How To Become A Pharmacist Clerk: What It Is and Career Path

What is a pharmacist clerk and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

It's a general rule in society that it is hard to get appointments with well-known doctors. Don't worry if you fail to get in touch with them because a Pharmacist Clerks are here to help you. They are the people who perform clerical work at a pharmacy and process your prescriptions. This includes providing complete guidance regarding dosage, schedule, and precautions related to the medicines.

Becoming a pharmacist clerk doesn't require a medical academic background. All you need, in terms of education, is a high school diploma or an equal qualification. A pharmacist clerk is also supposed to keep records of medicine availability, generate requests, and update transactions online. Having basic computer knowledge gives candidates an edge in these responsibilities.

A pharmacist clerk has to answer every query and respond immediately to each request. It requires a lot of stamina and patience. Building healthy terms with customers means practicing effective ways of dealing with the public. Entering this progressive field grants a starting pay of $16 an hour. That's a big start.

ScorePharmacist ClerkUS Average

Salary

2.6

Avg. Salary $32,705

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

7.7

Growth rate 5%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

6.5

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.81%

Asian 10.24%

Black or African American 12.36%

Hispanic or Latino 24.37%

Unknown 5.82%

White 46.39%

Gender

female 78.92%

male 21.08%

Age - 38

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 38

Stress level

7.7

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

6.4

Complexity level is intermediate

7 - challenging

Work life balance

10.0

Work life balance is excellent

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a pharmacist clerk

Explore pharmacist clerk education requirements

Most common pharmacist clerk degrees

Bachelor's

30.2 %

High School Diploma

29.3 %

Associate

22.2 %

Start to develop specific pharmacist clerk skills

Skills	Percentages
Patients	25.79%
HIPAA	10.89%
Basic Math	10.36%
Allergies	10.27%
Math	8.89%

Complete relevant pharmacist clerk training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New pharmacist clerks learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a pharmacist clerk based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real pharmacist clerk resumes.

Obtain the necessary licensing

Becoming a licensed pharmacist clerk usually require a college degree. However, you need to pass an exam to become a licensed pharmacist clerk in most of states. 38 states require pharmacist clerks to have license for their work. You can see the list of states below.

State	Education	Exam	License url
Alabama	-	-	Licensed Pharmacist Technician
Alaska	Degree required	Third-party exam required	Pharmacist
Arkansas	Degree required	Both state and third-party exams required	Pharmacist
California	Degree required	Both state and third-party exams required	Pharmacist, Registered
Connecticut	Degree required	State exam required	Pharmacist

Gain additional pharmacist clerk certifications

Pharmacist clerk certifications can show employers you have a baseline of knowledge expected for the position. Certifications can also make you a more competitive candidate. Even if employers don't require a specific pharmacist clerk certification, having one may help you stand out relative to other applicants.

The most common certifications for pharmacist clerks include Certified Pharmacy Technician (CPhT) and Medical Assistant.

More About Certifications

Research pharmacist clerk duties and responsibilities

Manage assigned pharmacy workstations and tasks while supporting team members in promptly, safely and accurately filling patient prescriptions.
Operate cash register, provide excellent customer service, maintain store cleanliness, help file papers/prescriptions
Master customer satisfaction by assisting customers and maintaining patient confidentiality according to HIPAA and company standards.
Provide excellent customer service by assisting patients with pickups, transactions, and consultations regarding their medications.

Prepare your pharmacist clerk resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your pharmacist clerk resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a pharmacist clerk resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable pharmacist clerk resume templates

Build a professional pharmacist clerk resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your pharmacist clerk resume.