Occupation · SOC 29-1051
Pharmacists
Dispense drugs prescribed by physicians and other health practitioners and provide information to patients about medications and their use. May advise physicians and other health practitioners on the selection, dosage, interactions, and side effects of medications.
Median wage
$137,480
$86,930–$172,040
Projected growth
—
—
Annual openings
—
per year
Employed (US)
328,870
Job Zone 5
Typical preparation
Extensive preparation
Stackable credential programs
55 mapped
Core skills
Reading ComprehensionSpeakingActive ListeningCritical ThinkingWritingMonitoringJudgment and Decision MakingActive Learning
Knowledge areas
Medicine and DentistryMathematicsEnglish LanguageCustomer and Personal ServiceChemistry
Technology & tools
Data base user interface and query softwareMedical softwareComputer based training softwareAccounting softwareLabel making software
Representative tasks
Review prescriptions to assure accuracy, to ascertain the needed ingredients, and to evaluate their suitability.Assess the identity, strength, or purity of medications.Provide information and advice regarding drug interactions, side effects, dosage, and proper medication storage.Analyze prescribing trends to monitor patient compliance and to prevent excessive usage or harmful interactions.Maintain records, such as pharmacy files, patient profiles, charge system files, inventories, control records for radioactive nuclei, or registries of poisons, narcotics, or controlled drugs.Collaborate with other health care professionals to plan, monitor, review, or evaluate the quality or effectiveness of drugs or drug regimens, providing advice on drug applications or characteristics.Plan, implement, or maintain procedures for mixing, packaging, or labeling pharmaceuticals, according to policy and legal requirements, to ensure quality, security, and proper disposal.Order and purchase pharmaceutical supplies, medical supplies, or drugs, maintaining stock and storing and handling it properly.Compound and dispense medications as prescribed by doctors and dentists, by calculating, weighing, measuring, and mixing ingredients, or oversee these activities.Contact insurance companies to resolve billing issues.Advise customers on the selection of medication brands, medical equipment, or healthcare supplies.Teach pharmacy students serving as interns in preparation for their graduation or licensure.Provide specialized services to help patients manage conditions, such as diabetes, asthma, smoking cessation, or high blood pressure.Refer patients to other health professionals or agencies when appropriate.Work in hospitals or clinics or for Health Management Organizations (HMOs), dispensing prescriptions, serving as a medical team consultant, or specializing in specific drug therapy areas, such as oncology or nuclear pharmacotherapy.Update or troubleshoot pharmacy information databases.Manage pharmacy operations, hiring or supervising staff, performing administrative duties, or buying or selling non-pharmaceutical merchandise.Prepare sterile solutions or infusions for use in surgical procedures, emergency rooms, or patients' homes.Offer health promotion or prevention activities, such as training people to use blood pressure devices or diabetes monitors.Publish educational information for other pharmacists, doctors, or patients.
Competency framework
Skill expectations by proficiency level.
emerging
Prescription accuracy — review and verify under pharmacist supervision to confirm ingredient identity, strength, and suitability in a retail or hospital dispensing environment.Medication identity and purity — apply foundational chemistry and pharmacy science knowledge to assess basic drug characteristics under direct oversight in a structured dispensary setting.Drug interaction information — provide standardized counseling on common side effects, dosage instructions, and storage requirements to patients under the guidance of a senior pharmacist.Pharmacy records — enter and maintain patient profiles, dispensing logs, and controlled substance registries in pharmacy management software according to established protocols.Pharmaceutical labeling — follow documented procedures for labeling, packaging, and routing medications in compliance with regulatory and institutional policy under supervision.Medication stock — assist with ordering, receiving, and organizing pharmaceutical and medical supplies, verifying quantities and proper storage conditions in a pharmacy setting.Reading comprehension — interpret clinical references, package inserts, and formulary documents to support accurate dispensing decisions in an entry-level pharmacy role.Medical software — navigate electronic health record and dispensing systems to retrieve patient medication histories and process prescriptions under direction.Drug dosage calculations — apply mathematical principles to perform dose calculations and unit conversions accurately within routine dispensing tasks.Professional communication — actively listen to and clearly respond to patient inquiries and healthcare team questions using precise pharmaceutical terminology in a supervised clinical environment.
developing
Prescription suitability — independently evaluate prescriptions for therapeutic appropriateness, contraindications, and dose accuracy across a broad range of drug classes in a community or hospital pharmacy.Drug quality assessment — apply analytical and scientific judgment to assess the identity, potency, and purity of compounded and commercially prepared medications with minimal oversight.Patient counseling — deliver comprehensive, evidence-based advice on drug interactions, side effects, dosage optimization, and storage to diverse patient populations in outpatient and inpatient settings.Prescribing trend analysis — use pharmacy data systems and spreadsheet software to monitor dispensing patterns, identify compliance gaps, and flag potentially harmful drug use across a patient caseload.Controlled substance compliance — maintain accurate and auditable control records, narcotic registries, and inventory logs for scheduled substances in accordance with federal and state regulations.Interdisciplinary collaboration — participate in medication therapy reviews and care planning discussions with physicians, nurses, and other clinicians to optimize drug regimens for individual patients.Compounding procedures — implement and maintain mixing, packaging, and quality control procedures for sterile and non-sterile preparations in accordance with USP standards and pharmacy policy.Inventory management — manage routine purchasing cycles, evaluate supplier options, and ensure proper storage and handling of pharmaceutical inventory within budget parameters.Time management — prioritize and execute multiple concurrent dispensing and clinical tasks efficiently during high-volume shifts in a fast-paced retail or institutional pharmacy.Database systems — query and interpret pharmacy information systems and clinical databases to support formulary decisions and patient safety monitoring.
proficient
Complex prescription review — autonomously evaluate high-risk, multi-drug prescriptions for therapeutic conflicts, off-label considerations, and patient-specific pharmacokinetic factors in acute or specialty care environments.Advanced drug analysis — apply expert-level pharmaceutical science to assess the stability, bioavailability, and clinical adequacy of both manufactured and compounded medications across diverse patient populations.Specialized medication counseling — lead nuanced patient education on complex regimens including oncology, anticoagulation, and immunosuppressive therapies, adapting communication style to health literacy levels.Population-level safety monitoring — independently analyze prescribing and dispensing trend data across large patient cohorts to detect drug misuse, interaction risks, and adherence failures using medical and analytics software.Regulatory record integrity — oversee the accuracy and completeness of all pharmacy documentation systems, including radioactive nuclei logs, poison registries, and DEA-required controlled substance records.Clinical pharmacy leadership — lead collaborative medication management reviews with multidisciplinary care teams, providing authoritative guidance on pharmacotherapy optimization and evidence-based drug selection.Pharmaceutical operations management — design, implement, and audit compounding, packaging, and labeling workflows to ensure ongoing compliance with legal standards and institutional quality assurance benchmarks.Supply chain stewardship — strategically manage pharmaceutical procurement, contract negotiations, formulary decisions, and shortage mitigation to sustain continuous medication availability.Critical problem solving — resolve novel or ambiguous clinical and operational pharmacy challenges by integrating scientific evidence, regulatory knowledge, and patient-specific data without supervisory input.Technology integration — optimize the use of electronic health records, dispensing automation, and clinical decision support tools to enhance patient safety and pharmacy workflow efficiency.
advanced
Pharmacy practice standards — establish and enforce system-wide prescription review protocols and therapeutic safety policies that define best practices across multiple facilities or service lines.Drug quality governance — lead organizational quality assurance programs for pharmaceutical assessment, compounding validation, and regulatory compliance, setting standards aligned with state and federal requirements.Patient safety culture — design and champion institution-wide medication counseling frameworks and health literacy initiatives that measurably improve patient outcomes across diverse populations.Pharmacovigilance strategy — direct enterprise-level analysis of prescribing trends, adverse event data, and drug utilization patterns to inform formulary policy and prevent system-wide medication harm.Compliance and risk leadership — maintain executive accountability for all controlled substance, narcotic, and hazardous drug record systems, leading audit readiness and regulatory response across the organization.Interprofessional system design — lead strategic collaboration with medical, nursing, and administrative leadership to develop integrated medication management programs that optimize therapeutic outcomes at scale.Operational policy development — author and enforce organizational policies for pharmaceutical compounding, labeling, disposal, and packaging that meet evolving regulatory mandates and patient safety imperatives.Workforce and resource leadership — direct pharmacy personnel planning, professional development, and performance management to build high-functioning teams across large or multi-site pharmacy operations.Pharmacy education and mentorship — design and deliver advanced training curricula, residency programs, and continuing education for pharmacists, students, and allied health professionals within an academic or health system setting.Strategic formulary governance — lead formulary committee decision-making, pharmaceutical budget stewardship, and supply chain risk management at the health system or payer level to ensure cost-effective, evidence-based care.
Also known as
35 alternate job titles map to this occupation.
Pharmacy Operations ManagerPodiatry (Army 67G)Optometry (Army 67F)Registered PharmacistInformatics PharmacistDistrict Pharmacy SupervisorOutpatient PharmacistFloat PharmacistRadiopharmacistPharmacy CoordinatorPharmacy Technician (Navy L22A)ApothecaryIndustrial PharmacistDirector, Pharmacy ServicesPreventive Medicine Sciences (Army 67C)Pharmacy Services Clinical CoordinatorBehavioral Sciences (Army 67D)Pharmacy ConsultantPharm D (Pharmacy Doctor)Pharmacy InformaticistPharmacy ResidentHealth Services (Army 67A)Aeromedical Evacuation (Army 67J)Pharmacy Specialist (Army 68Q)Allied Sciences (Army 67B)Retail PharmacistPharmacist in Charge (PIC)Clinical Pharmacologist (Army 61E)Pharmacy Technician (Navy 001322)DruggistHospital PharmacistClinical PharmacistPrescriptionistPharmacistTravel Pharmacist