The need for all kinds of health care professionals continues to experience strong growth. If you're considering new career options, one position you'll want to consider is a pharmacy tech. Here's why and some tips on how to get started.
Pharmacy Tech Outlook
If you have an interest in pharmacy, you probably know the requirements of becoming a fully licensed pharmacist. But it's worth looking at the benefits of opting for a pharmacy tech.
- Strong job growth projected. Estimates are for 10% annually through 2024.
- Plentiful job openings now. As of this writing, popular job sites typically have around 20,000 pharmacy tech positions listed
- Unlimited geographical opportunities. Whether you're a city type or ready to find a more relaxed setting, there are job opportunities virtually everywhere.
- Short time required to become certified. It's possible to become a certified pharmacy tech ready for employment in less that a year.
For anyone dissatisfied with their present career or job, those are all important factors in choosing that new career.
What To Look For
Whether it's a pharmacy tech or some other career path, the options for pursuing a new career today are much better than in the past. Especially for the already-employed. Getting your education and certification online is now an accepted option. That means most anyone can fit it into their schedule, plus the tuition is generally much less than at a traditional college.
There are, of course, some things to watch out for. As you look at your options, be sure to consider these:
Academic Support
Have you ever tried to learn something on your own just by reading a book? Then you know the value of having qualified advisors who are available when questions come up. So be sure to check both the school's literature as well as recent student reviews to confirm that you'll have that needed support.
As a plus, they should also provide career guidance as well as assistance in getting your testing and certification completed. When you finish the program, you want to be fully ready for employment.
School/Provider History
We've all seen the stories in the news of shady "schools" who are interested in little more than your tuition dollars. While there are no sure things anywhere in life, doing thorough research on the school will definitely shift the odds in your favor. How long have they been around? What's the percentage of their students who have successfully completed the program?
Tuition and Other Costs
The cost of an education is always an important factor in selecting a provider. As you search, you'll find quite broad variation. While it's probably true that the highest priced isn't necessarily the best, you may want to be wary of programs with suspiciously low tuition. It costs less to provide a quality education program online, that's true. But the provider has expenses and deserves to have a positive financial reward themselves.
A Great Example
Summarizing from above, the key points to look for are:
- Academic support.
- Flexible program that allows you to complete in a relatively short time.
- Reasonable costs.
- School reputation.
We did some checking on this ourselves. And we found that the New York Institute of Career Development meets all our criteria. They're part of the Distance Education Company, which has been around serving up world-class education all over the world since 1910. So even if you don't choose their pharmacy tech program, you'll want to take a look at their offerings and policies to get a good idea of what to look for.
Good luck in your new career!
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