Pharmacists in industry often have opportunities for advancement in management, sales, research, quality control, advertising, production, packaging, and other areas. Some individuals put their pharmaceutical training to work in related fields. Experienced pharmacists may be hired as sales or service representatives by pharmaceutical manufacturers and wholesalers. They sell to community pharmacies and hospitals and inform physicians about new drugs. Other pharmacists teach in colleges of pharmacy, supervise the manufacturer of pharmaceuticals, or are involved in research and development.
Pharmacists also edit or write technical articles for pharmaceutical journals.
Some combine pharmaceutical and legal training in jobs as patent lawyers or consultants on pharmaceutical and drug laws. Job Outlook Employment of pharmacists is expected to grow faster than the average for all occupations through the year 2000, mainly due to the increase pharmaceutical needs of a larger and older population. The increased number of middle-aged and older people will spur demand in all practice settings. Projected rapid growth in the elderly population is especially important since the number of prescriptions influences demand for pharmacists, and people over the age of 65 use twice as many prescription drugs, on the average, as younger people. Demand for pharmacists will be especially strong in community pharmacies.