Career Prospects

Job prospects for pharmacists exist mainly in the areas of manufacturing, distribution, retailing and dispensing of drugs Candidates who have completed a diploma in pharmacy can work in hospital pharmacies and medical stores as retail chemists, sales representatives, wholesale dealers and
manufacturing chemists for cosmetics. They can also be involved in repacking drugs and chemicals.

Candidates with B.Pharm. degrees can also work as manufacturing chemists, analytical chemists, drug inspectors and analysts. Pharmacists can also find employment as Custom Appraisers and work in the Bureau of Drug Price Control as Narcotic Inspectors, and as Probation Officers in
banks.

A Masters' degree in Pharmacy qualifies the candidate to work with pharmaceutical companies as manufacturing executive, analytical executive and product development executive. Moreover, he/she can be involved in teaching and research activities.

Future Prospects

The pharmaceutical industry in India is fast changing and rapidly growing. At present, there are at least 250 large units and more than 8,000 small-scale units in operation, which form a core of the Indian pharmaceutical industry. 

Although India has 15% of the world's population, the Indian pharmaceutical industry accounts for only two per cent of the world's production of pharmaceuticals. Thus, the scope for growth in this industry is tremendous, especially since it is a recession free industry and demand generation is not a problem.

In fact, projections for the Indian pharmaceutical industry in the next decade suggest that it will be a globally recognized stable force and exports are also supposed to rise sharply.