Pharmacist Job Market Update
Here’s the latest pharmacist job market update:
More job opportunities are opening up for pharmacists, as pharmacies & companies are more interested in hiring, compared to late 2009. Positions are getting filled quickly in areas saturated by pharmacists, especially those that are staff level ones with desired shifts. It is refreshing to see some pharmacies ready to hire and quick to make decisions. Pharmacists are having to beat other pharmacists to the punch, because once a coveted position becomes available, pharmacies are being flooded with applicants.
On the flip side, I am seeing other pharmacies take extra care in waiting for the right pharmacist, more so than in the past. I know one hospital that waited 8 months to find the right critical care pharmacist. The pharmacy director chose not to look at critical care trained residents who had only one year of experience beyond residency, nor critical care pharmacists without a residency. Their minimum requirements were that the pharmacist had to be PGY2 critical care residency-trained and have at least 2 years of critical care experience as a pharmacist. And the pharmacy director was willing to wait for someone who met that criteria and was the right fit.
I know another hospital that has waited months for the right candidate for a clinical coordinator position. They have been waiting for someone who is cream of the crop. Even staff pharmacist roles are not immune to this type of extra selectivity and hiring managers waiting for the right person. One pharmacy in Northern California has had a staff pharmacist opening for a few months. Despite receiving many qualified candidates, they have chosen to hold off on hiring until finding someone who is the perfect candidate.
Clinical specialists that are in high demand are Read more
Should I Write a CV or Resume?
Q: Chen, should I write a CV or a resume?
A: It depends on several factors unique to you, your work history, and the position you are applying for. To answer the question, let me explain the difference between a CV and a resume. A CV includes a full history of your experience. A CV may include your a summary of publications, research, presentations, but a resume doesn’t. A resume is often a 2-3 page summary of your experience, highlighting the most relevant experience to the position that you are applying for.
Typically, a resume would highlight recent experience. It is concise, and a perfect way to market yourself for many pharmacist positions. Look at your resume as a “marketing piece” and a first introduction of yourself to a potential employer. A pharmacy hiring manager often doesn’t have a lot of time to look at an initial application. When you express your direct relevant experience to the position you are interested in, it can be more powerful than having a lengthy CV that may end up showing a lot of irrelevant experience. This may be the case especially when you’ve had varied experience throughout your pharmacy career and it’s hard to scan to find the relevant experience.
However, a CV can be useful also. It is appropriate when applying for pharmacy residencies, as well as for opportunities in research and academia. If you have extensive experience and it has primarily been in one practice setting of pharmacy, writing a CV can do the job. It can also do the job when it shows your breadth of experience well.
I must say that these are general guidelines. Choosing between a CV or a resume is a case-by-case decision, depending on your breadth of experience, the type of position you’re applying for, how much you’ve transitioned positions (is it frequent that you’ve left positions, or do you typically stay in positions?), when you had your relevant experience to the position, and more. This is something that you can get advice on from an individual basis if you’re a member of the “Get the Job” Membership Program for pharmacists, new pharmacy grads, and residents. You can use your membership benefit to gain direct ongoing access to a pharmacist job market expert for advice and training until you find the right job.
Get Off Your Butt & Update Your Resume
I know–it’s painful. Why would you bother to update your resume when you have a job already?
Here are 3 reasons to stay on top of updating your resume, even when you have a job:
1. You may have a sudden change in job situation. Something personal or family-related may come up and you need to move, or reduce your work hours/responsibility.
2. You may be downsized unexpectedly from your pharmacy or pharmaceutical industry job, especially in this economy.
3. When you are ready to make a career move, you don’t remember key responsibilities, pharmacy practice projects, awards/recognition. It may very well be that you’ll be staying in your current pharmacist position for a long time. What you remember about what you did 2 years ago will not be as clear and detail-oriented as what you remember today about what you are currently doing.
How to keep an updated resume:
Anytime you are given a new responsibility, initiated a new project/role, managed other pharmacists, taught pharmacy residents & students, or wrote a publication, write it down.
Be as detailed as possible. Don’t worry if you are verbose in your initial draft; it can always be edited to select relevant skills & experience for what you apply for down the road. For example, if you created a discharge program for a hospital where pharmacists review medications & provide discharge counseling for every patients, write “Developed a patient discharge program involving pharmacy medication review & discharge counseling”. If you manage other pharmacists & techs, start with writing “Managed 4 pharmacists & 3 technicians, filling 700 Rxs/day”.
If you know you are ready for a job change, learn more about secrets you can tap into to get the edge in their job search by updating your resume to stand out from your competition.