Sterile Processing Technician

 

Types of Degrees Sterile Processing Technician Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many sterile processing technology/technician graduations there were for each degree level during the last year for which data was available.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Basic Certificate	793
Undergraduate Certificate	399
Associate Degree	1

What Sterile Processing Technician Majors Need to Know

In an O*NET survey, sterile processing technology/technician majors were asked to rate what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important in their occupations. These answers were weighted on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the most important.

Knowledge Areas for Sterile Processing Technology/Technician Majors

This major prepares you for careers in which these knowledge areas are important:

• Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• 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.
• Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
• Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.

Skills for Sterile Processing Technology/Technician Majors

A major in sterile processing technology/technician prepares you for careers in which the following skill-sets are crucial:

• Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
• 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.
• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• Operation Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
• Quality Control Analysis - Conducting tests and inspections of products, services, or processes to evaluate quality or performance.

Abilities for Sterile Processing Technology/Technician Majors

As a sterile processing technology/technician major, you will find yourself needing the following abilities:

• Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• 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.
• Speech Recognition - The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
• Arm-Hand Steadiness - The ability to keep your hand and arm steady while moving your arm or while holding your arm and hand in one position.

What Can You Do With a Sterile Processing Technician Major?

People with a sterile processing technology/technician degree often go into the following careers:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Medical Equipment Preparers	11.1%	$36,240
Surgical Technologists	11.7%	$47,300

Who Is Getting an Associate’s Degree in Sterile Processing Technician?

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of sterile processing technology/technician majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	0
Black or African American	1
Hispanic or Latino	0
White	0
International Students	0
Other Races/Ethnicities	0

How Much Do Sterile Processing Technician Majors Make?

Salaries According to BLS

Sterile Processing Technology/Technician majors often go into careers where salaries can range from $37,990 to $49,040 (25th to 75th percentile). This range includes 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.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Sterile Processing Technician

Some careers associated with sterile processing technology/technician require an advanced degree while some may not even require a bachelor’s. In general, the more advanced your degree the more career options will open up to you. However, there is significant time and money that needs to be invested into your education so weigh the pros and cons.

How much schooling do you really need to compete in today’s job market? People currently working in careers related to sterile processing technology/technician have obtained the following education levels.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)	24.3%
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)	31.6%
Some College Courses	14.2%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	22.6%
Bachelor’s Degree	7.6%
Master’s Degree	0.9%

Online Sterile Processing 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)	32	2
Certificate (2-4 Years)	0	0
Associate’s Degree	2	0
Bachelor’s Degree	1	0
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	0	0
Post-Master’s	1	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Is a Degree in Sterile Processing Technician Worth It?

The median salary for a sterile processing technology/technician grad is $37,990 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.

Trades Related to Sterile Processing Technician

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to sterile processing technology/technician.

Major	Number of Grads
Phlebotomy Technician/Phlebotomist	8,296
Laboratory Sciences & Medical Technology	3,966
Laboratory Technician	3,429
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.

• College Factual
• College Scorecard
• National Center for Education Statistics
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers First Quarter 2020
• Image Credit: By Staff Sgt. Jerilyn Quintanilla under License

More about our data sources and methodologies.