Pharmacy technician is an assistant, who works under the supervision of a licensed pharmacist. A pharmacy technician performs many functions related with pharmacy as directed by the pharmacist. The main job of a pharmacy technician is to provide medications to patients and to suggest them about the proper intake of medicines. Most of the pharmacy technicians pass through on-the-job training only, but now employers favor those pharmacy technicians, who have completed a formal job training or certification course.

Two main organizations arrange the largest national certification exam in the United States, The Institute of Certification of Pharmacy Technician (ICPT) and the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB). ICPT organize the exam on continuous basis and presents the result to the students immediately. This exam is supported by the community pharmacy industry, the National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS) and the National Community Pharmacy Association (NCPA). These provide a nationally accredited pharmacy technician option to the candidates.

PTCB is the one, which leads the industry of pharmacy technician. It was founded in 1995 and has certified over 30,000 pharmacy technicians. PTCB conducts the examination for Pharmacy Technician Certification. This is the only examination, which is endorsed by the American Pharmacist Association (APhA), the American Society for Health-System Pharmacist (ASHP), and the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy (NABP). By clearing one of these exams successfully, a technician can earn the certificate of "CPhT", equivalent to the professional title of Certified Pharmacy Technician.

Before choosing any course of certification, one should do proper research about the available certification courses for pharmacy technician. This can be done by collecting information about prospective colleges, and confirming that whether they are providing any accredited pharmacy technician course or not. These researches can help a person to choose the best certification course. Pharmacy technicians training programs are offered by the military, hospitals, proprietary schools, vocational or technical colleges and community colleges. These institutions prepare the students for the examinations by including regular labs and an "externship" so that the students can gain the real world pharmacy experiences. A licensed pharmacy technician must have received a doctorate degree in pharmacology and a valid license to start practice as a pharmacy technician.

One who has a doctorate degree in pharmacology may get some benefits; they can get one of the special certification in pharmaceutical medicine such as nuclear pharmacy certification. This will enhance the career of a pharmacy technician by allowing him or her to specialize in this field. In United States, there are requirements of those pharmacy technicians, who have successfully completed their doctorate program from an accredited university and in addition, they should have passed one or more tests conducted by Pharmacy Technician Certification Board. This condition can vary depending on State Laws.

After completing these entire requirements, one can start practicing as professional pharmacy technician. The main reason behind the requirement for a certificate from Pharmacy Technician Certification Board is to ensure the capability of a person and give out some especially regulated pharmaceutical training, which is not included in traditional pharmacy technician training.