Pharmacy Technician (AAS)

The Pharmacy Technician Program is designed to cover both the academic and clinical skills necessary to perform as a pharmacy technician. The program begins fall semester of each year. The Certificate in Pharmacy Technician Program is designed to be completed in one year. For the Associate of Applied Science in Pharmacy Technician Degree, prerequisite courses, including Essential Learning courses, are completed in year two of the program. The application process occurs in the second semester of the ?rst year. Once accepted to the program, the second year prepares students to work as advanced pharmacy technicians and assist in pharmacy operations.  
 
A pharmacy technician is someone who works beside licensed pharmacists to process prescriptions, dispense medication, perform pharmacy-related functions, and provide information to customers. One of the most challenging aspects of being a pharmacy technician is maintaining knowledge on changes that occur within the field, since pharmacy practice changes on a weekly basis with new generics and new drugs.  

Job duties include dispensing prescription drugs and other medical devices to patients, instructing on their use, performing administrative duties in pharmaceutical practice, and reviewing prescription requests with doctor's offices and insurance companies to ensure correct medications are provided and payment is received. Pharmacy technicians may be employed in retail settings, hospitals, mail-order pharmacies, long-term care pharmacies, specialty compounding pharmacies, nuclear pharmacies, oncology clinics, and insurance companies.   

Pharmacy Technicians who take and pass the certifying examination offered by the PTCB (Pharmacy Technician Certification Board) are certi?ed and authorized to use the initials CPhT to designate their status as Nationally Certified Pharmacy Technicians, which further allows them to apply for licensure in their individual states.