Pharmacy technician training in Chicago, Illinois

26 pharmacy technician programs with costs, results and funding that can make them free

24 schools offer these pharmacy technician programs with classes in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin area, and every one is approved for workforce funding: 21 by Illinois and 5 by Indiana. Each shows its price if you pay yourself and how past students did.

Pharmacy technicians help pharmacists dispense medications, manage stock and serve customers. Many programs award a certificate after a year or less, most states regulate the work in some way, and some states and employers require certification.¹ In Chicago, 5 of the 26 programs take students without a high school diploma, and 13 are taught partly or fully online.

See the 26 programs

All 38 pharmacy technician programs in Illinois, including online programs

How much does pharmacy technician training cost in Chicago?

$2,841 to $4,912

is what the 5 programs with a price cost if you pay yourself

In the typical program

Finished the program: Not enough data
Working 6 months later: Not enough data
Earned a year, estimated: Not enough data
Length: 14 to 52 weeks

Source: US Department of Labor, program year 2024 (July 2024 to June 2025). Only programs approved for workforce funding are listed; other schools in Chicago may also offer pharmacy technician training. How these figures are made

Is there free pharmacy technician training in Chicago?

Yes, if you qualify. WIOA (public workforce funding) can pay for any program on this page, in full or in part, depending on local limits.²³⁴In program year 2024 it paid toward the training of at least 10 people at 1 of the 26 programs here.
Ask an American Job Center whether you qualify, or call 1-877-872-5627.⁵ Before funding training, the center goes through an assessment and a career plan with you.⁴
Or pay yourself. These programs cost $2,841 to $4,912.

Who qualifies, and other ways to pay: financial aid, grants and the GI Bill

How to pay for pharmacy technician training in Chicago

WIOA funding can pay for pharmacy technician training in Chicago

Every program on this page is approved for WIOA funding: public workforce funding under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act. It can pay for training for eligible adults, people who lost their job and young people.²People on public assistance, with a low income or lacking basic skills come first, and veterans have priority.³Your state or local area may limit how much WIOA pays and for how long. If a program costs more, a Pell Grant, a scholarship or severance pay can cover the rest.⁴

Ask at an American Job Center

Eligibility rules apply, and services vary from state to state. Your local American Job Center can tell you whether you qualify. The Department of Labor's page links to the center finder, or call 1-877-US-2JOBS (1-877-872-5627).⁵

Financial aid and grants for pharmacy technician training

Most students can get federal student aid for college, career school or trade school. A Federal Pell Grant, unlike a loan, usually doesn't have to be repaid. Ask the school whether its program qualifies.⁶⁷

GI Bill for pharmacy technician training

Veterans, service members and qualified dependents can use GI Bill benefits for non-college training programs.⁸

The program list does not show which programs accept these. Ask the school.

Does WIOA pay for job training? Who qualifies and how to apply

Where the Chicago pharmacy technician program numbers come from

Which Chicago pharmacy technician programs are on this list?

These are the pharmacy technician programs with classes in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin area that are approved for WIOA funding (public workforce funding under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act), as reported to the US Department of Labor for program year 2024 (July 2024 to June 2025). Each state keeps its approved programs on an eligible training provider list (ETPL).⁹ The list here covers programs approved as of June 30, 2025. Online programs are left out here; they are on the Illinois page. Schools that never applied for approval are missing, so this is a part of what the area offers.

How Chicago pharmacy technician program prices are reported

The price is tuition and required fees for someone paying without workforce funding, as the school reported it. "Trained with WIOA funding" on a program counts the people whose training there WIOA paid toward through a training account in program year 2024; the file never gives counts under 3, so a program without the line may still take WIOA students. It does not say how much of the price WIOA covered. Prices under $100 are treated as not reported, because the file holds many blanks entered as $0. Check the current price with the school.

What the graduate results of these programs measure

The figures at the top of this page are the middle program among those that report results: half did better, half did worse. Results describe students who left each program in recent years: the share who finished, the share working in the second quarter after leaving, and the middle earnings of those working in that quarter. States report earnings for that one quarter because they take them from the wage reports employers file every three months. The yearly figure here is that quarter times four, rounded to the nearest $100: an estimate, and an early one, since it is measured about half a year after training. The quarter as reported is under "More details" on each program. Results are withheld for small programs, and they describe past students, so they are no guarantee.

Why do some pharmacy technician programs say "Not reported"?

Where a school or the state left a field empty, or the Department of Labor withheld it, the page says "Not reported". Nothing here is estimated to fill a gap.

Why the kind of school is left off each program

The file also records whether a school is public, private or nonprofit, but those entries are wrong too often to print next to a school's name, so this page leaves them out.

How reliable are the Illinois figures?

The US Department of Labor's own results site lists Illinois among the states with "known data quality concerns".¹⁰ We leave out the share who finished for Illinois: only a few programs report it, and those at a typical 11%. We leave out prices for Illinois: the state files a code in place of each price, so no price can be shown.

Other training in Chicago

Sources for the facts about pharmacy technician training in Chicago

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Pharmacy technician training in Chicago, Illinois

How much does pharmacy technician training cost in Chicago?

Is there free pharmacy technician training in Chicago?

All 26 pharmacy technician programs in Chicago approved for WIOA funding

Pharmacy Technician - Certificate (ct)

Pharmacy Technician - Certificate (ct)