Pharmacy Technician Certification

While many people feel nauseated just at the sight of medicines and tablets, you, on the other hand, are an ardent lover of them. No wonder, you dream about becoming a successful pharmacy technician one fine day. Well, to your surprise, the job of a pharmacy technician has become even more competitive when it comes to talking about salary figures. In addition, if you are a certified pharmacy technician, it might amuse you to know that career opportunities have shot up significantly in the last few years, and this, has resulted in a considerable increase in the salaries of certified pharmacy technicians. For the purpose of this article, we let slip to you all about how to become a certified pharmacy technician. What's more, we're going to be discussing the required pharmacy technician educational qualifications, so that your certifying body is assured that you are clear with the basics of pharmacy. With that said, take a look at the entire procedure of fetching a certification in Pharmacy.

How to Get a Certification as a Pharmacy Technician

For the simple reason that career options in pharmacy are increasing with days passing by, you need not work in a hospital or a nursing home to practice pharmacy. Instead, you could establish your own drugstore, or even collaborate with a pharmaceutical company to expand your horizons. However, if you want to take it to a large level, a certification helps you make it large. Even though there are no high-level educational qualifications required for pharmacy technicians, a recognized diploma or degree in pharmacy always adds up to the advantage.

To start with, a certified pharmacy technician is always expected to be good with mathematics, science, and English, for it is only then that you'd be able to grasp higher education with ease. Pharmacy technicians are supposed to assist pharmacists in hospitals by measuring medications, maintaining medical records, and preparing prescriptions for patients. An aspirant is required to take up a pharmacy technology training program at an accredited medical college, which could be a 1-year or a 2-year educational program. These programs prepare aspirants for the exams that grant certification. Topics such as Pharmacology, Pharmaceutical Mathematics, Pharmacy Law, and Pharmacy Practicum are required to be studied by candidates who take up the graduation course in any of the medical schools.

A list of top 10 pharmacy schools in America will give you a fluttering peek of the various medical schools you can choose to have a degree from. After you're done with the degree, you can apply for internship in any of the medical institutions, that offer you a practical knowledge and experience of your job.

The Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB) and the Institute for the Certification of Pharmacy Technicians (ICPT) offers certification to aspiring pharmacy technicians. Hence, after completing your undergraduate program in Pharmacy, you need to pass the certification exams conducted by PTCB and ICPT. Certification will increase your chances of a better salary, and hence, with respect to your state's law and regulations, make sure you meet their requirements. Once you pass the exams conducted by them, you're awarded a certification in the program. Note that, you need to go for certification every two years for renewal. Pharmacy technicians have a number of sources of income in comparison to a technician who isn't a certified one. Once you are a certified PT, you can easily establish a drugstore in your name, or apply for collaboration with a pharmaceutical firm. Moreover, if you wish to work in a hospital, salary range is way higher.

Pay Scale

Note that, there is a difference between the educational requirements for a pharmacist and pharmacy technician. While a pharmacist is required to gain a Doctor in Pharmacy (Pharm.D), there is no such hard-and-fast rule for a pharmacy technician to have the same. As a result, salary figures are bound to differ. Since technicians in the field of Pharmacy assist experienced pharmacists, their salary range is a bit lower than that of the professionals they work under. I'm certain, after a thorough discussion on the certification process of PTs, you're interested in knowing about exactly how much does a certified pharmacy technician make a year. Well, ab initio, he/she can earn as good as $85,000 per year! With increasing experience and career opportunities, the average salary of a pharmacy technician reaches up to $120,000 on an annual basis.

Well, now you realize the importance of having a certification of Pharmacy in hand, don't you? Make the most of this opportunity, and put your heart and soul into it. Results are highly lucrative. Well, that's what the salary figures of PTs depict!