Who all is using Penn Foster as their school of choice?

I am, I currently have about 14 more tests to complete, so far I like it, I've been halted a bit due to other reasons, but it seems very informative as it goes into each subject of a pharmacy technicians job.

It includes everything you need to know, plus the top 200 flash cards are very useful.

Not bad for about 500 bucks.

Also, people who have already completed this, did it truly prepare you for the exam to be certified? Do employers honor Penn Foster, or does it even matter as long as you are a CPHT?

in my opinion you wasted your money as i did when i paid 10 grand to go to school, a 1 1/2 later, im still not working. You could have gotten a decent $30/$40 pharmacy book, I think there is a pharmacy tech kit online somewhere for $40 and has the 200 flashcards, and do you really think you can remember 200 flashcards? or 200 top drug names? at least your only down $500 and no job, im down $10,000 and no job after 1 1/2 years.

I am too and am starting module 8 today - only 5 more (13 tests) so we are about in the same section JT! I like it pretty well and feel that I am getting some good useful info.

I think everyone who takes an online course worries that they won't be accepted. I am riding on the hopes that this course will cover what I need to know for the CPhT exam and that will be what gets me a job. I called a few pharmacies around here and was told that I did not need schooling or CPhT to get hired, so I figure if I have it all the better.

My course costs me $896 total and I make $36 payments a month. I got a little behind and will be needing the extension offered. Does anyone know if it is 6 months for $75 like some other courses they offer? I also wonder if the final exam is going to be proctored like some I see, or is that just for the Assoc. Degree programs?

school waste of money, online waste of money...

go to amazon and find you a good pharmacy book that
covers a lot of math..know your math, 40-60% of your
test could easily be math.

go to yahoo groups, and look for groups on PTCB,
PTCE, Pharmacy tech, etc...

I think if you get all your math correct, and answer some
common sense questions on the test, and you may get
lucky and get some correct that you may not know,
overall, I think you would pass the test.

BF in Lake Jackson, Texas said: I am too and am starting module 8 today - only 5 more (13 tests) so we are about in the same section JT! I like it pretty well and feel that I am getting some good useful info.

I think everyone who takes an online course worries that they won't be accepted. I am riding on the hopes that this course will cover what I need to know for the CPhT exam and that will be what gets me a job. I called a few pharmacies around here and was told that I did not need schooling or CPhT to get hired, so I figure if I have it all the better.

My course costs me $896 total and I make $36 payments a month. I got a little behind and will be needing the extension offered. Does anyone know if it is 6 months for $75 like some other courses they offer? I also wonder if the final exam is going to be proctored like some I see, or is that just for the Assoc. Degree programs?

i heard some ppl talking about tests. i didnt know that there was a test to be taken. i thought that you finish ur final test and pay off ur balance and you get ur certificate...

Lil Bee in Manhattan Beach, California said: i heard some ppl talking about tests. i didnt know that there was a test to be taken. i thought that you finish ur final test and pay off ur balance and you get ur certificate...

The school may give you a "diploma" stating that you completed the courses. But to be a Certified Pharmacy Technician, you must take the PCTB Exam. That's what schools and online courses are preparing you for.

www.ptcb.org//AM/Template.cfm?Section=Home1

Deb in West Fork, Arkansas said: The school may give you a "diploma" stating that you completed the courses. But to be a Certified Pharmacy Technician, you must take the PCTB Exam. That's what schools and online courses are preparing you for.

www.ptcb.org//AM/Template.cfm?Section=Home1

yea, i got bored last night and was goog-ling the exams and stuff... thanks a lot tho

I was told by a local Pharmacist I didn't need to go to school to become a tech so I wanted to know what book I would need to study for the Pharm Tech Cert and where do I go to take the test?

There are plenty of different books available. I think the most popular one is Delmar's. You can go to the ptcb.org site and find out about the testing places and dates there. I think that they also sell a book for studying.

Amanda in Arvada, Colorado said: I was told by a local Pharmacist I didn't need to go to school to become a tech so I wanted to know what book I would need to study for the Pharm Tech Cert and where do I go to take the test?

Pay close attention on studying math problems and formulas,
there are plenty on the exam.

I am a certified medication aide, and although i have had three years experiance as a medication aide, i also am taking the course through penn foster. I know you don't have too. But it is good to know that you have been through a class and have study some. I heard that the test is hard, and their is alot of math on the test, i think that if you do pass the test and look for a job, you will have aleast some or more knowledge having been to school, because I am learning alot, just in this course. their was a book that you could get to help study for the test could someone please tell me what would help with the test, thanks

JT in Sandusky, Ohio said: I am, I currently have about 14 more tests to complete, so far I like it, I've been halted a bit due to other reasons, but it seems very informative as it goes into each subject of a pharmacy technicians job.

It includes everything you need to know, plus the top 200 flash cards are very useful.

Not bad for about 500 bucks.

Also, people who have already completed this, did it truly prepare you for the exam to be certified? Do employers honor Penn Foster, or does it even matter as long as you are a CPHT?

I am in penn foster now and i am learning I am on the veterians as prescribers one then I will go to the math. its getting harder.

yes the math will be the hardest to remember only because you have to remember what all the abbreviations mean. i still mess up twice a day and three times a day abrv.

Iam doing the Pharmacy Technician course and i am wondering which book is best to use for the PCTB exam.

Icould like a pharmacist to tell us which book is the best one to use.

Moria strachan in Bronx, New York said: Icould like a pharmacist to tell us which book is the best one to use.

I think a pharmacist has better things to do then come
here...and he probably would not know himself as its
probbaly been years since he took the exam. Pharmacy Tech
exams are different then pharmacist exams...

go to amazon, search for pharmacy tech, and choose one, and
study the hell out of math formulas...

I have only one more test to take. Actually I have looked into everything that is required for me to be become a pharmacy tech. For those of you taking the course..Good for you. Dont listen to anyone thats telling you that you wasted your money. Thats very discouraging. Yeah, you could buy all the study material to take the certification test. Pass and be certified.But guess what..without training you cannot get licensed!!! Duh!! No one is going to hire a technician that cannot be licensed by state. So if your still working towards you goal keep working on it and dont get discouraged. Tommorrow I should be done with my last test. I plan on applying online to take the ptcb test afterwards when im done studying for the test. If anyone wants to ask me questions or anything feel free to hit me up at roxcomp@yahoo.com

I just started...I think i might like it..

Roxanne in Sonora, California said: I have only one more test to take. Actually I have looked into everything that is required for me to be become a pharmacy tech. For those of you taking the course..Good for you. Dont listen to anyone thats telling you that you wasted your money. Thats very discouraging. Yeah, you could buy all the study material to take the certification test. Pass and be certified.But guess what..without training you cannot get licensed!!! Duh!! No one is going to hire a technician that cannot be licensed by state. So if your still working towards you goal keep working on it and dont get discouraged. Tommorrow I should be done with my last test. I plan on applying online to take the ptcb test afterwards when im done studying for the test. If anyone wants to ask me questions or anything feel free to hit me up at roxcomp@yahoo.com

Thanks for the tip...a lot of people look down on online school, but rigt now it's all I can do, and I already paid for it...so I hope this helps me!

I only have about 5 more tests to complete, it's been very informative so far...

I also bought the 2007 PTCB study manual from Techlectures.com

VERY, VERY, good guide.

For anyone wanting one to study from or to pick up new and updated info, I recommend this one!

I Think anyone trying to better themselves is great. Yes the course is hard, and no you don't have to go to school, but in the long run, we that hhave will have alot more, we learn the laws, and other things that you will not get in the ptcb book.
I wish you all the very best. I pray you all pass and find the job you want. Good luck.

Hi guyz!
I completed my Pharmacy tech,course last year.The course was very good and informative.
Thank God that the course is not a fake course.Any thing more is not very important.
Please,to me i think the best thing to do is do your internship or work experience option thus giving you more chance to get a job there after.
I am still to do mine, only that am in Germany for three months before i go back to Africa.
There are very many jobs in Africa.

All done!

I have seen some posts where they said schooling is a waste of money, and I believe this is false. In my area the hospitals will hire you if you have work experience, or official training. So they take your schooling in lieu of having to have work experience. I wouldnt say that schooling is a waste of money.

JT in Sandusky, Ohio said: I am, I currently have about 14 more tests to complete, so far I like it, I've been halted a bit due to other reasons, but it seems very informative as it goes into each subject of a pharmacy technicians job.

It includes everything you need to know, plus the top 200 flash cards are very useful.

Not bad for about 500 bucks.

Also, people who have already completed this, did it truly prepare you for the exam to be certified? Do employers honor Penn Foster, or does it even matter as long as you are a CPHT?

hello!! I am currently enrolled in the program and have only been in it a week. I see that you mentioned about flash cards and was wondering if you could tell me where to find them on the site.
Thank you!

Hi I am on lesson 20. The flashcards should come in your shipment. I really injoy this program. Think about it. We are learning alot more that some that just take the test. It is hard when your get to the math part. I had problems but I made it through it. Good luck in your studies.

thank you so much for the info cuz i was madly searching the site. good luck in your program also!!!

Hey everyone I'm proud everyone here is going become certified but advice to everyone here DO NOT ENROLL IN PENN FOSTER!!!!!! Not only will you waste time you will waste a lot of money. Advice to everyone......Go on PTCB.org and check out the site and get familiar with the site. You don't need any certificates or experience to take the PTCE. I recommend a preparation book from either Barnes & Noble or Borders. I failed the PTCE the first time because honestly, the information that was based in the program in Penn Foster wasn't really relevant with the test. The book I got from Barnes and Noble was more up to date. The book is called Mosby's Review for the PTCB Certification Examination. The books ISBN-13 is 9780323033671. I got the book for around 40 dollars. One more thing to recommend to anyone becoming, trying to become, or/and thinking of becoming a technician, become a member of the NPTA. The National Pharmacy Technician Association offers Continuing Education and also Certificates such as IV and Compounding. Both those classes combined will cost you around $1000 plus expenses because these classes are held in Texas. Now if you go through the traditional school you will pay around $10,000 dollars for all this. If you do it through Penn Foster it will cost you around $600 plus you get a certificate that worth nothing. If anyone needs any more advice or has questions reply back to my comment and I'll try to answer back ASAP.

$10,000 is not really true. If you went to a private PT full program, it would cost you around $10-$15. You can find CE classes for free. IV class can cost between $300-$500, dont waste time and money traveling, im sure texas is not the only place to get IV certified, check around your PT schools, and colleges, and find an IV class...besides, once you get your IV cert. you will get 20 CE credits, you would be good for like 2 years I think.

I agree, dont waste money going to school, on the most part school means very little, they are just preping you for a test, and thats pretty much it, and I sure would not waste time going to a 2 year pharmacy tech school for low pay when you could go to a 2 year Radiology Tech program and make more pay...

MC in Morgantown, West Virginia said: I have seen some posts where they said schooling is a waste of money, and I believe this is false. In my area the hospitals will hire you if you have work experience, or official training. So they take your schooling in lieu of having to have work experience. I wouldnt say that schooling is a waste of money.

when you get "offical training" you let us know how it works with the hospital...unless you are actually in a hospital traning program, you have a little false hope going on... I have "offical training" hospitals have not hired me...so I know thats not entirely true...
If you are not within a hospital training program, then they will not just hire you because you been training...remember, other people have more experiance then you do...the job will be offered internally first, then they will start looking for candiates that have experiance for the actual job/position...getting trained does not gurantee you a job anywhere.

Actually I enrolled in penn foster for the pharmacy technician course. I also already passed my PTCE and am already licensed through the state. Penn foster is not a waste of money. Yes, any one off the streets can apply to take that PTCB exam. But, you cannot get licensed through any state without schooling. Without the license no pharmacist, big or small, can hire you.

Hey everyone, I'm sorry for not stating a few things. My older cousin went to a traditional school unlike me around 6 years ago to Pomona in 2002. His tuition was around $9,500 which included books, certifications and a 2-3 times to take to become a registered technician. I know theres free CE al around but most of them take longer and confusing. And last to add I have look all around for taking out my IV and Coupounding Certificate out at a non traditional school and can't find any place and only found the classes through the NPTA.

Anonymous in Tuolumne, California said: Actually I enrolled in penn foster for the pharmacy technician course. I also already passed my PTCE and am already licensed through the state. Penn foster is not a waste of money. Yes, any one off the streets can apply to take that PTCB exam. But, you cannot get licensed through any state without schooling. Without the license no pharmacist, big or small, can hire you.

That is a false statement, and you have been misinformed. Most states do require you to be registered, not all states require you to be certified.

Anonymous in Tuolumne, California said: Actually I enrolled in penn foster for the pharmacy technician course. I also already passed my PTCE and am already licensed through the state. Penn foster is not a waste of money. Yes, any one off the streets can apply to take that PTCB exam. But, you cannot get licensed through any state without schooling. Without the license no pharmacist, big or small, can hire you.

You actually made two false statements:

first off, you do not need to go to school to get certified.
second off, not all states require you to be certified to work.

It would be nice if the govt would mandate a 2 year schooling, you
would see all those useless online pharmacy tech classes disappear as they would not be able to meet govt requirements, and yes, they are useless, you can train yourself to take the PTCE, people do it
every single day, this type of schooling does not impress anyone,
they carry 0 weight, I only consider them prep classes to take
the exam, they carry no weight what-so-ever.

There is no where in my writing above that says you need to go to school to get certified. Like I said almost anyone CAN take the ptce...and pass..and then get certified. Im saying that without getting registered with your license you cannot get hired. Also I never stated above that you Need to be certified to work just licensed. Trust me I got the job...

Hey there. I just got hired in Las Vegas last Saturday and passed the PTCE which makes me Certified and they were happy to hire me on the spot. Some places want you to be registered but not all places.

John in Los Angeles/Las Vegas said: Hey there. I just got hired in Las Vegas last Saturday and passed the PTCE which makes me Certified and they were happy to hire me on the spot. Some places want you to be registered but not all places.

Congrats.. did you find a lot of math on your exam?

YEAHHH just passed the ptcb!!! A lot of math problems than I expected. Im so glad I took the course with Penn Foster. Its an easy course If ya'll like independent studying. I recommend it to anyone whose wanting to start their future as a technician but make sure ya do the internship program tho.

Anyone can pass the PTCB without going to penn foster. pick up a decent PTCB book and study math formulas...

The first time I took the test there was a lttle bit of math and I failed. But when I took the test for the second time it was mostly math.

John in Los Angeles/Las Vegas said: The first time I took the test there was a lttle bit of math and I failed. But when I took the test for the second time it was mostly math.

that is why it is best to always study the math forumlas
more then anything else. math is constant and does not change., so if you know your math, then anyone has a really
good chance of passing the ptce, since most tests are mostly
math questions.

John in Los Angeles/Las Vegas said: The first time I took the test there was a lttle bit of math and I failed. But when I took the test for the second time it was mostly math.

do you remember any particular questions? like drip/rates,
alligations, ratio/proportion?? any easy questions? such
as questions that could be answered with some common sense?

You have to understand though...there are several verisons of the test. The first time I took it, out of folowing 90 questions there was around 15-20 math questions. The second time I took it, there was around 35-40 math questions

John in Los Angeles/Las Vegas said: You have to understand though...there are several verisons of the test. The first time I took it, out of folowing 90 questions there was around 15-20 math questions. The second time I took it, there was around 35-40 math questions

I suspect there are more then one version. I have taken it some time ago, I failed by a few points.. when i take it again, I hope to get the math questions, it would make it far easier to pass. There is just too much material to study, I think studying math will allow anyone to pass, sooner or later anyway...anything can be on the test that you have no clue, but math does not change.

I honestly cannot remember exact questions but I can give you a few examples...

How many grams you 2.5% x cream should be mxed with 240g of a 0.25% x cream to make 1% of cream?

One more good thing about these tests...they're all multiple choose questions.

John in Los Angeles/Las Vegas said: I honestly cannot remember exact questions but I can give you a few examples...

How many grams you 2.5% x cream should be mxed with 240g of a 0.25% x cream to make 1% of cream?

One more good thing about these tests...they're all multiple choose questions.

The old cream question :) When i was going to school, I probably could answer that, just another formula i have to look up an remember :) any temp/conversions on your exam?
you probably had several ratio/prop on the test also.

John in Eden Prairie, Minnesota said: I suspect there are more then one version. I have taken it some time ago, I failed by a few points.. when i take it again, I hope to get the math questions, it would make it far easier to pass. There is just too much material to study, I think studying math will allow anyone to pass, sooner or later anyway...anything can be on the test that you have no clue, but math does not change.

I'm sorry you failed the first time also...it happens, it happen to me. The first time I failed was by 4 questions which was horrible with hours of studying. Just remember, it might be possble you get another verison of the test without math, you have to know all other material also or you might take it again. I recommend you to get this one book I got called Mosby's Review for the PTCB Certification Examination. It helped me with a lot more information that any other self studying source.

Honestly cant really remember

John in Los Angeles/Las Vegas said: I'm sorry you failed the first time also...it happens, it happen to me. The first time I failed was by 4 questions which was horrible with hours of studying. Just remember, it might be possble you get another verison of the test without math, you have to know all other material also or you might take it again. I recommend you to get this one book I got called Mosby's Review for the PTCB Certification Examination. It helped me with a lot more information that any other self studying source.

I might do that, ive heard of several people
saying that Mosby's was pretty good.

I am a year finished with Penn Foster. Yes it does prepare you. I am currently working at a local pharmacy. They like that I went to a program and passed the PTCB test. P.S. It is very important for you to memorize your conversion factors before taking the test.

JT in Sandusky, Ohio said: I am, I currently have about 14 more tests to complete, so far I like it, I've been halted a bit due to other reasons, but it seems very informative as it goes into each subject of a pharmacy technicians job.

It includes everything you need to know, plus the top 200 flash cards are very useful.

Not bad for about 500 bucks.

Also, people who have already completed this, did it truly prepare you for the exam to be certified? Do employers honor Penn Foster, or does it even matter as long as you are a CPHT?