**The provided guideline is intended for best study tools necessary to pass the PTCE board exam, ==without purchasing anything==, to become a Certified Pharmacy Technician in 2025. However, the cost to apply for CPhT Certification and take the PTCE is $129.** [Online PTCE Exam Application](https://myaccount.ptcb.org/widget/?cobaltsrc=https://portal.ptcb.org/Login.aspx?ReturnUrl=/Authentication/SAML2IDP/Orases/SingleSignonService.ashx) # ExCPT & PTCE The study materials below, and especially all together, should be sufficient study prep for both NHA's ExCPT and PTCB's PTCE board exams. # WhatsApp Study Group Join the discussion [here](https://chat.whatsapp.com/KF7rJkdp2NVCtZIwyXcujo?mode=wwc). # A Passing CPhT's Advice on Success Reddit shares tips on [passing the PTCE here](https://www.reddit.com/r/PharmacyTechnician/s/NIDXxnGh6K) with a user's success coming from ==repeated practice exams== from the following tests below: - [PTCB Official Practice Tests](https://www.ptcbpracticetest.com/) - [500 Question Bank, 90 Question Practice Test](https://www.pharmacy-tech-test.com/ptcb-practice-exam.htmlb,) - [Online PTCB Resources](https://www.ascenciatestprep.com/ptcb-online-resources) # PTCE Study Book  Optional $50 study book featuring practice topics that cover: - Quick review of the concepts covered on the PTCE exam - 4 practice tests with detailed answer explanations - Tips and tricks from experienced pharmacists - Access to online flash cards, cheat sheets, and more If you think you'd find this extra helpful, can find the [print on Amazon here.](https://a.co/d/hAoLvQP) # Quizlet Study Sets Study flashcards covering PTCE topics, law, terms, SIGs, and more. - [200+ PTCB Exam Questions](https://quizlet.com/21301255/ptcb-exam-questions-flash-cards/?x=1jqU&i=4z56uo) - [550+ PTCB Study Set](https://quizlet.com/285175403/ptcb-flash-cards/?x=1jqU&i=4z56uo) # Following the 2026 PTCB Knowledge Reference ==The PTCB releases a guideline for reviewing for the exam each year==. You can find the PDF copy of the [2026 guide here.](https://ptcb.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/cpht-knowledge-reference.pdf) Its contents for what to study for are listed in the "PTCE Knowledge Areas" columns, but to make sense of it, these recommended areas are broken down here for easy study. ## Medications - Generic names, brand names, and classifications of medications - Therapeutic duplications - Common or life-threatening drug interactions and contraindications (e.g., drug-drug, drug-dietary supplement, drug-laboratory, drug-nutrient, drugdisease) - Strengths/doses, dosage forms, routes of administration, special handling and administration instructions, and duration of drug therapy - Common or severe medication side effects, adverse effects, and allergies - Indications of medications - Drug stability (e.g., oral suspensions, insulins, reconstitutables, injectables, vaccinations) - Proper storage of medications (e.g., temperature ranges, light sensitivity, restricted access) ## Federal Requirements - Federal requirements for storage, handling, and disposal of non-hazardous, hazardous (e.g., P-list), and pharmacological substances and wastes - Federal requirements for controlled substance prescriptions (i.e., new, refill, transfer) and DEA controlled substance schedules - Federal requirements for receiving, storing, ordering, labeling, dispensing, returning, take-back programs for, loss or theft of, and destroying controlled substances. - Federal restricted drug programs and related medication-processing requirements (e.g., pseudoephedrine, Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies [REMS]) - FDA requirements for medication recalls - FDA product serialization, tracking, tracing, handling, and quarantining requirements (i.e., Drug Supply Chain Security Act [DSCSA]) ## State Requirements & Practice Standards - State requirements for licensure, registration, and/or certification of pharmacy technicians - State requirements regarding the roles and responsibilities of pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, and other pharmacy employees - State requirements regarding facilities, equipment, and supplies (e.g., space requirements, prescription file storage, cleanliness, reference materials) - State requirements for accessibility of medications (i.e., Rx, OTC, behind the counter) - State requirements for storage, handling, and disposal of non-hazardous, hazardous, and pharmacological substances and wastes (e.g., Safety Data Sheet [SDS], sharps containers, receptacle types) - State schedule classifications for controlled substances - State requirements for receiving, storing, ordering, refilling, labeling, dispensing, returning, take-back programs, loss or theft of, and destroying controlled substances - State requirements for controlled substance prescription transfer - State requirements for record keeping, documentation, and record retention (e.g., length of time that controlled substances and records are maintained on file) ## Patient Safety & Quality Assurance - High-alert/risk medications and look-alike/soundalike [LASA] medications - Error prevention strategies (e.g., prescription or medication order to correct patient, Tall Man lettering, separating inventory, leading and trailing zeros, bar code usage, limit use of error-prone abbreviations) - Issues that require pharmacist intervention (e.g., drug utilization review [DUR], adverse drug event [ADE], OTC recommendation, therapeutic substitution, misuse, adherence, post-immunization delivery care, allergies, drug interactions) - Event reporting procedures (e.g., medication errors, adverse effects, product integrity, MedWatch, VAERS, near miss, root-cause analysis [RCA], continuous quality improvement [CQI]) - Types of prescription errors (e.g., incorrect dose, quantity, patient, drug, route of administration) - Infection prevention procedures and cleaning standards (e.g., handwashing, personal protective equipment [PPE], cleaning counting trays, countertops, and equipment ## Order Entry & Processing - Formulas, calculations, ratios, proportions, conversions, Sig codes (e.g., b.i.d., t.i.d., Roman numerals), abbreviations, medical terminology, and symbols for days supply, quantity, dose, concentration, dilutions - Equipment and supplies required for drug administration (e.g., diabetic supplies, inhaler spacers, oral syringes, injectable syringes, filters, dilution solutions, immunization supplies, nebulizers) - Lot numbers, expiration dates, and National Drug Code (NDC) numbers - Procedures for identifying and returning dispensable, non-dispensable, and expired medications and supplies (e.g., credit return, return to stock, reverse distribution ## Inventory Management - Procedures to address improperly stored inventory (e.g., temperature and/or humidity excusrions) - Formulary or approved/preferred product list • Suitable alternatives to ordering (e.g., transferring or borrowing medications from another pharmacy) - Medication quality control system requirements (e.g., automated dispensing systems, bar coding, clinic and nursing floor stock, crash carts, emergency kits) - Procedures for ordering medications and supplies - Inventory control practices and record keeping (e.g., par and reorder levels, turnover rates, drug usage patterns, and perpetual inventory) - Procedures to perform physical inventories (e.g., annual, controlled substance ## Administrative & Management - Administrative duties and procedures for pharmacies (e.g., managing files and records, transcription, and other procedures and terminology) - Purpose and proper use of pharmacy reports (e.g., inventory reports, diversion reports, discrepancy reports, override reports, usage reports, input accuracy reports, business summary reports) - Process for handling and destroying confidential/classified information - Role of pharmacy technicians, pharmacists, and other occupations in healthcare ## Health & Wellness - Devices used for monitoring and/or screening (e.g., automatic blood pressure monitors, glucose monitors, test strips/lancets, point-of-care tests) - Strategies for assessing patient’s adherence to prescriptions/medication orders (e.g., patterns of early/late refills, medication therapy management [MTM]) - Basic knowledge of anatomy, physiology, and pharmacology relevant to pharmacy technicians - Signs and symptoms of a health emergency # Screenshot Pointers PTCE content outline and what to study in the meantime.