Careers in pharmacy
There are excellent employment and career prospects within Hertfordshire and the UK for graduates of the MPharm programme.
A career in pharmacy offers graduates the pursuit of an interest in science, the opportunity to join the NHS healthcare team, a choice of working environments and a competitive salary.
Community pharmacists
Community pharmacists represent the largest body of the profession. There are over 12,000 community pharmacies in the UK. Community pharmacies may be located on the high street or in local or rural sites.
The new pharmacy contract enables pharmacists to develop their clinical skills and contribute to the public health agenda and management of long-term health conditions. Pharmacists are also developing new roles in prescribing.
Hospital pharmacists
Pharmacies within hospitals differ from community pharmacies. Many pharmacists practising in hospitals gain more education and training after pharmacy school through a pharmacy practice residency, sometimes followed by another residency in a specific area. Those pharmacists are often referred to as clinical pharmacists and they often specialise in various disciplines of pharmacy.
The role of the hospital pharmacists includes the dispensing and supply of medicines and the provision of clinical services to hospital wards. It also involves direct contact with patients and liaison with other healthcare professionals such as doctors, allied health professionals and nurses who constitute the healthcare team.
The testing and preparation of medicines in NHS hospitals are also the responsibility of hospital pharmacists. New roles are emerging for pharmacists as advanced practitioners and consultant pharmacists.
Consultant pharmacy
Consultant pharmacy practice focuses more on medication regimen review than on actual dispensing of drugs. Consultant pharmacists typically work in nursing homes but are increasingly branching into other institutions and non-institutional settings.
Consultant pharmacists have traditionally been independent business owners. This trend may be gradually reversing as consultant pharmacists begin to work directly with patients. This is primarily because many elderly people are now taking numerous medications but continuing to live outside of institutional settings.
Internet pharmacy
Since the year 2000, a growing number of internet pharmacies have been established worldwide. Many of these pharmacies are similar to community pharmacies and in fact many of them are operated by bricks-and-mortar community pharmacies that serve consumers online as well as those that walk through their door. The primary difference is the method by which the medications are requested and received.
Internet pharmacies, also known as online pharmacies are recommended to some homebound patients by their physicians.
Other careers in pharmacy
Pharmacists can also pursue careers within the pharmaceutical industry in the fields of:
- medical information
- marketing
- production
- research and development
There are opportunities for pharmacists in:
- university teaching or research
- animal medicines
- the Armed Forces
- medical journalism and more.
Find out more information about careers in pharmacy
Postgraduate opportunities
There are opportunities for further study after completion of the MPharm. Visit our postgraduate pharmacy pages for available courses
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