Pharmacy Tech.

[axelz165]

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I'm a 4th year pre-pharmacy student. Unfortunately I will not be able to apply for pharmacy school in the coming year, however I would like to get a job as a Pharm Tech during the year I would take off.

What steps do I need to take to acquire a job in Florida? I tried searching the net but I've found conflicting information. Also, Unfortunately I've never had any work experience and this would be my first job. How bad would this hinder me in search for a job in the tech field?

 

[sde780]

In my state, anyone can work as a tech. However, you must be certified within 2 years of employment.

 

[dreaming4hope]

i'm not sure about florida but it will be hard getting a job as a pharm tech since u have no experience and its not the easiest time to get a job. u can always talk to a pharmacy manager to see what u can do. if all else fails try volunteering at a pharmacy

 

[sde780]

Volunteering is a great idea. The pharmacy I volunteered at offered me a technician job, then the director helped me get a hospital internship 🙂. Work hard and you'll be just fine.

 

[PrePharmer17]

I was in the same boat as you 3 months ago. I had absolutely no experience and was looking for a pharm tech job. I walked into around 30 pharmacies in two different cities. Out of those, around 5 of them called back for an interview.
At the time, I was PTCB certified by self-study and just graduated with a Bachelor's so I think that may have helped a little. It wasn't easy for me to look for a job with no experience but it all worked out in the end. My first interview wasn't until after a month from when I started looking so don't give up!

 

[chinolal]

It hard to get a pharmacy tech job without any experience especially if you are applying to a hospital. What I did was I volunteered in a pharmacy and waited till a opening for a pharmacy assistant spot was open. Once I got the pharmacy assistant job, I took my PTCB exam and passed. Right now I have been waiting 2 months for that license. Also, I probably won't get that pharmacy tech spot in the hospital since there are hardly any spots open. My advice would be try getting a job as a pharmacy assistant first and then become a tech.

 

[dancingallday]

Florida made it a lot harder to get started as a pharmacy technician two years ago, when they instituted the rule that technicians had to be 1)Graduates of a board-approved pharmacy technician training program or 2)Grandfathered in due to previous pharmacy technician experience (1500+ hours). Note: studying for the PTCB exam on your own and taking it means NOTHING to the Florida Board of Pharmacy; you MUST go through an approved training course to become REGISTERED with the state. Around here, the training courses I've seen are in the area of $4,000-$6,000 and last from 6-9 months, which wouldn't make your "gap year" plan financially feasible at all.

What I would do if I were in your position is to try to align myself with as many pharmacy volunteer or shadowing opportunities as you possibly can. Sometimes hospital pharmacies will allow their volunteers to do "mindless" sort of tasks (putting stickers on medications, stocking shelves, etc.) without board of pharmacy registration. Shadowing, if you can find an independent community pharmacy to take you on, will allow you to get a feel for what the pharmacist does, which is absolutely invaluable to you for a number of reasons even beyond strengthening your application.

 

[NickW9682]

buy a study guide and take the PTCB exam. Dont limit yourself to just retail. Hospitals are almost always looking for Techs to work PRN. Plus in a hospital setting you are exposed to a lot more drugs, will learn more compounding, as well as making chemo and IV's. Plus hospital usually pays more.