Pharmaceutics and Pharmacy Career Opportunities

The importance of drug delivery in the overall drug discovery and development process has become widely appreciated in the pharmaceutical industry, with considerable emphasis on the preferential delivery of the active chemical species to its site of action. Effective research in this area requires a multi disciplinary team of scientists strongly grounded in both basic and applied sciences. Consequently, graduates of Ph.D. programs with a strong scientific emphasis are heavily recruited.

Graduates choosing an industrial position become involved in product development research and apply their scientific background to the solution of practical, challenging problems. Others select positions oriented more toward basic research or at the drug discovery/development interface. Many pharmaceutics researchers in industry choose a scientific career ladder, while others transfer to administrative career tracks. As the nature of industrial pharmaceutical research becomes more sophisticated, those researchers with strong scientific backgrounds compete more effectively for management positions. The increasing number of pharmaceutics trained individuals now entering the upper levels of management will have an increasingly significant impact on the direction of health related research programs in the future. The demand for outstanding researchers in pharmaceutics will, therefore, continue to grow.

Graduates who are interested in providing guidance to future researchers, while directing their own research programs, may opt for careers in academia. Pharmaceutics and Pharmaceutical chemistry programs in academic institutions are expanding and are constantly seeking able teaching and research faculty.