r/MLS_CLS

My wife plans to apply for the 2 years CLS program at Stony Brook for Spring 2027.

Is admission guaranteed if she applies online, or is it competitive? We’re worried that if she only applies to Stony Brook and doesn’t get in, we’ll lose time applying to other schools.

She has a Bachelor’s degree in Biotechnology and a PhD in Microbiology, both from China. She has about five years of research experience but no clinical laboratory experience.

Is there any way she could qualify to take the ASCP MLS/CLS exam without completing the 2-year CLS program? We’d like to save as much time and money as possible.

Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks!

I wanted to update my previous post above so no other California MLT wastes their time.

​

It is in reference to an MLT trying to use their work experience in California to get the limited Chemistry CLS license.

​

My friend passed the C(ASCP). He paid the $300 application fee only to be immediately told by a CDPH examiner that his MLT work experience in California was only in moderate complexity testing, so it didn't count toward the license. The experience had to be out of state as an MLS or they told him to do an accredited Chemistry program in the state.

​

Big waste of time.

I am wondering if anyone has worked in a California VA lab as an unlicensed CLS that’s been able to use that work experience to obtain their CA CLS license.

Thanks in advance !

I just got accepted to the MLS program at the loc hospital and start my one year next January. Do you guys have any study tips, ways to succeed, general advice, etc?

How common is it to be overworked as a lab supervisor? My manager went on medical leave for 10 weeks and I'm expected to cover the bench, do scheduling, timecards, and the regular QA/QI? We also have a new point-of-care person who needs constant training.

Our director oversees 3 hospitals and dropped by not to give me any sort of support, but to criticize why I'm falling behind. He's typically only here once or twice a week and makes every excuse as to why we can't get a temp hire or traveler.

I feel like I'm drowning. Is this normal? I'm at a 300 bed hospital and the previous supervisor got burnt out and stepped down to another hospital. Is this inevitable for me?

Can you work full time while in school for mls? I know the hospitals can sometimes hire students but don’t you have to be so far into the program to be considered? I would really like to apply for a program but I also need to be able to work.

Hi all. 👋
I recently applied for a CLS position in Stanford Health at Palo Alto, CA, and it’s surprisingly moving forward.

It’s always been my dream to work or step foot there. Also my sister and brother live by the area, so I could also save up on rent splitting with them. I could also save for the future, if I do really plan to be a doctor here and match, knowing residency pays very little.

On a side note, I am an immigrant and a MD / Doctor. I graduated medschool from overseas and I passed the First Step of the USMLE. About to take the Second step/exam. Then it’s off to matching (potentially). I graduated back in 2020, and every year that passes also is detrimental to matching.
I moved to America in 2022 working as a CLS in a rural town in the EastCoast. Got my greencard and now I’m also working as a traveler CLS.

I was originally planning on doing this 3 month preceptorship/observership to gain Letters of Recommendation (LoRs) in my attempt to match to a residency program (Family medicine / Pathology), but then things started progressing with my Stanford CLS application.
I could always shuffle my plans around too. 🤔

Do you have any advice on what I should do or pursue? Also the ups and downs of Stanford too?

Thank you!

I currently have my Medical Laboratory Technician Certification.

I really want to go back to school to get my bachelor’s degree, so I can sign up to take the Medical Laboratory Scientists BOC exam.

I saw the requirements on the ASCP website but, I’m still kind of confused.

It says an accredited bachelor’s degree, does that mean ANY bachelor’s degree?

Im looking at different colleges right now. Im interested in either BS in Health Studies or BA in Molecular and Cellular Biology.

Im nervous of picking/completing a degree that doesn’t count for the ASCP MLS requirements!

Please help! :(

I’m in Houston, and I feel I can save up 15-25% of my income if I really focus on it. This is also a question for single income people just to get an idea.

I’m interested in states with great nature that seem that they pay more due to the COL. I want to buy a house in a nature rich city too.

Would it be doable with another similar income partner to buy a house in those cities?

Crossposting for visibility:

Hi all,

I’m applying to the MLT program at Folsom Lake CC for the 2027 class and was wondering if anyone can speak on their experience landing jobs in northern Central Valley/East Bay area and salary opportunities.

If anyone has transitioned from MLT to CLS, please share your experience getting into CLS programs as an MLT, what your experience in the program was like, and where you’re at now.

I already have an A.A. In natural sciences, 3.9 gpa with over 100 semester credits, 96th percentile TEAS score, but have been rejected by my local nursing program twice, which is a points based admission. Hopefully this could be another fruitful outlet, as I truly enjoyed microbiology. Thanks!

Hi everyone,

I'm currently a medical student with a long-term goal of pursuing a PhD in a top lab working on machine learning applications in translational medicine and healthcare.

Right now, I know the basics of ML. I've completed a few Coursera courses, implemented some personal projects, and have basic Python experience. However, I'm struggling to figure out how to take the next step. I want to build the kind of skills and portfolio that would make me competitive for world-class research labs.

For those of you working in ML for healthcare, computational biology, or related fields, what would you recommend focusing on? Should I prioritize open source contributions, reproducing papers, Kaggle, research internships, reading papers, or something else?

Also, if anyone here works in this space, I'd love to connect, learn from your experience, and see if there might be opportunities to collaborate on research or open source projects.

Thanks in advance!

I’m currently majoring in Applied Biological Science at Arizona State University but I messed up. I didn’t realize until now that this degree is mainly ecology/animal science. It still offers all the normal biology courses like physiology and genetics but a lot of the courses are more animal/plant based than human. If I applied to an MLS post-baccalaureate program, would I be accepted (if I complete all the required pre-reqs)? Or should I change my major to a Biological Science (a more traditional biology degree)? I’m nervous I’ll be rejected from these post-baccalaureate MLS programs if my major is mainly ecology and not entirely traditional biology. Note that changing degrees would probably postpone my graduation by a year but I’m willing to do that if I need to.
Edit: I’ve also completed an associates in biology natural sciences and about 3/4 of the way through my bachelors degree already, so restarting with an MLT/MLS associates or bachelors would be a lot and idk if that’s the avenue I want to go down. I think I’d rather stick with the ABS or switch to the Biological Science degree if necessary.

Some input ASAP would be great, as I’m supposed to be moving near the campus that the ABS degree is at and just signed the lease, but haven’t moved yet. I might still have time to pay to get out of the lease and change majors and therefore campuses if necessary, but I need to act fast since I’m supposed to be moving in less than 2 weeks.

Any CLS who transitioned into Clinical Systems Analyst, Epic Analyst, or LIS/informatics roles?

I’m a CLS in California and curious about switching paths but hesitant because CLS pay here is solid (“golden handcuffs”).

Pay comparison (especially in CA)?

Are you happier? Better work life balance?

Any certifications needed (Epic, etc.) before applying?

Just exploring—appreciate any insight!

Local market raises are determined by a remote compensation team at corporate. We're below market and staff will receive 1.5-2.5% raises (which is below inflation). The lab performed well financially (+7% y/y EBITDA), so there should be sufficient profit to give inflation adjusted raises. But corporate said no. What's the best way to present low raises to lab staff?

There is a 30% chance they'll get a cost-of-living adjustment of 2-4% in Feb.

Hello!

I’m a recent graduate with a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Biology with 3 years of research experience (primary wet lab, with a bunch of hands-on skills acquired). I am now considering MLS career after academia did not work out for me (failed PhD cycle).

What should one add to their qualifications to become MLS (degrees, certificates, trainings)? What’s necessary, what’s “preferred”? What are your opinions/other inputs on this type of job? How is work environment (compared to academia/industry)?

P.S. Yes, Google exists, I know.. I am just trying to get feedback from people in the industry on top of doing my own research. Thanks in advance!

Hi everyone!

This is my first time in the Reddit Community so I hope I'll be able to get some helpful advice from those who have already experienced the process of become an MLS. I currently am attending UTEP doing the last of my pre-requisites before applying to the school's medical lab science professional program. I've looked over the application requirements many times by now and I think it's just the nerves beginning to set in since I'm almost there. I don't have upperclassmen that I could ask for advice currently and I reached out to the program's director via email last year for similar inquiries but didn't get much in-depth advice. I'm taking my Intro to Clinical Lab this upcoming semester and this is about the time students are encouraged to ask for their recommendation letters from a professor. My worry is that I've never really chat up a professor before and I would love advice on how I should go about this as I'm more on the introverted side. Can any of you share what you may have done or said when needing a recommendation? I've done my homework and was only able to find that my future professor has done work in microbiology which is one of my top specialties that I wish to explore. Additionally, my school's requirements also mentioned that we may be interviewed as well to be chosen to enter the program and I would be grateful to anyone who has been through a similar interview to share their experience or tips. To my understanding, one of the most important things faculty want to see is how you are as a co-worker and member of laboratory staff which I have taken note of and plan to review. Even if you completed your program at a different institution I would still love to hear your thoughts! Just about anything helps. Thank you!

Ive been told HLA/Tissue Typing is heavy on problem solving but I’m curious to know about the specific methods/techniques being dome to solve said problems.

Also, do you have the full MLS or just BB/MB?

Thanks ☺️