Pharmacist CV Example & 2024 Writing Guide for the UK

Whether it was your inner calling to help people, one pill at a time, or you opted to get your prerequisites for med school this way and overstayed—it’s time to put that education to work. It really is time to start crafting your CV to get those top jobs and getting years of valuable experience under your white overalls.

With this pharmacist CV guide, your CV will draw all the attention, just like coughing on a bus anywhere in the world in April 2020. You must titrate what is really important to your prospective employer, and avoid all the traps that other pharmacist CV examples will most definitely fall into.

Read this guide to get instructions on how to write a professional pharmacist CV as well as pharmacy personal statement examples for a top-notch CV opening.

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Pharmacist CV example

That’s the prescription for a pharmacist CV. Now fill out your own prescription:

1. Write a pharmacist CV personal statement

If you were a drug, your CV personal statement would be your label. In one quick glance you should be able to tell the main active ingredient is, and the dosage. Studies found that the average recruiter looks at a CV for 7.4 seconds. So, the medication label doesn’t seem like a bad comparison.

Your years of experience are your milligrams. The job of a pharmacist may be difficult to stand out in (apart from by making mistakes!), so your years of tenure are probably most crucial.

Then, explain exactly what ailments it is that you can cure: low turnover, stock wastage, lack of upselling. Allow your patient to see what you can do for them. Like in this pharmacy personal statement example that effectively starts a CV:

Pharmacy personal statement example

A strong CV summary will convince the recruiter you’re the perfect candidate. Save time and choose a ready-made personal statement written by career experts and adjust it to your needs in the LiveCareer CV builder.

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2. Concoct your pharmacist CV job description

If the personal statement was your label, then the work experience section is the leaflet. Here’s where you should be able to find out exactly what else goes into these pills, and the wider spectrum of conditions that they (you!) can remedy.

Lucky for you! Most pharmacist CV examples will make a boring list of duties and responsibilities. Sure, you were filling prescriptions. What pharmacist doesn’t? Focus on measurable ways of showing what impact you can have. Use action verbs to add strength to your statements.

Compose a list of 3 to 7 bullet points, descending in order of importance. The PAR (Problem-Action-Result) formula can be very helpful in writing these bullet points, and it also applies to a locum pharmacist CV. Record your relevant pharmacist work experience under the following heading:

[Job Title]

[Employer Name, Location]

[Dates of Employment]

With older positions, don’t exceed three bullet points, and don’t repeat anything from other entries. 

Pharmacist CV examples: job description

3. List your education on your pharmacy CV

Unless you are fresh out of school, your education section just has to fulfil one requirement: be there. You cannot practice the profession without an MPharm, so most pharmacist CVs will be on an exactly level playing field regarding education. Focus more on the job description instead.

If you are an overseas pharmacist from outside the European Economic Area looking to transfer your career to the UK, you will need to complete an Overseas Pharmacists Assessment Programme (OSPAP).

The premier institutions offering OSPAP conversion courses are Kingston University, University of Hertfordshire, and University of Brighton.

How to list your degree? Only mention the qualification, key subjects, date of graduation, and school name, like below:

Pharmacist CV examples: education

4. List your relevant pharmacist skills

Most CVs these days will point out approximately five key skills on a tab on the side of the document, and your pharmacist CV should be no different. Use this place to highlight some minor hard and soft skills (like communication skills) that are important but don’t require a full sentence elsewhere.

Alternately, use this place to reiterate your strongest sides. If you have space to fill, you could even add one sentence of explanation to each skill.

Either way, make sure these are the most important things to your employer as per the job posting. Focus on some extra skills you bring to the counter, or the ones you excel at. Like so:

Pharmacist CV examples: skills

5. Inject additional sections into your pharmacist CV

When at the beginning of your pharmacist career, it may be hard to fill the space. Sections like Volunteering, Languages or Interests could be valuable, because they show transferable skills like multitasking and a strong work ethic, especially if you have achievements on them.

Later on, you could accrue specialist certifications that could increase your job market value. Either way, they belong at the very end of your pharmacist or locum pharmacist CV. Your work experience and education are more significant in importance. 

Pharmacist CV examples: additional sections

6. Write a cover letter to support your pharmacist CV

If the personal statement is your label, the rest of the CV is the leaflet, then your pharmacist cover letter is the advert. 

Avoid empty statements like ‘detail-oriented, reliable, and punctual’—those are as inspiring as American anti-depressant adverts. Think more painkiller advert—there’s a problem, there’s a pill, there’s no problem. You are the pill. The problem is up to you to define.

From the get go, hook them in with your most unique achievement or skill. Something that can solve a problem they have. Study the job ad for their most important expectations, and make sure you discuss how you match those expectations in the body of your cover letter.

Write another paragraph that tells them exactly what you’re going to do for them, and be confident in asking for a call or an interview. Avoid dry statements like ‘I look forward to hearing from you’.

What else to remember about when preparing a pharmacist CV?

If you don’t nail your CV format, there may be some side effects. Someone might assume you don’t care or are clumsy—and send your CV straight to the bin. Getting your CV structure right is like taking vitamins. Here are some of the most important ones: 

• Head each CV section with a clear heading, and space the sections out evenly.
• Choose a classic CV font. Didot is one that will stand out from the rest.
• Use even margins on all sides, 1-inch minimum.
• Unless told not to, save your pharmacist/locum pharmacist CV in a PDF format.
• When it comes to CV length, go for one page if you're a junior. Otherwise, two pages are fine.
• Best CV templates are ATS-scannable. Visual CVs can be a hard pill to swallow.

There may not be that many pharmacies in your area hiring, so make the best of each shot. Craft a unique pharmacist CV for each job, and follow them up after a couple weeks. Good luck! 

You don’t have to be a CV writing expert. In the LiveCareer CV builder you’ll find ready-made content for every industry and position, which you can then add with a single click.

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Did we answer all your questions on how to write a pharmacy CV? Got any job hunting tips and tricks you’d like to share? Did you find our pharmacist CV template useful? Use the comments section below. I’m looking forward to hearing from you.

How we review the content at LiveCareer

Our editorial team has reviewed this article for compliance with Livecareer’s editorial guidelines. It’s to ensure that our expert advice and recommendations are consistent across all our career guides and align with current CV and cover letter writing standards and trends. We’re trusted by over 10 million job seekers, supporting them on their way to finding their dream job. Each article is preceded by research and scrutiny to ensure our content responds to current market trends and demand.