The health profession that combines health sciences together with chemical sciences is known as pharmacy. Pharmacy also concerns the safe as well as effective use of pharmaceutical drugs. Details regarding pharmacy are given below.

Practice areas of Pharmacy

These are a few practice areas in pharmacy:

• Clinical pharmacy
• Community pharmacy
• Compounding pharmacy
• Consultant pharmacy
• Hospital pharmacy
• Internet pharmacy
• Military pharmacy
• Nuclear pharmacy

Other practice areas available in pharmacy comprises of Pharmacy informatics and Veterinary pharmacy.

What are the courses available?

These are the courses available for students who are interested in pharmacy:

• Bachelor of Pharmacy (B.Pharm)
• Diploma in Ayurvedic Pharmacy (DAP)
• Diploma in Pharmacy (DPharm)
• Diploma in Veterinary Pharmacy (DVP)
• Master of Pharmacy (M.Pharm)

Institution that offer courses in pharmacy

There are many colleges in India that offer students with the Bachelor and Postgraduate level courses in Pharmacy. A few top colleges consist of:

• Bapatla College of Pharmacy, Jawaharlal Nehru Technical University, Hyderabad
• Birla Institute of Technology, Jharkhand, Bihar University
• Faculty of Technology & Engineering, University of Baroda
• Guru Jambheshwar University Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Haryana
• Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Guru Ghasidas University, Bilaspur
• L S Institute of Pharmaceuticals, Andhra, Kakatiya University
• University College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Warangal, Kakatiya University

There are many other colleges that offer pharmaceutical courses in India. To join the graduate level program in pharmacy (B.Pharm), students are needed to write an entrance test. Those who finish their graduate level studies can get jobs or go for advanced studies. Here also students need to write an admission test. Career options available for students of pharmacy are mentioned below.

Career options in pharmacy

The pharmacy industry of India is quite large and is growing in time. Increase in the number of nursing/old age homes, pharmaceutical firms and hospitals within in our country have augmented the scope of this field.

In fact, the jobs available in the area of Pharmacy is quit ample. Individuals can get work with firms or start their own business if they choose. Jobs can be got by people in research institutes, teaching hospitals and the pharmaceutical industry. A few other areas include universities, the defense department and the many departments of the Indian government. Those who wish to pursue a research must have an M.Pharm or Doctoral degree (PhD). It is their responsibility for the development of new drugs in addition to the production work. Jobs for students of pharmacy can also be got in the cosmetic and food industries.

Those who would like to start their own businesses must register with the State Pharmacy Council (SPC) after they get their degree or diploma in pharmacy.