Pharmacist Resume Example, Template & Job Description

What Should I Highlight in a Pharmacist Resume?

Whether you’re working in a small mom-and-pop retail pharmacy or for a giant like CVS, pharmacists perform a variety of tasks relating to patient care both in the pharmacy and outside of it. Getting a pharmacist position is not always easy, and it’s important to present yourself in the best light possible when submitting a resume. Here’s how you can showcase your skills in a pharmacist resume.

If you’re working as a retail pharmacist, then you’re going to highlight your ability to talk to patients and your personal knowledge of pharmacology. Although not every pharmacist will be making medications on the premises, it’s still important that you understand the ins and outs of medications and communicate that information to the patient. Recruiters want to know that you have the professional experience and skills necessary to help people.

Let’s explore how to make a resume that highlights your best qualities. Here’s where to start.

The Structure of a Pharmacist Resume

Depending on the pharmacist resume format you choose, you may organize your resume sections in a different order. The main resume formats are the chronological resume example, which emphasizes work history, the functional resume example, which emphasizes skills, and the combination resume example, which emphasizes both. Regardless of which format you choose, however, you’ll use all the same sections. The only thing that may change is the order.

Header

The resume header will always go at the top of the resume, no matter what resume format you use. This header will include your full name, and contact information including your phone number and email, and social media handles, including your LinkedIn profile if applicable. This helps hiring managers to know who you are immediately, as well as keep your job application organized.

Resume Summary/Resume Objective

The resume summary or resume objective lays out how your relevant experience impacts what you can do for the company. It’s a two to three sentence paragraph that introduces your career background, and lists some of your specialties, as well as one or two of your biggest achievements.

Skills

The next thing to look for is your skills section. The perfect resume should have a variety of pharmacist skills available. Use these bullet points to flesh out the skills you might use for your pharmacist job:

• General healthcare
• Medication therapy management
• Knowledge of drug interactions
• Immunization and vaccinations
• Communication skills
• Inventory management
• Compounding skills
• Dosing knowledge
• Overarching patient care
• Knowledge of side effects
• Interpersonal skills
• Labeling
• Patient counseling

Note that this list includes both hard skills and soft skills. Healthcare professionals, in general, need to have both hard and soft skills, and a clinical pharmacy worker is considered a healthcare professional. Make sure you’re listing both types of skills for best results.

Work Experience

The experience section includes your years of experience and what you’ve done with them. If you’ve previously worked in a healthcare position or as a pharmacist elsewhere, list those experiences here. You can also list internships in this section, as interns are learning just as much about the craft as pharmacy technicians. List your previous jobs in reverse chronological order, with the most recent work experience first.

Education

It’s also important that you fill out your education section so that the recruiter knows you’re able to practice legally. In the United States, you typically need a Doctor of Pharmacy, also called a PharmD, to prescribe medications and talk to clients about what medications they’re taking.