Career as Pharmacist

Pharmacist
Pharmacists understand the composition & effect of drugs and how they are tested for purity & strength, and eventual use for prevention & treatment of disease. Pharmacists work in four areas: 
• Hospital pharmacy 
• Retail pharmacy 
• Industrial pharmacy 
• Research pharmacy 

Hospital pharmacists 
• Procure, stock, prepare and dispense medicines ,drugs and other medical accessories. 
• Undertake responsibility for stock control, storage, placing orders, labeling and financial budgeting and account keeping for the dispensary 
• Meet patients, doctors and nurses to discuss the supply of medicines and the appropriate form of drugs for administration 

Retail pharmacists 
• Prepare and dispense drugs on prescription to the general consumer 
• Monitors the drug sale on the basis of prescriptions and dosages, and gives over the counter advice on how to use prescribed drugs 
• Run chemist's shops 
• Inform and educate the medical practitioners of the potential uses of the drug or health product and its administration along with side effects or precautions for its use 
• Make regular visits to medical practitioners, hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, health centers 

Industrial pharmacists 
• Carry out clinical trials, where drugs are tested for safety and effectiveness 
• Work in research and development to develop new formulations 
• In the production job entails management and supervision of the production process, packaging, storage and delivery 
• Work in marketing, sales and quality control 

Research pharmacists 
• Carry out research activities in pharmaceutical firms, research organizations and laboratories

Employment Opportunities for Pharmacists:

• Health centres
• Hospitals
• Medical dispensing stores
• Pharmaceutical Industries
• In Manufacturing, Analytical and Research & Development divisions
• In Drug Control Administration as Drug Inspector, Analytical Chemist,
• Office of Customs as expert (Drugs & Pharmaceuticals)
• Ministry of Supplies and Rehabilitation as Assistant Director of Supplies
• Medical Representatives and Executives in Pharmaceutical Sale Division
• Multinationals pharmaceutical firms

Top Recruiting Companies of Pharmacists:

• Central Drug Research Institute (CDRI), Lucknow
• National Chemical Laboratory, Pune
• Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)
• Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad
 

How to become Pharmacists?

Path 1:

• Std XII
Stream: Science PCM/B
• Diploma
D. Pharma 2 years
• Goal
Pharmacist Assistant
*Graduate Pharmacy Aptitude Test (GPAT)is an All India examination conducted by M. S. University of Baroda, Vadodara on behalf of All India Council for Technical Education, New Delhi 
Admission to postgraduate programs with MHRD and other government scholarships/assistantships in pharmacy colleges/institutes is open to those who qualify through GPAT 
Students who qualify GPAT examination and have Four years Bachelor's degree in Pharmacy, are eligible for admission to Masters/Doctoral programs in Pharmacy. For scholarship, the candidate must secure admission to a postgraduate program. Post graduates in Pharmacy may seek admission to relevant Ph.D. programs with scholarship/assistantship without appearing in the GPAT. Details of the Examination can be had from https://gpat.in 
Postgraduates and doctorates are selected for research, production, quality control and management positions 
**Graduates in Pharmacy can opt to do postgraduate study in Biotechnology particularly if they aspire to become research scientists. Graduate pharmacists opt for retail and hospital jobs.

Median Pay Scale / salary of Pharmacists :

71 Thousand to 4.83 Lakhs per annum


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