New Zealand Certificate in Pharmacy (Pharmacy Technician - Core) (Level 4)

If you’re employed as a trainee pharmacy technician in a community or hospital pharmacy, or would like to be, this is the qualification that you need in order to dispense medicines under the direct personal supervision of a pharmacist.

Learn more

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Availability

Our distance learning courses are offered throughout the year to help you fit study around your work and life commitments.
Courses are offered up to 12 times per year depending on demand and availability of academic staff.
Exact start dates are in the course information pages and in our Enrolment dates page:

Enrolment dates

Cost

• Course costscan be found on all course pages.  The fees may increase annually.
• Qualification cost – to give you an idea of how much a qualification may cost in total over the duration of your studies, an approximate cost is provided for many of our qualifications. This is based on the required number of courses to complete the qualification and the average cost of those courses. It does not include annual administration fees, text books and course materials or external exam fees, and is subject to annual course fee increases.

Credits

Courses are assigned credits depending on how much time and effort is needed to complete their learning outcomes. In general, each credit represents approximately 10 hours of study time.

Delivery method

• Online – The course materials for online courses are delivered in an online format and all assignments are submitted online.
• Mixed – These courses are delivered using a mix of online and paper based course materials. This may include receiving paper course materials, submitting  assignments online, or being required to participate in online forums and learning activities.
• Print Only - The course will be delivered using paper based courses materials, and assignments may need to be submitted in hard copy rather than online. This will depend on the course.

Whether courses are delivered online, on paper or a mixture of both, there may also be components such as workshops, noho marae, work experience and practicum to participate in. To find out what your course involves check the course information page.

EFTS

EFTS stands for equivalent full-time student. An EFTS is the study time required for each course and is used by the Tertiary Education Commission to decide if a course is part-time or full-time. 

One year of full-time study is generally between 0.8 and 1.2 EFTS.

Level

You can tell how hard a course or qualification is by the level it is set at:

• Levels 1-4 are about the same as secondary school and basic trades training.
• Levels 5-7 are the same as university study.

Prerequisites

• Prerequisites are courses that must be completed before another course can be studied.
• Co-requisites are courses that can be studied at the same time as another course.

If a course has a specific prerequisite or co-requisite course, it will be listed on the course page under the title 'Prerequisites'. If no courses are listed, check the entry and other requirements under the qualification you are studying for. Some courses require you to have studied at a particular level prior to enrolling.

Student loans

Not all qualifications or students are eligible for student loans. You will need to meet criteria such as studying a minimum number of credits over a specific study period. It is up to you to apply for a student loan via StudyLink - Open Polytechnic does not do this for you.

Information about student loans and eligibility

StudyLink website

Teaching weeks

Teaching weeks is the number of weeks that we teach a course. This differs from the enrolment period, which is based on the course start and end dates.

For example, a 20-week enrolment period will have 16 teaching weeks, followed by four weeks to accommodate marking, any extensions and reassessments, or exams.

Workload

The workload estimate given on a course page is calculated like this:

Number of credits x 10, divided by the number of teaching weeks for the course. The hours will be rounded up to nearest whole number.

Please note, this is a guide only. You may need more or less time for study, and you may also need to do more hours during assessment due dates or exams times.

• Level

4

• Credits

75

• Cost $2,588 NZ Domestic Not including any course materials or external exam fees.
• Student loan This programme can only be studied part-time.  It is not eligible for course-related costs, living costs or student allowances from StudyLink.

It will also enable you to support the provision of safe, patient-centred healthcare. 

What you will learn

• Work ethically and professionally within the Pharmacy Council Code of Ethics as relevant to Pharmacy Technicians
• Apply appropriate communication techniques to inform customers/patients on health related matters
• Apply all legislation and regulations as appropriate to Pharmacy Technicians
• Dispense and reconstitute medicines under the direct supervision of a pharmacist
• Provide advice and guidance on the use of dispensed medicines
• Apply knowledge of medicines as they relate to the treatment of a range of common health disorders
• Manage dispensary stock and inventory using appropriate environmental and storage requirements
• Perform calculations as appropriate to dispensing.

Study pathways

This is an introductory qualification and will allow graduates to progress into the following Open Polytechnic programme:

NZ1889 New Zealand Certificate in Pharmacy (Pharmacy Technician - Advanced) (Level 5)

Maximum Programme Completion Time

To be awarded the qualification, the programme must be completed in no more than 3 years of first enrolment, unless there are exceptional circumstances.

Learning Pharmacy on-the-job

[Learning Pharmacy on-the-job

Having completed the New Zealand Certificate in Pharmacy (Pharmacy Technician) (Level 4), Arzhay is now working towards gaining the New Zealand Certificate in Pharmacy (Pharmacy Technician) (Level 5) which will give her the skills and knowledge to work as a senior pharmacy technician.

Arzhay Heslop

New Zealand Certificate in Pharmacy (Pharmacy Technician - Advanced) (Level 5) New Zealand Certificate in Pharmacy (Pharmacy Technician - Core) (Level 4)

Pharmacy Technician](/study-with-us/student-stories/arzhay-heslop/)