Pharmacists
Dispense drugs prescribed by physicians and other health practitioners and provide information to patients about medications and their use. May advise physicians and other health practitioners on the selection, dosage, interactions, and side effects of medications.
- Median pay
- $140,910
- Doing it now
- 325,200
- By 2035
- Up 5.2%
- Usually needs
- Doctoral or professional degree
a year
across the country
12,500 openings a year
to get in
What the work involves
- Review prescriptions to assure accuracy, to ascertain the needed ingredients, and to evaluate their suitability.
- Provide information and advice regarding drug interactions, side effects, dosage, and proper medication storage.
- Analyze prescribing trends to monitor patient compliance and to prevent excessive usage or harmful interactions.
- Order and purchase pharmaceutical supplies, medical supplies, or drugs, maintaining stock and storing and handling it properly.
- Maintain records, such as pharmacy files, patient profiles, charge system files, inventories, control records for radioactive nuclei, or registries of poisons, narcotics, or controlled drugs.
- Provide specialized services to help patients manage conditions, such as diabetes, asthma, smoking cessation, or high blood pressure.
- Advise customers on the selection of medication brands, medical equipment, or healthcare supplies.
What to study
The fields of study the Department of Education links to this occupation, most widely taught first.
- Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and AdministrationSee 81 colleges that teach it
Who it suits
O*NET scores every occupation on six interest dimensions. This one leans hardest on these three.
Analytical and curious
Helping and teaching
Organised and precise
Careers like this one
Where this comes from: the description and the task list are O*NET, which the Department of Labor maintains. Pay, workforce size, outlook and the education normally needed are the Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections programme, 2025 wages and 2025 to 2035 projections. Half of them earn more than $140,910 a year, which means half earn less, and what you would earn depends on where you work and how long you have been doing it. The fields of study come from the National Center for Education Statistics crosswalk.