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Pharmaceutical scientist skills for your resume and career

Updated January 8, 2025
6 min read
Quoted experts
Scott Johnson,
Joe Harrison
Below we've compiled a list of the most critical pharmaceutical scientist skills. We ranked the top skills for pharmaceutical scientists based on the percentage of resumes they appeared on. For example, 13.2% of pharmaceutical scientist resumes contained dosage forms as a skill. Continue reading to find out what skills a pharmaceutical scientist needs to be successful in the workplace.

15 pharmaceutical scientist skills for your resume and career

1. Dosage Forms

Here's how pharmaceutical scientists use dosage forms:
  • Supervised or conducted approximately one dozen process validation projects including tablets, capsules, liquids and ointment dosage forms.
  • Conducted development / scale-up studies for sterile dosage forms, including clinical and toxicological batch manufacturing.

2. Pharmaceutical Sciences

Here's how pharmaceutical scientists use pharmaceutical sciences:
  • Identified various areas of interest among members for advancement of the pharmaceutical sciences.
  • Project team leader for Pharmaceutical Sciences (Pharm Sci) pre-clinical team for new topical compounds.

3. Formulation Development

Formulation Development of a product requires knowledge of patentability, lifecycle, and stability of the product, which leads to its ultimate success. In the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, formulation development is an important skill to possess as it is an integral part of pharmaceutical product development. For example, in large pharmaceutical companies, formulation chemists are hired to deal with the physical drugs' characterization, conduct long-term drug stability, develop prototypes for testing, and more. All of these complicated tasks require you to have extensive knowledge in the formulation development of medical products.

Here's how pharmaceutical scientists use formulation development:
  • Developed business validation and valuation of a medium-throughput topical formulation development platform for screening of multiple lead compounds.
  • Performed formulation development and commercial production of liquid oral, ophthalmic, and injectable formulations.

4. HPLC

Here's how pharmaceutical scientists use hplc:
  • Developed and validated stability-indicating HPLC, GC and other methods for various sponsors.
  • Developed RP- HPLC methods for API and chromatographic purity for pipeline products.

5. DSC

DSC - Differential Scanning Calorimetry is a thermo-analytical technique used to measure how much energy a sample absorbs or releases while heating or cooling. Thus, DSC measures the amount of heat required to increase the temperature of a sample as a function of temperature or time.

Here's how pharmaceutical scientists use dsc:
  • Conceptualized and developed an analytical method for evaluating onset of melting point as a fast and potential orthogonal method to DSC.
  • Optimized differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) method to identify glass transition temperature for lyophilized formulations.

6. FTIR

Here's how pharmaceutical scientists use ftir:
  • Identify and report results of foreign material in beverages from consumer complaints or manufacturing using FTIR technology.

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7. FDA

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is a division of the US Department of Health and Human Services that regulates the production and sale of food, pharmaceutical products, medical equipment, and other consumer goods, as well as veterinary medicine. The FDA is now in charge of overseeing the manufacture of products like vaccines, allergy treatments, and beauty products.

Here's how pharmaceutical scientists use fda:
  • Validated new methods to quantify chemical composition to support the stability programs associated with new drug products submitted to the FDA.
  • Prepared stability data tables into format that can be used by new labs or internalized for submission to FDA.

8. Method Development

Here's how pharmaceutical scientists use method development:
  • Assisted various groups within pharmaceutical analysis with method development, product testing and reference standard qualification-related activities.
  • Worked on the Method development, Method transfer and Validation.

9. GMP

GMP stands for Good Manufacturing Practice. It is a system that ensures that all products like food, beverages, and medicinal drugs that are produced comply with the quality standards. It helps in minimizing the risks and hazards that cannot be eliminated after the testing of final products.

Here's how pharmaceutical scientists use gmp:
  • Performed testing of raw materials, active pharmaceutical ingredients and drug products for release and stability in compliance with GMP.
  • Participate in internal audits of GMP and Health and Safety.

10. CMC

CMC stands for "chemistry, manufacturing, and controls," which represents a standard procedure when producing new pharmaceutical drugs. First the drug is developed through chemical tests and analysis, then the drug is manufactured. Before the pharmaceutical can be offered to the public, it must be tested on individuals, often animal test subjects first and then human beings. This allows pharmacists to determine whether the drug must be reconsidered, reproduced, or whether any side effects accompany the drug.

Here's how pharmaceutical scientists use cmc:
  • Contribute to the preparations of CMC documentation for regulatory submissions (IND, NDA, etc.).
  • Represented TPUSA CMC on project teams as assigned by supervisor.

11. USP

USP, acronym for Unіԛuе Sеllіng Proposition, Unіԛuе Sеllіng Pоіnt or Unіԛuе Value Prороѕіtіоn, іѕ a fасtоr thаt dіѕtіnguіѕhеѕ a product аnd/оr ѕеrvісе from the rеѕt of thе competing brаndѕ іn the market. It ѕummаrіzеѕ thе еѕѕеnсе оf a buѕіnеѕѕ аnd therefore ѕеrvеѕ as thе guіdіng рrіnсірlе for аll mаrkеtіng еffоrtѕ.

Here's how pharmaceutical scientists use usp:
  • Collect and evaluate data and procedures for inclusion in IND/NDA submissions and in the USP.
  • Performed evaluation of tablets using USP methods.

12. R

R is a free software environment and a language used by programmers for statistical computing. The R programming language is famously used for data analysis by data scientists.

Here's how pharmaceutical scientists use r:
  • Created and validated R based automated analysis scripts for quality control release of manufactured materials.
  • Designed R-statistical algorithms and wrote R codes to develop numerical regression.

13. Drug Development

Here's how pharmaceutical scientists use drug development:
  • Prepare risk assessment and manufacturing reports during stages of drug development and manufacturing of clinical trial material (CTM).

14. QC

Quality control is a set of instructions or procedures to ensure a manufactured product or a service is up to the highest quality standards. This set of quality control criteria are either defined by the clients or the company itself.

Here's how pharmaceutical scientists use qc:
  • Provided immunological support for Manufacturing QC Microbiology laboratory.
  • Created/Modified Standard Operating Procedures, Detailed Manufacturing Instructions, In-Process and Final QC testing instructions, and Validation documents.

15. Preformulation

Here's how pharmaceutical scientists use preformulation:
  • Assisted company with preformulation, formulation and process development and patent science leading to novel commercial products.
  • Conducted key preformulation studies (log P/log D) for compounds.
top-skills

What skills help Pharmaceutical Scientists find jobs?

Tell us what job you are looking for, we’ll show you what skills employers want.

What pharmaceutical scientist skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?

Scott Johnson

Professor and Director, University of Maine

This would depend on the student's goals. If interested in working in the environmental industry: HAZWOPER training, obtaining a Professional Geologist certification, developing programming skills. The PG can be obtained through self-study to pass the exam; then, the experience is needed to receive official accreditation. HAZWOPER training can be obtained through short courses. Programming skills in many popular languages can be learned online and with freely available material on the internet. I'd also advocate for people getting work experience, if possible. On a general note, computer programming skills, math/physics knowledge, GIS/remote sensing, and UAV training are valuable ways to use a gap year. Students can do these things effectively from anywhere, as long as they have a computer. There are many online options and even apps to improve knowledge in these fields and are needed for what we do.

What type of skills will young pharmaceutical scientists need?

Joe HarrisonJoe Harrison LinkedIn profile

Animal Scientist and Extension Specialist, Washington State University

Critical thinking and the ability to make the best decisions, realizing that they will make better decisions as one gets more experience. A second skill is the ability to navigate conflict in the workplace.
Do you want to know more?
Read more about what experts have to say about pharmaceutical scientist

List of pharmaceutical scientist skills to add to your resume

Pharmaceutical scientist skills

The most important skills for a pharmaceutical scientist resume and required skills for a pharmaceutical scientist to have include:

  • Dosage Forms
  • Pharmaceutical Sciences
  • Formulation Development
  • HPLC
  • DSC
  • FTIR
  • FDA
  • Method Development
  • GMP
  • CMC
  • USP
  • R
  • Drug Development
  • QC
  • Preformulation
  • IQ/OQ/PQ
  • ICH
  • Laboratory Equipment
  • Lims
  • Drug Products
  • NDA
  • GLP
  • Analytical Methods
  • CMO
  • Development Projects
  • IND
  • Stability Samples
  • PK/PD
  • GC
  • Analytical Techniques
  • Regulatory Submissions
  • Clinical Trials
  • Drug Administration
  • Product Development
  • IR

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

Updated January 8, 2025

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