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Pharmacy technicians prepare and supply medicines for prescriptions, under the supervision of a pharmacist.
You could work: evenings / weekends / bank holidays; on a rota
In this role you could:
You may need to wear protective clothing and a uniform.
You could work in an NHS or private hospital, at a health centre, in a prison or at a store.
You can get into this job through:
You could do a pharmacy technician advanced apprenticeship.
You can also train to be a pharmacy technician through an apprenticeship in the armed forces.
You'll usually need:
You can apply for a trainee pharmacy technician position. Employers will often ask for 4 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), including English, maths and science, Level 2 Diploma in Applied Science, or equivalent qualifications.
You'll do on-the-job training over 2 years and work towards a Level 3 Diploma in the Principles and Practice for Pharmacy Technicians.
You'll need to:
Once qualified you can join the Association of Pharmacy Technicians for continuous professional development.
You can find out more about careers as a pharmacy technician from Health Careers and the Association of Pharmacy Technicians.
With experience you could become a departmental supervisor or manager.
You could take on a specialist role like clinical technician, working with healthcare professionals and patients on wards.
There are opportunities to move into a specialist area like oncology, paediatrics, or clinical trials.
Some pharmacy technicians go into research and development work, or move into pharmaceutical production, sales or marketing.
You could train to be a pharmacist. You can do a 2 year full-time pharmacy foundation degree and then apply for year two of an accredited MPharm degree.
Another option is to become a pharmacy assessor working with trainee pharmacy technicians.