Similarly to medical doctors, pharmacists work in a wide variety of specialties and practice settings. However, in order to work in different settings, varying types of post-graduate training and certifications may be needed to hold various pharmacist positions. This post focuses on the different types of certifications needed to practice as a pharmacist in the United States.
What do all pharmacists have in common?
In the United States, in order to practice pharmacy, a pharmacist typically needs to at minimum pass two examinations: the North American Pharmacist Licensure Examination (NAPLEX) and the Multistate Pharmacy Jurisprudence Examination (MPJE). The NAPLEX is a nationwide clinical knowledge exam, and the MPJE is a state-by-state pharmacy law exam. Aspiring pharmacists can sit for these examinations after obtaining their Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) degree from an accredited college of pharmacy. Once an aspiring pharmacist passes both examinations, they are then a registered pharmacist (RPh) and they are then licensed to practice as a pharmacist.
Students can enroll in pharmacy school after completing 2-4 years of prerequisite undergraduate coursework. Different colleges of pharmacy in the United States offer either 3-year or 4-year programs that allow graduates to obtain their PharmD.
The NAPLEX is a standardized examination that demonstrates if a graduating PharmD student is competent enough to practice as a pharmacist. Once a PharmD student passes the NAPLEX, they typically do not need to take it again. However, the MPJE operates on a state-by-state basis. Most every state in the United States requires the MPJE; every state has a different version of the MPJE as every state has their own unique set of pharmacy practice laws. So, for every state that a pharmacist wants to practice in, they must take the MPJE for that respective state. For example, if a pharmacist wants to be licensed in both Colorado and Utah, they would only need to pass the NAPLEX once but they would then need to pass the MPJE for both Colorado and Utah. As of January 2020, the singular state where only passing the NAPLEX is needed to practice as a pharmacist is Idaho.
FAST FACT: Prior to 2006, a pharmacist could become licensed after completing a five-year accredited Bachelor of Science (BS) program in pharmacy. However, after 2006, it became a requirement to obtain a Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) in order to sit for the NAPLEX and MPJE examinations. Individuals who obtained their BS in pharmacy prior to 2006 were grandfathered into practice and did not need to go back to school to obtain their PharmD.
How do pharmacists differ from one another?
After a pharmacist passes both the NAPLEX and the MPJE, they become a RPh. Then, a pharmacist can obtain different advanced certifications to specialize in various areas of the pharmacy profession. These additional certifications can be obtained after acquiring varying levels of pharmacist practice experience (which will be discussed in a future post).
Different advanced certifications are offered by multiple accrediting organizations and every unique certification has a different set of requirements to obtain it. The Board of Pharmacy Specialties (BPS) is the accrediting organization that offers the most amount of advanced certifications, but other organizations offer advanced certifications as well. Below is a list of certifications that are obtainable by a pharmacist.
Certifications offered by the BPS (as of January 2020):
- Board Certified Ambulatory Care Pharmacist (BCACP)
- Board Certified Cardiology Pharmacist (BCCP)
- Board Certified Sterile Compounding Pharmacist (BCSCP)
- Board Certified Critical Care Pharmacist (BCCCP)
- Board Certified Geriatric Pharmacist (BCGP)
- Board Certified Infectious Diseases Pharmacist (BCIDP)
- Board Certified Nuclear Pharmacist (BCNP)
- Board Certified Nutrition Support Pharmacist (BCNSP)
- Board Certified Oncology Pharmacist (BCOP)
- Board Certified Pediatric Pharmacy Specialist (BCPPS)
- Board Certified Pharmacotherapy Specialist (BCPS)
- Board Certified Psychiatric Pharmacist (BCPP)
- Board Certified Transplant Pharmacist (BCTXP)
Other advanced certifications (not all-encompassing):
- Certified Anticoagulation Specialist (CACP)
- Certified Asthma Educator (AE-C)
- Certified Diabetes Educator (CDE)
- Certified HIV Pharmacist (AAHIVP)
- Certified Pain Educator (CPE)
- Certified Specialty Pharmacist (CSP)
- Certified Tobacco Treatment Specialist (CTTS)
- Teaching Certificate for Pharmacists
Often, pharmacists in the retail setting and in the setting of a pharmaceutical company do not have any of the additional certifications mentioned above. However, for example, if a pharmacist desires to practice as an oncology pharmacy specialist, typically they would work to obtain their BCOP certification. Or, if a pharmacist desires to work as an ambulatory care pharmacist, they would work to obtain their BCACP certification. Or, if a pharmacist wanted to work for a specialty pharmacy, it would be commonplace to try to obtain a CSP certification.
Pharmacists can work in a seemingly endless of amount of practice settings and different certifications are needed to obtain different types of pharmacist positions. Future posts will discuss the multitude of settings a pharmacist can work in and future posts will also discuss the distinct types of post-PharmD training that are available.
References:
- American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP). https://www.aacp.org/. Accessed 2020 January 7.
- Board of Pharmacy Specialties (BPS). https://www.bpsweb.org/. Accessed 2020 January 7.
- National Association of Boards of Pharmacy (NABP). https://nabp.pharmacy/. Accessed 2020 January 7.
- Pennsylvania Pharmacists Association. https://www.papharmacists.com/page/CE_Certificates. Accessed 2020 January 8.
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