One Year Certificate or Two Year Associate of Applied Science
Degree
Successful completion of the Pharmacy Technician course will
allow the student to take the National Pharmacy Technician
Certification Board examination. The student may enter the workforce
and gain experience or enter the second year program and pursue an
Associate Degree of Pharmacy Technology at our Hays campus. It is
strongly recommended that students attempt to complete the following
courses prior to the start of the program. COM103 English
Composition and MA110 Intermediate Algebra
Pharmacy Technician theory is taught in the classroom by
professionals in the Pharmacy field and our programs offer extensive
clinical experience through hands-on training at a variety of off
campus medical and care facilities.
The Pharmacy program has submitted to an accreditation survey by
the American Society of Health-system Pharmacists.
Admission Qualifications and Conditions
of Graduation
The applicant shall be a high school graduate or possess a GED
certificate.
The applicant shall have attained the age of 18 years old before
graduation from program
The applicant shall submit official transcripts for all secondary
and post-secondary course work taken in order to be considered.
For course placement purposes all incoming students to NCKTC must
have taken one of the following tests within a two-year period prior
to enrollment: ACT, SAT, or COMPASS. NCKTC offers COMPASS testing
for students. Test scores should be submitted to the Registrar’s
Office no later than 30 days prior to the students’ expected start
date. Test date inquiries should be directed to either the Beloit or
Hays campus.
Students with scores two years or older and/or students who have not
taken a Compass test at NCKTC will be allowed to take the Compass
test one time at no charge.
Submit to criminal background checks and drug screening. Clinical
agencies reserve the right to deny students access based on criminal
background.
Submit proof of immunization.
Student must complete all courses, labs, and experiential components
in the Student Plan of Study with a “C” or better.
Job Opportunities
The field of pharmacy technology is growing at a rapid rate.
Hospitals and other healthcare institutions are actively seeking
individuals with this expertise.
Over the next several years, job opportunities for pharmacy
technicians are expected to increase by 32% nationwide. (1) Annual
salaries in the state range from $17,900 to as high as $34,500 for
more experienced individuals—on par with the national average. (1)
Median hourly earnings of wage-and-salary pharmacy technicians in
May 2006 were $12.32. The middle 50 percent earned between $10.10
and $14.92. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $8.56, and the
highest 10 percent earned more than $17.65. (2) Median hourly
earnings in the industries employing the largest numbers of pharmacy
technicians in May 2006 were:
General medical and surgical hospitals $13.86
Grocery stores $12.78
Pharmacies and drug stores $ 11.50 (2)
(1) - Data source: www.careerinfonet.org. (2) Data source:
http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos252.htm
Expected Physical and Mental Qualities for Success for
admission to the Pharmacy Technician Program The North Central Kansas Technical College
Pharmacy Technician Program adheres to the Kansas Act Against
Discrimination (KAAD), which prohibits discrimination against those
with a disability. The KAAD is in compliance with the Federal
Americans with Disabilities Act.
Essential Functions
Essential functions refer to those physical, behavioral, and
emotional demands or abilities that are necessary for satisfactory
completion of all aspects of the curriculum and for the development
of professional attributes required of students upon completion of
the program. Admission and retention decisions for the Pharmacy
Technician program are based not only on academic achievement, but
also on non-academic factors that serve to insure that candidates
can complete the essential requirements of the program for
graduation.
The program has established the following list of minimum essential
(non-academic) requirements in compliance with the American
Disabilities Act and the National Accrediting Agency that must be
met, with or without reasonable accommodations, in order to
participate in the program and graduate.
Observation and Communication:
The student must be able to:
• Accurately observe demonstrations and exercises.
• Demonstrate functional use of the senses of smell, vision,
hearing, touch and pressure.
Visual ability sufficient to distinguish gradients of colors and
perform all standard tasks expected of a pharmacy technician.
Visual ability to interpret requests and physician orders.
Hearing ability to respond to messages from other individuals.
• Read and comprehend English text, numbers, and graphs displayed in
print, on a monitor screen, instrument displays, and on a video
projection system.
• Communicate effectively in English, orally and in writing, with
faculty members, fellow students, healthcare professionals, and
patients.
• Follow verbal and written instructions in English in order to
correctly and independently perform Pharmacy and laboratory
assistant guidelines.
Psychomotor Skills:
The student must be able to:
• Perform all tasks that are normally expected within the scope of
practice for a pharmacy technician.
• Move about freely and maneuver in small spaces, stand and/or walk
for long periods of time.
• Travel to school and clinical sites.
• Operate computers
• Demonstrate physical ability, including sufficient mobility and
fine motor coordination, to manipulate pharmacy equipment in a safe
and accurate manner.
• Exert up to 50 pounds of force occasionally, and/or up to 10-25
pounds of force frequently, and/or up to 10 pounds of force
constantly to move objects.
• Reach to seize, hold, grasp with hands.
• Pick, pinch, and otherwise work with fingers.
Intellectual and Cognitive Abilities:
The student must be able to:
• Measure, calculate, analyze, integrate, and apply information.
Analyze – to study the nature of something or determine its
essential features.
Integrate - to combine separate parts or elements to form a whole.
• Use sufficient judgment to recognize and correct performance and
problem solve unexpected observations or outcomes.
• Accurately recall and apply oral and written procedures.
Behavioral and Social Attributes:
The student must be able to:
• Establish and maintain effective, professional working
relationships and work as part of a team.
• Ability to organize and demonstrate responsibility for ones work
• Work in a stressful environment.
• Display flexibility and adapt to change.
• Function independently and efficiently.
• Maintain emotional health necessary to effectively use
intellectual abilities fully and exercise good judgment.
• Demonstrate honesty and integrity.
• Perform in an ethical manner in working with peers, faculty,
healthcare staff, and patients.
Clinical Education
Learning by Doing - Clinical Experience
Students will have hands-on clinical experience in a variety of
health care facilities.
Student clinical assignments will be based upon facility
availability. This requires some assignments to be in nearby towns
and some evening hours.
CLINICAL SITES
The student will provide his/her own transportation to and from
clinical sites. Clinical site assignments are made on the basis of
class rank.
• The student is required to follow each clinical institution’s
policy for infection control precautions or for accidents or
illnesses.
• Clinical experiences are essential for the student to learn to
apply knowledge in caring for patients; therefore, a student must
make the most of any and all experiences in the clinical area. While
the student must assume responsibility for the planning and
execution of care within his/her capabilities, he/she should also
recognize limitations and seek assistance from the clinical
instructor. Since clinical education is skill-based, the student
must be prepared for the experience, including having passed skills
in the laboratory prior to performing them on clinical. Lack of
sufficient and timely preparation for required nursing skills may
result in the student not meeting the behavioral objectives.
• The student is expected to perform safely in all areas of patient
care. If, in the judgment of the instructor or the clinical site, a
student is not adequately prepared for clinical assignment or if
his/her conduct could harm the patient, the student will be asked to
leave the clinical area. The student will be counted absent for the
clinical experience if asked to leave.
________________________________________ Student Responsibilities
LEARNING
It is not possible, nor is it in the best interest of the student
for instructors to include all necessary knowledge within the
lecture/discussion periods. Learning is a shared responsibility with
the instructor’s role as a resource person, guide and facilitator.
The student is responsible for the independent research necessary to
adequately complete the course requirements. Students need to
develop the habit of researching indexes and the tables of content
for topics related to the current subjects in resources
supplementary to required texts. Use of the Learning Resource Center
is encouraged.
Failure to utilize independent study and resources may result in
inadequate performance in the classroom and the clinical setting.
All tuition, fees, books, and related costs are the responsibility
of the student.
Kansas State Regulatory
Kansas State Board of Pharmacy considers students of the pharmacy
technician program as technicians for work purposes. K.S.A 65-1663
states: It shall be unlawful for any person to function as a
pharmacy technician in this state unless such person is registered
with the board as a pharmacy technician. Every person registered as
a pharmacy technician shall pass an examination approved by the
board within 30 days of becoming registered. The board shall adopt
rules and regulations establishing the criteria for the required
examination and a passing score.
The examination will be administer on campus and certified to the
Kansas State Board of Pharmacy. Student is responsible for the
registration fee.
