Pharmacy questions

[QualityPolaris]

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Hi guys,

I live in the LA-OC area and I'm interested in pursuing a career in Pharmacy. I wanted to ask you a few questions about the Pharmacy Tech certification.

I would appreciate any info you could give me. Thank you.


1) Which pharmacy is the best to work for (SavOn, CVS, RiteAid, WalMart, Target, etc.)? which one allows its techs to gain the most exposure?

2) Would experience as a Pharm Tech make me a more competitive candidate for pharmacy school?

3) Does the Pharm Tech certification require any volunteer experience?

4) Does a license allow you to work anywhere in the country?

5) Do you think I can study for and the Pharm Tech exam in 2-4 weeks?

6) To study for the Pharm Tech exam, I'm buying these books. Do you recommend any others from the attached site?
http://www.pharmacist.com/Source/Or...indSpec&continue=1&CATEGORY=TECHNICIAN&FindIn
Complete Review for the Pharmacy Technician
Complete Math Review for the Pharmacy Technician, 3rd Ed.
Pharmacy Technician Certification Quick-Study Guide

7) What's the general salary range for Pharm Techs in So Cal?

8) Do you know any Pharmacies that are currently hiring?

 

[Jabberwocky12]

Hi guys,

I live in the LA-OC area and I'm interested in pursuing a career in Pharmacy. I wanted to ask you a few questions about the Pharmacy Tech certification.

I would appreciate any info you could give me. Thank you.


1) Which pharmacy is the best to work for (SavOn, CVS, RiteAid, WalMart, Target, etc.)? which one allows its techs to gain the most exposure?

2) Would experience as a Pharm Tech make me a more competitive candidate for pharmacy school?

3) Does the Pharm Tech certification require any volunteer experience?

4) Does a license allow you to work anywhere in the country?

5) Do you think I can study for and the Pharm Tech exam in 2-4 weeks?

6) To study for the Pharm Tech exam, I'm buying these books. Do you recommend any others from the attached site?
http://www.pharmacist.com/Source/Or...indSpec&continue=1&CATEGORY=TECHNICIAN&FindIn
Complete Review for the Pharmacy Technician
Complete Math Review for the Pharmacy Technician, 3rd Ed.
Pharmacy Technician Certification Quick-Study Guide

7) What's the general salary range for Pharm Techs in So Cal?

8) Do you know any Pharmacies that are currently hiring?

I live in NC so I don't think I'll be good in the pharmacy tech *license* if that is why you want. However, I am a nationally certified tech so I can help with that part.

1) I worked for CVS full time and I think they had a lot of exposure. You do outbound calls asking people to fill drugs so you learn names and functions pretty well (would you like to pick up your heart medicine Mr Jones? The plavix). You also get to enter scripts, take phone calls, talk to customers, know the role of the pharmacist, etc.

Unless they changed it, CVS will also pay for your exam after a year if you get all the cvs-specific training from cashier to pharmacy clerk to pharmacy technician, which is nice as well. They will also provide a few learning materials but if you're going to college it's not going to be overly difficult except remembering some brand/generic names.

2) I think the experience makes you more competitive because it's right up there with volunteering and shadowing. It gets you out on the field and gets your feet wet which is good showing some devotion to the profession.

3) The tech certification doesn't require anything but passing a test. The license is different for each state though so I don't know if THAT requires any volunteering.

4) A license works only for that one state. VA requires different licensing requirements (a test you have to take similar to getting certified) than NC (just pay 30 bucks and get a pharmacist license to sign under)

5) I think that the test uses a lot of information you won't use in a retail setting like a lot of the math, a lot of pharmacy law (some are relevant but not a bunch more than just knowing they are there), hospital procedures, compounding, etc. However, going with that, there are a bunch of things you will learn in retail that are part of the test like brand/generics, sig codes, various calculations like 30 day dosages and liquids, HIPAA, etc.

It can be done in a couple of weeks but I think you should spend your time learning the job first and seeing if you enjoy it then start studying afterwards. They aren't going to give you tech duties in 2-4 weeks since they'll be teaching you chain-specific policies first and computer systems.

6) Honestly you aren't going to need all those books. I got a used book on alibris (cost like 15 bucks) and worked from there; even the older ones work well except maybe 10% of the top 200 might have changed. Pro tip, Hydrocodone is still in the top 200. A lot of the stuff is something you'll learn from the book and then know how to apply in real life, you don't need a bunch of test questions. Get the top 200 brand/generics, learn some hospital policies and law, and if you're going to be a pharmacist you've done enough math and chemistry to know how to convert units once you know what units to use.

7) I don't know in So Cal but certified techs with 1 year experience can go to some places and get between 9 and 13 depending on where you go and how you leverage your wage.

8) I dunno

 

[QualityPolaris]

Thanks a lot.

 

[JJVmom]

Hi guys,

I live in the LA-OC area and I'm interested in pursuing a career in Pharmacy. I wanted to ask you a few questions about the Pharmacy Tech certification.

I would appreciate any info you could give me. Thank you.


1) Which pharmacy is the best to work for (SavOn, CVS, RiteAid, WalMart, Target, etc.)? which one allows its techs to gain the most exposure?

2) Would experience as a Pharm Tech make me a more competitive candidate for pharmacy school?

3) Does the Pharm Tech certification require any volunteer experience?

4) Does a license allow you to work anywhere in the country?

5) Do you think I can study for and the Pharm Tech exam in 2-4 weeks?

6) To study for the Pharm Tech exam, I'm buying these books. Do you recommend any others from the attached site?
http://www.pharmacist.com/Source/Or...indSpec&continue=1&CATEGORY=TECHNICIAN&FindIn
Complete Review for the Pharmacy Technician
Complete Math Review for the Pharmacy Technician, 3rd Ed.
Pharmacy Technician Certification Quick-Study Guide

7) What's the general salary range for Pharm Techs in So Cal?

8) Do you know any Pharmacies that are currently hiring?

I self-studied for 2 wks using Mosby's book from Barnes and Nobles and passed. Don't be fooled by the posters that tell you it's "so easy." It is easy, but the math is quite different from college math, and the law/history you have to learn. Do some practice tests from one of the books, then study the ones you get wrong.

If you don't want to commit to a retail chain for a low-paying job, consider volunteering on a military base or VA center through the American Red Cross. I did that in So. Cal. and had a great experience in a hospital setting.

 

[Project2015]

2) Maybe.
3) No.
4) No.
7) In retail, your typical high school diploma wage ($9-12).

 

[QualityPolaris]

bump

 

[Jabberwocky12]

What are you bumping for? We've told you everything about being a CPhT and unless you're expecting a hiring agency to troll the forms we can't tell you wages and hiring in your area.