Pharmacy Technician License Syllabus: Sections and Question Counts

Last verified: 11 November 2026. This is an independent guide; it is not affiliated with Saudi Commission for Health Specialties or any government body. Exam details can change, so check the exam page at Saudi Commission for Health Specialties before relying on any figure.

How the questions are split

The exam has 150 questions in 180 minutes, split across the sections according to the exam specification from Saudi Commission for Health Specialties.

The two largest sections are Essential and Over the Counter Medications and Pharmacy Calculation: together 54 of the 150 questions (36%). Start with them, then take the rest in order of size.

Topics in each section

Pharmacy Calculation (24 questions)

• Units, conversions and ratio-proportion
• Dose calculations by weight and body surface area
• Quantity to dispense and days' supply
• Concentrations, percentage strength and dilution
• Alligation and mixing strengths
• IV flow rates, drip rates and infusion time
• Pharmacy business calculations

Sterile and Nonsterile Compounding (22 questions)

• Nonsterile compounding techniques and equipment
• Aseptic technique and primary engineering controls
• Cleanrooms, garbing, monitoring and beyond-use dating
• Hazardous drug handling
• IV admixtures, parenteral nutrition and compatibility

Essential and Over the Counter Medications (30 questions)

• Brand and generic names
• Drug classes and mechanisms
• Indications and therapeutic use
• Adverse effects, interactions and auxiliary labels
• OTC products, self-care and referral
• Dosage forms, routes and abbreviations

Medication Safety (23 questions)

• Look-alike/sound-alike drugs and tall-man lettering
• High-alert medications
• Error-prone abbreviations, error types and prevention
• Prescription and order interpretation and verification
• Error reporting, pharmacovigilance and medication reconciliation

Pharmacy Law and Ethics (15 questions)

• Narcotic and psychotropic drug controls
• Pharmacy practice regulation and technician scope
• Ethics, confidentiality and professional conduct

Drug Information and Health Informatics (11 questions)

• Drug information references
• Pharmacy informatics and automation
• Product labels, package inserts and coding

Infection Control (10 questions)

• Hand hygiene
• Standard precautions and PPE
• Cleaning, disinfection, spills and sharps

Material Management and Supply Chain (15 questions)

• Inventory control methods
• Purchasing, receiving and documentation
• Storage conditions and cold chain
• Expired, recalled and returned products; waste

How to use this split

Start with the 10 free questions, no sign-up: your score comes back split by section, so you see the weakest one. Then spread your study days according to the table above, as laid out in the study plan.