Pharmaceutical Sciences

Types of Degrees Pharmaceutical Sciences Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many pharmaceutical sciences graduations there were in 2020-2021 for each degree level.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Bachelor’s Degree	1,633
Master’s Degree	271
Doctor’s Degree	209
Basic Certificate	20
Associate Degree	6

What Pharmaceutical Sciences Majors Need to Know

In an O*NET survey, pharmaceutical sciences majors were asked to rate what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important in their occupations. These answers were weighted on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the most important.

Knowledge Areas for Pharmaceutical Sciences Majors

Pharmaceutical Sciences majors often go into careers in which the following knowledge areas are important:

• Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
• Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
• Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.

Skills for Pharmaceutical Sciences Majors

A major in pharmaceutical sciences prepares you for careers in which the following skill-sets are crucial:

• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
• Science - Using scientific rules and methods to solve problems.

Abilities for Pharmaceutical Sciences Majors

As a pharmaceutical sciences major, you will find yourself needing the following abilities:

• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
• Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).

What Can You Do With a Pharmaceutical Sciences Major?

Below is a list of occupations associated with pharmaceutical sciences:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists	13.4%	$84,810
Pharmacists	5.6%	$126,120

Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in Pharmaceutical Sciences?

The major attracts more women than men. About 65% of the recent graduates in this field are female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of pharmaceutical sciences majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	327
Black or African American	142
Hispanic or Latino	97
White	933
International Students	58
Other Races/Ethnicities	76

Geographic Diversity

Americans aren’t the only ones with an interest in Pharmaceutical Sciences. About 3.6% of those with this major are international students.

How Much Do Pharmaceutical Sciences Majors Make?

Salaries According to BLS

Average salaries range from $96,420 to $123,670 (25th to 75th percentile) for careers related to pharmaceutical sciences. This range includes all degree levels, so you may expect those with a more advanced degree to make more while those with less advanced degrees will typically make less.

To put that into context, according to BLS data from the first quarter of 2020, the typical high school graduate makes between $30,000 and $57,900 a year (25th through 75th percentile). The average person with a bachelor’s degree (any field) makes between $45,600 and $99,000. Advanced degree holders make the most with salaries between $55,600 and $125,400.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Pharmaceutical Sciences

Some careers associated with pharmaceutical sciences require an advanced degree while some may not even require a bachelor’s. Whatever the case may be, pursuing more education usually means that more career options will be available to you.

How much schooling do you really need to compete in today’s job market? People currently working in careers related to pharmaceutical sciences have obtained the following education levels.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
Bachelor’s Degree	7.3%
Post-Baccalaureate Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master.	6.9%
Master’s Degree	11.0%
Post-Master’s Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Master’s degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees at the doctoral level.	0.2%
First Professional Degree - awarded for completion of a program that: requires at least 2 years of college work before entrance into the program, includes a total of at least 6 academic years of work to complete, and provides all remaining academic requirements to begin practice in a profession.	21.2%
Doctoral Degree	33.4%
Post-Doctoral Training	20.3%

Online Pharmaceutical Sciences Programs

In 2020-2021, 70 schools offered a pharmaceutical sciences program of some type. The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.

Degree Level	Colleges Offering Programs	Colleges Offering Online Classes
Certificate (Less Than 1 Year)	0	0
Certificate (1-2 years)	0	0
Certificate (2-4 Years)	0	0
Associate’s Degree	1	0
Bachelor’s Degree	2	1
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	47	0
Post-Master’s	2	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	34	0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Is a Degree in Pharmaceutical Sciences Worth It?

The median salary for a pharmaceutical sciences grad is $96,420 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.

This is 142% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $1,130,400 after 20 years!

Majors Related to Pharmaceutical Sciences

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to pharmaceutical sciences.

Major	Number of Grads
Pharmacy	15,637
Other Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Administration	876
Pharmaceutics and Drug Design	503
Pharmacy Administration and Pharmacy Policy and Regulatory Affairs	240
Clinical and Industrial Drug Development	206
Pharmacoeconomics/Pharmaceutical Economics	175
Natural Products Chemistry and Pharmacognosy	175
Medicinal and Pharmaceutical Chemistry	161
Industrial and Physical Pharmacy and Cosmetic Sciences	152
Pharmaceutical Marketing and Management	97
Clinical, Hospital, and Managed Care Pharmacy	32

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• College Scorecard
• National Center for Education Statistics
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers First Quarter 2020
• Image Credit: By {} under License

More about our data sources and methodologies.