Pharmacy Technician 

(Female, Age 28) from Mays Landing, NJ

This is a REAL-LIFE job profile written by a Female aged 28 who works as a Pharmacy Technician in Mays Landing, NJ. We have removed all names and personal information in order to protect privacy. This professional kindly spent a bit of their time to complete one of our job profile surveys so that prospective job seekers like you could read their insights. Please excuse any punctuation or grammatical errors in this profile.

At a Glance

Current Job

Basic data on your current job

Job Title Pharmacy Technician
Salary $23,000
Other Compensation None Set
Hours/Week
Company Size (not answered)
Location Mays Landing, NJ
Years Experience 1 year

Career Ratings

Opinions on your CAREER overall (i.e. not just your current job)

Years in Career 0
Education (not answered)
Income Rating 0 / 10
Interest Rating 0 / 10
Work-Life Rating 0 / 10
Fulfilment Rating 0 / 10

Current job Q&A

Describe the type of organization you work for.
I’m employed for a small privately owned pharmacy that mainly deals with nursing homes, assisted living individuals, long term care patients, jails. We have 109 employees. The pharmacy typically does between 1400 – 1800 patient scripts a day.

Describe your job role and responsibilities.
I’m a pharmacy technician where my duties include filling all aspects of patient prescriptions.

Please list an additional benefits (beyond compensation) that you receive.
No benefits.

Do you feel you are under/over or well/fairly compensated at your current position?
Under compensated

Does your job entail you working with others on a daily basis? Is this something you like/dislike about your job? Please explain.
I interact with over 30 people a day. I like to be social working with others. It’s easier to get work accomplished working within a group.

Do you work collaboratively with supervisors/managers?
Yes

Do you work collaboratively with your co-workers?
Yes

Describe your work location (e.g., office, home, theatre, in the field) and what you like/dislike about working in it.
My work location is situated on a main road in the suburbs. I enjoy working with peers and also the pharmacists because I’m able to ask questions and learn more than I would in a retail pharmacy.

Please rate each of the following aspects of your current job on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the highest/best):
Income: 1
Benefits: 2
Hours: 6
Co-Workers: 8
Supervisors: 7
Job Title: 3
Level of Responsibility: 4
The Actual Work: 5

A day in the life of…

Please describe a typical workday for you in your current job:

5am to 6am
6am to 7am
7am to 8am
8am to 9am
9am to 10am
10am to 11am
11am to 12pm
12pm to 1pm My shift starts at 1pm. Depending on what area is falling behind is where I usually jump in and help with. The pharmacists type the scripts and my job is to tear off the scripts from the printer and organize them to make it eaier to pull them from shelves/locations. There are a few different ways drugs are packaged either through UNIT DOSING where inividual pills are packaged into plasic bubbles and a computer generated label is printed with the manufactures name, lot number of the bottle it came from, and expiration date. There are SLIDE PACKS where the unit dosed pills are arranged in several day doses via a plastic sliding container that the nurses dose out to their patients. There are BINGO CARDS where pills are put into cardboard cards with plastic bubbles and they are sealed inside when the card gets pressed by a heat sealer. There are CONTROL DRUGS that are packaged by secure plastic sheaths that snap together to hold packaged pills in place.
1pm to 2pm Most of my day is standing and then pulling scrips and bringing them back to the tables to fill. We may have to mix IV’s, compount ointments and creams, mix suspension liquids, crush and half pills, count pills via pill counter to dose into vials, package unit dosed pills into boxes.
2pm to 3pm I usually take a 5 minute break at 3pm. During down times I help put away returns, order drugs or other items we’re out of to come in on the following day’s shipment, help raise and bag the checked presciptions and place them into bins for the drivers to deliver to various homes. Help stock new items from shipments throughout the week.
3pm to 4pm We also accumulate a lof of trash and I run that out a few times a day along with other coworkers, sweeping, straitening up around the tables, refilling vials and things needed at the tables.
4pm to 5pm Approaching 6 pm we get a lot of new admits on the fax machine and we usually pick up the pace to get the scripts filled on time for the drivers. Fax refill cut off is usally right up untill 6 so we stay pretty busy.
5pm to 6pm Double and Triple checking of all scripts assuring they are in the proper bins for the homes. Drivers load up there vans with the bins and bags to be delivered shortly after 6pm.
6pm to 7pm I usually take my dinner break for a half an hour and relax. A good portion of the day shift leaves to go home. One pharmacist stays the evening shift. Usually there are 5 or so pharmacists on during the day shift.
7pm to 8pm More of the same. Filling scripts where needed in different locations of the pharmacy. I can stand in one place at the tables filling for long periods of time sometimes. It’s a high volume pharmacy.
8pm to 9pm Same as day shift. Only a few homes get deliveries on the night shift. The rest of them go out the following morning.
9pm to 10pm Wrap up our day. Organizing the bins for the following day. Putting everything we filled in those bins. Vacuum, sweep, clean up the place a bit. Stock and refill at the tables.
10pm to 11pm Shift is over at 10pm. My commute is 20 minutes home.
11pm to 12am

Table of Contents

How you got your job

How did you get your current job?
Newspaper.

What was the application process?
Submitted resume followed by an interview.

Did you have to interview for your current job? If yes, what did the interview process entail?
Individual interview that lasted 5 – 10 minutes. Basic questions and work history information.

If you can remember, what questions were you asked during the interview?
My previous experience. Certification. Did I attend college. How many hours was I looking for. salary requirements.

Do you feel your employer properly prepared you for your job? Explain.
Yes. It wasn’t difficult for me to transition into this job because of previous experience.

Was there training for your current position? If yes, what did it entail?
Short period of training for a few weeks. I tailed a few coworkers and learned their system.

Do you feel your educational background prepared you for your job? Explain.
Yes. I am certified pharmacy technician.

If applicable, do you feel your internship experience helped you prepare for your job?
I didn’t intern for this compnay.

If someone wanted to go about getting a job similar to yours, what would you recommend for him or her to do?
Get certification at a local technical school or college.

What skills do you think a person should have if they want to pursue a position like yours?
Alertness, Accuracy, Attention to detail, ask questions if you aren’t sure about something.

Do you feel that you need a certain level of education or training to be successful in your job?
Yes. Education and experience determines your salary/position within the company.

What advice would you give to someone who was about to start work in your position/ line of work?
It’s a great job to learn from especially if your interested in the medical sciences.

Long-term career plans

Is your current employment part of your overall career plan? Why or why not?
I have varied interests. Not part of my career plan initially, but it is something I find fulfilling.

What are your current career goals?
Get my bachelors degree. I’d also like to get a real estate license for part time work. Ultimately, I’d like to own my own business from home.

Is there anything else you would like to share about your career?
It’s a lucrative career stepping stone if you wish to work in the medical field.

Prior work history

Please list your most recent jobs prior to this current job:

Title Length Salary Description
Prior Job 1 Food Server 4 years 2 hr + tips Food server. Trainer. Cash Handling.
Prior Job 2 Food Server 3 years 2 hr = tips Food server. Trainer. Cash Handling.

Educational background

Please list your educational background:

High School GPA:3.4

GPA School Degree
College (Undergraduate)
or Technical/Vocational
3.6 Richard Stockton College of NJ Finance Bachelors
Graduate or Professional
(Masters or Doctorate)

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