Guys please I need your candid advise. I have read through this career trend and I can only commend you guys for your intelligent advise and ''fact droppings''

I am 30 years old, a graduate of Chemistry from a respected institution in Nigeria. I have passion in Health field (Medical/Pharmaceuticals), I have discovered myself and I am convinced that my career is in that line because all my gifts and personality point in that direction and i'm cool with how I feel. I want to have a good drug knowledge and have decided to study pharmacy through direct entry but I am afraid of what employment will look like in 5years time when I will be around 35. My parents are against it, talking about marriage and settling down. I want to resign from my employment and I am going to sponsor myself, I don't want to graduate as a pharmacist and be stranded or ask my parents for ANYTHING, they have tried for me I should begin to ''pay back'' at this age. Please advise me, IS PHARMACY REALLY WORTH IT, WHAT ABOUT MY AGE AND EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY. Is there a way of making money in school as a pharmacy student? My present employment pays 50k. I do not want to be a chemist or any of these roadside drug dealers (even though I am a chemistry graduate), infact I use to tell some of them that what they do is illegal, I feel a nudge each time I see people sell drugs inside the sun or molue (fake drugs with poor storage/transport condition)..... hmmm let God forgive me, I don't like seeing those people because they are killers. I have some cGMP knowledge because I did my SIWES in a pharmaceutical industry and I enjoyed it, I also like to attend to patients and counsel them especially on drugs but I don't like the attitudes of some Nigerian doctors towards pharmacists in our hospitals, they feel patients come to the hospital to see only the doctors, hence pharmacists should just dispense drugs and not have any rapport with patients and this can kill my own dream of counselling and patient pharma care. I want to be respected as a professional even if I am not making too much money at least let me be comfortable with my family as long as I impact lives and fulfil my purpose in life. I have made my O'level results (at one sitting, I wrote WAEC two times after my NYSC because the school does not accept two O'level results). Should I go ahead, what do you think the future holds for me in the industry? PLEASE I NEED YOUR ADVICE. Thanks

WOOOW....nice one sir..You are very so determined..My advice is ITS NEVA TOO LATE TO DO WHAT MAKES YOU HAPPY..Life is too short for us to live in regrets..Go for Gold sir and I repeat GO FOR IT..YOU WILL BE CELEBRATED AND PPL WILL ONE DAY LISTEN TO AN ADVICE LIKE THIS FRM YOU

Go for it if your heart desires it. But bear in mind there is a price to pay.
You can as well go for medicine if you so much treasure a rapport with patients.

You want my sincere opinion? Please go for Medicine instead.

Still remains one profession in health that you are almost certain you will get a job even in your 40s. It is so worth it. Then again, you get to do all the counselling and rapport with patients.

Truth be told, most Pharmacists in Nigeria just dispense drugs like Technicians. There is barely any difference between them and the road side Chemists. Most of them end up as marketers/reps for Pharmaceutical companies. Is that what you would want to struggle so hard to achieve? I don't see any job satisfaction in that.

You want to earn some respect, be employable at 40years and have a professional rapport with patients? Again, I say go for Medicine.

Goodluck.

The truth is that most of the things we hate is what will bring us breakthrough. I don't like CCNA (professional course in Computer)before and one IT company that is best in that course. But in 2011, I found myself offering CCNA in same company I don't like. And today, am employed by same company with broad opportunities that follows it. What am I trying to say, you hate road side drug sellers (Chemist), but that is one thing am looking at that will see you through in this your mission. My parents trained us with Chemist (They're not graduates) and I know how much we make from that biz. My advise, open a chemist shop, put one lady/nurse to manage it for you, and run ur pharmacist programme. Most of the successful pharmacists I know have chemist shop(s). Who knows, you may get a beautiful good nurse that may turn out to be your wife in the nearest future. Thereby using one stone to kill many birds.
My candid advise bro.

I am not pure science inclined but i have friends who are.

I would advise you to opt for Medicine instead. Those Medical Doctors have succeeded in making other medical personnel feel and look inferior. I doubt if there's anything like age discrimination in the health sector. Even if there is, it will only be limited to the private sector and i heard Intern Doctors earn more than 150,000NGN. With the Doctors gunning for additional hazard allowance of 100,000NGN/month, the salary can only get better.

All the best bro.

Mod, I think the Op needs advise from relevant and experienced medical personnel who had gone through the same path; kindly move this thread to the front page. Thank you

Nice. Thread. I am 23. A chemistry graduate. I wanted to go for medicine with direct entry but I felt like the number of years I'll need to spend again in school will be too much. I thought of how old I will be when I finally graduate. Because of that, I wanted to pick an MSC form and apply for MSC in public health. But after reading this thread, I'm encouraged to still go for the medicine because I'll be around 29 at graduation with all things being equal. So sir, follow your heart, don't let age be the barrier. I wish you the best.

You want my sincere opinion? Please go for Medicine instead.

Still remains one profession in health that you are almost certain you will get a job even in your 40s. It is so worth it. Then again, you get to do all the counselling and rapport with patients.

Truth be told, most Pharmacists in Nigeria just dispense drugs like Technicians. There is barely any difference between them and the road side Chemists. Most of them end up as marketers/reps for Pharmaceutical companies. Is that what you would want to struggle so hard to achieve? I don't see any job satisfaction in that.

You want to earn some respect, be employable at 40years and have a professional rapport with patients? Again, I say go for Medicine.

Goodluck.

studying pharmacy and furthering as a medical doctor abroad how's that?

so after 6 years what did OP later settle for? is he happy now?