Pre-Pharmacy Resources
The Pharmacy Profession
Pharmacists are medication experts and play a critical role in helping people get the best results from their medications. Pharmacists prepare and dispense prescriptions, ensure medicines and doses are correct, prevent harmful drug interactions, and counsel patients on the safe and appropriate use of their medications. They have specialized expertise about the composition of medicines, including their chemical, biological, and physical properties, as well as their manufacture and use. Other health care professionals rely on pharmacists to select and administer medications that offer the best results and quality of life for a particular patient. Pharmacists may also prepare personalized medications, participate in patient rounds at a hospital, reduce the spread of infections, conduct research or clinical trials, or focus on a specific patient population or disease state (e.g., diabetes, heart disease, asthma, HIV, and pain management). Pharmacists are also the most accessible health care professional, since most people in the U.S. live within 2 miles of a pharmacy. Learn more about pharmacists from ExploreHealthCareers.org, Occupational Outlook Handbook, OnetOnline.org and the following resources:
Pharmacists for Healthier Lives is a coalition of pharmacy and other health-focused organizations, dedicated to enhancing the health and wellness of patients and their families. As essential healthcare professionals, pharmacists enhance patient care, offer medication expertise and counseling, and provide patient services such as immunizations. Pharmacists help patients live healthier, better lives. Follow them on Facebook to stay abreast of news related to the pharmacy world.
Pharmacy is Right for Me shares information and resources about careers within pharmacy, reasons to pursue pharmacy, history of the profession, etc. Learn about common misconceptions about pharmacy, see which pharmacy career may be a good fit for you, and check out their blog series: A Day in the Life of a....
Pharmacists can do a lot more than dispense medication, learn more about what pharmacists can do from these articles:
How This Pharmacist Uses Her Experience as a Girl Scout to Better Serve Her Patients and Students
Pharmacists in Diverse Settings - Telemedicine "Certain challenges that we see in the prison population is really access to other healthcare. We know that if they're able to see us through our telemedicine program, we're able to advocate for them to have other disease states managed." - Dr. Melissa Badowski, PharmD on managing patients with HIV for the Illinois Department of Correction
When it comes to saving money on prescription drugs, your pharmacist may be your best source
What You Need to Know About Getting Vaccinated at a Pharmacy
Growing up in the mountains of Southwest Virginia, Anesa Hughes knew her family never had it easy. And her twin sister, who has cerebral palsy, would need care. Here's why she became a clinical pharmacist.
Want to learn more about the different areas you can practice in as a pharmacist? Take this self-assessment to help you identify career pathways that may be a good fit for you: APhA Career Pathway Evaluation Program for Pharmacy Professionals. If you were in MI 190 or PP 190 orientation, you would have done this already. This survey matches you with pharmacy specialties from the following list:
Academia: Clinical Practice
Academia: Economic, Social, and Administrative Sciences (ESAS)
Academia: Pharmaceutical Sciences
Ambulatory Care
Association Management
Chain Community Pharmacy: Management
Clinical Specialists
Community Health Center (CHC)
Compounding Pharmacy
Contract Research Organization
Corporate Management
Government/Federal Pharmacy
Home Health Care
Health System Pharmacy: Inpatient
Health System Pharmacy: Outpatient
Independent Community Pharmacy
Long Term Care
Mail Service
Managed Care
Medical Communications/Drug Information
Nuclear Pharmacy
Office-Based Medication Management
Pharmaceutical Industry: Medical Liaison
Pharmaceutical Industry: Research and Development (R&D)
Pharmaceutical Industry Sale and Marketing
Pharmacy Benefit Management (PBM)
Pharmacy Law/Regulatory Affairs/Public Policy
Specialty Pharmacy
Podcasts and Webinars
This episode from podcast 43rd & Woodland features Dr. Mayank Amin, PharmD, Rph, MBA who owns independent Skippack Pharmacy and a wedding planning company that he started after business school. Hear how Dr. Amin combined his expertise and passion.
Learn more: How One Small Pennsylvania Pharmacy is Vaccinating Thousands
This podcast by pharmacists (including an alumnus) is intended for healthcare professionals and students. Featured episodes:
Follow them on IG @rx.unedited
Dr. Ijeoma EkeochaI, PharmD’09, is a Clinical Pharmacy Manager for Specialty Pharmacy Services at at a large academic institution in New York City and launched a podcast in 2020, called Black Women Pharmacists.
Hometown Pharmacies: Defining Excellence and Success
Women Helping Women
Opioid Awareness and "SBIRT" Protocol
This episode of The Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj uses comedy to bring awareness to the rising cost of prescription drugs. He breaks down how America’s complicated healthcare industry has lead to these price hikes over the past few decades, and looks specifically at how increases in insulin prices have impacted the millions of Americans that need it to survive. Here's a part of the segment, or you can access the full episode on Netflix.
This podcast describes the role and journey of several African-American women pharmacy leaders and the social and political environment affecting the opportunities for these practitioners. It also explores the role of pharmacy education in improving diversity and inclusiveness in the workforce as well as the ongoing issue of health disparities and opportunities to address the problem.