ExCPT Exam Pass Rate, Format & Study Guide

The NHA ExCPT test plan lists 100 scored questions plus 20 unscored pretest questions and a time limit of 130 minutes (test plan based on the 2023 job analysis). NHA reports the ExCPT as a scaled score, and the passing score is 390 out of 500, set by a criterion-referenced cut score study. The test plan weights five areas: Role, Responsibilities, and General Duties of the Pharmacy Technician 15 percent, Laws 15 percent, Drugs and Drug Therapy 13 percent, Dispensing Process 43 percent, and Medication and Patient Safety and Quality Assurance 14 percent.

Pharmacy technician certification is often asked for by employers, and state boards of pharmacy decide which exams they accept; check your state rules.

Pharmacy technician students and working technicians who plan to sit the NHA ExCPT.

The certifying body does not publicly publish an official pass rate for this exam. Be wary of third-party sites citing a specific number here — treat any pass-rate claim you see elsewhere for this exam as unverified.

The NHA candidate handbook describes a 30-day waiting period after a failed attempt and up to three attempts; check the current handbook for what applies after that before you rebook.

NHA reports the ExCPT as a scaled score and the passing score is 390 out of 500. It does not publish a percent-correct cut, so the portal mock shows 70 percent only as a rough self-check. Format: 100 scored questions plus 20 pretest questions in 130 minutes. No official pass rate is available for this exam, so none is quoted here.

The NHA ExCPT test plan lists 100 scored questions plus 20 unscored pretest questions and a time limit of 130 minutes (test plan based on the 2023 job analysis). NHA reports the ExCPT as a scaled score, and the passing score is 390 out of 500, set by a criterion-referenced cut score study. The test plan weights five areas: Role, Responsibilities, and General Duties of the Pharmacy Technician 15 percent, Laws 15 percent, Drugs and Drug Therapy 13 percent, Dispensing Process 43 percent, and Medication and Patient Safety and Quality Assurance 14 percent. 100 scored questions plus 20 pretest questions · 130 minutes · scaled score 200-500, passing 390. NHA reports the ExCPT as a scaled score and the passing score is 390 out of 500. It does not publish a percent-correct cut, so the portal mock shows 70 percent only as a rough self-check.

• Role, Responsibilities, and General Duties of the Pharmacy Technician15%
• Laws15%
• Drugs and Drug Therapy13%
• Dispensing Process43%
• Medication and Patient Safety and Quality Assurance14%

The content outline spreads questions across 5 areas: Role, Responsibilities, and General Duties of the Pharmacy Technician (15.0%); Laws (15.0%); Drugs and Drug Therapy (13.0%); Dispensing Process (43.0%); Medication and Patient Safety and Quality Assurance (14.0%).

NHA lists a high school diploma or equivalent plus either a pharmacy technician training program completed within the past five years, or a work-experience pathway of 1,200 supervised hours in a one-year period within the last three years. NHA has also announced early testing within 90 days of finishing a training program under an agreement with the institution.

The exam fee is set by NHA; each retake is a new registration at the full price.

NHA states that its certifications are renewed every two years with continuing education; confirm the ExCPT renewal requirements and fee on nhanow.com.

Start with the heaviest areas of the content outline: Dispensing Process (43.0%); Role, Responsibilities, and General Duties of the Pharmacy Technician (15.0%); Laws (15.0%). Then work through the remaining areas, and finish with timed full-length practice runs of 100 questions in one sitting.

NHA updates its test plans from job analyses; the plan used here follows the 2023 job analysis, and the passing score was set in a 2024 standard-setting study. Check nhanow.com for a newer plan.