Pharma students don’t seem to be interested in community pharmacy or working as salesmen or chemists at retail pharmaceutical stores. This was revealed at a `job placement’ fair organised for pharmacy students by the Gujarat Technological University(GTU) here on Saturday and Sunday. A total of 31 pharmaceutical companies including Zydus Cadilla, Troikaa, Piramal and Apollo Pharmacy had participated in the fair and interviewed the candidates for a total of 840 jobs, 165 of which were for core pharmacy fields like production, quality control, research and development and marketing and the remaining 675 jobs for community pharmacy. While all the posts under core pharmacy were filled up in the placement fair, only 105 candidates accepted the offer of community pharmacy jobs, with 570 community pharmacy posts lying unfilled. This was the biggest campus placement event for pharmacy students organised by any university in the state so far. Students who had completed their B.Pharm and M.Pharm courses from pharmacy colleges affiliated to GTU were called to appear for the interviews. Speaking to The Indian Express, Manish Raj, associate professor at GTU’s Centre of Pharmaceutical Studies, who coordinated with the industry for the placement, said that the students did not seem to be interested in community pharmacy jobs. Another GTU professor involved with the placement said that the students felt that it was perhaps a prestige issue as pharmacy stores were generally handled by people with a diploma in pharmacy. Another reason for students refusing the community pharmacy job, the GTU officials said, was low salary. Students with B.Pharm degrees were offered an annual salary of Rs. 1.2 to 1.8 lakh only. M.Pharm students shortlisted for production and quality control in manufacturing departments were offered Rs. 1.8 to 2.4 lakh annually.
