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Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences

Types of Degrees Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences Majors Are Earning

People majoring in Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences have the option of earning degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Associate’s Degree	30
Bachelor’s Degree	2,572
Master’s Degree	3,062
Doctor’s Degree	12,391

What Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences Majors Need to Know

Coursework for Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences build a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

According to O*NET, a major in Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• English Language — Importance 4.3 / 5; level 5.1 / 7.
• Education and Training — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 5.3 / 7.
• Administration and Management — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.
• Biology — Importance 3.6 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Computers and Electronics — Importance 3.5 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.

^{Importance is rated 1–5; level is 1–7. Source: ONET Online — weighted across related occupations.*}

Skills

The skill set built by a Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Speaking — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.
• Reading Comprehension — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Critical Thinking — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Active Listening — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Writing — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.

Abilities

Innate abilities most relevant to Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Expression — Importance 4.5 / 5; level 4.8 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.8 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.8 / 7.
• Written Expression — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Deductive Reasoning — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Getting Information	4.4 / 7
Working with Computers	4.4 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.4 / 7
Training and Teaching Others	4.2 / 7
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	4.1 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.1 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.1 / 7
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	4.1 / 7
Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events	4.0 / 7
Thinking Creatively	4.0 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	✓
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	✓
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	✓
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	✓
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	✓
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
Microsoft Access	Data base user interface and query software	—
IBM SPSS Statistics	Analytical or scientific software	—
SAS	Analytical or scientific software	✓
Google Docs	Word processing software	—
Email software	Electronic mail software	—
Healthcare common procedure coding system HCPCS	Medical software	—

^{Source: ONET Online technology skills, weighted across related occupations.*}

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences graduates include:

• Lecturer
• Instructor
• College Professor
• University Faculty Member
• Assistant Professor
• Associate Professor
• College Faculty Member
• Professor
• Faculty Member
• Teacher
• Adjunct Instructor
• Clinical Full Professor
• Occupational Therapy Professor
• Educational Therapy Teacher
• Clinical Assistant Professor

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Master’s degree	24.1%
Doctoral degree	23.9%
Bachelor’s degree	22.6%
Post-doctoral training	12.6%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	5.2%
Postsecondary certificate	4.3%
Some college courses	3.2%
High school diploma or equivalent	2.4%
First professional degree	0.7%
Post-baccalaureate certificate	0.6%
Post-master’s certificate	0.4%
Less than a high school diploma	0.1%

^{Source: ONET Online education / training / experience requirements.*}

Who Is Earning a Degree in Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly female, with women earning 67.7% of Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	12,218	67.7%
Men	5,837	32.3%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	7,822	43.3%
Asian	3,621	20.1%
Hispanic or Latino	1,673	9.3%
Black or African American	1,611	8.9%
American Indian / Alaska Native	38	0.2%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander	22	0.1%
Two or More Races	534	3.0%
Race Unknown	666	3.7%
International Students	2,068	11.5%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences Graduates Earn?

Federal data tracks median earnings of Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences graduates 1, 4, and 5 years after completion. Wages typically rise steadily as graduates gain experience and move into mid-career roles.

Years Out	Median Earnings
1 year	$100,486
4 years	$129,383
5 years	$140,029

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $140,029 — roughly 39% above the 1-year mark.

^{Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, field-of-study earnings tracker.}

Online Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences Programs

Online study is reported by IPEDS for Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences. The table below shows how many graduates earned at least some of their coursework online (Distance-Ed Available) versus completing the entire program online (Distance-Ed Only).

Award Level	Distance-Ed Available	Distance-Ed Only
Bachelor’s	1	2
Master’s	23	15
Doctoral (Research)	1	5

^{Distance-Ed Only = degrees completed entirely online; Distance-Ed Available = degrees including at least some online coursework. Source: IPEDS Completions by Distance Education status.}

Is a Degree in Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences Worth It?

Looking purely at the federal earnings tracker, Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences graduates earn a median of $129,383 four years after completion — roughly 240% above the national median for workers with only a high school diploma (~$38,000).

^{ROI estimate compares the program’s 4-yr median earnings against the 2023 BLS CPS median earnings for high-school-only workers. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard + BLS Current Population Survey.}

Related Programs

You may also be interested in these closely related fields of study:

Program	Annual Degrees Awarded
Health Care Professions	994,689
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing	311,372
Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants	99,987
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions	90,379
Health and Medical Administrative Services	90,166
Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services	80,693
Public Health	41,086
Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions	33,946
Medicine	29,737
Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions	29,603
Dental Support Services and Allied Professions	24,761
Communication Disorders Sciences and Services	23,250

References

The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students and international students. This number is then divided by the total number of students to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• National Center for Education Statistics (IPEDS)
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard

More about our data sources and methodologies.