Just out of curiosity, what part of the country are you in? The reason I ask is because here in the southeast, it seems like the job market is faring better than it is where you are. In fact, there are currently openings for dosimetrists to work at hospitals in some of the most desirable areas of the southeast (e.g., north Atlanta, an area where it's practically impossible to get a pharmacist job as a new grad). The dosimetry programs I checked out also boast 100% job placement rates for their last few graduating cohorts (unless they're counting employment in a different field?).
Pharmacy Job Market/Outlook
- Thread starter Pillmaster
- Start date
Just out of curiosity, what part of the country are you in? The reason I ask is because here in the southeast, it seems like the job market is faring better than it is where you are. In fact, there are currently openings for dosimetrists to work at hospitals in some of the most desirable areas of the southeast (e.g., north Atlanta, an area where it's practically impossible to get a pharmacist job as a new grad). The dosimetry programs I checked out also boast 100% job placement rates for their last few graduating cohorts (unless they're counting employment in a different field?).
- Joined
- Nov 22, 2009
- Messages
- 7,939
- Reaction score
- 8,097
I think 75k is the sweet spot between work/life balance satisfaction. Most people start off at 30-50k jobs and have to work their way up through the years to get to 75-80k. By the time they get there, their undergrad debt is paid off and they have 3 or 4 weeks vacation, all weekends/holidays off, a nice cube or office with minimal interruptions.
However millennials want instant gratification, they want a middle class life immediately with a house in the suburbs, a new car, fancy vacations, the latest Iphone, etc when they are young. Most of our parents didn't have these things until their 40s or 50s. So these prepharms see that pharmacists start off at 6 figures and jump in.
Last edited:
- Joined
- Nov 22, 2009
- Messages
- 7,939
- Reaction score
- 8,097
I agree and also call BS to anyone that says they "love" pharmacy or that pharmacy is their "passion". I love playing golf, skiing, traveling, spending time with family and friends, etc. Ask them if they had a weeks vacation would they rather spend it scuba diving, jet skiing, eating out, going to the beach, go on a cruise, go dancing, go to a concert, see a show, go to a sports game, etc or spend all day in a pharmacy verifying? No one would say they would rather be at work in a pharmacy because they don't love it, it's BS! Or how about if pharmacists were paid 50k, would it still be their passion? Lol.
- Joined
- Sep 17, 2014
- Messages
- 5,440
- Reaction score
- 2,923
I've said many times when I chose pharmacy, it didn't pay nearly what it did now. However, with the way my family lives now, the salary is needed to keep up with our lifestyle.
I don't think a single person chooses pharmacy nowadays because it's their passion. They would have joined a more self fulfilling job in the healthcare field if that were true.
- Joined
- Aug 23, 2005
- Messages
- 723
- Reaction score
- 1,243
- Joined
- Sep 17, 2014
- Messages
- 5,440
- Reaction score
- 2,923
Right after I read partner-marrying I knew this was a liberal post and stopped reading.
Oh and millennials are idiots. Excuse me using the word idiot but it fits here.
- Joined
- Aug 23, 2005
- Messages
- 723
- Reaction score
- 1,243
That's too bad. There's a lot of solid data in that article.
- Joined
- Sep 17, 2014
- Messages
- 5,440
- Reaction score
- 2,923
I'll pass on liberal articles. I'd rather read an open minded article. I'm sure I've heard all the data many times already.
PT here. I am in home-health and make about 85K/yr. I keep in touch with my classmates, and those who do travel-PT all make six-figs. This is the easiest and least stressful job I've ever had. I also have a side gig that brings in 15-20K/yr, depending on how much effort I put into it. So for me, this is a good way to earn a living.
As someone with 20+ years in the workforce, I'd advise you (generic "you" here) to 1) invest and 2) develop secondary income streams. Diversification of income is key, so you don't depend on any single source.
- Joined
- Jan 28, 2013
- Messages
- 4,864
- Reaction score
- 6,304
This post just screams of open-mindnesses
- Joined
- May 7, 2015
- Messages
- 366
- Reaction score
- 326
- Joined
- Sep 17, 2014
- Messages
- 5,440
- Reaction score
- 2,923
What? I hate liberals and I'm not ashamed to say it!!!!
You know exactly what they will say.
- Joined
- May 7, 2015
- Messages
- 366
- Reaction score
- 326
I'm sorry that rational discourse is beneath you. The problems laid out in that piece are non-partisan. Somehow you injected a non-sequitur anyway.
- Joined
- Sep 17, 2014
- Messages
- 5,440
- Reaction score
- 2,923
Funny thing is I just wanted to take a jab at giga but I got you to respond so thats a win too.
Don't take things so seriously next time lol.
- Joined
- May 7, 2015
- Messages
- 366
- Reaction score
- 326
Riight
owlegrad
Uncontrollable Sarcasm Machine
Staff member
Administrator
Volunteer Staff
Lifetime Donor
15+ Year Member
- Joined
- Mar 19, 2009
- Messages
- 25,314
- Reaction score
- 11,929
Please remember that trolling is against the terms of service.
Take a cue from the Republicans and if you’re caught doing it deny deny deny.
Take a cue from the Republicans and if you’re caught doing it deny deny deny.
- Joined
- Sep 17, 2014
- Messages
- 5,440
- Reaction score
- 2,923
If trolling was against the terms then it shouldn't take so long for trolls to be banned.
owlegrad
Uncontrollable Sarcasm Machine
Staff member
Administrator
Volunteer Staff
Lifetime Donor
15+ Year Member
- Joined
- Mar 19, 2009
- Messages
- 25,314
- Reaction score
- 11,929
What can I say, I am lazy.
- Joined
- Jan 28, 2013
- Messages
- 4,864
- Reaction score
- 6,304
Can’t be that difficult to ban somebody!
Hey, I can even make things easier and provide a list of ppl to be banned
- Joined
- Oct 2, 2006
- Messages
- 4,256
- Reaction score
- 3,509
It beats about 50 other BA's/BS's I can think of (and even JD's!), where someone graduates just to take a job working at Starbucks or McDonald's for a dollar above minimum wage. Sad reality is, 17 bucks/hr is very good pay for a good majority of the population.
Millennial's are screwed, but it remains to be seen if they end up more screwed then Generation X. Generation X.....stuck supporting our parents who were too lazy/privileged to save for their retirement, stuck supporting our children after sending them to hyperinflated priced colleges and then they still can't find a job, stuck with the ever decreasing payout and ever increasing age of retirement for SS. Generation X has their parents living in the attic and their children in the basement, very little retirement saved up because all their money goes to their parents and kids.....at least the Millenials have their parent's basement to live-in.
Sure, Millenials have 300% more student debt than their Generation X parents.....but who co-signed all that non-decharagable debt? Yup, Generation X.
Sure, Millenials are 1/2 as likely to own a home....but they can look forward to inheriting their parent's house (unlike Generation X's parents, who sold their house, toured the country in an overpriced RV until they ran out of money, then came back home to move in with their Gen X children.
1 in 5 poverty rate? I couldn't find that statistic anywhere, the only thing I found said a 12% poverty rate for people aged 18 - 64 years. I have my doubts about the 1 in 5 poverty rate...I'd have to see more information on that. Like are they counting household income, or just personal income? A Millennial may be poor income wise, but not reality-wise if s/he's living in his/her parent's basement.
Can't retire until they are 75? I don't see anyone in Generation X retiring before then either. Even many baby boomer's aren't retiring before then, because they have no money saved up for their retirement.
The "Greatest Generation" and "Baby Boomer's" sucked, and still continue to suck, far more money out of the system, then Gen X or Millennials will ever get. They really don't understand how bad things are for Gen X or Millenials, anymore than a pharmacist whose last new job was in 2002 understands how bad the current pharmacist job market is.
Lots of blame to pass around, no easy answers.
It makes me sad to see people who are over 70 and working miserable jobs. I hope that is never me, which is why I'm maxing my 403(b). I'm doing my best to avoid lifestyle creep, and any new increase in income typically goes towards savings and investments. My next big raise will be turned into a maxed IRA, then HSA.
Ideally I'll be able to retire while I still have enough energy to enjoy life. Hopefully I'll never be the miserable old man working at Wal-Mart.
Ideally I'll be able to retire while I still have enough energy to enjoy life. Hopefully I'll never be the miserable old man working at Wal-Mart.
- Joined
- Dec 19, 2016
- Messages
- 431
- Reaction score
- 236
Here is a general reply from an old timer that you might or might not like (the reply, not the old timer..everyone loves me)..First, for those where it still applies, do NOT attend pharmacy school. Second, as far as part time jobs; If you are fit and can stand working outside, look into construction. In the Twin cities for example they are screaming for laborers at 20 plus an hour..(you might stumble into a job you really DO like) There MIGHT be a FEW of you who could make it thru military pilot training...THEY are screaming for pilots as are the airlines...THIRD, Do NOT bail on the big bucks right now because they are NOT going to last a whole lot longer...bite the CVS..WAGS...WALM..whatever weenie and pay those bills...you will thank yourself...I have always been in retail and...it has always honked....it is no profession for a young male...there I said it....It is glorified parfum and clothing shopping...
- Joined
- Dec 5, 2013
- Messages
- 827
- Reaction score
- 1,158
APN-59 rph, it's like you are reading my mind. I'm planning on having my payment mortgage really low in a few years and I already have plenty in the bank. I'll stay with this retail job until they get rid of me and then it's onto a lower paying and lower stress line of work. It's hard these days for me to keep quiet when I hear about another daughter or nephew who is enrolling in pharmacy school.
- Joined
- Feb 26, 2003
- Messages
- 8,860
- Reaction score
- 3,420
It is but if you are 70 years old and have worked as a pharmacist for 40+ years, why haven’t you save up enough to retire at 60?
Money wise, pharmacists are on the top of the food chain especially if they had graduated 40 years and didn’t have any student loan debt. They should be able to retire comfortably at 60 the latest.
You are ahead of your peers. I have many friends who bought a new car, rented a nice condo right after they graduated from professional school. Guess what? They are still bursting their balls trying to pay off their student loans. They should have started early. It would have been much easier.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
This is very sad. The moderators have killed this epic thread. At the time of culling, I asked a moderator why did they kill it, as it is an excellent PSA for earnest, but naïve college kids? They said they thought it had run long enough? This reminds me when the medical moderators killed the epic "Would you do it over again" thread.
Some suspect SDN is asked to remove certain threads by advertisers. This is a very profitable website.
owlegrad
Uncontrollable Sarcasm Machine
Staff member
Administrator
Volunteer Staff
Lifetime Donor
15+ Year Member
- Joined
- Mar 19, 2009
- Messages
- 25,314
- Reaction score
- 11,929
We didn’t kill it; here it is. Or maybe we killed it but not very well?
And we do not remove threads for advertisers. Only the Illuminati.
- Joined
- Apr 6, 2010
- Messages
- 833
- Reaction score
- 980
How the hell do these numbers jump around this much. TN goes from 1.8 to 2.75 and MS drops to a 2.00. I think PDI is really the National Enquirer and just something to talk about without validation. Someone page Lucinda Maine and just tell her to make them all 5.00 and tell the NABP to make all pass rates 100%.
- Joined
- Dec 5, 2013
- Messages
- 827
- Reaction score
- 1,158
You know things are bad if Mississippi is getting saturated.
- Joined
- Dec 21, 2014
- Messages
- 207
- Reaction score
- 76
Speaking of the 2017 NAPLEX scores I called this morning 2/16. It will be another week to 10-days before they are posted. No reason was given for the delay.
anybody had experience with 13 week contract positions? I am currently in Florida but also hold a California and Nevada license, I am sorry that I did not jump on a position in Cal a few months back, but was unable to travel at that time. Is it a good way if you get an inpatient position like this to get a prn position after that?
- Joined
- Dec 21, 2014
- Messages
- 207
- Reaction score
- 76
There are several 13-week positions being advertised. It's our understanding that nothing is hard and fast with these agreements and everything is negotiable. Keep in mind though that if you're working for Employer A under a 13-week contract the agency who placed you there has the agreement with Employer A and is being paid a dollar amount above what you are being compensated. The only way you could get hired back with Employer A, whether PRN or otherwise, is if the agency either releases you, which is normally not the case, or the employer pays the agency an additional fee to re-hire you as a PRN. The normal rule of thumb is when the contract is done, you're done.
well I have to take whatever I can get, I didn't know that part, but it would be something to put on a resume to show recent hospital experience. I had lots of inpatient experience, but not in my last 8 years, I did anti coag clinic. Also, what are the ramifications of leaving before the contract is over (besides that agency not hiring me again), for some unseen circumstance?
- Joined
- Dec 21, 2014
- Messages
- 207
- Reaction score
- 76
In this job market any acute care hospital experience you can get on your resume will help! Re what happens if you leave a contract early, you're an "at-will" employee. There would be nothing stopping you from not showing up the next day. Unfortunately this is quite common in the contract temp/PRN world. It falls on the agency to replace you and you're right, you'll probably not get hired back.
- Joined
- Nov 14, 2017
- Messages
- 106
- Reaction score
- 18
It’s skewed to employer perceptions because it only samples employers who care to respond, ie ones who have trouble filling.
It also has geographical coverage so a mom or pop in the middle of no where is over represented compared to a city. It is run by acpe and has no integrity.
- Joined
- Jul 1, 2011
- Messages
- 530
- Reaction score
- 81
Don't worry, when it's our turn in Congress, us millenials will strike back!
- Joined
- Aug 23, 2005
- Messages
- 723
- Reaction score
- 1,243
Meanwhile, the 911 dispatcher job market is looking pretty good: 911 Emergency: Call Centers Can’t Find Workers
Probably beats being unemployed...
Probably beats being unemployed...
@wagrxm2000 For some reason, I'm unable to respond to any posts in the thread you referenced me in. I still check the forum from time to time (it's basically a long-running open browser tab for me in Chrome) but have been busy with school during the summer (think AA/PA). I don't keep up with that many people in pharmacy anymore, but from the few pharmacists I have talked to locally over the past few months (GA), the job market has gotten worse than even I could have imagined. According to the pharmacists I have talked to over the past few months, even retail positions are getting 70+ applicants per position and Walgreens (not sure about CVS) is officially requiring prior retail pharmacist experience just to qualify for the few positions they intermittently post here.
I figured things were going to get rough (obviously), but even I'm surprised at how quickly and severely the job market has tanked. So glad I got out when I did. My stint in pharmacy was a waste of time and $$$, but the silver lining is that I now know to make myself as competitive and as "future-proof" as possible for the field I'm going into.
I figured things were going to get rough (obviously), but even I'm surprised at how quickly and severely the job market has tanked. So glad I got out when I did. My stint in pharmacy was a waste of time and $$$, but the silver lining is that I now know to make myself as competitive and as "future-proof" as possible for the field I'm going into.
- Joined
- Nov 12, 2017
- Messages
- 1,294
- Reaction score
- 738
I'm pretty sure they don't hate it. Most old ppl love working because the alternative is living at home all alone. At least at work they get to talk to their peers and be social. Getting old is a very lonely experience as your friends leave and family dies.
- Joined
- Sep 15, 2008
- Messages
- 695
- Reaction score
- 498
market is the worst I've seen. none of the retail chains are hiring in significant quantities. many of the grocery stores are actively reducing hours of pharmacists on staff, so there is no room for hiring the interns. all of the hospitals are extremely competitive. this is the first year that many of these pharmacy schools will begin getting significant negative pressure from their recent graduates. there isn't enough openings out there. all of my recent interns are moving to rural areas because that is the only jobs available. all of the hiring managers are talking about the dramatic increase in applications we are getting, all from very experienced pharmacists. would not want to be a new graduate now, telling all my interns to apply for residency.
- Joined
- Sep 17, 2014
- Messages
- 5,440
- Reaction score
- 2,923
So you got into the school you wanted, that's good to hear.
- Joined
- Jun 12, 2011
- Messages
- 4,246
- Reaction score
- 2,673
Why did it take so long? People had been complaining about the Pharmacy market for a long time, since I think 2012 there was worry about oversaturation. Is it because pharmacy grads who could get jobs just did a residency?
I've been working with the assumption that I'll die well before most of my friends and loved ones.. which means I'll probably live forever, just like my chain-smoking grandpa.
We were worrying about oversaturation well before that. I was worried about it when I started pharmacy school in the late 2000's, although I had hoped it would resolve by the time I graduated. To be young and naive again..
To anyone who is contemplating pharmacy and thinking saturation may be over when you graduate, just realize that the correction will be a decades long process and may not resolve in a way that favors us.
- Joined
- Sep 15, 2008
- Messages
- 695
- Reaction score
- 498
These kind of trends don't happen overnight. new schools are plopping out entire new graduating classes every year now. Chain pharmacies are also no longer in expansion phase. It can only get worse for as the rate of new graduates is going to increasingly outstrip the growth of new jobs. Market uncertainty is also causing many chains and hospitals to take more spartan measures to reduce labor costs. They may say these labor reductions will be temporary, but they are usually permanent.
- Joined
- Nov 12, 2017
- Messages
- 1,294
- Reaction score
- 738
- Joined
- Oct 2, 2006
- Messages
- 4,256
- Reaction score
- 3,509
Our country will be bankrupt by then. Baby Boomers will control congress for at least the next 20 years. Maybe longer. Our only chance to save the country, is if Gen X, Millennials, and Gen Y team up together for the sake of our country. Only by teaming up, can we hope to outnumber the Baby Boomers at the voting booth.
- Joined
- Jun 23, 2003
- Messages
- 15,455
- Reaction score
- 6,725
Similar threads
