Externship seats at CVS, Walgreens & Target — 1 left
Externship seats at CVS, Walgreens & Target — 1 left
Pharmacy Technician — Live Online
Get hired as a pharmacy tech at CVS, Walgreens, or inside Target in about 12 weeks.
A PTCB-recognized live online program with a real instructor, 120 hours of hands-on training, and a 3-week externship inside an actual pharmacy — the same externship most students convert into a paid offer.
Data Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
What Is a Pharmacy Technician?
A Pharmacy Technician is a healthcare professional who assists licensed pharmacists in dispensing prescription medications to patients. They work in retail pharmacies, hospitals, and other healthcare settings.
This is a PTCB-recognized live online program — not a self-paced video course. You'll learn from a named instructor (Deirdre McClain) inside a live cohort, twice a week in the evenings, alongside other adults making the same career move.
The program totals 248 hours: 63 hours of live online, instructor-led sessions, 65 hours of self-paced online coursework, and 120 hours of hands-on training. You'll learn to fill prescriptions, participate in ordering and inventory control, handle billing, and work confidently inside a real pharmacy environment.
The program ends with a 3-week externship inside an actual pharmacy at CVS, Walgreens, or inside a Target pharmacy (operated by CVS). The externship is your direct pipeline to a paid pharmacy tech role — pharmacies use externships as their primary hiring funnel for technicians.
Pharmacy Technicians work in retail pharmacies, hospital pharmacies, mail-order pharmacies, specialty pharmacies, and long-term care facilities. The role requires attention to detail, strong customer service skills, and the ability to work efficiently in a fast-paced healthcare environment.
Career-Bond Preferred
Get hired as a pharmacy tech at CVS, Walgreens, or Target in 12 weeks.
Live cohort. Real instructor. 120 hours of hands-on training. PTCB exam prep included. The program ends with a 3-week externship inside an actual pharmacy where most students get hired.
$35,000–$50,000+
Typical Salary Range
Direct externship pipeline to CVS
Job Growth Outlook
248 hours • ~10–12 week live cohort
Training Duration
How Pharmacy Technician Training Is Delivered
Format
Live online, instructor-led cohort with a named instructor — not self-paced video. Twice-weekly evening sessions, 7–10 PM ET (6–9 CT / 5–8 MT / 4–7 PT).
Typical Timeline
~10–12 weeks per cohort: 63 hours live online + 65 hours self-paced + 120 hours hands-on
Cohorts run on a fixed calendar with midterm and final exams
Flexibility
80% attendance minimum • 70% final average to earn the Certificate of Completion
Learning Flow
21 instructor-led lessons covering all PTCB-aligned domains, plus midterm and final exams.
Coaching Support
Course-to-Career coaching included to keep you on track and help you land the externship-to-hire offer
What You'll Learn in Pharmacy Technician Training
Core Skills
The foundational skills you'll build in this program.
- History of medicine and pharmacy, and the evolving role of pharmacy technicians
- Pharmacy law, ethics, and regulatory agencies impacting pharmacy practice
- Competencies for pharmacy technicians in inpatient, outpatient, and closed-door settings
- Effective communication skills for patient and healthcare professional interactions
- Dosage forms, routes of administration, and drug formulations
- Pharmacy calculations for dosing, compounding, and infusion rates
- Drug information references and electronic sources
- Community and institutional pharmacy operations and workflows
- Medication safety, error prevention, and risk management
- Drug classifications and therapeutic agents for all major body systems
- Bulk repackaging and nonsterile compounding
- Aseptic technique and sterile compounding per USP 797 guidelines
- Pharmacy billing, inventory management, and third-party claims processing
- Over-the-counter medications and complementary medicine
Tools & Technology
Practical tools and frameworks used in the field.
- Pharmacy dispensing systems and software
- Prescription processing and verification systems
- Compounding equipment for sterile and nonsterile preparations
- Automated dispensing cabinets
- Inventory management systems
- Electronic Health Records (EHR) integration
- Point-of-sale and billing systems
Safety & Compliance
Safety protocols and compliance requirements.
- Controlled substance handling and DEA regulations
- HIPAA patient confidentiality requirements
- USP 797 sterile compounding standards
- Medication error prevention protocols
- Hazardous drug handling procedures
- State board of pharmacy regulations
Is Pharmacy Technician Training Right For You?
This program is designed for serious adults who want a structured path into a career in pharmacy services.
This Program Is For You If...
- You want a live cohort with a real instructor — not self-paced video
- You're seeking a stable healthcare career with strong job security
- You want to work in retail pharmacy (CVS, Walgreens, Target), hospitals, or specialty pharmacy
- You're detail-oriented and comfortable with math calculations
- You can commit to twice-weekly evening classes for ~12 weeks
Consider Other Options If...
- You want a shorter, faster-track program (consider Phlebotomy or Medical Billing)
- You can't commit to a fixed live class schedule
- You prefer direct patient care roles involving clinical procedures
Invest in training now. Earn it back in your first month.
With a median salary of $35,000 and growing demand, Pharmacy Technician training pays for itself quickly.
Certifications for Pharmacy Technician
This program prepares you for nationally recognized certifications that employers value.
PTCB Certified Pharmacy Technician (CPhT)
Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB)
The national board that certifies pharmacy technicians in the United States. This program prepares you to sit for the CPhT exam.
Focus: Medications, federal requirements, patient safety, quality assurance, order entry and processing, inventory management
PTCB-recognized program that prepares you for the Certified Pharmacy Technician (CPhT) national exam
* State regulations vary. This program does not specifically prepare students to meet every state's regulations. Research the specific requirements in the state where you intend to work.
Everyone Else Is Looking
in the Wrong Place.
Thousands of jobs in your field are sitting on LinkedIn right now. Your competition hasn't found them yet. That's not a problem — that's your opening.
What most job seekers do
- Post on Indeed — competing against 300–500+ applicants
- Scroll Craigslist and local classifieds
- Walk in with a paper résumé
- Hope word-of-mouth reaches the right person
- Never touch LinkedIn — leaving a wide-open field
This is the crowded lane. Most people never leave it.
What Career-Bond students do instead
- Land on LinkedIn where thousands of roles sit uncrowded
- Apply to roles paying $60K–$90K+ with full benefits
- Message the hiring manager directly — no black hole
- "Be an early applicant" — days after posting, still available
- Stand out as the 8th applicant, not the 400th
This is the edge. It's real. And almost nobody in the trades is using it.
A certified technician with a LinkedIn profile competes against 10–30 peers instead of 300–500. That's a 10x–50x reduction in direct competition.
When a hiring manager sees 8 applicants instead of 80, they open every single one.
Less competition per post
If 70 workers apply on Indeed but only 5–13 show on LinkedIn, you're far more visible. Fewer eyeballs, but every eye counts.
Signal of seriousness
A LinkedIn profile with certs, projects, and recommendations stands out — because most workers in your field either have no profile or a sparse one.
Recruiter behavior
Employers are actively trying new hiring channels. When they see only a handful of applicants, they open and engage every single one.
You don't 'apply' for a pharmacy job. You walk into one.
Most pharmacy techs spend months blasting résumés into the void, praying CVS, Walgreens, or Target calls back. You won't. Your 3-week externship drops you behind the counter at a real pharmacy — filling scripts, working alongside pharmacists, getting known by the manager who does the hiring. By the time other applicants are uploading PDFs, you've already been on the schedule. That's not a job hunt. That's a tryout. *Eligibility required.
See how the externship pipeline worksCareer Outlook
Entry-Level Roles
- Pharmacy Technician at CVS, Walgreens, or inside Target
- Retail Pharmacy Technician
- Hospital Pharmacy Technician
- Pharmacy Clerk
Advancement Path
Advance into specialized roles such as Compounding Technician, Lead Pharmacy Technician, Pharmacy Buyer, or Pharmacy Operations Manager with experience and additional certifications
Career Progression
The 3-week externship is built directly into the program and begins around the 80% mark — it's structured as a direct pipeline to a paid pharmacy tech position with the host pharmacy. Show up, do the work, and the externship is designed to convert into an offer.
Tuition & Investment
What's Included
Pharmacy Technician — Live Online Training
- 63 hours live online, instructor-led (Tuesdays & Thursdays, 7–10 PM ET)
- 65 hours self-paced online coursework
- 120 hours of hands-on training
- 21 instructor-led lessons with midterm and final exam
- 3-week externship inside an actual pharmacy (CVS, Walgreens, or Target)
- PTCB CPhT exam preparation
- Background check included (typically a separate cost elsewhere)
- Drug screening included (typically a separate cost elsewhere)
- All course materials included
PTCB CPhT Exam Preparation Included
PTCB Certified Pharmacy Technician (CPhT) exam preparation
Course-to-Career coaching helps you stay on track, complete the externship strong, and convert it into a paid offer.
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Frequently Asked Questions
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Live online classes with a real instructor, 120 hours of hands-on training, and a 3-week externship inside CVS, Walgreens, or Target — the same externship most students convert into a paid pharmacy tech offer.