Best Pharmacy Technician Schools in Florida

To become a certified pharmacy technician (CPhT) in Florida a high school diploma is a pre-requisite for gaining access to a training program. The duration of these training programs range from 6 months to 2 years resulting in either a certificate, diploma or associate degree.

Many pharmacy technician training schools also offer the flexibility of studying on-line, on-campus or by correspondence (i.e. distance learning).

Students are expected to cover classes such as: Orientation to Pharmacy Practice (role of a pharmacy technician, legal and ethical guidelines, job skills, duties, certification and communication skills are covered), Therapeutic Agents of Body Systems ( medication dosages, side effects, interactions, toxicities are covered) and much more including an externship of circa 170 hours upon which graduates can also sit and be able to pass the PTCB exam.

Florida Pharmacy Technician Schools

Listed below are schools offering Pharmacy Technician programs throughout the state of Florida.

As a general rule, you should request information from more than one school during the course of your research as there are important differences between the training programs offered in each school i.e: cost, admissions requirements, courses and curriculum as well as starting dates.

Pinellas Technical Education Center
Location: 901 34th Street South
St. Petersburg, Florida 33711
Phone: 727 893-2500

Orange County Public Schools
Location: 445 W. Amelia Street
Orlando, Florida 32801
Phone: 407 281-5120

Henry W. Brewster Technical Center
Location: 2222 North Tampa Street
Tampa, Florida 33602
Phone: 813 276-5448

Lorenzo Walker Technical College
Location: 3702 Estey Ave Naples, FL 34104
Phone: (239) 377-0900

Certification requirements

State of Florida does not require certification however most employers will employ technicians who are certified. There are two Pharmacy Technician Certification exams of which either can be obtained: the PTCB exam or the NHA’s ExCPT exam. By end of 2019, there were 18,035 active PTCB certified Pharmacy Technicians in the state of Florida.

License requirements

The State of Florida requires registration for pharmacy technicians with the Florida Department of Health: Board of Pharmacy.

To qualify for registration you must have completed a Board approved pharmacy technician program through either: ASHP, ACPE, Florida Dept. of Education, Florida Commission of Independent Education(CIE) or United States Uniformed Services.

Where Do Qualified Pharmacy Techs Work?

The areas of specialization for pharmacy technician include:

Pharmacy technician in community pharmacies
Home IVs
Nursing home pharmacies
Hospital pharmacies

How much does a Pharmacist Technician make in Florida?

The average Florida pharmacy technician salary is $17.57 per hour or $36,550 per year, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics 2021 wage data (1).

With certification and further education or specializations salaries increase in the upwards of $46,330 or more.

Below is a list of annual median wages in other parts of Florida.

Location	Annual Wages
Jacksonville, FL	$33,230
Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL	$32,880
Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, FL	$34,800
Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, FL	$28,410
Gainesville, FL	$32,840
Homosassa Springs, FL	$34,730
Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL	$30,230
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL	$33,980
Naples-Immokalee-Marco Island, FL	$33,250
The Villages, FL	$29,420
North Port-Sarasota-Bradenton, FL	$33,650
Ocala, FL	$32,130
Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL	$32,320
Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL	$31,270
Panama City, FL	$31,230
Pensacola-Ferry Pass-Brent, FL	$33,150
Port St. Lucie, FL	$34,090
Punta Gorda, FL	$32,130
Sebastian-Vero Beach, FL	$31,870
Sebring, FL	$33,240
Tallahassee, FL	$29,920
Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL	$31,580

Job Outlook

By 2021 there were 33,730 working Pharmacy technicians in the state of Florida. The sector has been projected to grow by 2.6% by annually (2).

Florida is one of top five states with the highest employment level in this occupation and due to an aging population demanding more medical services, there has never been a better time to enter the field!

These schools are just a small excerpt of schools located around Florida because, as previously stated, there is a wealth of colleges and universities located all around this state.

Florida pharmacy technician schools are some of the best in the country because of the high standards of education set in this state.