A pharmacist is a person that delivers the medications for prescriptions that doctors prescribe to their patients. A visit to the pharmacist almost always follows a doctor’s visit, where patients pick up their medications.
Pharmacists make a lot of money; many of them are sole proprietors that can set their own schedules. There are a lot of good things about being a pharmacist; however the profession isn’t without drawbacks.
The Pros of Being a Pharmacist
One of the biggest advantages about being a pharmacist is the money that pharmacists make. The average salary for pharmacists rages from $81,000 to $113,000 per year. This is much higher than the average salary of most careers, including teachers, nurses, and social workers. As a pharmacist, it is possible to begin making more money than the principal of your high school makes.
Another wonderful part about being a pharmacist is that you will have wonderful job security. People get sick, that is just a fact of life. Even the healthiest person still gets sick every now and then. All of these people are going to have to go visit a doctor then a pharmacy when they need their medication prescriptions filled, and you are the person that they are probably going to come to. Now there is always the chance that you could get laid off, but pharmacists have been in demand, even during the recession, and it is expected that they will continue to be in demand.
Another great thing about being a pharmacist is that you can work in a safe environment. When you are working around medicine, you must make sure that you work in a safe, clean environment. This means that there is no heavy machinery that can hurt you, and there is little chance of you slipping or tripping on something, as you must make sure to keep everything in your work area organized.
The Cons of Being a Pharmacist
Even though this career may sound great, there are both pros and cons to becoming a pharmacist. One of the biggest cons about being a pharmacist is that the work is monotonous. There is a set procedure that you are required to follow by law when you are filling prescriptions. You must do it the same exact way every single time. This can translate into very boring work for most people.
One major thing that pharmacists see as downsides to the profession is that you might have to work evenings or weekends. If you are employed by a large company, like a grocery store company, you might see a lot of evenings and weekends on your time sheet. Sadly people get sick on the weekends and during the evenings, and there must be someone there to fill their prescription.
There are many pros and cons of being a pharmacist. However if you are passionate about helping people, being a pharmacist might not be a bad career choice for you.