Pharmacologists

Pharmacologists play an important role in medicine and in science by studying the effects of drugs, chemicals, and other substances on humans, animals, and plants. These highly educated scientists use their knowledge of medicine, pharmacy, nursing, dentistry, veterinary medicine, and other fields to conduct research on living tissues and organs to determine how drugs and other chemicals act at the cellular level. Their results help to discover how drugs and other chemicals should be most effectively used. The study of pharmacology is necessary to standardize drug dosages; analyze chemicals, food additives, poisons, insecticides, and other substances; and identify dangerous substances and harmful levels of controlled chemicals. The American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics says that pharmacology has two main branches: pharmacodynamics (the study of the molecular, biochemical, and physiological effects of drugs, including drug mechanism of action) and pharmacokinetics (the study of the absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion of drugs). There are currently 146,600 medical scientists, including pharmacologists, in the United States.

Salary Range

$100,000+

Minimum Education Level

Doctorate

Certification/License

Recommended

Outlook

Faster than the Average

Personality Traits

Conventional

Problem-Solving

Technical

Career Ladder

Research Director of Pharmacology or Professor

Senior Pharmacologist

Pharmacologist