Job Facts & Figures: Information for Success

The demand for pharmacists has risen since last year, according to the latest Aggregate Demand Index figures.

The Pharmacy Workforce Center provides a continuous measure of national, regional, and state-level demand, based on data from panelists involved in the hiring of pharmacists. Demand is estimated on a 5-point scale, with 5 indicating a high demand for pharmacists and 1 indicating that there are many more pharmacists than there are jobs.

The latest available data show national pharmacist demand was 3.62 in July 2015, an increase from the same month in 2014, when the demand was estimated to be 3.39.

Regionally, the Midwestern states saw the greatest demand at 3.71, followed by Southern states at 3.64 and Western states at 3.56. The Northeast saw less demand for pharmacists, with a score of 3.53.

Individuals who work at pharmacies affiliated with large organizations that include community, clinic, and inpatient pharmacies, were the most likely to be in demand, at 3.49. Meanwhile, demand was almost equal for pharmacists in institutional settings (3.34) and in community settings (3.32).

South Dakota, Colorado, and Virginia ranked lower on the demand index, while Maine, Indiana, Oklahoma, Oregon, and New Hampshire had higher demands.