is, but someone I know who just graduated from dental school is a partner at the local dental practice my family has been going to for years, and he said one of his partners (dentist in his 50s who has been there the longest) is making between $400k-$500k/year and has been making that much for a long time. At this point, he's just doing it because he enjoys the work, because if someone has been making $400k+ for a number of years, why would you need to keep working otherwise?

So I think the nice thing about dentistry is that, once your practice has matured over a number of years and you've gotten to the point of making the really big money, you can pretty much retire whenever you want to (this is assuming that someone is diligent about saving more money as they make more money). On the other hand, even in retail pharmacy, it sounds like many/most pharmacists top out at $130k-$140k and that's it (and if they ever leave their job and start over at a new company, they make whatever a new grad would make). Guess it just depends on what level of income ceiling someone is comfortable with.

Well same can be said about pharmacy ownership. If you are able to run a successful pharmacy business, you can hire a staff RPh or even sell your pharmacy for excellent money.

 

[PAtoPharm]

Well same can be said about pharmacy ownership. If you are able to run a successful pharmacy business, you can hire a staff RPh or even sell your pharmacy for excellent money.

I don't know if my area just sucks for independent pharmacies or what, but the independent pharmacy owners I talked to said it's getting more difficult every year just to stay in business (sounds like they definitely aren't making the average $240k reported for independent pharmacy owners). Also, a U-Save-It (not sure if you've heard of them -- apparently they allow pharmacists to buy-in as partial owners, and then the pharmacist basically runs the store as if it was their own) opened a few years ago in a fairly wealthy area and closed up after less than 3 years of being in business.

I don't much about this kind of stuff, but the recent dental school graduate I mentioned in my last post was able to easily (or so he says) get approved for a loan to buy a $1.5 million dental practice even though he hardly has any experience working as a dentist. He says that it's because dental practices are apparently considered by banks/lenders to be one of the safest businesses for someone to own because they almost never decrease in value or revenue over time, so they don't mind loaning a new grad a huge sum of money to buy a dental practice. Again, I don't know how true this is, but there you go. On the other hand, the local independent pharmacy owners told me they wouldn't go to pharmacy school with the goal of owning a pharmacy because of the low reimbursements, insurance issues, etc. They wouldn't throw out any specific dollar figures, but it sounds like they aren't making much money (although maybe they're making more than they're letting on).

Actually, I do know a guy who has owned a pharmacy for about 3 years in the richest area of town. He said that even though he does lots of compounding, he still only makes between $120k-$150k/year. Maybe my area just sucks?

 

[PAtoPharm]

Actually, I must now update this post; I just did a job search for pharmacist jobs in GA on Walmart's website, and there is now just ONE pharmacist position available with Walmart in the entire state of GA:

https://jobs.walmart.com/us/jobs?categories=Health and Wellness&page=1&state=GA

Anyone up to move to Dahlonega?

 

[rxdawg21]

Actually, I must now update this post; I just did a job search for pharmacist jobs in GA on Walmart's website, and there is now just ONE pharmacist position available with Walmart in the entire state of GA:

https://jobs.walmart.com/us/jobs?categories=Health and Wellness&page=1&state=GA

Anyone up to move to Dahlonega?

Actually Dahlonega wouldn't be a bad place to live at all. Beautiful place with a decent local scene with restaurants etc. Not far from city/ things to do. Better then where I currently live, Alas there isn't a VA in Dahlonega lol

 

[ldiot]

My question: Is Walmart really that much better than chain pharmacy?

I am doing rotation at a different grocery chain and while I would say the workload is a lot less I still can't say that it's that great. Same (maybe lower) volume and tech help than my CVS store except there are 2 pharmacists there all day. Their system forces you to print and pull one script at a time (which feel like literally 1/2 the speed) plus the pharmacist has to verify data entry before you can even print it. Like I said before the overall workload is still less but for some reason I just dislike it. Maybe it's because it's not what I'm used to or I just don't like the staff nearly as much... not really sure.

 

[gwarm01]

I agree, PA/NP school is probably a much safer bet for a well-paying health professions job these days, although I think I would personally prefer to be an NP over being a PA since I don't care to go back to school to train to be someone else's assistant again. I also think that overall, dental school is the hands-down best program to pursue (as I've said on here before), although there's no way I'd be competitive enough to get accepted to a program at this point.

Unfortunately, I procrastinated when it came to giving up my pharmacy school seat before I matriculated into a program, so I have now been a student in both AA school and pharmacy school. Even if my grades end up being competitive enough for a direct-entry NP program after this semester, I doubt any program would be willing to take a chance on accepting me with my flip-flopper academic history.

Is there such a thing as a direct entry NP program? I thought they required practical experience as an RN for a few years.

 

[ABCPharmD]

My question: Is Walmart really that much better than chain pharmacy?

I interned at Walgreens for three years during school and switched to Walmart this year as a pharmacist. So far I do like Walmart a lot more. Obviously it's still retail so you still have customer, corporate, and system issues. But it's the little things that have made me like it more. Having a bathroom in the pharmacy is nice. So is having a lunch break. I also like the number of tech and rph hours we get. We get 2 rph, 3-4 techs, and a cashier when we only do 250-300 rx/day. At Walgreens that probably would be a 1 rph 1-2 tech operation.

 

[PAtoPharm]

Is there such a thing as a direct entry NP program? I thought they required practical experience as an RN for a few years.

They're out there, and more are popping up every year. This is one of the closest programs to me:

https://nursing.vanderbilt.edu/msn/prespecialty/index.php

There are so many job openings in my city for NPs (despite there being a traditional NP program here) as compared to the paltry number of pharmacist job openings (currently 2 CVS positions, nothing else) that it's almost funny. I'm seriously thinking about giving Vanderbilt's direct-entry program a shot and just applying. I don't know if they'd comb through my transcripts hard enough to see that I'd previously attended (but not completed) two other health professions programs, but it can't hurt to try.

 

[tennischamp822]

.

 

[PAtoPharm]

As long as you keep passing pharm school, you can just say that you wanted more patient interaction if they ask why you want to do NP.

Good point. The only problem is that I have already bailed on another health professions program (AA school), so the NP program admissions committee members might be provoked to ask themselves, "What is the likelihood of PAtoPharm deciding that they don't see themselves as an NP and leaving after finishing 2 or 3 semesters of this program?"