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Clinical Laboratory Technician Major

Clinical Laboratory Technician

3,248 Associates's Degrees Annually
216 Bachelor's Degrees Annually
#13 in Popularity (Associate's)
$122,320 Median Salary

Types of Degrees Clinical Laboratory Technician Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many laboratory technician graduations there were in 2021-2022 for each degree level.

Education Level Number of Grads
Associate Degree 2,438
Basic Certificate 591
Bachelor’s Degree 193
Undergraduate Certificate 150

What Clinical Laboratory Technician Majors Need to Know

People with careers related to clinical laboratory technician were asked what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important for their jobs. They weighted these areas on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the highest.

Knowledge Areas for Clinical Laboratory Technician Majors

Clinical Laboratory Technician majors often go into careers in which the following knowledge areas are important:

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  • English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
  • Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
  • Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
  • Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
  • Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.

Skills for Clinical Laboratory Technician Majors

clinical laboratory technician majors are found most commonly in careers in which the following skills are important:

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  • Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
  • Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
  • Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
  • Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
  • Instructing - Teaching others how to do something.

Abilities for Clinical Laboratory Technician Majors

Clinical Laboratory Technician majors often go into careers where the following abilities are vital:

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  • Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
  • Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
  • Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
  • Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
  • Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.

What Can You Do With a Clinical Laboratory Technician Major?

People with a clinical laboratory technician degree often go into the following careers:

Job Title Job Growth Rate Median Salary
Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technicians 14.0% NA

Who Is Getting an Associate’s Degree in Clinical Laboratory Technician?

2,438 Associate's Degrees Annually
81% Percent Women
43% Percent Racial-Ethnic Minorities*
The major attracts more women than men. About 81% of the recent graduates in this field are female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of clinical laboratory technician majors is as follows:

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Race/Ethnicity Number of Grads
Asian 229
Black or African American 334
Hispanic or Latino 376
White 1,293
International Students 29
Other Races/Ethnicities 177

Geographic Diversity

Students from other countries are interested in Clinical Laboratory Technician, too. About 1.2% of those with this major are international students.

How Much Do Clinical Laboratory Technician Majors Make?

Salaries According to BLS

Clinical Laboratory Technician majors often go into careers with median salaries of $122,320. This median refers to all degree levels, so the salary for a person with just a bachelor’s degree may be a little less and the one for a person with an advanced degree may be a little more.

To put that into context, according to BLS data from the first quarter of 2020, the typical high school graduate makes between $30,000 and $57,900 a year (25th through 75th percentile). The average person with a bachelor’s degree (any field) makes between $45,600 and $99,000. Advanced degree holders make the most with salaries between $55,600 and $125,400.

Median Salary for a Clinical Laboratory Technician Major  122,320
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Median Salary for a High School Graduate  ( 30000 to 57900 )
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Median Salary for a Bachelor's Degree Holder  ( 45600 to 99000 )
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Median Salary for an Advanced Degree Holder  ( 55600 to 125400 )
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Some careers associated with clinical laboratory technician require an advanced degree while some may not even require a bachelor’s. Whatever the case may be, pursuing more education usually means that more career options will be available to you.

Find out what the typical degree level is for clinical laboratory technician careers below.

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Education Level Percentage of Workers
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED) 2.8%
Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production) 1.2%
Some College Courses 0.6%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree) 21.9%
Bachelor’s Degree 34.4%
Post-Baccalaureate Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master. 6.9%
Master’s Degree 16.3%
First Professional Degree - awarded for completion of a program that: requires at least 2 years of college work before entrance into the program, includes a total of at least 6 academic years of work to complete, and provides all remaining academic requirements to begin practice in a profession. 0.2%
Doctoral Degree 8.2%
Post-Doctoral Training 6.3%

Online Clinical Laboratory Technician Programs

The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.

Degree Level Colleges Offering Programs Colleges Offering Online Classes
Certificate (Less Than 1 Year) 0 0
Certificate (1-2 years) 16 1
Certificate (2-4 Years) 3 1
Associate’s Degree 276 15
Bachelor’s Degree 6 1
Post-Baccalaureate 0 0
Master’s Degree 1 0
Post-Master’s 0 0
Doctor’s Degree (Research) 1 0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice) 0 0
Doctor’s Degree (Other) 0 0

Is a Degree in Clinical Laboratory Technician Worth It?

The median salary for a clinical laboratory technician grad is $122,320 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.

This is 207% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $1,648,400 after 20 years!

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You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to clinical laboratory technician.

Major Number of Grads
Phlebotomy Technician/Phlebotomist 8,296
Laboratory Sciences & Medical Technology 3,966
Sterile Processing Technology/Technician 1,193
Other Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science and Allied Professions 822
Blood Bank Technology Specialist 319
Histologic Technician 245
Renal/Dialysis Technologist/Technician 184
Histologic Technology/Histotechnologist 147
Cytotechnology/Cytotechnologist 101
Ophthalmic Laboratory Technology/Technician 72
Hematology Technology 66
Cytogenetics/Genetics/Clinical Genetics Technology/Technologist 44

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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