VISA > APC Eligibility > Supervised Practice
The basic steps to working as a pharmacist in Australia are:
- See if you are eligible for a temporary work VISA, this can last 1-2 years.
- See if your current license as a pharmacist in whichever country you are from is eligible to be recognised by the APC.
- Arrange supervised practice.
In specific, this process and its length depends on your country of origin...
If you are from New Zealand...
If you obtained your pharmacy degree and license to practice in New Zealand you will be accepted for registration by all State and Territory pharmacy registering authorities via the Pharmacy Board of Australia. Conditions for registration will vary between the registering authorities, and you may need a short period of practical experience supervised by a pharmacist in Australia before you can be registered.
If you are from anywhere other than New Zealand...
Applicants must have completed an approved pharmacy course which included a minimum component of the equivalent of three years of full-time academic study. The applicant must also be registered or be eligible for registration as a pharmacist in the country in which the qualification was obtained.
Once you have established whether you are eligible, these are the next steps...
- You will need to register with the Pharmacy Board of Australia
- Apply for a visa issued by the Australian Department of Immigration and Border Protection (Australian Immigration Department)
Overseas-qualified pharmacists from countries other than New Zealand, seeking general registration in Australia are required to pass an examination conducted under the auspices of the Australian Pharmacy Council (APC). All applicants are categorized into either 'Stream A' or 'Stream B'.
- 'Stream A' candidates, are required to complete a full internship and must follow the procedures outlined in graduates of an approved program of study.
- 'Stream B' candidates are required to complete a shorter period of supervised practice and require limited registration for supervised practice.
Unsure whether you should choose Stream A or Stream B? Click the link for more information.
Intern Year Assessment Blueprint (IYB)
The Australian Pharmacy Council (APC) requires all graduates to complete a period of supervised practice, or internship, to become registered as a pharmacist in Australia. The IYB aims to provide clarity on how competency is measured during this intern year, and by whom.
It has been acknowledged that interns develop at different rates and are exposed to practice activities at different stages. The IYB was set up to ensure that individual interns are fairly assessed, by a variety of different methods, depending on their competencies. The following is a list of the assessment methods included within the IYB:
Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ)
Oral Assessment
Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE)
Mini Clinical Evaluation Exercise (mini-CEX)
Case-based Discussion (CbD)
Multisource Feedback (MSF)
In-Training Assessment (ITA)
Portfolio
Click here to learn more about the Intern Year Assessment Blueprint.
What salary would you expect as a licensed pharmacist in Australia?
The answer is anywhere between $52,000 a year, to $140,000 a year for more senior pharmacists. If you would like to know more about Pharmacist salaries in Australia, have a look at our Australian Pharmacist Immigration resource.