How to Become a Pharmacist

Video Transcript

"Hello, my name is Mark MacBayne. I'm the practice administrator for hematology oncology and adult bone marrow transplant at UCSF Medical Center. I'm here today to talk about how to become a pharmacist. The first step in becoming a pharmacist is to go to a four year college or university. Typically, if one is interested in a career as a pharmacist, one would take a course of study in the sciences. This could be biology or chemistry, however it is not required. If you do not major in a science however you will need to complete all of the science prerequisites for pharmacy school. It's very important to keep your GPA up. Any graduate program is competitive, but particularly those in health sciences. So you'll want to maintain a strong GPA, 3.7 or higher, and upon completion of your college or university degree, you'll need to apply to pharmacy school. Pharmacy school is an additional four year degree program. Upon completion of the program you are a doctor of pharmacy. At this point however you are not quite ready to practice as a pharmacist. You need to do an internship and the equivalent of a residency, if you will, in which you train further in providing clinical care as a pharmacist. Upon completion, you are ready to take the license exam, and at that point, can practice as a pharmacist. There are two career paths, or more, for pharmacists, but two main career paths. You can practice in the health care industry, or you can practice in the drug manufacture. The career path is slightly different but both require the same degree. This is Mark MacBayne, adult hematology and oncology, bone marrow transplant, UCSF Medical Center."