Pharmacy has been acquired in mid-17th century from the Greek word “pharmakon” meaning drug and “pharmakeutikos” meaning druggist and it deals with the compounding and dispensing of medications. The objective of pharmacy is the proper use of medications in a safe and effective manner.
Pharmacists are the specialists or expert professionals who specialize in science of medicines. They have studied medicines and use that knowledge in the treatment of patients through their expertise in proper use and administration of the drugs.
D. Pharm. is a practical driven course which is designed to teach the candidates all the basic concepts of pharmaceutical science like:
- Safe and accurate processing of prescriptions
- Dispensing and compounding of medicines
- Accurate record-keeping as required under Food and Drug Act
- Purchasing, Merchandising and Inventory control
- Third-party Billing
- Drug approval processes
- Narcotics control
- Pharmaceutical Jurisprudence (Pharmacy profession related laws)
- Regulatory requirements involving testing, screening and clinical trials of drugs
- Computer processing
Courses & Duration
After Diploma in Pharmacy, what are the available courses in pharmacy field?
Popularity of pharmacy courses is on rise among health science sector and it is a popular course among students. The courses in pharmacy ranges from undergraduate to doctoral level.
Bachelor Courses:
- 1. Bachelor of Pharmacy (B. Pharm) – 4 years
- 2. Bachelor of Pharmacy (B. Pharm) Lateral Entry – 3 years
- 3. Pharm (Hons.) – 4 years
- 4. Bachelor of Pharmacy (Ayurveda) – 4 years
Master’s Courses:
- 5. Master of Pharmacy (M.Pharm) – 2 years
- 6. PharmD (Post Baccalaureate) – 3 years
- 7. Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm D) – 6 years
Doctorate and post-doctoral Course:
- PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences – 3 years
- Postdoc in Pharmaceutical Sciences – 2 years
Eligibility Criteria
Now to qualify for admission to these courses it important for the candidate to be eligible the course. The candidates have to check the eligibility criteria of the different courses in which they are interested in taking the admission. For various courses the criteria are as mentioned below:-
Bachelor in pharmacy course: Candidate should be from science stream of 10+2 scheme with Physics chemistry as mandatory subjects together with one of mathematics or biology and must equal to or greater than 50%. Age should be >17 years. The diploma students are eligible to join B. Pharm in second year (lateral entry)
Master in pharmacy – After clearing B. Pharm successfully the student is eligible to join M. Pharm. To be eligible for this course the minimum marks required are 50%. 5% relaxation in marks is given to the reserved category students (SC/ST, Physically Handicapped).
Pharm D – It’s a six years course (5 years + one-year internship). A candidate with 10+2 in science stream is eligible for the course. He should have Physics chemistry as mandatory subjects together with one of mathematics or biology and must equal to or greater than 50%. Age should be >17 years. The diploma pass out students are eligible to join B. Pharm in second year (lateral entry).
Doctor of Philosophy in Pharmaceutical Sciences – It’s a research-oriented course. Candidates are eligible to join this after completing their Masters of Pharmacy course. They can apply for Scholarship through various funding agencies like UGC, ICMR, AICTE, DBT etc for the fellowship and project work.
Master of Pharmacy Stream (Specialization)
After Bachelor in pharmacy you can apply for specialization in Masters Course. There are a number of streams available and the candidates can choose the specialization stream of their choice. The list is as below: -
- Pharmaceutical Chemistry
- Pharmaceutical Technology
- Pharmaceutical Analysis and Quality Assurance
- Clinical Pharmacy
- Pharmaceutics
- Pharmacy Practice
- Pharmacognosy
- Pharmacology
- Pharmaceutical Marketing Management
- Quality Assurance
- Phytopharmaceuticals and Natural products
- Drug Discovery and Development
- Medicinal Chemistry
- Bulk Drugs
- Drug Regulatory Affairs
- Biopharmaceutics
- Industrial Pharmacy
Career prospects and job opportunities
Diverse job opportunities are available in front of Diploma in Pharmacy certificate holders. They can apply for jobs in private sectors as well as in government sectors.
Private Sector Jobs
Diploma in Pharmacy certificate holders may start practicing as pharmacists in India. They can work as pharmacists at chemist shops, private clinics, drug stores, retail chain stores etc. Here their job is to read prescriptions, check drug interactions if any, tell the patients about the dosage regimen and mode of administration, frequency and time of the drug administration etc. They also have to keep checking the stock in the pharmacy, maintain record and order the inventory from the store or the stockist as per requirement.
Besides working in private pharmacy shops or clinics, diploma holders can also open their own chemist shops. They need some funding and good entrepreneurial skills.
The job profiles/work opportunities in private firms are as follows:
- Medical Transcriptionist
- Technical supervisor
- Chemist / Pharmacist
- Quality analyst
- Medical representatives
- Production executive
- Scientific Officer.
After obtaining the degree or diploma in pharmacy, you can apply in pharmaceutical companies. In the country, there are a lot of companies in the pharmaceutical sector which provides job opportunities to the D. Pharm candidates.
Government Sector Jobs
Apart from the private sector companies, there are also many government companies offering jobs to the diploma holders in Pharmacy. You can apply for pharmacist post in hospitals, start working in the government department, work in research and development team, and work in the teaching field.
Government sector companies in various parts of the country are:
- Indian Drugs & Pharmaceuticals Ltd
- Projects & Development India Ltd
- Rajasthan Drugs & Pharmaceuticals Ltd
- Bengal Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals Ltd
- Hindustan Antibiotics Ltd
- Hindustan Fluorocarbons Limited
- Indian Medicines & Pharmaceutical Corporation Ltd
- Karnataka Antibiotics & Pharmaceuticals Ltd
- Orissa Drugs & Chemicals Ltd
- Bharat Immunological & Biological Corporation Ltd
Foreign countries provide a good scope in various Chemicals and Pharmaceutical companies. One may expect much higher pay scale compared to India on securing a job abroad. The candidates become are registered pharmacist. One may set up pharmacy/chemists and druggists shop after registering withthe state Pharmacy Council to stock, sell and dispense medicines according to doctor’s prescription. The bottom-line is that it all depends on your stream of interest if you want to work in the Industry or go for ‘Bachelors course’. It is advisable to do full research before the next step. It’s your future; it’s all in your hands.
You can make nice and prosperous career in pharma field and then plan to join industry or academics as per your choice. Get Admission in pharmacy courses at Lloyd Institute of Management and Technology offering best diploma, degree and masters courses in Pharmacy, Management & Law, and contact at - https://lloydpharmacy.edu.in/