"Pharmaceutical Engineering" as a Career Option
Pharmaceutical engineering is a branch of pharmaceutical science and technology that involves development and manufacturing of products, processes, an
Pharmaceutical engineering is a branch of pharmaceutical science and technology that involves development and manufacturing of products, processes, and components in the pharmaceuticals industry (i.e. drugs & biologics).
Pharmaceutical Engineering/Technology is a broad stream which is connected to any part of the process of designing, producing, and marketing pharmaceuticals.
Basically this field comes under Chemical engineering and is involved in the discovery, design and development of parts and products within pharmaceutical industry. Pharmaceutical engineering utilizes the concept of both biology and biochemistry to design, develop, and manufacture pharmaceutical drugs. Those who work in this field are referred as Pharmaceutical Engineers.
Pharmaceutical engineers have to design, construct, maintain and operate the technology used to research and manufacture pharmaceutical drugs. Engineers work along with the chemists and pharmacists to research and develop active pharmaceutical ingredients, and then formulate it into the product that a patient takes.
From designing the product up to packing, pharmaceutical engineers are required at every level of a pharmaceutical organization.
The pharmaceutical sector offers huge scope for engineers to work in the development and manufacture of drugs. As this is a field based on health and medicine, it always ensures job security and is not affected by market ups & downs.
Eligibility
- The minimum eligibility criterion for undergraduate programs (B.E/B.Tech/B.Sc) in pharmaceutical science and technology/ pharmaceutical engineering is 10+2 pass with Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics as compulsory subjects.
Courses:
Colleges in India offer a bachelor's & postgraduate programme in pharmaceutical engineering,
To get the list of institutes click on the course name.
- Undergraduate programme
B.Sc. Pharmaceutical Technology
B.Tech. Pharmaceutical Technology
B.Pharm
- Postgraduate programme
M.Tech. Bio-Pharmaceutical Technology
M.Tech. Pharmaceutical Technology
M.Pharm
Top 10 Pharmaceutical Institutes as per Rankings of MHRD,2016
- Manipal College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Manipal
- University Institute of Pharmaceutical Science, Chandigarh
- Jamia Hamdard University, New Delhi
- Puna College of Pharmacy, Pune
- Institute of Pharmacy, Nirma University, Ahemdabad
- Bombay College of Pharmacy,Mumbai
- Birla Institute of Technology, Ranchi
- Amrita School of Pharmacy, Kochi
- JSS College of Pharmacy, Ootacamund,Ooty
- JSS college of Pharmacy,Mysuru
Job Prospects
This industry has plenty to offer both to fresh graduates and expertise,since medication is a necessity of human life. There are a wide variety of careers for engineers to work in each sector of the pharmaceutical industry including research of new drugs and drug delivery systems, scale-up process, manufacturing, labeling and packaging, facility design, management, sales, and education.
A pharmaceutical engineer can easily get a Jo in pharmaceutical industry, in R&D labs, designing quality drugs for diseases, production and quality systems, biomedical industries.
They can find jobs in biopharmaceutical plants, biotechnological plants and Pharmaceutical manufacturing industries.
Some reputed pharma companies
- GlaxoSmithKline
- Lupin
- Dabur Pharma
- Ranbaxy Labs
- Merck
- Cipla
Remuneration
Freshers can get a starting salary of Rs 12,000 to Rs 15,000 per month excluding other allowances.
In the government sector, the salary range of diploma holders is Rs 9,000 to Rs 12,000 per month
With more experience or as an established independent consultant one could earn more. Senior engineers can earn anywhere in between Rs 30,000 and Rs 50,000 a month. Lecturers in colleges get a starting salary of around Rs 20,000/- per month.