SIR40216 is the nationally recognised Certificate IV behind pharmacy technician work. It is current on the national register, with no earlier version recorded. About 447 pharmacy technician jobs were advertised in June 2026, down 16% on a year earlier.
The long-term signals behind the Certificate IV in Community Pharmacy Dispensary are positive, though current job advertising is below a year earlier. Pharmacy technicians are in shortage in parts of the country, employment is projected to grow through 2035 and enrolments are rising. Job ads in June 2026 were down 16% on a year earlier. These are official statistics, not a promise about your result.
Employers are posting fewer pharmacy technician jobs than a year ago. About 447 pharmacy technician jobs were advertised online in June 2026, down 16% on a year earlier. Over the last 12 months there were about 5,700 job ads, while 370 people were training in the qualification nationally (2025). Ads show the market. Enrolments show the pipeline. Neither is a job promise.
Australia's official shortage list rates pharmacy technicians as in shortage in parts of the country. The 2025 Occupation Shortage List rates Pharmacy Technician as in shortage in regional areas; Anaesthetic Technician, Cardiac Technician, Medical Laboratory Technician, Operating Theatre Technician, Pathology Collector / Phlebotomist, Respiratory Technician and Medical Technicians nec as not in shortage.
Pharmacy technician jobs are projected to grow. Jobs and Skills Australia projections put these occupations at 41,937 workers in May 2025, 45,281 by May 2030 (up 8%) and 49,244 by May 2035 (up 17.4%).
Enrolments in the Certificate IV in Community Pharmacy Dispensary are growing. Across Australia, 320 people enrolled in 2024. In 2025 it was 370, up 15.6% in a year.
The register and the national framework set some of this. Providers set the rest.
State funding for SIR40216 is being verified against official program lists.
Eligibility and student contributions vary by program and provider. The official state listing is the source of truth. In a subsidised place the government pays most of the tuition and you pay a co-contribution set by the program and provider.
The Certificate IV in Community Pharmacy Dispensary is 14 units: 9 core, plus 5 electives chosen from 26 options on the register. Prerequisites apply to 15 of them, marked below.
No Get Course partner currently lists this qualification. Check the national register for organisations approved to deliver it, and remember that approval to deliver is a regulatory fact, not a recommendation. You can browse live courses from our partners and enquire today.
Browse coursesGet Course maps SIR40216 to its occupations using the register’s own outcome wording, shown with ANZSCO codes (here, 3112) so the mapping can be checked. Job advertisement counts come from the Jobs and Skills Australia Internet Vacancy Index and count online ads, not vacancies filled. Enrolment counts come from NCVER Total VET Activity and count people in training, not completions. Funding rows appear only after verification against the official state program list. Source vintages: register training.gov.au, synced 6 September 2026; NCVER Total VET Activity 2025 collection; Occupation Shortage List 2025 assessment; Jobs and Skills Australia Internet Vacancy Index latest month June 2026; employment projections May 2025 to May 2035 release; register synced 18 Sept 2026. Page last updated 19 Sept 2026.