Quote:
Originally Posted by red92s
Yeah I can see how this is a consideration in the medical field. Her situation is different in that she finished her degree at the age of 23 and was able to complete it without acquiring any debt . . . which greatly impacts the net earning picture when compared to the additional time and monetary requirements of an MD.
For pharmacy, there is always the option of going to work for the private drug companies if you don't like the idea of salary stagnation. Lord knows there is no profits there, right?
From what I recall don't you own your own practice? Does your bottom line just increase at an equal or greater rate than the rates for providing service (which always seem to go up)? I guess there is a chicken/egg discussion there, right?
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I'm a pharmacist and can promise you that the average pharmacist DOES graduate with student loans, even at public schools. 4 years ago, the average pharmacist at my school graduated with over $60K worth of student loan debt. I presently know several with over $100K (some at public schools). I did graduate at 23, but I went into a direct program after high school for six years. Most pharmacists don't enter such a program. In fact, an increasing trend is for pharmacists to obtain a bachelors degree first to become more competitive. Not only does this delay work further (& increase student loan debt for many), but just like medical school, this means that becoming a pharmacist can take 8 years (4 years bachelors + 4 years pharmacy school). Although pharmacists are not required to do residencies and fellowships, many elect to do them because they want to impact health care in a different way than doing retail pharmacy. This means that it can take an additional year to 4 (2 years of residency + 2 years fellowship) before making in real income (that means up to 12 years without real income). I know several who went this route.
Some pharmacists like some other professionals optometrists, dentists, and several others with professional degrees can enjoy high incomes upfront, but it really depends on what you want to do with your degree.
BTW, most pharmacists I know who work for industry start off
making less than retail pharmacists. Of course, the salary can increase to higher than retail, but that's dependent on them and is not a guarantee. Although this may
potentially rid you of stagnation, it is largely dependent on what type of company you are at (large pharma, mid pharma, small pharma, biotech, etc) & your role at the company. For example, some companies have glass ceilings which make further advancement pass certain positions difficult for pharmacists who don't have a Ph.D. or MD, etc.
09-10-2009, 06:56 PM
I agree it takes a lot of smarts and you can't slough off school, but once you get through, you have a lot of options. A friend of mine did her degree in 6 (a special community college program that fed into a university program that total took her 6 years), but another friend of mine took 8. 
