What after B.Pharmacy? - A Complete Guide

‘What after B Pharmacy’ is a common question that comes to the mind of the candidates after they have completed the course. Since there are ample educational and career opportunities that are available after completing a B.Pharmacy degree, students may often get confused. Read on to have a clear understanding before taking any concrete decision. After B Pharmacy, candidates can work in several designations like drug inspectors, pharmacists, medical underwriting and quality control and production. Bachelor of Pharmacy or B. Pharm students have a wide range of B. Pharm career prospects. The possibility of pursuing higher education is also open for B.Pharm students. Students who are interested in pursuing higher education can choose to complete degrees like M Pharmacy, LLB, MBA, and MS. 

Bachelor in Pharmacy (B. Pharm) is a 4-year undergraduate programme in the field of Pharmacy that deals with health and chemical sciences. It is one of the most sought after courses for students who wish to pursue higher studies in medical studies. Throughout the B. Pharmacy programme, students are set forth to numerous medicines and drugs along with their uses and effects/side effects. The eligibility criteria to complete B Pharmacy include passing higher secondary education with at least 50% marks in aggregate. Here we have provided a complete guide about what after B Pharmacy, career prospects, and higher education opportunities.

What after B. Pharmacy?

Candidates can go through the below-mentioned table below to know the details on what after B. Pharmacy:

Higher Education After B.Pharm

After completing a 4-year degree, many candidates usually do not opt for further higher education in the field and are interested in pursuing a career path. However, further studies in the field or in other disciplines have always been known to increase the overall career opportunities in Pharmacy. Here are some of your options for higher education after B.Pharm.

Diploma Degree Courses

Master Degree Courses

There may be other options such as B.Ed and even law (LLB) to a certain extent, which can be pursued by candidates who wish to do so. Pursuing each postgraduate course will open up career opportunities and fields relevant to the course.

The combination of B.Pharm along with one of the courses mentioned above will allow candidates to pursue a career path in fields such as management, pharmaceutical law, or even specialise in pharmaceutical fields through MS or Master of Science, internationally.

As mentioned in the table, students also stand the chance of pursuing higher education from international medical institutions as well. For that, candidates must attain a good score in either TOEFL, GRE, IELTS, etc in order to be enrolled in one of the postgraduate pharmacy courses.

Moreover, candidates can further choose to pursue a PhD or Pharm D. course from one of the pharmacy colleges in India. Candidates must note that each course and level of the degree will only expand the fields and job profiles that applicable for them. They can also apply for Government Jobs after B Pharmacy.

Therefore, it is highly recommended that you pursue one of the postgraduate courses depending on your interests.

M.Pharm Specialisations to Opt For After B.Pharm

If you choose to pursue an M.Pharm programme after completing your undergraduate studies in B.Pharm, then check out the following list of M.Pharm specialisations to opt for after B.Pharm in India.

• M.Pharm in Pharmaceutics

• M.Pharm in Pharmaceutical Technology

• M.Pharm in Quality Assurance

• M.Pharm in Regulatory Affairs

• M.Pharm in Pharmaceutical Chemistry

• M.Pharm in Pharmacognosy

• M.Pharm in Pharmacology

• M.Pharm in Pharmacy Practice

• M.Pharm in Industrial Pharmacy

• M.Pharm in Pharmaceutical Biotechnology

• M.Pharm in Pharmaceutical Analysis

Career Options and Future Job Prospects of B.Pharm

Over the years, the large inflow of graduates in the field of Pharmacy has led to an increase in career options and future prospects of B.Pharm students. No longer is MBBS and BDS the only viable option in the field of medicine. In all respects, the different medical fields cooperate and work together to build up the entire healthcare industry, which makes every single component in the field, including Pharmacy, an important element.

The future prospects of B.Pharm include higher education such as M.Pharm, Pharm.D, MBA or other programmes, are mentioned below:

1. Drug Inspector    

2. Pharmacist

3. Pharmaceutical Marketing

4. Quality Control and Production

5. Medical Underwriting    

6. Own Business/Self Employment

For those who wish to join the professional lifestyle of a B.Pharm graduate, a variety of job profiles await your applications. In India, a B.Pharm degree qualifies you to practise your profession in the industry. Check out the detailed list of career options and job prospects of B.Pharm in India below: 

1) Drug Inspector

One of the most rewarding job opportunities available in the Pharmacy Industry is the position of a Drug Inspector. As the name suggests, the job profile will require a candidate to ensure that the quality, safety and utility of the drug in-production will be the priority of a Drug Inspector. However, the job will also ask you to be patient in testing the drug and being confident in your results and yourself.

A job as a Drug Inspector is usually found in the government sector, which brings is its own set of advantages as well. However, if you aspire to become a drug inspector, it will be necessary to sit for one of the National-Level or State-Level recruitment exams such as SSC, UPSC, PSC or others. All recruitments to the course will be based on the recruitment exams being conducted for the position.

One drawback of the job profile is the vacancies available in the field. Government Recruitment exams for Drug inspector are conducted at a lower rate when compared to other govt. job recruitment exams. Nonetheless, if you are confident in your skills and qualification and are also confident in cracking the exam, you will be offered a lucrative package that may range anywhere between ₹50,000 - ₹80,000, a month.

2) Pharmacist:

Becoming a Pharmacist in one of the government sectors can be rewarding, considering the demand for the job and vacancies available. For a pharmacist job profile in Central Government hospitals and sectors such as railways as well as a job in cities like Delhi, the package on offer can lie anywhere between ₹45,000 to ₹55,000 per month. However, the CTC offered to a B.Pharm graduate in one of the state-level hospitals or equivalent job roles will be lower.

Usually, candidates are selected for the job roles through the basic eligibility criteria of earning a B.Pharm degree or a Diploma in Pharmacy (D.Pharm) degree. Since the positions are available in the government sector, recruitment to the same will be based on government recruitment exams, conducted for the position specifically.

3) Pharmaceutical Marketing

Another carer opportunity on offer for all graduates of B.Pharm is the position of a Medical Representative, promoting the drugs that have been developed by the company you’re employed in. In Pharmaceutical Marketing, most of the vacancies are witnessed in private sector companies.

However, the pay offered to a Medical Representative will be low and will depend a lot of the experience you have gained previously, along with the place of employment. Since the job profile requires representatives able to sell or promote a product, communication skills, networking ability as well as profound knowledge of the field is necessary. Moreover, the position will also require you to be physically able to run around, delivering your pitches and gaining positive returns, the job will be strenuous.

As is the case with many job profiles, you can expect promotions in the field, in terms of becoming a manager. In this respect, earning an MBA degree will further assist your aspirations of becoming a manager as well. Under the profile, you can expect to receive a package ranging between ₹15,000 - ₹30,000 every month.

4) Quality Control and Production:

To overlook the entire process of productions, candidates are required to keep a check on the quality of manufacturing as well as the day-to-day workings of the production belt. Basically, work will require candidates to ensure that the drug or product being manufactured is at par with the standards of the company. However, unlike other job profiles for B.Pharm graduates, the pay-grade will be among the lowest.

As stated above, with enough experience and training in the field, climbing up the ladders of responsibility will not be difficult. In the beginning, the job profile will bring in a package ranging between, ₹10,000 to ₹20,000 per month.

5) Medical Underwriting:

Medical Underwriting may not be heard of but is a good section to join in the field of pharmacy, and is also one of the lowest-paying jobs in the field. If you choose to pursue medical underwriting, the job will require you to work as medical scribes, medical coder, medical transcriptor, or even be asked to check medical insurance-related information or in short be asked to write some kind of a medical document. In this field of the industry, knowledge of pharmacology, understanding of different medical terminologies, and other medical-related knowledge are crucial to the job.

Under medical underwriting, you can expect to receive compensation ranging between ₹10,000 - ₹15,000 per month, during your training period. However, with enough training and experience, you can expect to be paid a package that ranges between ₹30,000 to ₹40,000.

Own Business or Self-Employment

Among the vast varieties of job opportunities, a B.Pharm candidate is eligible to start their own pharmacy or medical shop or even be a supplier. With the 21st century largely becoming a technology-driven world, the opportunities of starting a business have grown as well. Inevitably, graduates with sound knowledge of launching and running a business will be capable of making it profitable. However, the additional knowledge of pharmacy will also allow you to understand different niche in the industry.

Setting up your own drug store or medical store or even a company will require a lot of determination, hard work, networking capabilities and unending desire to achieve more every day.

The career and future prospects that have been mentioned in the article above are some of the areas that you can pursue after completing your B.Pharm course in India. However, as mentioned above, it is always better for one to pursue a postgraduate degree to expand their career opportunities and the packages that can be offered to the graduates.

Future of Pharmacy

Pharmacists play a major role in the overall healthcare management and now is the time of new age pharmacy industry. With scientists doing more research than before to predict health issues, the pharmacy sector is also moving from being traditional to a highly technology-driven sector.

Top Colleges for B.Pharm in India

You can check out the following list of top B.Pharm colleges in India and the different courses on offer as well as the respective course fees.

These are just a few of the B.Pharm colleges on offer in the different pharmacy colleges of India.

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