Pharmacists earn a Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD), a four-year professional degree from an accredited pharmacy school, usually after at least two years of college prerequisites. To practice, you pass the North American Pharmacist Licensure Examination (NAPLEX) and a pharmacy law exam, usually the MPJE, and complete your state’s internship requirements. Hospital and clinical roles often add a one or two year residency.
What pharmacists do all day
Counting pills is the smallest part of the job. Pharmacists are the medication experts on the care team.
- Community pharmacy: checking prescriptions for safety and interactions, counseling patients, giving vaccines, sorting out insurance problems and supervising technicians, often at a fast pace.
- Hospital pharmacy: verifying orders, preparing sterile medications, dosing high-risk drugs and rounding with physicians.
- Clinical and ambulatory roles: managing medications for chronic conditions like diabetes or heart disease alongside a care team.
- Other settings: long-term care, specialty pharmacy, the pharmaceutical industry, managed care, government and academia.
The constant is precision. A misplaced decimal is a serious event, so the work rewards people who check twice and stay calm with a line at the counter.
Education routes
- Prerequisites, then PharmD: two to four years of college covering biology, general and organic chemistry, physics, calculus, statistics and communication, then four years of pharmacy school. Many students finish a bachelor’s first.
- Early assurance or combined programs: some schools admit students straight from high school into a six-year path that includes prerequisites.
- Accelerated programs: a few schools compress the PharmD into about three years by running year round.
- Inside the PharmD: pharmacology, medicinal chemistry, therapeutics and law, followed by a final year of full-time rotations in community, hospital and clinical settings.
Licensing basics
Every state requires a pharmacist license. Most require the NAPLEX, which tests clinical knowledge, and the MPJE, which tests federal and state pharmacy law; a few states use their own law exam. States also require supervised internship hours, which pharmacy school rotations usually cover. Requirements vary by state, so check your state board of pharmacy.
Getting there from high school
- Take chemistry, biology and math through precalculus or calculus. Strong chemistry grades matter.
- Work as a pharmacy technician or clerk if you can; many states allow technician trainees.
- In college, complete prerequisites with strong grades and get pharmacy experience.
- Apply to pharmacy schools, usually through a centralized application.
- Complete the PharmD, including rotations, and pass the NAPLEX and law exam.
- Start in community practice, or apply for a PGY1 residency if you want a hospital or clinical career, and a PGY2 to specialize.
Testing the fit
- Shadow a pharmacist in a community pharmacy and, separately, in a hospital. The jobs feel very different.
- Work a semester as a technician to see the pace, the phones and the customer side.
- Use informational interviews to ask pharmacists about workload, hours and where they see the field going.
- Compare nearby paths: nurse practitioner, physician assistant and lab science careers.
Fit, and the reasons people move on
Pharmacists who thrive like chemistry and biology, are meticulous, and enjoy teaching patients in plain language. People leave community pharmacy over staffing pressure, long shifts on their feet, and limited time with patients. Many move into hospital, clinical, industry or managed care roles, so a PharmD offers more than one career.
Changing careers into pharmacy
If you already have a science degree, you may have most prerequisites done. If not, a community college can fill the gaps while you work. Think hard about the cost of four more years of school; our guides on whether more school is worth it and pivoting mid-career can help you weigh it. For current pay and outlook, check the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook.
Where a mentor helps
A mentor helps students explore pharmacy against other health careers, plan prerequisites, stay accountable through tough science courses and prepare applications and interviews. Mentors are not credentialed career counselors, admissions counselors or licensing experts. Learn about our career and education mentoring and mentoring for college students.
Related
- Career paths: guides to dozens of careers
- How to become a doctor
- How to become a nurse
- How to choose a major
Common questions
How many years does it take to become a pharmacist?
Usually six to eight years after high school: two to four years of prerequisites and four years of pharmacy school. A residency adds one or two more.
Do I need a bachelor’s degree before pharmacy school?
Not always. Many schools require only completed prerequisites, though many admitted students have a bachelor’s degree.
What exams do pharmacists take?
Most states require the NAPLEX for clinical knowledge and the MPJE for pharmacy law. A few states use their own law exam instead of the MPJE.
Is a pharmacy residency required?
Not for community practice. Most hospital and clinical pharmacist jobs strongly prefer or require at least a PGY1 residency.
Get started
Weighing pharmacy against other health careers and want help building a plan? Call (888) 305 5422, email contact@blackburnmentoring.com or start with a short assessment. A member of our team reviews every assessment personally and sets up a free intro call.