Pharmacologist
Pharmacologists investigate how potential medicines interact with biological systems, undertaking in vitro research (using cells or animal tissues) or in vivo research (using whole animals) to predict what effect the drug might have in humans.
Pharmacologists aim to understand how drugs work so they can be used effectively and safely. They also conduct research to aid drug discovery and development. Their work involves a high level of collaboration with other scientists.
Areas of specialism include clinical pharmacology (carrying out work involving the effects of medicines on people within clinical trial studies), neuropharmacology (studying the effect of chemicals on the nervous system) and regulatory pharmacology.
Closely related fields include toxicology, biochemistry and DMPK (drug metabolism and pharmacokinetics).
Much of the role is laboratory-based, working as part of a scientific research team, and may include the following activities:
Disseminating the results of work to others is important, as is maintaining an awareness of other pharmacological research. This may involve:
Salary figures are intended as a guide only.
The complex investigations involved in pharmacology require a sound scientific education. The following academic subjects may increase your chances:
Occasionally, it may be possible to start a career in pharmacology with an HND, but this is not common, and further study would be required to progress within industry.
Competition for jobs can be high, particularly if you aim to enter research and development (R&D). A postgraduate qualification such as an MSc in pharmacology or a related subject, or a relevant PhD, is advantageous and sometimes essential for employment with a major pharmaceutical company. The most common subjects taken by pharmacology graduates at postgraduate level include pharmacology, biochemistry, molecular biology and neuroscience.
Students undertaking postgraduate research are usually registered for a PhD. Completion of a PhD demonstrates advanced skills in the formulation of research enquiries relating to complex scientific problems as well as good technical research, laboratory and communication skills. For those considering further study with a view to working in industry, choosing a PhD funded by industry is a useful way to gain relevant experience and contacts. Academic tutors, research directories and websites such as Jobs.ac.uk and Find a PhD can help identify appropriate opportunities.
Any relevant work experience is also extremely valuable in order to gain experience and skills, to demonstrate interest and commitment to potential employers, and to help you find out what the work is really like. Undertaking a vacation placement or a year’s industrial placement with a pharmaceutical company during your studies is advantageous when applying for jobs and going for interviews. Experience can also be gained through laboratory assistant work or vacation studentships at your place of study and through workshadowing. The British Pharmacological Society (BPS) offers vacation studentships to undergraduate students and bursaries to postgraduate students to pursue research and attend national and international conferences.
Most of the major pharmaceutical companies have graduate training schemes, but graduate entry-level positions are also frequently advertised on company websites as individual job roles, rather than as part of a formal scheme. For jobs with larger organisations in industry, formal online applications are typical. Check each organisation's website for details and application deadlines. For smaller organisations, a speculative letter and CV may be acceptable. Many organisations also use contract staff or employ scientific recruitment agencies to fill their vacancies for them.
Candidates need to show evidence of the following:
For more information, see work experience and internships and search courses and research.
All scientists involved in laboratory work are required to participate in training on health and safety and good laboratory practice (GLP). This training may include risk assessment workshops and control of substances hazardous to health regulations (COSHH) training. Scientists who carry out experiments using animals are required to hold a Home Office Licence, see Home Office - Science & Research .
Most employers provide the professional and specialist technical training needed by pharmacologists to perform their sophisticated laboratory work. In addition, short training courses are usually offered in areas such as project management, data interpretation, presentation skills, and report writing. Jobs in industry tend to be accompanied by structured training programmes that may include completing placements in different functions of the organisation, working with a mentor or buddy, and drawing up personal development plans with line managers.
Vitae runs courses for PhD research students designed to develop communication, networking, teamworking and career management skills. Advice on issues such as supervisor management, academic careers, writing up and CVs can also be found on their website.
Both the British Pharmacological Society (BPS) and the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) offer continuing education programmes. Some universities and research or science training centres also offer a range of training opportunities and advanced short courses.
A pharmacology degree is also a good basis from which to start if you wish to retrain in a related field such as medicine, dentistry or veterinary medicine. There are graduate fast-track medical courses available at some UK universities. See Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) .
Opportunities for career development are good in both the academic and commercial sectors.
Within universities, many students advance into a postdoctoral research position following completion of a PhD. These tend to be fixed-term contracts. Career development for contract researchers may be limited and job security may become an issue. However, you may find that such research contracts are necessary, along with the production of published research papers, in order to progress. Having completed postdoctoral research, you may then gain a research fellowship or lectureship. Career progression from this stage may involve an increasing amount of teaching, supervising, administration and management. Within a university department you are likely to be part of a research team and, as your career progresses, you may become principal investigator leading a team.
Career progression within industry is generally based on increased responsibilities such as supervising and managing projects. Once you have gained experience at this level, you may move on to a more senior management position, which is likely to involve spending less time on practical and laboratory-based scientific work and taking on more office-based and supervisory work. In order to advance your career, you may also opt (or be required) to work in other European countries or the United States.
Given the multi-faceted nature of industry, you may also have the opportunity to move into different functions within the organisation. For example, within the pharmaceutical industry, pharmacologists can be found not only in laboratory-based research and development, but also in information science, product licensing, regulatory affairs, product management, sales and marketing, clinical research and trials, safety and toxicology, finance, post-marketing surveillance, business development and portfolio management.
Many pharmacologists, having gained a grounding in experimental science in academia or industry, may branch into associated fields such as medical writing, writing for the media, patent work, regulatory affairs, medical sales, or advisory roles in government bodies and medical charities. Other options include moving into the business management side of a commercial enterprise, marketing a new medicine, or becoming a recruitment consultant for a specialist agency serving the pharmaceutical industry.
Pharmacologists are employed in a range of sectors in a variety of roles with opportunities in companies and organisations in the UK and abroad.
A large number of pharmacologists are employed by companies in the pharmaceutical industry, where they are involved in discovering and developing drugs and carrying out clinical trials. Within the pharmaceutical industry, there has been an increase in the demand for new recruits with specialist knowledge. These include those already working in, or looking to enter, discovery, pre-clinical drug trials and development services. This is largely due to changes in market demand and the industry's need to speed up the process from drug discovery to marketing the drugs.
Pharmacologists may also work for clinical or contract research organisations (CROs) or for companies which target particular aspects of bioscience that impinge on drug discovery and development. Other employers include academic departments within universities, where pharmacologists work on research projects which are often government-funded or funded by charities.
Other work opportunities exist within government laboratories, environmental agencies, charity-funded research organisations such as the Medical Research Council (MRC) , and other research institutes. The work is largely focused on research and development in these organisations.
Hospitals in The National Health Service (NHS) also employ pharmacologists, usually to work on clinical trials. Pharmacology graduates are also recruited to work at the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) .
Specialist agencies dealing with recruitment for the pharmaceutical industry, such as Jobs in Science and Scientific Recruitment Group (SRG) , Matchtech and Lab Support UK , are another useful source of vacancies. Visit Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) for details.
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