Clinical Laboratory Science

Clinical Laboratory Science Overview

The Clinical Laboratory Science program prepares students to become licensed clinical laboratory technologists. Technologists discover the presence or absence of disease in collected samples, and provide data that help physicians determine the best treatment for a patient. 

CLS students will take three years of general education, basic and advanced science courses, followed by a clinical year that combines professional internships at regional hospital clinical laboratories with coursework. 

Mercy University’s program in Clinical Laboratory Science is registered with the New York State Education Department as a licensure-qualifying program. The American Society for Clinical Pathology (ASCP) Board of Certification administers certifying examinations and awards certification. 

What Can You Do With a Clinical Lab Science Degree in NYC?

A clinical laboratory science degree opens up opportunities in nearly every major field, allowing our graduates to make a difference across the world. Some of our past graduates have continued their education further or broken into the fields of:

• Hospital-based and private diagnostic clinical laboratory scientists*
• Biotechnology
• Laboratory research technicians (academia, industry, or government)
• Pharmaceutical research (Research and Development)
• Education
• Laboratory Informatics

*Because there is currently a shortage of trained medical clinical laboratory scientists available to staff clinical diagnostic laboratories, the employment opportunities in this field are excellent.

Go to the U.S. Department of Labor for a detailed description of this profession and current job outlook projections and national median wage data.