However, if you have been a pharmacist even just for a little while, you know the job is much more involved.
While you do have to count pills, you also have to manage a team of technicians, deal with legal issues (should they arise), work with patients and doctors, and upsell medications like flu shots.
Whether or not you are going for retail, hospital, clinical, or the many other options this field has to offer, you will always have a line of people waiting to take your job.
Due to this field’s over-saturation, it can be hard to find a job at a company where you genuinely desire to work.
Writing a perfect resume is the first step towards landing the right job that fits your lifestyle.
While you’ve been busy studying to earn your Doctorate, we’ve been working out how to create the perfect resume for this competitive industry.
Let’s jump in.
Summary
- Resume Template
- Formatting
- Writing Your Resume Summary
- Areas of Expertise
- Writing Your Work Experience
- Writing Your Education Section
- Additional Sections
- Resume Points to Remember
- Resume “Don’ts” to Remember
- Some Helpful Tools
Let’s begin with a sample pharmacist resume to demonstrate how all the resume pieces fit together. Then we will break each section down to really drill into how to write the best pharmacist resume you possibly can.
Pharmacist Resume (Text Version)
Contact Info:
July Hedge
[email protected]
1 (762) 555-0055
Athens, GA 30603
Summary Statement:
Pharmacist: Qualified Retail Pharmacist with over 5 years of experience working in a fast-paced environment, supervising pharmacy employees, and fulfilling responsibilities in accordance with the Georgia Board of Pharmacy. Skilled at maintaining a high level of customer communication and service while carrying out pharmaceutical duties, including accurately and efficiently filling prescriptions, conducting monthly inventories, and counseling patients in the proper use of their medications..
Key Accomplishments/Areas of Expertise
- RxKinetics UD Software
- EHR Software
- TPNassist
- Data Management
- Precision
- Communication
- Research
- Efficient
- Organized
- Customer Service
- Communication
- Strong Leadership
- Salesmanship
Professional Experience:
Southside Pharmacy, Athens, GA
Lead Pharmacist | March 2018 – Present
- Evaluate & confirm medications ordered by authorized prescribers
- Followed up on unclaimed prescriptions to reduce waste by 15%
- Assigned pharmacy techs mixing, packaging, and labeling duties
- Consulted with patients regarding rx usage, side effects, & interactions
Walmart Pharmacy, Athens, GA
Pharmacist | September 2015 – January 2018
- Prepared and dispensed medications according to specification
- Monitored pharmacy inventory and ordered needed supplies
- Counseled patients and resolved conflicts when needed
- Administered immunizations to customers when required
- Assured accuracy of patient prescription data prior to filling orders
RX Care, Atlanta, GA
Pharmacist | June 2014 – August 2015
- Developed knowledge of insurance guidelines & patient eligibility
- Updated & maintained patient records via EHR software
- Discussed medications, dosages, & safety with patients
- Conducted phone calls on patient status & orders, & physician directives
- Worked to maximize efficiency of pharmacy during tenure
Education/Certifications
Doctorate of Pharmacy
Mercer University, Southern School of Pharmacy, Atlanta, GA,
Class of 2014
Bachelor of Science in Biology
University of Georgia, Athens, GA,
Class of 2010
Licensed Pharmacist with the State of Georgia
2014
Formatting
Regardless of what field you are looking to work your way into, becoming a pharmacist can be competitive.
If you are applying to a company or hospital, your pharmacist resume may be just a drop in the ocean of the applications they receive.
Hiring managers only spend about 6 seconds reviewing each resume, on average.
This might sound daunting, but you can still create a pharmacist resume that is going to stand out from the pack – and it starts with the format.
While there are a variety of formats to choose from, all successful resumes have common, consistent features that should always be applied.
With such a short amount of time to catch someone’s attention, make sure you are putting your best foot forward by listing things in reverse chronological order.
Listing your most recent jobs and achievements first means that your most impressive and current accomplishments are more noticeable.
List details in bullet points and allow for proper spacing between each line so that your words flow evenly down the page.
A proper format should always guide a hiring manager’s eyes to the most impressive and relevant details, so always consider bolding and italicizing items when appropriate.
The main goal is to create a resume that appears professional, neat, and easy to follow.
Start With Your Resume Summary
An “objective” used to be the first section of most resumes.
Now, the resume summary is the standard.
This shift has taken place due to the lack of pertinent information that most resume objectives provided.
A resume summary requires candidates to explain in two to three sentences who they are as a pharmacist.
This is a somewhat challenging task due to the broadness of what can be said in such a limited amount of space.
Sometimes it is best to start by contemplating what a pharmacist does and what is expected of them.
Start listing qualities that you feel are important to be a great pharmacist and then start to pull out the details you think are most notable.
Write your summary around the details you regard most highly.
Yes!
Qualified Retail Pharmacist with over 5 years of experience working in a fast-paced environment, supervising pharmacy employees, and fulfilling responsibilities in accordance with the Georgia Board of Pharmacy. Skilled at maintaining a high level of customer communication and service while carrying out pharmaceutical duties, including accurately and efficiently filling prescriptions, conducting monthly inventories, and counseling patients in the proper use of their medications.
No!
Pharmacist with years of experience working in a fast-paced environment. Great at maintaining a high level of customer communication and service while carrying out pharmaceutical duties.
The “Yes!” example lays out the primary duties and tasks a pharmacist is responsible for and describes how the candidate effectively accomplishes those responsibilities.
The “No!” example lists minimal details regarding what the candidate values in their field, and how they perform their responsibilities as a pharmacist.
PRO TIP: Sometimes, it’s hard to sum up who you are in your field in such a brief summary right away. If you are struggling with what to say in this section, try skipping it and coming back to it after you have written the rest of your resume. Sometimes writing your work history section and skills helps you narrow things down.
Key Accomplishments/ Skills & Qualifications
Any well-rounded resume needs to include a basic list of various skills and qualifications the candidate has regarding pharmaceutical care.
The skills included in this list should consist of both hard skills and soft skills.
Hard skills:
- Teachable
- Practicable
- Easy to Quantify
- Technical
Hard skills are clearly necessary when it comes to providing accurate and precise pharmaceutical care.
You need to be well versed in the uses of drugs, the laws surrounding your field, and the ability to work within the computer system your pharmacy uses.
Soft skills:
- Personality Traits
- Subjective
- Harder to Quantify
- Innate
- Not necessarily teachable
While soft skills might not seem as crucial to this field, they are still relevant.
A great pharmacist is not only technical, but they are also able to communicate well with doctors and patients, and lead a team of technicians.
Let’s look at an example of a well-balanced skills list.
Qualifications/Areas of Expertise
- RxKinetics UD Software
- EHR Software
- TPNassist
- Data Management
- Precision
- Communication
- Research
- Efficient
- Organized
- Customer Service
- Communication
- Strong Leadership
- Salesmanship
PRO TIP: Always tailor this section around whatever company, clinic, or hospital you are applying to. If you are responding to a job posting, make sure that you include any skills that they state they are looking for in a candidate. Your goal in this section isn’t to just be “good” it is to be compatible.
Writing Your Work Experience
While each section we have gone over is vital to creating a great pharmacist resume, in many ways, they lack the specificity needed to win over a hiring manager.
Your work experience section is an opportunity to show off the skills you have put to the test and the job requirements you have met or exceeded.
Listing your previous work in reverse chronological order allows you to show off your most up-to-date and impressive information first.
If you have experience in different fields of pharmaceutical care than the position for which you are applying – or separate work experience entirely – do your best to focus on the jobs that are most relevant and applicable.
The same is true for how you describe each job as well.
Always tailor your descriptions to focus on skills that are most relevant to the job to which you are applying.
So if you are applying to a pharmacist position at a hospital and your previous experience has been in retail, don’t waste your time discussing customer service skills.
Each job description should come out to around three to five bullet points.
Yes!
Southside Pharmacy | Athens, GA | Lead Pharmacist | March 2018 – Present
- Evaluate & confirm medications ordered by authorized prescribers
- Followed up on unclaimed prescriptions to reduce waste by 15%
- Assigned pharmacy techs mixing, packaging, and labeling duties
- Consulted with patients regarding rx usage, side effects, & interactions
No!
Southside Pharmacy | Athens, GA | Lead Pharmacist | March 2018 – Present
- Review medical prescriptions ordered by physicians
- Follow-up with patients concerning medications
- Assign duties to pharmacy workers
- Consult with patients
The “Yes!” example lays out specific details regarding how the candidate fulfilled their job duties and created positive impacts for the company and the patients.
The “No!” example lists job tasks without highlighting the role the candidate played in accomplishing those tasks.
PRO TIP: Your job descriptions should always quantify and qualify details for each bullet point. If you are going to talk about consulting patients, explain what you focused on in those consultations. If your customer service abilities led to an increase in flu shots, give a number to explain how you increased revenue.
(If you lack work experience, see below for a helpful section.)
More About Bots
Currently, the field of pharmaceutical care is over-saturated.
That means more resumes coming into businesses than are likely needed.
In order to deal with a high volume of applications and not enough time to review them, Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS), or bots, are called upon to lighten the load.
Bots are designed to review resumes, and flag the ones deemed eligible for further review, leaving the rest to drift off to the island of misfit resumes.
If you want your pharmacist resume to be selected by a bot, it is crucial to focus on your diction.
When a bot reviews a resume, it searches for specified keywords and power words (action verbs) that are associated with satisfactory candidates.
Some resume experts believe that abandoning bullet points and writing job descriptions in paragraphs allows for more opportunities to include keywords.
However, at Big Interview, we believe it is best to stick with bullet points.
Bullet points are more visually appealing to human audiences, and as long as you are intentional about including keywords, you can still catch the eye of a bot with this format.
Let’s look at the visual differences between these two styles.
Standard Bullet Point Format:
Walmart Pharmacy | Athens, GA | Pharmacist | September 2015 – January 2018
- Prepared and dispensed medications according to specification
- Monitored pharmacy inventory and ordered needed supplies
- Counseled patients and resolved conflicts when needed
- Administered immunizations to customers when required
- Assured accuracy of patient prescription data prior to filling orders
Paragraph Format:
Walmart Pharmacy | Athens, GA | Pharmacist | September 2015 – January 2018
Prepared and dispensed medications according to specification and monitored pharmacy inventory and ordered needed supplies. Counseled patients and resolved conflicts when needed. Administered immunizations to customers when required and assured accuracy of patient prescription data prior to filling orders.
You can also write your description in paragraph format and add extra details in bullet points.
Walmart Pharmacy | Athens, GA | Pharmacist | September 2015 – January 2018
Prepared and dispensed medications according to specification and monitored pharmacy inventory and ordered needed supplies. Counseled patients and resolved conflicts when needed. Administered immunizations to customers when required and assured accuracy of patient prescription data prior to filling orders.
- Increased flu shot requests by 20%
- PharmaSys
Writing Your Education Section
Perhaps the most straightforward section of your pharmacist resume is your education section.
List your degrees in order of impressiveness (e.g., Doctorate before bachelor’s, etc.).
Also include the title of your degree, the school you attended, and the date of graduation.
Example:
Doctorate of Pharmacy
Mercer University, Southern School of Pharmacy, Atlanta, GA,
Class of 2014
Bachelor of Science in Biology
University of Georgia, Athens, GA,
Class of 2010
Incorporate any additional licenses and certifications in this section as well.
Example:
Licensed Pharmacist with the State of Georgia
2014
Possible Sections to Include
If you have any further achievements or qualifications to include, you can always add additional sections.
Some additional sections to consider including are:
- Awards and honors
- Publications
- Noteworthy Projects
- Social Media Influence
- Speaking Engagements
- Hobbies/Interests
- Volunteer Work
What If You Have No Experience?
If you are just starting out, you might be struggling to fill out your work experience section.
The best way to improve your pharmacist resume is to move your education section under your summary and add in some additional details.
If you graduated with a high GPA or earned any honors or awards while in school, adding those details can give you an edge.
Outside of adjusting your education section, you can always focus on adding additional sections to outline other accomplishments.
If you completed any internships or volunteer work related to pharmaceutical care, always include those details.
These achievements help set you apart from the crowd by showing that you are determined and ready to work in your field.
Even though your previous experience might not have been paid, it is still relevant experience nonetheless.
Resume Points to Remember
Keep it brief
While you might have extensive experience under your belt, it is always essential to keep your pharmacist resume to one page. Many hiring managers will not look kindly on a two-page resume.
Check your math
As a pharmacist, you understand the importance of double-checking your work – a mistake in your field could lead to some pretty drastic consequences. While the stakes might not be quite as high when it comes to resume writing, it is still important to review your work for typos and unnecessary information.
The little things
It might be easy to get caught up in all the more complex aspects of how to write and format your pharmacist resume, but don’t allow that to distract you from the more fundamental details. Always include your name, contact information, and links to business profiles where they are clearly noticeable.
Try to Avoid
Don’t use “I” and “me”
While it might feel strange at first, avoid using the words “I” and “me” in your resume. Even though you are talking about yourself, the inclusion of these words often sounds awkward to your reader.
Did you study?
While you might have exceptional experience and credentials, it is still important to tailor your pharmacist resume to the specific job you are applying for. If there is a job posting for you to reference or a website to read about the hospital or company, those details can go a long way towards landing you an interview.
Don’t get flashy
While it is important to stand out, make sure that you aren’t trying to utilize a funky font or a “unique” format to do so. While there is freedom in choosing fonts and formats, make sure that you are sticking with things that appear professional and easy to read.(See below for a helpful table of some suggested power words.)
Helpful Tools:
Power Words
- Administered
- Founded
- Adept
- Formulated
- Built
- Implemented
- Created
- Improved
- Consolidated
- Initiated
- Coordinated
- Launched
- Developed
- Pioneered
- Designed
- Organized
Skills List
| Hard Skills | Soft Skills |
| TPNassist | Efficient |
| Data Management | Team Management |
| RxKinetics UD Software | Customer Service |
| EMR | Research Oriented |
| EHR Software | Written and Verbal Communication |
