Pharmacy Technician as a career with no plans of school

[bardleyrirchard]

I am studying to take the PTCB, my plans are to eventually get a job at a hospital as a pharm tech and stay there hoping for raises. I have no plans of going to Pharmacy school, but if I really like the job I could maybe start going to school. I dropped out of college (Environmental Science) with a very low gpa a couple years ago so I assume that would be hell getting into a school anyway.
Does it seem like a good idea to stay being a Pharmacy Technician? Or will the people I work for think I'm crazy?


Forgot to ask about "Second, to continue to hold certification, a CPhT is required to obtain twenty hours of continuing education for recertification within two years of original certification or previous recertification."
What kind of education? Any type of medical classes?

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[xtsukiyox]

No, I know several career pharmacy technicians. I don't think it's crazy.

My favorite CE site is here: http://www.powerpak.com/

Pre-pharm coursework (like Anatomy & Physiology and Organic Chemistry) count towards CEs too, if you happen to take them down the road.

 

[FuturePharmD627]

I don't think it's crazy to be a career pharmacy tech. I know a couple of people who have no plans to become a pharmacist. I'm actually a CphT (took the PTCB in January 2009) but I want to eventually become a pharmacist and I felt if I gained experience working in pharmacies, it would look better on my applications.

If you don't mind me asking, what city to do you live in? Getting a hospital pharmacy tech position is really difficult. It's so competitive.

 

[babybull]

actually, my mom's salary as a hospital pharmacy technician is 70,000, so even a career as a hospital pharmacy technician is viable. in one particular year, she made 100,000 with overtime. i remember her saying a pharmacist once complained that she was making as much as him [due to overtime]. she has been a pharmacy tech for 20 years now and currently works at a big city hospital.

edit: she got hired at the city hospital she works at because the interviewer recognized her from someplace else. who you know is def. important when it comes to getting hired lol, much to our dismay =/

 

[AlPacino]

Ive been a tech for 6 years and just cant see myself growing older as the pharmacists get younger. You would always wonder "what could of been." Also getting a job as a tech in a hospital is not easy. Your going to have to get some retail experience before even being considered.

 

[osumorgan]

I originally was going to be a career CPhT. I got my license through PTCB and went to work in a pharmacy. I loved it and now working to get into pharmacy school. Good luck to you in whatever you choose. If you are happy as a tech, who cares what others think.

 

[bardleyrirchard]

If you don't mind me asking, what city to do you live in? Getting a hospital pharmacy tech position is really difficult. It's so competitive.

Toledo, OH
I've seen Pharm tech openings for hospitals, but not retail posted on hiring websites (not Craigslist...)

 

[Indypharm]

I am also from the Midwest, it seems hospital tech jobs are not as hard to come by than other parts of the country, but you aren't going to make 70,000. I started at 12.75. Do what feels right. My husband hated school. He's more than happy to support me while I go to pharm school so I can support him after.

 

[Rx MPLS]

I am studying to take the PTCB, my plans are to eventually get a job at a hospital as a pharm tech and stay there hoping for raises. I have no plans of going to Pharmacy school, but if I really like the job I could maybe start going to school. I dropped out of college (Environmental Science) with a very low gpa a couple years ago so I assume that would be hell getting into a school anyway.
Does it seem like a good idea to stay being a Pharmacy Technician? Or will the people I work for think I'm crazy?


Forgot to ask about "Second, to continue to hold certification, a CPhT is required to obtain twenty hours of continuing education for recertification within two years of original certification or previous recertification."
What kind of education? Any type of medical classes?

One of my friends has been a tech for over 10 years. She's a very good technician, but has never bothered to become certified. She doesn't plan to go back to school either; being a tech compensates her well enough for the lifestyle she wants to live and she enjoys it, but was never a fan of schooling. She originally entertained thoughts of going to pharmacy school, but realized being a tech wasn't a bad gig for her. If you're good at what you do and enjoy it, nobody should question your choice.

 

[owlegrad]

There are tons of people who have jobs far worse than being a tech. No reason someone can't want to be a tech.

 

[AlPacino]

There are tons of people who have jobs far worse than being a tech. No reason someone can't want to be a tech.

They pay is terrible.

 

[CAPharmacist97]

the thing about choosing a career as a tech is that there is not much room for growth. The pay is not going to change as you continue to work as a tech.

 

[owlegrad]

They pay is terrible.

As are many, many other jobs.

 

[Notecard]

the thing about choosing a career as a tech is that there is not much room for growth. The pay is not going to change as you continue to work as a tech.

The same can be said for community pharmacists.

I know a lot of techs who are content with their job. Yeah they'd like to be making $55 an hour, but when they think about the responsibility and extra school + debt the ones I know cringe.

 

[dancingallday]

I know many career pharmacy techs, especially in my current (hospital) job. Out of all the pharm techs we have working, which is maybe 30 or so, only 4-5 of us know we want to do something else, either as a pharmacist or in another area (one girl is finishing up her Respiratory Therapy training this spring.) Some of them have been working at this hospital for 20+ years as technicians. The pay isn't stellar, of course, but it's still very good for a job that requires little in the way of formal training/education.

The degree of competitiveness for pharm tech jobs depends on where you live. In my area it's very misleading; indeed.com, monster and other job posting sites seem to overflow with pharm tech openings, but it took me a whole lotta pounding pavement and actually getting out there and talking with dozens of pharmacists and managers to FINALLY squeak out a pharmacy cashier position at CVS. Truth is, you'll probably have to get in through retail if you want to work in a hospital, as some hospitals won't even look at you if you're not registered (if your state requires it) and certified. And even though retail can suck sometimes, that's actually the best way to do it, since they are training you and certifying you and registering you on their own dime, not yours. A new hire at our hospital got her foot in the door here through a rotation she did at her pharmacy tech training program, so she never had to work in retail. But, she had to pay her $11,000 program tuition, plus books, PTCB fees, state registration fees, etc. etc. etc. At that point, it's better to suck it up and put your 1-2 years in at a Walgreens or CVS than go into that much debt for a job that really doesn't pay fantastically.


Whatever you decide to do, good luck! 🙂

 

[FuturePharmD627]

Toledo, OH
I've seen Pharm tech openings for hospitals, but not retail posted on hiring websites (not Craigslist...)

Ah, OK. Maybe you'll have a little more luck. I don't know how the pharmacy job market is in OH. I live in Los Angeles and I've been trying for years to get a hospital/medical center position.

I think I shot myself in the foot because I quit working at an Independent in 2008 to focus on school and I was a little burned out on pharmacy and needed a break. I ended up getting a job completely unrelated to pharmacy and worked there for 2.5 years. That entire time, I looked for another tech position but no luck. Now, I'm concerned that no one will want to hire me because I haven't worked in a pharmacy since May 2008. It sucks. :-/

Good luck to you! 🙂

 

[shinsplinter]

Really glad that I found this thread. It is always interesting to see people's perspective on these kinds of situations where a person may have the interest and passion to succeed but may have a couple of barriers in their way. It sounds to me like yours is more psychological anyways because of your feelings about school, because there is no way you will be looked down upon IMO.

 

[Doulos]

Working as a pharmacy technician for life doesn't seem like a very good plan to me. I'm not trying to down you, but it just doesn't seem like a viable life strategy. You'll hear the story here and there about someone working in a pharmacy making bank but that's very much the exception to the rule. It's like those union jobs that I hear the blue-collar people talking about. Somebody's ship came in, they were in the right place at the right time and got a chance to do something that led to a position that paid very, very well without the backbreaking work that others typically have to trod in order to get there.

Just visit the Bureau of Labor Statistics Smart Search and run a "One occupation for multiple geographic areas" and select Pharmacy Technician (code 292052) and your state and a few others you'd consider living in.

Those figures don't lie. You need to make a decision based on whether or not you think that you can achieve what you want in life if it just so works out that you get paid an "average" wage as listed. Many people envision and upper-middle class income and inject that into their hopes of working as a pharmacy technician. It's not really likely to happen that you're going to win the job lottery, so I always suggest that people figure out what they want their life to look like, then figure out how much you need to make in order to achieve that lifestyle, then figure out what careers TYPICALLY pay out at that level. Always assume that if you get married, something is going to happen to your spouse and you'll need to pull the entire wagon. NEVER assume that everything will go just fine for the both of you and you'll be able to make it work because you'll both have jobs.

 

[PharmBoy90]

I don't know if I could imagine living on the pay of a Pharmacy Tech, but a girl I worked with at CVS (she was a lead tech, and was with CVS for about 10 years I think) just got a job at a hospital in NYC, and supposedly she makes $40 an hour which is pretty damn impressive for a tech.

 

[358265]

actually, my mom's salary as a hospital pharmacy technician is 70,000, so even a career as a hospital pharmacy technician is viable. in one particular year, she made 100,000 with overtime.

You serious? $70k as a pharm tech? $100k w/ overtime? No way... 😕

 

[AlPacino]

actually, my mom's salary as a hospital pharmacy technician is 70,000, so even a career as a hospital pharmacy technician is viable. in one particular year, she made 100,000 with overtime. i remember her saying a pharmacist once complained that she was making as much as him [due to overtime]. she has been a pharmacy tech for 20 years now and currently works at a big city hospital.

edit: she got hired at the city hospital she works at because the interviewer recognized her from someplace else. who you know is def. important when it comes to getting hired lol, much to our dismay =/

I find that hard to believe. I have worked in Hospital pharmacies before and the avg tech pay is between 14.00-15.00. Unless she is working 80 hours a week, a 70K+ salary for a pharmacy technician does not exist anywhere around here.

 

[358265]

I find that hard to believe. I have worked in Hospital pharmacies before and the avg tech pay is between 14.00-15.00. Unless she is working 80 hours a week, a 70K+ salary for a pharmacy technician does not exist anywhere around here.

I agree. 🙄

 

[Rx MPLS]

I find that hard to believe. I have worked in Hospital pharmacies before and the avg tech pay is between 14.00-15.00. Unless she is working 80 hours a week, a 70K+ salary for a pharmacy technician does not exist anywhere around here.

That's really low for a hospital, I think (depending on where you live). My friend is a grocery store tech making almost $20/hour. That's obviously not common, but possible.

Some hospital pharmacy departments are unionized, too, so that can change the payscales.

 

[AlPacino]

That's really low for a hospital, I think (depending on where you live). My friend is a grocery store tech making almost $20/hour. That's obviously not common, but possible.

Some hospital pharmacy departments are unionized, too, so that can change the payscales.

Where does your friend work? Thats is way more then the national average($13.65) per hour for Pharm techs.

http://www.bls.gov/ooh/Healthcare/Pharmacy-technicians.htm

At my company, a maxed out technician makes $21.50 but that takes them a minimum of 5 years to complete even as a full time technician.

That's really low for a hospital, I think (depending on where you live).

I live in Orlando and that is what they pay in Florida Hospital. I volunteered in the pharmacy for 100 hours and got into a conversation with the technicians about how much they make. Turns out I make more in the warehouse I work for then all the technicians there who have been there for years. Hospital pay is not as great as people think. Its just a different setting that others enjoy more since you dont deal with customers, drive-thru, or any retail crap. However its not all sunshine and rainbows. Hospital pharmacy does have its downside as well.

 

[Rx MPLS]

Where does your friend work? Thats is way more then the national average($13.65) per hour for Pharm techs.

http://www.bls.gov/ooh/Healthcare/Pharmacy-technicians.htm

At my company, a maxed out technician makes $21.50 but that takes them a minimum of 5 years to complete even as a full time technician.

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