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If you want to pursue a career as a pharmacy technician in Maine, continue with this article!
Article Table of Contents
Job Responsibilities
Being a pharmacy tech means you’ll complete several tasks, but while being supervised.
These tasks include:
- Prepare certain medications
- Counting out medicine
- Managing the inventory
- Dispensing prescriptions
- Completing various administrative duties
To properly complete most of these, you’ll need to be able to pay great attention to details.
It is the duty of the pharmacy technician to always wear a name tag during work hours.
License and Certification Requirements
In Maine, those who work as pharmacy technicians are not required to obtain any licenses or certifications.
Registering with the Maine Board of Pharmacy is mandatory.
To do this, you’ll need:
- To be a least 18 years old
- To have a high school diploma or GED
- To fill out an application
- Clean criminal record
If you’re accepted, you’ll be issued a license allowing you to find employment.
This Board registration has to be renewed every year.
If you miss the deadline, you’ll have to pay a fine of $50.
If you want to have better chances of landing jobs that pay more, you can consider getting a national certification.
You obtain this certification after passing the Pharmacy Technician Certification Exam which costs $129.
This certification is renewed every other year after completing a number of continuing education hours.
Training Requirements
Usually, to take the certification exam you’ll need to undergo some formal training which can usually be found at community colleges.
Maine has only one school offering such training classes.
You can graduate from this training program in 8 months.
| School Name | Address |
|---|---|
| InterCoast Career Institute | 207 Gannett Dr, South Portland, Maine 04106 |
The classes at this institution cover:
- Pharmacology
- Customer service
- Workplace operations
- Anatomy and physiology,
- Pharmacy law and regulations,
- Sterile and non-sterile compounding,
- Medical terminology,
- Pharmacy calculations,
It is, however, possible to enroll in online programs as well, as long as they’re approved by the State Board.
The duration of the training program varies from school to school.
Those who enroll in a formal training program can also earn diplomas or an Associates’s degree which improves their chances of getting employed on a higher paying position.
Formal training also improves the chances of developing a career in this field.
Salary Expectations in Maine
Generally, experience, certification, and the actual place will influence how much you’ll earn as a pharmacy technician in Maine.
It’s been noticed that those working in pharmacies located in hospitals earn more than those working in stand-alone pharmacies.
Annual Salary Range:| Location | Avg. Annual Salary |
|---|---|
| Portland | $35,142 |
| Lewiston | $34,791 |
| Bangor | $32,094 |
| South Portland | $35,142 |
| Auburn | $34,791 |
| Biddeford | $34,978 |
| Sanford | $35,531 |
| Brunswick | $34,838 |
| Scarborough | $35,142 |
| Saco | $35,072 |
Regional Salary in Maine
| Region | Employed | Avg. Annual Salary | Avg. Hourly Pay | Top 10% Annual Salary | Bottom 10% Annual Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bangor, ME | 220 | $39,400 | $18.94 | $49,280 | $30,240 |
| Lewiston-Auburn, ME | 180 | $38,530 | $18.53 | $50,450 | $30,070 |
| Portland-South Portland, ME | 720 | $40,700 | $19.57 | $52,270 | $34,560 |
* Employment conditions in your area may vary.
Extra Information
Having good math skills is important in this field, as this knowledge is used when counting and mixing medicine.
It’s also important for these individuals to be able to stand for extended periods of time.
Working weekends, evenings, and even nights is not uncommon for pharmacy technicians.
This schedule will also increase a person’s revenue.
Read the full guide: How to Become a Pharmacy Technician
Pharmacy Technician Schools by State