Pros & Cons of Being a Pharmacy Technician

on February 22, 2024

Table of Contents

Have you ever noticed that whenever you fall sick or get injured, a doctor typically recommends a medication to treat your symptoms?

After you get your prescription from the doctor, you generally go to your nearby Pharmacy, and you interact with a Pharmacy Technician, commonly known as a Pharmacy tech.

These professionals are responsible for ensuring that customers get their prescribed medications accurately.

If you have an interest in starting a career as a Pharmacy Tech, it is essential to figure out if this role fits with your career goals.

In this article, we will discuss the pros and cons associated with this profession, which will help you in deciding if this position is the right fit for you.

Pros of Being a Pharmacy Technician

The major pros of being a pharmacy technician include the following:

Short training period

For working as a pharmacy tech, you don’t need a degree. This is an advantage for aspiring Pharmacy Technicians as it allows them to quickly enter the workforce and start earning.

If you decide to pursue a diploma, you can start your career after 12 months. If you earn an associate’s degree, it will take two years. It completely depends on you to decide which education path is best suitable for you to start your career as a Pharmacy Technician.

However, if you go for an online program, you can be job-ready in less than 6 months.

Flexible and clean work environment

Pharmacy Technicians can enjoy a flexible schedule, enabling them to easily schedule their personal life around their work schedule. Flexibility allows you to spend quality time with friends and family.

While Pharmacy Technicians have various tasks to do, one good thing about this profession is that you will never have to work in a dirty environment.

Reliable job growth and stability

A career as a pharmacy technician presents multiple growth opportunities. Many pharmacy technicians pursue further education to become licensed pharmacists.

As a pharmacy technician, you can have confidence in the stability of your career. People will always require their prescriptions to be filled, and pharmacies don’t run themselves!

Pharmacies actively look for qualified Pharmacy Technicians who can efficiently and accurately handle order fulfillment.

Socially active role

If you love to help others, a career as a pharmacy technician might be the best fit for you. You’re a core part of the healthcare ecosystem, and you interact with patients regularly.

Over time you build a strong connection with them, and you get a lot of satisfaction once they start feeling healthy.

Option to work full-time or part-time

You have the choice to work either full-time or part-time, which is one of the advantages of being a Pharmacy Technician. It gives you the freedom to decide your work hours based on your condition.

There is no doubt that opting for a full-time position offers more advantages and income potential, while a part-time role may be suitable if a slightly lower pay is not a big problem or if you have additional responsibilities.

Good income

Pharmacy Technician Salary is around $36,740, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Consider this; You don’t have to go to med school or spend thousands of dollars on your education.

When you take that into account, the wage for a pharmacy tech is at the higher end of the spectrum.

Your Certification is Valid Nationally

Once you have earned certification from PTCB, it holds nationwide recognition. So you don’t have to worry if in case you want to relocate from one state to another for the purpose of a job.

Read More: Pharmacy technician facts

CONS OF BEING A PHARMACY TECHNICIAN

Pharmacy technician training fees

The education required for Pharmacy Technician training is generally not free and requires a certain amount, depending on your choice of training program.

Pursuing an associate’s degree can cost approximately $5,000 to $25,000. These figures are not fixed, and you may have to pay additional fees for various tests and registrations in addition to moving and living costs.

Requires a license to practice

Even though not required in most states, obtaining a license may be necessary in some states for you to start working as a Pharmacy Technician. However, to obtain this license, you have to clear the Pharmacy Technician Certification Exam (PTCE), which is conducted by the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB).

You will need to keep recertifying

It is essential to note that obtaining your certification is not enough to sustain your career as a pharmacy technician. You will need to go for recertification every two years.

To maintain your certification, you will need to fulfill specific training requirements under the guidance of a certified pharmacist. Additionally, you will need to complete 20 hours of continuing education within two years. Each recertification requires a fee of $35.

Longer Work-Hours

Most pharmacies run 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The working hours in a Pharmacy are not fixed, and due to this, you may have to work for extended hours.

However, this can be a hindrance when you want to spend quality time with family and friends or handle other responsibilities. So, before pursuing this career, you should consider whether the hours are suitable for your lifestyle.

You may need to work on weekends and holidays

Pharmacy technicians also need to work on the weekends since most pharmacies run 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. This may disturb your social life.

There are no specified holidays for Pharmacy technicians, and sometimes you may have to work on national holidays if the pharmacy is operational.

You may find repetitive duties to perform

There are chances you might feel bored as a Pharmacy Technician as sometimes your tasks will be repetitive. You may not find variation in your job. If you can handle this, you will have a bright career as a Pharmacy Technician.

A pharmacy technician’s job can be stressful

As a Pharmacy Technician, sometimes your job can be stressful due to the fast-paced environment and demanding tasks. Since you will need to regularly multitask as a pharmacy technician, it can get stressful at times.

Making mistakes can also lead to adverse effects and even fatalities, so paying close attention to your tasks and being organized is very important. You may also have to work with very uncooperative patients and doctors at times which can also lead to stress.

Conclusion

We hope this list helps you decide if this career is right for you. If you want to start your career as a Pharmacy Technician, here are a few resources you can read:-

About the Author

Grant Aldrich

Grant founded OnlineDegree.com with a purpose-driven mission: make college accessible and affordable for everyone. After graduating college with an overwhelming amount of debt, he was determined to change how students embark on their education. He's a frequent speaker and author in higher education, and has been featured in Forbes, Bloomberg Businessweek, Business Insider, American Express, AOL, MSN, Thrive Global, Reader's Digest, Inside Higher Ed, Evolllution, EducationDive, and nearly 100 radio shows and podcasts.

Pros & Cons of Being a Pharmacy Technician