Faculty of Pharmacy brings the Prescriptionist to Almedalen week

When economy declines, many turn to higher studies and recently Nyheter24 asked Employment officer Kerstin Eriksson to list six professions where a university exam provides great job opportunities and a monthly salary over SEK 40,000. As expected, at the top of the list we find the Prescriptionist: A license profession where employers compete for newly graduated workers.

“That is correct. Pharmacies are in constant need of new prescriptionists and the industry needs to recruit competencies for manufacturing. That the Regions' Care units are also hiring an increasing number of prescriptionists means that the demand for new competence will intensify even further. So when Sweden's Bachelor of Science Programmes in Pharmacy are struggling to fill their study places, it is a challenge for our entire society,” states Fredrik Jernerén, chair of Uppsala University's Bachelor of Science Programme in Pharmacy.

Current statistics confirm that the numbers of applicants to several of the country's prescriptionist educations are decreasing. At the Faculty of Pharmacy, the number of applicants for the autumn semester 2023 was just enough to fill the 75 places. One semester later, the new prescriptionist students did not even correspond to half of the available seats. Another challenge is that relatively few students take their license. In May, UKÄ reported a throughput of only 58 percent at the Bachelor of Science Programmes in Pharmacy. One of the recent graduates at Uppsala University is Jabbar Seek:

“I have always been interested in chemistry and biology, and understanding how to prepare drugs that relieve pain and disease among suffering people is the best way to apply these interests. After three good years in Uppsala with a friendly atmosphere, constructive discussions and wonderful friends, I am now starting the next step in my career set on the pharmaceutical industry. Preferably with a focus on patient care and contributing to a meaningful future,” says Jabbar Seek.

With the slogan Give it up for the Prescriptionist: Your guide in the pharmaceutical jungle, Emma Lundkvist, coordinator at Uppsala University's Bachelor of Science Programmes in Pharmacy, wants to break negative trends and fill study places, preferably with first-choice applicants who aim to work as a prescriptionist. She pinpoints several possible interventions with great potential: Making the professional title (in Swedish: Receptarie) more well-known - not least among study counselors and Employment officer, reviewing eligibility requirements and lowering the threshold for career changers.

“At this summer's Almedalen Week, our Faculty of Pharmacy will arrange a seminar where we, together with representatives of pharmacies, student organisations and politics, will turn the spotlight to the declining search pressure. Our ambition for this meeting is to generate ideas to strengthen the visibility and attractiveness of the prescriptionist profession, but also form the basis for a joint platform. If we can get all stakeholders on board, I am convinced that both the Bachelor of Science Programmes in Pharmacy and the prescriptionist profession is facing a bright future.”

See film about working as a Prescriptionist

text: Magnus Alsne, photo: Mikael Wallerstedt a o