Please note: This course is also offered in the hybrid format with online course work, live Zoom lectures, and four face-to-face lab sessions held on campus.
Pharmacy Technician
Certificate Program
This comprehensive 50-hour online program, offered by California State University, Long Beach, will prepare you to work as a pharmacy technician in a retail or other pharmacy setting; and to take the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board’s PTCB exam. You will learn dosage calculations, drug classifications, top 200 drugs, IV flow rates, sterile compounding, dose conversions, aseptic technique, the handling of sterile products, total parenteral nutrition (TPN), dispensing of prescriptions, inventory control, and billing and reimbursement.
Upon successful completion of this program, students will be eligible to take the Pharmacy Technician Certified Board (PTCB) exam at a Pearson VUE Testing Center. They would also be eligible to sit for the National Healthcareer Association (NHA) Pharmacy Technician Certification (CPhT) national examination or the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board’s PTCB exam.
- Self-motivated and disciplined students
- Individuals interested in working in the healthcare system
- Medical assistants
- Certified Nursing Assistants (CNA)
- Medical terminology specific to the pharmacy
- Reading and interpreting prescriptions and defining drugs by generic and brand names
- Dosage calculations
- IV flow rates
- Drug compounding
- Dose conversions
- Dispensing of prescriptions
- Inventory control
- Billing and reimbursement
- Complete all online courses and assignments.
Jennifer Vong Pharmacy Technician
"The program was very helpful in improving my math skills, and I enjoyed the hands-on practice that we did, drawing medication into a syringe. The instructor was kind and understanding when we had trouble grasping the concepts of some of the math, so we were able to practice in-class often as well. I miss the program already because I had a lot of fun learning!"
California State University programs for professions that require licensure or certification are intended to prepare the student for California licensure and certification requirements. Admission into programs for professions that require licensure and certification does not guarantee that students will obtain a license or certificate. Click here for more information about Accreditation and State Authorization.
