How To Become A Compounder: What It Is and Career Path

What is a compounder and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

If you are thinking about becoming a compounder, you should probably read the job description of the positions you are applying to carefully. Compounders work in factories to prepare raw materials for production--but they also work in pharmacies to prepare medication. That's one way for companies to make sure that applicants read the job posting correctly!

If you were a compounder that worked in manufacturing, you would help mix chemicals and other raw materials ahead of the production process. If you worked in a pharmacy, you would help prepare medication and adjust it based on a patient's body type or needs, although you wouldn't prescribe medication. No matter where you worked, you would have to mix some types of chemicals.

The qualifications you need to work as a compounder depend on the kind of compounding you want to do. If you worked in a factory, you would probably only need a high school diploma, a few years of experience, and maybe certification to work with hazardous materials. If you worked in pharmaceuticals, you would probably need at least a bachelor's degree.

ScoreCompounderUS Average

Salary

3.0

Avg. Salary $38,955

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

8.1

Growth rate 4%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

4.5

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.70%

Asian 4.39%

Black or African American 11.28%

Hispanic or Latino 20.59%

Unknown 4.05%

White 59.00%

Gender

female 8.84%

male 91.16%

Age - 47

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 47

Stress level

8.1

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

7.1

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

3.3

Work life balance is poor

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a compounder

Explore compounder education requirements

Most common compounder degrees

High School Diploma

41.2 %

Bachelor's

25.8 %

Associate

15.8 %

Start to develop specific compounder skills

Skills	Percentages
Math	11.67%
Basic Math	9.62%
GMP	8.08%
Mixers	5.43%
Safety Procedures	5.26%

Complete relevant compounder training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 3-6 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New compounders learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a compounder based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real compounder resumes.

Research compounder duties and responsibilities

Maintain water systems for the EPA.
Follow OSHA and company policies regarding hazardous materials.
Work with ISO certify companies.
Operate HAAS CNC mill and turning center.

Prepare your compounder resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your compounder resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a compounder resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable compounder resume templates

Build a professional compounder resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your compounder resume.