Pharmacist Salary Thread

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Z e r o X said:
Why? I thought retail sucked and everybody hated it?
There's more to pharmacy than retail!! Not everyone plans on doing this the rest of their life, although there are plenty at my school who will be doing retail ONLY for the money. I am one of those people who would do it because of my passion. I will be doing a residency (which means only $30K that year if I'm lucky) and then I'll be working in a hospital (probably $60K starting if not less). This is because that is where my passion is. I would not be bagging doritos and counting pills (although retail requires much much more, you really should investigate this). I hope to be working with doctor's and monitoring patients drug therapy. This means I would be helping doc's decide what's the right therapy. I've been very impressed at the amount of R.Ph's that we've had come to our school who are clinical pharmacists and who do have this job. You really should investigate before you post about things you do not know about!!
 
i actually want to do retail and love patient interaction (yes even the grumpy ones)


what can i say... i'm a talker *hopes that the talker-hate thread in pharmacy forum people don't read that and come after me
 
FutureRxGal said:
I'm one of those who WOULD still do it for half of what pharmacists are paid now.
Would or Will you?

Caverject - 0_o picture!
 
Z e r o X said:
But overall being a pharmacist is easier than say nursing and doctors. Most of the job comprise of dispensing drugs and preventing mix-ups/ side effects.

And I don't see why its a bad idea to do something specifically for the money as long as you don't hate your job. After all money is what cause happiness. And isn't happiness what we're all searching for??
I'm pretty sure alot of people would not have become pharmacist if it were not for the extremely high pay. Say it was 30-50k a year, how many people would you think would become pharmacist? Very little.

As for the people that say over 100k a year working retail is not enough, thats more than enough. Pharmacist rarely cannot find a job. They're always in demand. And 100k is alot considering they spent 6 years of college, considering that PhDs in chemistry, biology, etc. dont even make that much. Not even engineers with masters and phD make that much. And I'm pretty sure they're work is WAY harder than pharmacy school because of the math/ theories.

So the way I see it is that pharmacists have it easy and technically the only setback is lack of raises/ promotions/ advancement/ potential. Most people probably waste their whole life/ potential behind a retail counter never leaving because thats the only place paying 100k.

Z e r o X said:
That would mean that experience would almost mean nothing in the eyes of an your pharmacist employer. And the question is how does *one* become the DM(department manager?) ?

Could you possibly start your own drug company or work your way up a drug company if you had just your pharmD? I've always thought that getting a pharmD would train pharmacist how to develop and invent new drugs. Do the pharmD teach you that or does it just teach you to dispense it?

I'm sorry if this offends anyone....

If you don't mind my asking, Zerox, is there a reason other than $$$ that you are interested in pharmacy? Because if that is the only reason, you really should look at another profession. If you're not sure what your options are with a PharmD, you also should do some more research. Pfizer puts out a great manual on the pharmacy profession that you can download in PDF format. I'm pretty sure you can link to it off of the AACP web site.

Pharmacy is not necessarily easier than being a doctor or a nurse. It really focuses on a different area of medicine and health care. A pharmacist has to be multi-faceted, keeping up with new drug therapies, laws and business practices. (As far as doctors or nurses go, anatomy and physiology changes at a much slower and less dramatic rate). And the pharmacist is at every bit as much risk for malpractice lawsuits as a doctor, especially in our current litigation-bent society.

There is also a whole lot more you can do with a PharmD than just "retail" or "clinical." Add a little computer knowledge and you can set up computer databases where knowledge of drug formularies is necessary. Go lobby on Capitol Hill (there's a way to get into the "industry" for you).

There are plenty of us out here who are interested in the profession for its own sake and not for the money.
 
CSzGirl said:
I'm sorry if this offends anyone....

If you don't mind my asking, Zerox, is there a reason other than $$$ that you are interested in pharmacy? Because if that is the only reason, you really should look at another profession. If you're not sure what your options are with a PharmD, you also should do some more research. Pfizer puts out a great manual on the pharmacy profession that you can download in PDF format. I'm pretty sure you can link to it off of the AACP web site.

Pharmacy is not necessarily easier than being a doctor or a nurse. It really focuses on a different area of medicine and health care. A pharmacist has to be multi-faceted, keeping up with new drug therapies, laws and business practices. (As far as doctors or nurses go, anatomy and physiology changes at a much slower and less dramatic rate). And the pharmacist is at every bit as much risk for malpractice lawsuits as a doctor, especially in our current litigation-bent society.

There is also a whole lot more you can do with a PharmD than just "retail" or "clinical." Add a little computer knowledge and you can set up computer databases where knowledge of drug formularies is necessary. Go lobby on Capitol Hill (there's a way to get into the "industry" for you).

There are plenty of us out here who are interested in the profession for its own sake and not for the money.

No there is not much reason for me to go to pharmacy school other than for the 100k + salary that pharmacists makes a year. I figured its easier than going to medical school and being a doctor.

And this sounds like a good alternative to being a doctor since you won't get some disease or have to touch sick people while you still get great job security and good salary since this is a in demand field.

Also its sounds alot easier than engineering which was my second choice but I've figured that retail pharmacist makes twice what they make so it would be a good career choice. yeah.
 
Phantom said:
Would or Will you?

Caverject - 0_o picture!
She would if that was the case...I, however, am doing just that between the two job fields I am considering. Academia and the Public Health Service does not make very good pay, but I will be much happier doing that.
 
Z e r o X said:
No there is not much reason for me to go to pharmacy school other than for the 100k + salary that pharmacists makes a year. I figured its easier than going to medical school and being a doctor.

And this sounds like a good alternative to being a doctor since you won't get some disease or have to touch sick people while you still get great job security and good salary since this is a in demand field.

Also its sounds alot easier than engineering which was my second choice but I've figured that retail pharmacist makes twice what they make so it would be a good career choice. yeah.

Come on, come on, listen to the money.Come on, come on, listen to the money talk! 😉
 
I know this is a "salary" thread, but I have to ask Caverject where he/she obtained the little mouse doing "push-ups" on the computer mouse... it's hilarious...great choice of presentation 👍 😀
Asor
 
I heard that regular pharmacists make around 100k. Whats the salary for pharmacy managers? And whats the requirements to get to be a pharmacy manager? Do you need MBA or other degrees?

Also whats the salary for district managers and pharmacy supervisors?
 
Thought this might be of interest. The latest issue of Drug Topics contains their biennial salary survey:

http://www.drugtopics.com/drugtopics/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=151425&pageID=1&sk=&date=

i2.gif
 
bananaface said:
"*Caution: extremely low base" :laugh:

Ouch.
All your base are belong to us. 😉
 
bananaface said:
"*Caution: extremely low base" :laugh:

Ouch.


Exactly what does "low base" mean?

From what I see, pharmacist in the west make more money... which should mean higher base???
 
I don't buy it, at least not for this western "extremely low base" city. The low base here beats anything else on the map. I know that the data will be dated, but I can't see CA paying less than AZ, or the pacific northwest for that matter to be to far below. You can't tell me that the small population bases in the mountain states holds the avg. down that far. With the evil empires last quarterly retail pay raise to $47.25/hr, that puts the new avg fulltime salary without overtime at $98,280. (based on 40 hour weeks and 52 weeks a year.) Every other chain will soon follow the evil empire if they havn't already, as they always do. With that in mind, I love my "extremely low base" area.
 
I can confirm that Walgreens, Safeway, and I think Walmart are all paying (or will be paying within 3 months) $50/hr or more for pharmacy managers in Arizona... staff usually pays $2-$3 less/hr. 👍
 
i will also tell you that the rural areas in the South pay a fortune (i.e $125K/yr)
 
jdpharmd? said:
I can confirm that Walgreens, Safeway, and I think Walmart are all paying (or will be paying within 3 months) $50/hr or more for pharmacy managers in Arizona... staff usually pays $2-$3 less/hr. 👍

Who are you talking to? Staff at Safeway are getting $44/hour to start.
 
jdpharmd? said:
I can confirm that Walgreens, Safeway, and I think Walmart are all paying (or will be paying within 3 months) $50/hr or more for pharmacy managers in Arizona... staff usually pays $2-$3 less/hr. 👍

Is this the starting salary?

Can you become a pharmacy manager immediatly after graduation?
 
ForgetMeNot said:
Who are you talking to? Staff at Safeway are getting $44/hour to start.
Like I said... within 3 months... They're chasing Walgreens.. $50/hr for manager, and most likely $47 for staff is the rumor.
 
jdpharmd? said:
Like I said... within 3 months... They're chasing Walgreens.. $50/hr for manager, and most likely $47 for staff is the rumor.

You know, I usually don't like rumors, but this one I could live with.
 
whats the salary cap for really experienced pharmacist?

And what kind of opportunitiies for advancement are there in retail?

thanks
 
bbmuffin said:
i will also tell you that the rural areas in the South pay a fortune (i.e $125K/yr)

*I'M PACKING MY BAGS!*
 
The AZ salary info is not rumor. I got my figures for thrid year students with signed contracts to work at their respective places of business. I was under the impression from a safeway pharmacist that they were currently at 45 an hour with the managers at 55. Walgreens apparently pays their managers differently with their compensation tied up in bonuses. They will all chase the evil empire, or else other companies will lose their workers. The evil empire has already made the salary change, the others will follow.
By the way, I am sarcastic in the evil empire name. I tend to like the company and hope they continue the salary surge.
 
Jeddevil said:
The AZ salary info is not rumor. I got my figures for thrid year students with signed contracts to work at their respective places of business. I was under the impression from a safeway pharmacist that they were currently at 45 an hour with the managers at 55. Walgreens apparently pays their managers differently with their compensation tied up in bonuses. They will all chase the evil empire, or else other companies will lose their workers. The evil empire has already made the salary change, the others will follow.
By the way, I am sarcastic in the evil empire name. I tend to like the company and hope they continue the salary surge.
I know that your safeway numbers are wrong, but WAGS just went to $51/hr for managers (+ bonuses, etc). Nobody's managers are at $55/hr, unless some sort of bonus has been figured into that number.
 
"Caution: Extremely Low Base"

???

Can someone elaborate - I'm in the dark here!

thanks,
-skp
 
jdpharmd? said:
I know that your safeway numbers are wrong, but WAGS just went to $51/hr for managers (+ bonuses, etc). Nobody's managers are at $55/hr, unless some sort of bonus has been figured into that number.

Well, if that is the case, then my preceptor at safeway lied to me. I am hoping not. I didn't bring up the salary conversation either, my preceptor just divulged what they were making in that store during a normal conversation. Either way, salaries are looking better every quarter.
 
Jeddevil said:
Well, if that is the case, then my preceptor at safeway lied to me. I am hoping not. I didn't bring up the salary conversation either, my preceptor just divulged what they were making in that store during a normal conversation. Either way, salaries are looking better every quarter.

All I can say is that I have a copy of my Safeway staff pharmacist offer right here on my desk. But you never know when there will be an increase in wages with them.
 
Argh! If only hospital salaries go up in a similar fashion...
 
Hmm. 5-10 dollar increase in pay (10k-20k increase in salary) for a job that has a reputation in making you want to change careers (pharm manager @ Walgreens).

Yum.

This from a couple of friends who were strongly urged by cooperate to take the managing job.

One is now thinking about going into real estate instead. =P
 
jdpharmd? said:
Like I said... within 3 months... They're chasing Walgreens.. $50/hr for manager, and most likely $47 for staff is the rumor.

WTH managers only get $3 more per hour than staff?? Damn that sux.


Shouldn't managers get paid at least twice as much as the staff. An engineering manager usually is paid twice(if not triple) as much as staff.


btw is it possible to become an pharmacy manager immediatly after graduation?
 
b*rizzle said:
Whenever I hear folks asking persistent questions like this, I always wonder if they want to do pharmacy because it interests them, or if they want to make a quick buck straight out of college. I apologize for questioning your motives; I'm just stating what I know based on past experience. It's good to want more info, but don't make your decision based solely on salary. All pharmacy schools will inevitably ask you during your interview "why pharmacy?" "Good money" (or derivations of that) are generally not going to win you the favor of an adcom.

To get off my soapbox and answer the question, retail pharmacists generally make more (and usually get good benefits, because otherwise these chain retail pharmacies wouldn't be able to keep most of their good pharmacists). Where I live, it's on the order of about $20k/year in difference.

However, that is also what is very frustrating about some aspects of pharmacy -- you max out right where you start. There are few opportunities for advancement in retail (most people aren't crazy enough to want to be pharmacy DMs and the like), and many chain places are stingy with raises for pharmacists, no matter how stellar they are. Most retail pharmacists will tell you that they EARN every penny of that $100k+ they earn every year, and they do. It can be an often thankless job -- people take lots of their problems out on the pharmacy staff, many times when it is not the pharmacy's fault.

Both of the pharmacists I work with make over $100k a year, easy. But there are times when they feel that even that is not enough to deal with the mess that they have to (both have been in the business for over 20 years).

To answer your question, BOTH. I'm in pharmacy because it interest me and its well paying.

And 100k is a hunk load of money. After all I don't know too many college graduates with a starting salary of 100k. Not even engineering which is supposedly harder and the graduation rate for engineers are lower.
 
and i'm not making my decision solely on salary but i do consider salary important. i'm not too sure what i want to do, but i'm interested in pharmacy and engineering. it just happens pharmacist makes twice as much as engineers starting out.
 
jdpharmd? said:
I know that your safeway numbers are wrong, but WAGS just went to $51/hr for managers (+ bonuses, etc). Nobody's managers are at $55/hr, unless some sort of bonus has been figured into that number.

what kinds of bonuses are we talking about here?
stock options, healthcare, dental, etc?
 
b*rizzle said:
I said PHARMACY as a whole, not just retail. It's always a really bad idea to do something specifically for the money -- there should be other things about it that you enjoy. Case in point: I am more than willing to bet that if an adcom asked you "why pharmacy" in an interview that the financial compensation would comprise a very insignificant part of your answer.

No kidding that people do retail for the money. My point is that there are lots of people who will also tell you that sometimes even 100k a year isn't enough compensation for the mess you have to deal with in retail. The two pharmacists that I work with must apply for vacation time six months prior to taking off, to ensure that they will have someone to cover them. There are not enough relief pharmacists in the area. The retail chain in my area has also not been able to open up any new stores because they cannot find full time pharmacists to work them. Surely this would not be so with the numbers of students entering pharmacy school and the high demand for pharmacists, if the job were so easy. I mean, just counting pills and bagging doritos for 100k?? Sign me up!

That brings me to my next point: have you ever worked in a retail pharmacy? Do you know anyone who has? You should talk to someone who works in a drive-thru pharmacy. Because I think anyone who has would agree with me when I say that you do a lot more than "counting pills" and "bagging Doritos". Don't you think that's a silly reason to go to school for six years and fork over tens of thousands in tuition? You can do the same thing and be a tech for significantly less pay and formal education. If you'd ever worked retail, you'd know that the techs are the ones that usually get stuck doing "grunt" work anyway. I guarantee that the techs aren't there for the "fantastic" pay -- I'm certainly not. There are days when I love what I do, and there are days when I'd like nothing better than to walk right out. Both of the pharmacists that I work with have voiced similar sentiments.

Retail pharmacy is often a thankless job; people who are sick or hurt frequently take out their frustrations on the pharmacy staff, no matter how helpful or polite you are. When their insurance won't pay for medication they've been getting for years, who do you think gets hollered at? Pharmacists are responsible for keeping an eagle-eye on everything that goes on in the pharmacy. When a tech messes up, it's the pharmacist's fault for not catching it. The pharmacist has the license and the education to know better -- hopefully. Doctors frequently write for things patients are allergic to or that will signficantly interact with other things that they're taking. Who do you think will ultimately be held responsible if a patient suffers from a fatal drug interaction? And no, it's not just always the computer. There's a bit more to it than that. The list goes on and on.

It's disturbing that this is your attitude towards pharmacy -- but this is also the same line of reasoning that has made the pharmacist's job more stressful. But surely, if all you're doing is counting pills and bagging Doritos, then you should have no problems whatsoever.

And for the record, a Pharm.D. is a professional degree, like an MD, not a "doctorate" (PhD).


Well have you ever worked in any other profession before?? As a programmer or engineer, you make half what a pharmacist does and do a Hell lot more work.
If being a pharmacist is so hard, then can you tell me what other easier careers you can make 100k garanteed with 6-8 years of college? I didn't think so...
 
ForgetMeNot said:
You know, I usually don't like rumors, but this one I could live with.
Last year in Florida I was making 39/hr at WAGS. This year at Rite Aid in Washington State I'm pulling 45. Staff positions
 
baggywrinkle said:
Last year in Florida I was making 39/hr at WAGS. This year at Rite Aid in Washington State I'm pulling 45. Staff positions

Where in Florida were you? WAGS pharmacists are making way more than $39/hour in the Tampa Bay area.
 
I think he is from Central Florida if I remember right....

Baggy...is the 45 adjusted for the fact Florida doesn't have state income tax?
 
Poor hospitals can't really keep up. The discrepancy between hospital and community pay is getting wider and wider here.
 
Ivorymist said:
Poor hospitals can't really keep up. The discrepancy between hospital and community pay is getting wider and wider here.

not here. Does retail pay shift differential? Does retail pay weekend differential? Hospitals do.
 
Caverject said:
I hear San Clemente is a nice spot to practice pharmacy.... :meanie:

My dad sure likes playing golf in San Clemente..
 
It's about a 12-15k difference. I'm not sure if any of my graduating classmates are going to staff at a hospital.
 
dgroulx said:
Where in Florida were you? WAGS pharmacists are making way more than $39/hour in the Tampa Bay area.

That was in the Daytona district.
 
Caverject said:
I think he is from Central Florida if I remember right....

Baggy...is the 45 adjusted for the fact Florida doesn't have state income tax?

Those were the raw hourly rates. Wags also has a bonus structure which varies depending on your store volume - my last bonus was around $2400,
and you could count on a raise every year like clockwork. I have yet to see anything like that at Rite Aid so far. Rite Aid started me off at $42 then stepped up one dollar a month until leveling off at 45. It was an unexpected and pleasant suprise.

I think the difference is due to raw cost of living variations between Washington and Florida. My research prior to moving told me it was 14% more expensive in Tacoma vs Orlando. Applied to my WAGS wage works out to an hourly rate of 44.46 not counting the bonus.

Having said that, conversations with WAGS pharmacists in the Lacy/Olympia area reveals they are envious of the Rite Aid wage. How easy it is to forget details like the bonus or the fact that you have pharmacist overlap allowing you to take a lunch. Wags has never been the top wage rate in the market. Look to companies such as Slave-on for that. The trade off in hourly rate is more than made up for with more warm bodies to help distribute the work load. Five hundred prescriptions with just a cashier is insane, I don't care how much they pay you.

State Tax really did make a difference when I moved from Colorado to Florida. Hourly wage did not change, yet I cut myself a 25% raise just by crossing the state line.
 
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