We all know the benefits of adding a part time position to our current workloads, which usually includes a full time, nine to five jobs during the traditional workday. If you are more interested in the pharmaceutical industry as a whole, a great place to start might include your neighborhood pharmacy. If you are new to this industry, it is an ideal place to learn, not only how to recognize the endless medicines, but you can also gain important and potentially life saving information such as two medicines that spell trouble when combined. You are also in the prime place to learn federal laws that govern the pharmaceutical industry. Many consider positions such as these as a gateway that can help them determine if they really want to pursue a degree that would allow them to become pharmacists.
You have to consider the potential downsides, too. Most part time positions, regardless of which field, seldom offer health benefits, vacation time and retirement plans. This is important to remember, especially since many are considering part time positions both to supplement full time positions or simply as a way to offset a recent layoff. In fact, many report they have accepted two or three part time positions due to the inability to find other full time positions after a layoff.
Many successful agents who work in the pharmaceutical sales field will tell you it is an uphill climb, but the rewards outweigh the climb tenfold. They get the opportunity to meet extraordinary physicians; their support staffs as well as a frontline advantage to the patients their company's offering benefits. Still, they will tell you that although a part time work can be synonymous with a successful career, it often takes several years to reach that goal.
Perhaps you are most interested in how our lifesaving drugs are created. If so, there are many lucrative chemistry jobs for those with the proper education. Fair warning: these positions require an extensive and inclusive understanding and education regarding all that is chemistry. Scientists who create the very pills we take for sinus headaches, sore throats and antibiotics that allow wounds to heal agree that they do it for the satisfaction of their contribution to better health, and very rarely do the financial aspects play into their decisions to remain in the pharmaceutical field. Many of the larger pharmacy chains have their own labs to not only conduct their own quality assurance testing, but to contribute for the up and coming pharmacists and chemists majoring in pharmaceutical related fields. As such, these laboratories also offer positions, some of which are part time. You must be willing to expand your horizons and consider some of the options that may not be advertised. Often, you can get all the information you might need for those positions not advertised simply by visiting the chain's websites and clicking on the career tabs.
Another position within the pharmaceutical arena includes pharmacy technicians. These positions are typically in hospital pharmacies and include filling doctor's orders for their patients currently in the hospital as well as nurses requests for drugs such as over the counter pain medicines. The technician receives the request, fills it (with the exception of Schedule III, IV and V drugs which strictly prohibit handling by anyone other than a registered pharmacist) and then the pharmacist verifies the order, including dosage and other specifications, signs off on it and the order is delivered to the appropriate nurse's station for distribution.
Despite the gloomy predictions of both our economy and job markets, there are positions available, and even within the part time sector, for those who really are willing to do the search and put out the efforts. It boils down to the same commitment we make when looking for our primary jobs. Be willing to put yourself out there, accept a ground floor position, and be willing to prove your worth over time. Those committed to quality and loyalty almost always enjoy a successful career, full of promotions, accolades, and pay increases.
