Retail Pharmacy OSA Admission Guide

Program Duration and Study Mode

• Program days and times may vary, but you should plan to attend classes 4-5 days a week. Day classes are generally between 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Evening classes are generally between 4:30 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. (if scheduled).

• Clinical rotations are 3 days per week from 9:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. for a total of 160 hours. Please plan accordingly to ensure you have proper transportation.

On average, approximately 50 students apply for admission each application period. Of these, approximately 25 are typically accepted.

The Retail Pharmacy program is a selective admission program. Prospective applicants should review the HCC Application Requirements, Retail Pharmacy Program Application Requirements, and Pre-Enrollment Process & Requirements outlined in this guide.

HCC Application Requirements

Step 1: Apply for Admission to HCC:

New student to HCC: If you are new to college or transferring to HCC, your first step is to become an HCC Eagle by submitting a free admissions application to HCC. Please create a profile and complete a degree-seeking application the applytexas.org site. Upon completing the application, you will receive your acceptance letter and a welcome email that contains your HCC Student ID number and P-number (if assigned). If you have filled out an HCC application at any point or you already have an HCC student ID number, please do not submit another HCC application. Multiple HCC new student applications and/or ID numbers are not allowed.

Returning student to HCC: If you have not been enrolled in HCC for the past 3 semesters, you must re-activate your HCC student account. If you need assistance with this process, please visit: Returning HCC Student | Houston Community College - HCC.

International Students: If you are an international student planning to attend HCC on a status F-1, (DACA, refugee, L visa, H visa, etc.), please visit the international student site.

Veteran students: Please visit the Veteran & Military-Affiliated Student Success (VMASS) site. Download and complete DD Form 214 & SF-180 Form and submit with the application.

Step 2: Complete My Eagle HCC Account Checklist:

Please visit: myeagle.hccs.edu, and sign into the Student System. Review and complete the HCC Policy and On-Boarding Checklist sections. To avoid delays in the processing of your application, please complete all To-Do List items.

Career Interest Assessment: All first-time HCC students must complete this module.

Meningitis Vaccine – Future and returning students who are under the age of 22 are required to submit proof of vaccination. For more information on requirements, resources & any religious, medical, or online student exemptions, please visit Meningitis Vaccine.

Submit Official Transcript(s): Please submit your official sealed (unopened) transcript(s) from high school, GED, and any other colleges and/or Universities previously attended. If you have completed your courses at HCC, you do not need to submit an official transcript. We do not accept unofficial copies or official copies that have been opened. There are two ways to submit an official transcript from your high school or previous institution:

Submit Electronically: Have an official PDF transcript electronically sent from approved service providers such as Credentials, Parchment, and National Student Clearinghouse to: admissions@hccs.edu.

Submit by Mail: Please use the address: Houston Community College, Office of Admissions & Records, P.O. Box 667517, Houston, TX 77266-7517
If you have completed coursework outside HCC and need more information on transfer equivalency with HCC, please visit transferring credit page.

All foreign transcripts require evaluation by an approved credential evaluation service, including course-by-course evaluation and US equivalency for earned degree. The official evaluation report must be submitted directly to HCC admissions. The HCC Internal process can take up to 8 weeks for evaluation and transfer of course credits. To find a list of approved evaluation companies, please visit Foreign Transcript/ Foreign Credit Evaluators.

For more information on transcript(s) submission, please visit Transcript(s). It is the responsibility of the student to allow enough time for the evaluation of transcripts; please allow 6-8 weeks for evaluation and transfer of course credits.

To receive Prior Learning Assessment (PLA) credit towards admission to the Retail Pharmacy program, an applicant should not have previously taken or attempted the course (by title), that is the same as the PLA credit for which he/she is applying. Learn more about the PLA.

Texas Success Initiative requirements –If you have the "Texas Success Initiative College Readiness Requirements" Checklist on your To-do List in the Student Center, you have to be placed into core courses one of two ways:
Have an approved exemption (reason) for not taking Texas Success Initiative Assessment 2.0 (TSIA2); or
Take the Texas Success Initiative Assessment 2.0 (TSIA2)
Please visit the Texas Success Initiative Assessment to learn about your options to complete this requirement.

Retail Pharmacy Program Application Requirements

Step 3. Meet with HCC Coleman College Representative: 

At least once during the application acceptance period, we strongly recommend that an applicant attend an In-Person/Virtual Program Information Session or meet with an HCC Coleman Advisor via phone or in-person or virtually to ensure they are meeting all of the program admission criteria. View up-to-date in-person hours for Coleman College Student Services.

Step 4. Program Information Session:

Attend the online Program Information Session. If you have questions regarding the online delivery of program information sessions, please contact via email: co.pharmacytech@hccs.edu.

Step 5. Submit Program Application:

In addition to the HCC admission application, you must complete and submit the Retail Pharmacy program application via email to co.phraadmit@hccs.edu with:

• Copy of high school or GED equivalent transcript showing completion
• If recommended courses are completed, submit a copy of your college transcript/s showing completion of courses.

All official high school and college transcripts must be submitted to HCC admissions. Please refer to the section: Program Application: Academic Course Requirements to learn about recommended courses.

• Required official or unofficial high school transcript or high school diploma.
• Placement Test:  Not required for the Retail pharmacy program. However, if you prefer to take HCC courses from the recommended courses prior to applying to this OSA program, TSIA testing must be taken for placement.

Recommended Courses:

Completion of the following courses with a grade of “C” or higher.

When the number of eligible applications exceeds program seat availability, selective criteria are used to determine which applicants are offered admission. Selective criteria are awarded based on the following:

• 100% may be awarded based on the health program academic criteria (grades earned from pre-entry form, courses on this guide under “recommended” courses, and general education requirements.
• All application requirements must be satisfied by the close of the application window.
  
  If you are offered admission, you will need to complete the following pre-enrollment requirements by a specific due date to maintain eligible status:
• Complete the letter of Intent form by the deadline stated in the Admission Acceptance Offer email that will be sent to your email address submitted with the program application.
• Cleared Criminal Background.
• Complete the mandatory Program Orientation on the date provided in your admission email. (Please clear your calendar so you are available to attend the mandatory orientations. If you are offered admission for the Fall Term, plan to attend Orientation in July; for Spring Term, plan to attend in December.

Clinical Requirements for Program Progression & Completion

To provide students with the most robust clinical educational experience and to ensure that students progress and graduate as scheduled, it is highly recommended that applicants weigh all of their options before agreeing to a conditional acceptance into their desired health science program. In order to facilitate this decision-making, students should understand all of the requirements of their program, including clinical education.

To be placed in a clinical educational experience, students must comply with the guidelines and requirements of HCC clinical sites, including health and wellness directives. Most clinical sites require background checks, health testing, drug screens and immunizations, including proof of COVID-19 vaccination. 

Students are required to provide to HCC proof that students meet all clinical requirements, with the exception of their COVID-19 vaccination status.  Consistent with state law, HCC does not mandate the COVID-19 vaccination. Students have the choice to voluntarily disclose or not disclose their COVID-19 vaccination status through their HCC Complio account.

However, most healthcare facilities do require the vaccine as a condition of employment, volunteering, or student clinical placement.  If a student chooses not to disclose their COVID-19 vaccination status or is not vaccinated, HCC may not be able to place the student in clinical rotations.  HCC will work to place such students into a clinical site that does not require the vaccine, provided such a site is available and HCC has an active affiliation agreement in place that meets the necessary conditions to provide an appropriate learning opportunity for the student.  However, HCC cannot guarantee that clinical sites that do not require the COVID vaccine will be available at the time the student requires placement.  At this time, many healthcare facilities are not accepting religious or medical exemptions for the COVID-19 vaccine for clinical students.

If a student chooses not to receive or to provide proof of COVID-19 vaccination and no clinical sites are available to accept the student that do not require the COVID-19 vaccination, the student’s progression in the program and graduation will be delayed or stopped all together.  If a student cannot be timely placed in a qualifying clinical site, a student may not be able to complete the program. Our affiliate partners’ expectations are the same for our students as they would be when our students ultimately become employees in their chosen field.

Students with questions about clinical requirements and placement may contact the program director of their program of interest. 

HB 1508 requires the following information be given to students

If you are applying for admission to a program that prepares an individual for an initial occupational license or certification and/or if you later decide to change to a program that prepares you for an initial occupational license or certification, in accordance with state law, please be advised of the following: 

1. An individual who has been charged or convicted of an offense or who is on probation may not be eligible for issuance of an occupational license or certification upon completion of the educational program.
2. It is the responsibility of the individual to immediately report to the program any change in status that would affect that individual’s eligibility to apply for a license or certification.
3. Local, state or national licensing and certification authorities may issue additional guidelines related to criminal history. Applicant should contact their respective licensing or certification authority for more details.

Most healthcare programs require all students admitted to the program to submit to a national background check ,which may include fingerprinting. Applicants are encouraged to review all applicable eligibility requirements related to the respective occupational license or Certification. Questions related to eligibility requirements should be directed to the individual program and applicable licensing or certification authority.

Tuition is estimated using the Texas resident rates. Out-of-district and out-of-state residents will have higher tuition fees. Please visit the tuition calculator for more information.

Tuition is for core coursework only. General Education and Support courses are not included. These are high estimates; actual costs will vary depending on health insurance coverage.

Due to increases/decreases in books and supplements, please check the bookstore website for updated cost information. Only required books are included in the estimate.

Retail Pharmacy Program Costing Sheet (In-District) 

Pre-Entrance

1st Semester (10 semester hours)

2nd Semester (4 semester hours)

GRAND TOTAL  $1,734.60

Learn more about the degree plan by visiting the HCC Catalog.

You can use a valid MasterCard, Visa, Discover, or American Express card to pay for tuition and fees. You can also use debit card with Visa or MasterCard logo, but not a non-USA credit card. Online payment via check is also available.
Check or echeck payments have a 10 day hold on release of official transcripts. International students or their parents can also pay online from their country of origin with their local currency, where applicable. Online payment from other countries can be made through “International Fund Transfer” payment option.

Additional Option For Payment

• Scholarships - In addition to federal and state aid, scholarships are a great way to offset all or part of the cost of your education. Please visit the scholarships page for more information.
• Installment Payment Plan -If you are paying out of pocket and need assistance on how to setup a payment plan, please visit Business Office at HCC for more information.

 Certificate Testing

Graduates are eligible to take the PTCB exam or the ExCPT exam.

Employment Opportunities

Certified Pharmacy Technicians(CPhT)/Registered Pharmacy Technicians(PhRT) may find employment as a pharmacy technician in retail pharmacies.

Average Salary

Entry-level salary range between $30,000 and $42,000 annually. Find out the entry level wages, the medium wages, and high wages for each career field in High School or less, Vocational Certificate, Associate's degree, Bachelor's degree and Graduate degree. Please visit Career Coach | Houston Community College for more information.

Questions

For further assistance on program admission requirements, please email us at: co.admissionadvising@hccs.edu  or co.pharmacytech@hccs.edu.

Psychomotor Skills

Cognitive Skills

Cognitive Skills

Social-Behavioral Skills