Pharmacy technician schools provide students with skills necessary to enter into a career helping licensed pharmacists prepare prescription medications, perform administrative duties and serve customers within a pharmacy setting. It is one of the many medical technician schools available.

Pharmacy technician training schools can last up to 2 years and include studies in pharmaceutical terminology, calculations, record-keeping, and laws governing pharmacology. Programs often provide hands-on internships where students learn the names, uses and doses of medications.

Pharmacy techs are certified by The Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB) and the Institute for the Certification of Pharmacy Technicians (ICPT).

Are Pharmacy Technician Colleges for You?

Pharmacy techs play an important role in the health care sector by providing quality assurance and customer service. Traits that will help you succeed in this field include good communications and interpersonal skills.

Pharmacy technicians should also have a solid grasp of mathematics, spelling, and reading skills to interpret and communicate prescription orders and verify drug doses. As this field contains many life-or-death scenarios, technicians should have an upstanding sense of responsibility, attention to detail and care for the job.

Career Outlook after Pharmacy Technician Training School

After attending one of the many pharmacy technician schools, graduates go on to work in retail settings or in hospitals. Techs and pharmacy aides held 381,200 jobs as of 2008.

According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics job prospects are expected to grow by 31 percent—a rate much faster than the national average for all other professions.

The Pharmacy Technician Certification Board provides resources on state regulation of pharmacy techs for students to prepare for entering into this career in their state.