Pharmacy technicians play a vital role in assisting pharmacists as they dispense prescription medications, offer qualified advice, and look out for the safety and well-being of their patients. Needless to say, earning certification as a pharmacy technician opens the door to career opportunities in neighborhood pharmacies, hospitals, health clinics, and other appropriate environments.
Fortunately, there isn’t just one way to become a certified pharmacy technician (CPhT). There are several different pathways to choose from. Getting from here to there may not be the easiest thing you have ever done, but it will be well worth the effort once your training and certification are complete.
Minimal Requirements
For the purposes of this post, we will limit our discussion to two potential pathways towards certification as a pharmacy technician. Both pathways start with the same minimal requirements. Those requirements are:
- Being at least 18 years old.
- Having at least a high school diploma or equivalent.
With these two requirements satisfied, you can choose one of two pathways:
- Completing a recognized education or training program.
- Accumulating a minimum of 500 hours of work experience as a pharmacy tech.
It should be clear from the second pathway that you don’t have to be a CPhT to get work in a pharmacy. So why spend the money and put forth the effort to be certified? To increase your earning power, your career opportunities, and your value in the workplace.
Completing a Training Program
A training program, like ProTrain’s Pharmacy Technician online course, prepares you to sit for and pass a nationally recognized certification exam. Passing ultimately means earning your certification. There are two primary accrediting organizations offering nationally recognized certificates:
- Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB).
- National Healthcareer Association (NHA).
Our course prepares you to take the PTCB exam. Passing either exam would essentially offer you the CPhT credential, a credential that is widely recognized throughout the pharmaceutical industry.
Accumulating Work Hours
It is not practical for every pharmacy technician to complete an official training program prior to sitting for one of the exams. Therefore, accumulating comparable work hours is a second option. Accumulating 500 hours is equivalent to working 12.5 full-time weeks.
The understanding is that sufficient work hours equip you with the skills and knowledge required to pass the exam. But there are no guarantees. Even without a recognized training program, we would encourage pharmacy techs on this path to get hold of some study materials well in advance.
The advantage of choosing this path is being able to work full-time without the added stress of going to school. On the other hand, our Pharmacy Technician course offers 330 hours of self-paced online instruction that can be done whenever it fits into your schedule.
What Training Offers
So, what does training offer? That depends on the course. Our Pharmacy Technician course exposes students to a plethora of information about:
- The pharmacy technician’s role.
- The role pharmacies play in the community.
- A pharmacy’s normal activities.
- Pharmacy technician procedures and practices.
- How math is applied to the pharmacy tech job.
- Career options available to certified technicians.
There is a lot more you will learn from our online course. The main takeaway here is that certification training will equip you with the knowledge and skills you need to pass the certification exam. You might not get the same knowledge and skills just by working full-time for 12 weeks.
Are you ready to earn your certification as a pharmacy technician? Send a message to enroll@protrain.edu and we will get you enrolled in our Pharmacy Technician course right away.