Arief Mohammad Co-Founder of Elite Expertise on Global Licensing, EdTech & Careers for Pharmacists

An Interview with Arief Mohammad, co‑founder and Director of Elite Expertise, an edtech platform that supports pharmacists in preparing for international licensing exams and building careers abroad

Arief Mohammad, Co-Founder of Elite Expertise, is transforming pharmacist careers worldwide. In this interview, he dives into global licensing hurdles, EdTech innovations, and strategies empowering professionals to thrive internationally. Discover his blueprint for success in a dynamic field.

What personal or professional experiences in pharmacy led you to co-found Elite Expertise and focus on global licensing and careers?

Arief Mohammad: Elite Expertise really started long before it became a company. After becoming pharmacists in India, we struggled to secure decent paying jobs back in India.

Both of us (Arief Mohammad (co‑founder and Director), Harika Bheemavarapu (co‑founder and Director) have lived through the uncertainty of being internationally trained pharmacists, trying to decode licensing exams, documentation, timelines, and country-specific rules with very little structured guidance. We didn’t even know which exam would open doors to better opportunities at first.

Preparing for exams while working, second-guessing decisions, and navigating the process largely on our own made us realise how unnecessarily difficult the journey had become.

That lived experience shaped our purpose. Elite Expertise was built to simplify what we once struggled to understand and to give pharmacists clarity, confidence, and direction while pursuing global careers.

Walk us through the early days of Elite Expertise, what gap in the market for pharmacists did you identify?

Arief Mohammad: In the early days, we saw pharmacists doing everything right academically, yet still struggling to find well-paying jobs in the profession. Based on research, it is clear that only about 17.5% of pharmacists were satisfied with their jobs.

Hence, these pharmacists are attracted to global opportunities in the profession for better-paid jobs. However, very few have the knowledge and resources for licensing exams to secure well-paying opportunities.

When we came to Australia, we saw that many Indian pharmacists were doing odd jobs just because they did not have an idea about how to clear the country’s pharmacy licensing exams.

So, we started assisting pharmacists back in India through online training on Zoom and Google Meet with different licensing exam preparations.

Gradually, pharmacists from India and across the globe began reaching out to us, and hence we turned into a startup called Elite Expertise.

What was missing was a clear, step-by-step pathway—someone who could say, this is the exam you need, this is how you prepare while working, and this is what happens next.

Elite Expertise emerged from that gap. We focused on structure, transparency, and practical insight, so pharmacists didn’t have to spend years figuring out what could be explained in weeks.

How do you differentiate Elite Expertise from general career platforms or traditional pharmacy education providers?

Arief Mohammad: The biggest difference is perspective. Elite Expertise is built by pharmacists who have walked the same path our learners are on. We’re not removed from the process, we’ve lived it.

Traditional education often stops at knowledge, while general platforms stop at advice. We focus on application. Our programs are practice-based, exam-focused, and designed for working professionals who need flexibility without compromising depth.

From personalized mentoring to lifelong access and community support, everything we do is anchored in helping pharmacists actually cross the licensing finish line and secure high paying pharmacy jobs in different countries globally.

Can you explain your global licensing programs, how do they help pharmacists navigate regulations in countries like the US, UK, or Gulf nations?

Arief Mohammad: Global licensing isn’t just about clearing an exam, it’s about understanding how a healthcare system functions. Our programs are designed to demystify that entire process. We break down eligibility, documentation, exam formats, and clinical expectations country by country.

While we provide structured preparation for exams such as OPRA, PEBC, PSI, and offer guidance for pathways like NAPLEX and UK licensing, our real value lies in context. We help pharmacists understand why a system works the way it does, so they’re prepared not just to pass exams, but to practise confidently once they arrive.

Pharmacists face evolving global standards, how does Elite Expertise stay ahead with updates on licensing exams like NAPLEX or PEBC?

Arief Mohammad: Healthcare standards don’t stand still, and neither can we. A large part of staying ahead comes from the fact that our educators are practising pharmacists across different healthcare systems. We’re seeing changes as they happen, not months later.

We continuously update course content, mock exams, and clinical scenarios to reflect real exam trends and regulatory shifts. This ensures our learners aren’t preparing for yesterday’s exams, but for what they’ll actually face on test day, and in clinical practice.

How has the demand for internationally licensed pharmacists changed post-pandemic, and what’s driving it?

Arief Mohammad: The COVID-19 pandemic exposed systemic gaps in the global healthcare workforce, highlighting critical shortages of skilled professionals , including pharmacists,  even in high-income countries, with vacancy rates as high as ~30% in some hospital settings and a projected global shortfall of over 14 million health workers by 2030.

Pharmacists were thrust into expanded roles well beyond dispensing, stepping into chronic disease management, patient counselling, vaccine delivery, public health education, and primary care support when other services were limited. 

In response to these pressures, countries such as Australia, Canada and others have actively recruited internationally trained pharmacists, utilising formal migration pathways, licensure exams, and employer-sponsored visas to fill workforce gaps and strengthen care delivery.

At the same time, the profession itself has embraced global mobility,  driven by better remuneration, clearer migration structures, and growing professional recognition for clinical roles.

As a result, pharmacists today are no longer asking if global careers are achievable, but how soon they can start them.

Any advice for pharmacists eyeing global careers or entrepreneurs entering EdTech for healthcare?

Arief Mohammad: For pharmacists, clarity is everything. Start early, understand the system you’re entering, and invest in structured guidance rather than relying on fragmented advice.

 Exams test knowledge, but success comes from consistency, clinical reasoning, and preparation rooted in real-world expectations.

For EdTech entrepreneurs in healthcare, credibility and responsibility matter deeply. Solutions must be built from lived experience, grounded in evolving regulations, and focused on outcomes, not just content.

In healthcare education, impact isn’t measured by enrolments, but by the professionals you help succeed.

Arief Mohammad’s Elite Expertise lights the path for pharmacists through smart licensing, cutting-edge EdTech, and career acceleration. His actionable advice equips you to go global. Thank you, Arief, for inspiring the next generation of pharmacy leaders!

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