Medical sales can be a fulfilling career path if you are interested in the challenge of salesmanship and the ever-emerging field of medical products. Pursuing a medical sales job requires determination and skills, but if you are willing to invest the time and energy, it can offer a great deal of satisfaction.
Job Description
Medical sales representatives work for pharmaceutical or medical technology companies to sell products to healthcare providers. Examples of companies that employ these sales professionals include Johnson & Johnson and Pfizer. If you choose a career in this field, you don't have to limit yourself to companies in the United States; the medical industry includes a great deal of international trade.
Medical sales representatives sell everything from complex medical devices to medicinal drugs. This role can offer a great deal of job satisfaction, because it involves giving medical experts access to promising new drugs and technologies to battle life-threatening conditions.
Requirements
Because of the nature of medical sales, professionalism is required. You must be able to communicate clearly, as with any sales position. You have the best chance of getting into this competitive field if you have a four-year college degree in science, marketing, health care, business, or communication.
The majority of successful pharmaceutical companies will be looking for someone with at least one to two years of sales experience. Finding an internship or getting a part-time job in sales can give you excellent experience that may lead to jobs down the road. A high college GPA, plenty of competitive extracurricular activities, awards, scholarships, and documented sales achievements are also valuable for aspiring medical sales representatives.
Work Environment
The work environment you can expect from a medical sales position will vary depending on the company and your products. You may have to cold call doctors to set up appointments and travel extensively. You can definitely expect this kind of career to be fast-paced and possibly stressful.
Fortunately, the job outlook for medical sales appears to be stable and should remain so for the next decade. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics has projected 7-10% growth in the field from 2008 to 2018. As for salaries, medical sales representatives in the United States can make between $44,850 and $72,718 annually. Breaking into the medical sales field can be difficult, but as this information suggests, success can mean a satisfying and lucrative career.
