How To Get Work Experience For Pharmacy

Wondering how to get your foot in the door for pharmacy work experience? Many students worry about finding placements. Especially when it feels like everyone else already has connections.

The good news? There are far more opportunities than you might think. From your local Boots to hospital pharmacy departments, you’re likely to find a placement.

This guide breaks down how to get work experience for pharmacy. We'll go through what to expect, and what to do if traditional placements aren't available. By the end, you'll have a clear action plan to get the experience you need.

Key Takeaways

• You don't need special connections to get pharmacy work experience. Most community pharmacies are happy to help motivated students.

• Hospital pharmacy placements are available through NHS trust websites. They're more competitive and formal, however.

• Virtual work experience is increasingly accepted by universities. This kind of experience gives you genuine insights into pharmacy careers.

• The key is starting early, being polite and professional. Most of all, showing genuine interest in the profession.

Why Pharmacy Work Experience Matters

Universities love seeing pharmacy work experience on your UCAS application. This is because it shows you've actually thought about what pharmacists do day-to-day.

It's not just about ticking boxes for your application. Work experience helps you decide whether community pharmacy, hospital work, or industry roles appeal to you most.

Pharmacy interviews often ask about your work experience. Having real examples of what you've learned makes your answers much stronger.

The experience also helps you understand the skills pharmacists need. These include attention to detail, communication with patients, and working under pressure.

Plus, you might discover aspects of pharmacy you'd never considered. For example, medicines management in hospitals or clinical consultations in community settings.

Work experience shows admissions tutors that you're serious about a pharmacy career. It demonstrates that you're not just picking it because the grades seemed achievable.

These experiences can also be immensely enriching. For example, Rachel Hall (opens in a new tab), a 2nd year pharmacy student at the University of Maryland said about her work experience: “I really enjoyed the shadowing experience, as it gave me a real-life example of what I will do if I work in a health-system setting. It is one thing to hear about it in class, but another to witness it in action, and I’m excited to continue pursuing the clinical pharmacist career path.”

Types of Pharmacy Work Experience

Community Pharmacy Placements

• Your local pharmacy is often the easiest place to start. Some community pharmacists are happy to let students shadow them for a few days.

• You'll see how prescriptions are processed. You'll observe how pharmacists counsel patients about medicines, and how pharmacy businesses work.

• Community pharmacies run services like flu vaccinations, blood pressure checks, and smoking cessation programmes.

• The best bit? Community pharmacies are everywhere. Even if your first choice says no, there'll be another one down the road.

• Start by visiting pharmacies near you and asking to speak to the pharmacist. Explain you're interested in studying pharmacy and ask if they offer work experience.

Hospital Pharmacy Work Experience

• Some NHS trusts run large-scale work experience schemes, sometimes offering places in pharmacy departments. Surrey and Sussex Healthcare (opens in a new tab), for example, offer work experience placements across different roles. 

• Hospital pharmacy is quite different from community work. You'll see how medicines are supplied to wards and how clinical pharmacists work with doctors. You'll even see how specialist medicines are prepared.

• Some hospital trusts offer 1-5 day placements. Pharmacy departments typically offer 1-2 day experiences.

• These placements are formal and competitive. You'll need to apply through official channels and might need to wait weeks for a response. 

• They're brilliant for seeing the clinical side of pharmacy. You'll also understand how pharmacists contribute to patient care in hospitals.

Industry Placements

• Pharmaceutical companies very occasionally offer work experience to school leavers. These are hard to find and competitive.

• Industry experience might involve research and development, regulatory affairs, or manufacturing. It's quite different from patient-facing roles.

• These placements are brilliant. Especially if you're interested in drug discovery, clinical trials, or pharmaceutical businesses.

• Start by checking company websites for work experience programmes. You can also try contacting their HR departments directly.

How To Apply for Pharmacy Work Experience

For community pharmacies, the direct approach works best. Pop in during quieter times, usually mid-morning or mid-afternoon. Ask to speak to the pharmacist.

• Be polite, explain you're considering studying pharmacy. Ask if they offer work experience opportunities. Many will be happy to chat about it. But they are also quite often understaffed, so be mindful.

For hospital placements, check NHS trust websites for work experience applications. Most want formal applications. Response times can be weeks or months though, so plan ahead.

• Prepare a simple CV highlighting any relevant experience, volunteering, or academic achievements. Keep it to one page - they're not expecting loads of experience.

• Write a brief cover letter or email explaining why you're interested in pharmacy. Detail briefly what you hope to learn from the experience. Our guide about how to write the perfect cover letter for work experience will help you.

• Follow up politely if you don't hear back within a couple of weeks, but don't be pushy. Pharmacists are busy people.

Alternatives to Formal Pharmacy Work Experience

Virtual work experience through platforms like Springpod (opens in a new tab) offers pharmacy modules. These can even lead to in-person placements through their 'virtual-to-reality' programmes.They give you insights into what careers look like. They're also increasingly accepted by admissions tutors.

Many NHS trusts now offer virtual work experience programmes. They cover healthcare professions, including pharmacy roles. Examples include Barts Health Trust (opens in a new tab) and Imperial College NHS Trust (opens in a new tab).

Healthcare volunteering gives you patient contact experience that's really valuable for pharmacy applications. Try local care homes, Red Cross (opens in a new tab), or St John Ambulance (opens in a new tab).

Customer service in health-related retail can help you understand the commercial side of healthcare. Try Boots, Superdrug, or supermarket pharmacies, for example.

Even independent research about pharmacy practice shows commitment to understanding the field. This can include reading professional journals or attending pharmacy careers events. 

How To Make the Most of Pharmacy Work Experience

Keep a reflective journal throughout your placement. Note what surprised you and what you learned. Think about how it changed your understanding of pharmacy.

Ask questions! Pharmacists generally love talking about their work and career paths. Ask about their training, biggest challenges, and what they enjoy most.

Pay attention to the skills you see pharmacists using. These include accuracy, communication, problem-solving and empathy. You'll need these for your personal statement and interviews.

Notice how pharmacists work as part of healthcare teams. They coordinate with GPs, hospital doctors, and other health professionals.

Think about which aspects of the role appeal to you most. Do you prefer the patient interaction or the technical aspects of medicines?

Connect what you see to your academic studies. How does A Level chemistry or biology relate to what pharmacists do in practice?

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I Get Pharmacy Work Experience Without Contacts?

Absolutely! Most students don't have pharmacy connections when they start looking. Community pharmacies are often used to students asking for experience. NHS trusts specifically offer work experience to help inform career choices. 

The key is being polite, professional, and showing genuine interest. Be prepared to contact several pharmacies before finding one with availability.

Is Virtual Pharmacy Work Experience Accepted by Universities?

Yes, especially after Covid-19 made virtual experiences more common. Virtual programmes often include dedicated pharmacy modules giving holistic views of the profession. Universities recognise they can provide genuine insights into pharmacy careers. 

While in-person experience is valuable, virtual work experience is far better than none

When Should I Apply for Work Experience Placements?

Start looking at least 3-6 months before you want to do the placement. Some NHS trusts plan their work experience programmes annually. So, early applications work best. For community pharmacies, timing is more flexible. Summer and school holidays are popular, though. 

Apply early in Year 12 if possible. This will give you plenty of time for your personal statement. It also shows long-term planning.

Your Next Steps

Getting pharmacy work experience isn't as hard as you might think. Start with your local community pharmacy. The worst they can say is no, and you'll learn from every conversation.

If formal placements aren't available immediately, don't panic. Virtual experience, healthcare volunteering, and thorough research about the profession all prove commitment.

Remember, universities want to see that you understand what pharmacists actually do. And why you're drawn to the profession. Any experience that helps you articulate this is valuable.

Start your search today. Be persistent but polite, and keep an open mind about different types of experience. Your perfect placement might be just around the corner.

References 

• InsideSOP: Observations of the Clinical Pharmacy Profession (opens in a new tab)

• Surrey and Sussex Healthcare (opens in a new tab)

• Springpod (opens in a new tab)

• Barts Health Trust (opens in a new tab)

• Imperial College NHS Trust (opens in a new tab).

• Red Cross (opens in a new tab)

• St John Ambulance (opens in a new tab)