Pharmacists in India are ambitious, but how many of them truly achieve their dream job?
This is the story of Anisha, a retail pharmacist from Goa who got an illustrious job offer in Burj Khalifa. You can even get a job in Dubai as a pharmacist. Know the secret here in this blog.
After graduation, Anisha took up a role in the pharmaceutical industry. She was handling QA and QC. The salary was ₹16,000 a month. The shifts were of prolonged hours. Some days stretched to 12 hours. There wasn’t any work recognition, but just slogging daily.
Nothing was “wrong.” It just wasn’t moving. At the end of each month, after expenses, she would sit with the same thought:
“If I continue like this, what changes?”
First Step to Get a Job in Dubai as a Pharmacist
Anisha shifted into retail pharmacy. It did not feel like a bold move. It was simply a better opportunity at that moment.
Retail was different. Patients walked in with real concerns. Prescriptions had to be handled carefully. Counselling mattered. Accuracy mattered. Communication mattered. The first year was overwhelming. The second year felt manageable. By the fourth year, she realised she had become confident.
She could handle a rush hour without panic. She could explain medicines clearly. She could manage stock and patient queries simultaneously. She had not been planning Dubai during those four years. She had just been building competence.
Later, that competence would matter more than she expected. Like many pharmacists, she had heard about opportunities in the UAE. Better pay. Structured systems. International exposure.
But she didn’t want to chase social media stories. She wanted clarity. She researched the process and understood that to work legally in Dubai, she would need to clear the licensing exam conducted by the Dubai Health Authority (DHA).
She registered for it and studied after work. Some evenings were exhausting, and weekends would disappear into preparation.
In November 2025, she cleared the DHA exam. She remembers the relief more than the excitement. But very quickly, another realisation followed: clearing the exam only makes you eligible. It does not hand you a job.
Is Getting a Job in Dubai Difficult for Pharmacists?
For weeks, she debated whether to travel to Dubai. There was no offer letter waiting. No relative promising placement. Just her license and her preparation.
Eventually, she booked the ticket. When she landed, reality felt different from imagination. There was no dramatic moment. Just heat, paperwork, CV updates, and daily applications. She applied online. She physically dropped CVs at pharmacies. She would optimise her CV again and again.
She told herself to expect at least a month of searching. Then she saw a walk-in interview update on the healthcare job portal. First interviews in a new country are intimidating. But she went with courage. It was her first walk-in interview in Dubai. She got selected.
Job Interview for Pharmacists in Dubai
No trick questions. No dramatic tension. They asked her to introduce herself. They asked about her retail experience in India. They asked how she handled patient counselling. They asked whether she had completed her DHA registration.
She answered honestly. She did not exaggerate. She described exactly what she had done over four years. Her experience spoke. Her DHA registration certificate mattered. Her composure mattered.
Within a week of arriving in Dubai, she had secured her role. Even she was surprised by how quickly it happened.
Today, she works as a licensed pharmacist in Dubai, in an area not far from the Burj Khalifa. The salary is better, yes. That was one reason she came. But when she talks about her life now, the change she emphasises is internal.
She feels stable. Independent. In control of her decisions. She no longer wonders every month whether this is all her career will be.
Message for Women Looking for a Better Job as a Pharmacist
When asked what advice she would give female pharmacists in India, she pauses before answering. She says independence is not something that appears automatically. At some point, you decide to take responsibility for your direction.
She travelled alone. She attended interviews alone. She handled the uncertainty herself. There were moments of doubt. She just did not let doubt make the final decision.
Inspiration for Every Budding International Pharmacist
There is no secret formula here. She worked for four years in retail pharmacy. She cleared the DHA licensing exam. She prepared properly. She showed up in person.
That is the story.
A few years ago, she was earning ₹16,000 a month and finishing 12-hour shifts in India. Today, she is a licensed pharmacist in Dubai. The distance between those two realities was not luck. It was one difficult decision followed by consistent action.
