Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
Clinical laboratory assistant education requirements
Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
There are several educational requirements to become a clinical laboratory assistant. Clinical laboratory assistants usually study biology, clinical/medical laboratory science, or medical assisting services. 43% of clinical laboratory assistants hold a bachelor's degree, and 23% hold an associate degree. We analyzed 2,357 real clinical laboratory assistant resumes to see exactly what clinical laboratory assistant education sections show.
The most common colleges for clinical laboratory assistants are the New Mexico State University and the New Mexico State University.
There are also many online clinical laboratory assistant courses to help get the education required to be a clinical laboratory assistant.
There are certain clinical laboratory assistant certifications that you should consider. These clinical laboratory assistant certifications include Certified Phlebotomy Technician (CPT) and Medical Assistant.
What education do you need to become a clinical laboratory assistant?
What degree do you need to be a clinical laboratory assistant?
- Bachelor's, 43%
- Associate, 23%
- Diploma, 8%
- High School Diploma, 7%
- Other Degrees, 19%
What should I major in to become a clinical laboratory assistant?
Most common colleges for clinical laboratory assistants
| Clinical laboratory assistant common college | Percentages |
|---|---|
| New Mexico State University | 8.62% |
| University of California, Santa Barbara | 8.05% |
| University of New Mexico | 8.05% |
| University of Phoenix | 7.47% |
| Arizona State University | 5.17% |
Best majors for clinical laboratory assistants
| Rank | Major | Percentages |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Biology | 18.8% |
| 2 | Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science | 13.0% |
| 3 | Medical Assisting Services | 12.4% |
| 4 | Nursing | 8.5% |
| 5 | Business | 6.8% |
Best colleges for clinical laboratory assistants
The best colleges for clinical laboratory assistants are Northwestern University, New York University, and Vanderbilt University.
A clinical laboratory assistant with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for clinical laboratory assistants. We based this list on several metrics: admissions rate, retention rate, mean earnings of graduates, the ratio of working vs. non-working students ten years after admission, the average cost of attendance, and median debt for graduates who become clinical laboratory assistants.
1. New York University
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$51,828
Enrollment
26,339
2. Ohio State University
Columbus, OH • Private
In-state tuition
$10,726
Enrollment
45,769
3. Pennsylvania State University
University Park, PA • Private
In-state tuition
$18,454
Enrollment
40,108
4. University of Vermont
Burlington, VT • Private
In-state tuition
$18,276
Enrollment
10,612
5. Hunter College of the City University of New York
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,182
Enrollment
16,205
6. University of Connecticut
Storrs, CT • Private
In-state tuition
$15,730
Enrollment
18,830
7. University of New Hampshire
Durham, NH • Private
In-state tuition
$18,499
Enrollment
12,668
8. SUNY Stony Brook
Stony Brook, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$9,625
Enrollment
17,407
9. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
In-state tuition
$55,584
Enrollment
10,764
10. University of South Florida
Tampa, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$6,410
Enrollment
31,321
20 best online courses for clinical laboratory assistants
Advertising disclosure
1. Clinical Data Science
Are you interested in how to use data generated by doctors, nurses, and the healthcare system to improve the care of future patients? If so, you may be a future clinical data scientist!\n\nThis specialization provides learners with hands on experience in use of electronic health records and informatics tools to perform clinical data science. This series of six courses is designed to augment learner’s existing skills in statistics and programming to provide examples of specific challenges,...
2. Clinical Kidney, Pancreas and Islet Transplantation
Kidney transplantation is a major advance of modern medicine which provides high-quality of life for patients with end-stage renal disease. What used to be an experimental, risky, and very limited treatment option more than 50 years ago is now routinely performed in many countries worldwide. The number of renal transplants is expected to rise sharply in the next decade since the proportion of patients with end stage renal disease is increasing. Are you interested in clinical kidney, pancreas...
3. Become a Microbiology Laboratory Technician
Microbiology...
4. Basic of Clinical Data Management
Clinical Data Management...
5. Introduction to Clinical Data Science
This course will prepare you to complete all parts of the Clinical Data Science Specialization. In this course you will learn how clinical data are generated, the format of these data, and the ethical and legal restrictions on these data. You will also learn enough SQL and R programming skills to be able to complete the entire Specialization - even if you are a beginner programmer. While you are taking this course you will have access to an actual clinical data set and a free, online...
6. Addiction Treatment: Clinical Skills for Healthcare Providers
This course is designed with a singular goal: to improve the care you provide to your patients with substance use disorders. By delving into a model case performed by actors, seven Yale instructors from various fields provide techniques to screen your patients for substance use disorder risk, diagnose patients to gauge the severity of their use, directly manage treatment plans, refer out to treatment services, and navigate the various conditions that may limit your patient’s access to treatment...
7. The Simplest Guide to Clinical Trials Data Analysis with SAS
Step into the world of Pharmaceutical industry Clinical Trials Clinical Research Biostatistics Clinical SAS SAS...
8. Good Clinical Practice ICH GCP for Clinical Research
Certification on ICH GCP E6 R2 Good Clinical Practice for Clinical Research The Only Complete Course You Can Find Online...
9. Clinical Natural Language Processing
This course teaches you the fundamentals of clinical natural language processing (NLP). In this course you will learn the basic linguistic principals underlying NLP, as well as how to write regular expressions and handle text data in R. You will also learn practical techniques for text processing to be able to extract information from clinical notes. Finally, you will have a chance to put your skills to the test with a real-world practical application where you develop text processing...
10. Predictive Modeling and Transforming Clinical Practice
This course teaches you the fundamentals of transforming clinical practice using predictive models. This course examines specific challenges and methods of clinical implementation, that clinical data scientists must be aware of when developing their predictive models...
11. The Beginners Course for Clinical Research
The Essentials of Clinical Trials - Clinical Research for Beginners...
12. Good Clinical Practice for Clinical Research Professionals
The Complete, Certified ICH GCP (R2 & R3) Course for Investigators, Study Coordinators, Sponsors, Monitors and Study staff...
13. Informed Clinical Decision Making using Deep Learning
This specialisation is for learners with experience in programming that are interested in expanding their skills in applying deep learning in Electronic Health Records and with a focus on how to translate their models into Clinical Decision Support Systems.\n\nThe main areas that would explore are:\n\nData mining of Clinical Databases: Ethics, MIMIC III database, International Classification of Disease System and definition of common clinical outcomes. Deep learning in Electronic Health...
14. Making Data Science Work for Clinical Reporting
This course is aimed to demonstate how principles and methods from data science can be applied in clinical reporting. By the end of the course, learners will understand what requirements there are in reporting clinical trials, and how they impact on how data science is used. The learner will see how they can work efficiently and effectively while still ensuring that they meet the needed standards...
15. Certificate Course in Clinical Research (CCCR)
A Clinical Research Course-ICH-GCP E6(R2), Clinical Trials, Essential Documents, Sponsor, Investigator, Pharmaceuticals...
16. Clinical Research for beginners
The Art of Publishing - Master Pub Med, Study design, Biostatistics, Journal choice, Manuscript writing & Referencing...
17. Clinical Trials Operations
This specialization is designed for individuals and teams that will be running or interacting with clinical trials. In four courses, learners will develop insights and build the skills they need to design, manage, and monitor clinical trials as well as analyze, document, and communicate the results. Learners will also learn best practices regarding ethics, safety, participant recruitment, regulatory compliance, and reporting standards. The core principles and skills of the specialization will...
18. Manual Software Testing: Complete Course with Practical Labs
Tools: JIRA, Bugzilla, Trello, Postman, 21 types of Testing, 7 principles of testing, QC and QA, ISTQB, Interview QA...
19. Good Clinical Practice (GCP)
Key features of the GCP guideline, roles and responsibilities involved and the requirements of essential documentation...
20. Hands-on Penetration Testing Labs 3.0
Real technical skills from a professional pentester...
Top 10 most affordable universities for clinical laboratory assistants
The most affordable schools for clinical laboratory assistants are Hunter College of the City University of New York, suny farmingdale, and university of florida.
If the best universities for clinical laboratory assistants are out of your price range, check out these affordable schools. After factoring in in-state tuition and fees, the average cost of attendance, admissions rate, average net price, and mean earnings after six years, we found that these are the most affordable schools for clinical laboratory assistants.
1. Hunter College of the City University of New York
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,182
Cost of attendance
13,998
2. SUNY Farmingdale
Farmingdale, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$8,306
Cost of attendance
16,091
3. University of Florida
Gainesville, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$6,381
Cost of attendance
21,034
4. California State University - Bakersfield
Bakersfield, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$7,309
Cost of attendance
16,714
5. University of South Florida
Tampa, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$6,410
Cost of attendance
20,456
6. California State University - Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,749
Cost of attendance
14,823
7. Brigham Young University
Provo, UT • Private
In-state tuition
$5,620
Cost of attendance
18,136
8. Minot State University
Minot, ND • Private
In-state tuition
$7,064
Cost of attendance
15,576
9. Purdue University
West Lafayette, IN • Private
In-state tuition
$9,992
Cost of attendance
22,430
10. California State University - Dominguez Hills
Carson, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,942
Cost of attendance
14,469
Top 10 hardest universities to get into for clinical laboratory assistants
The hardest universities for clinical laboratory assistants to get into are Northwestern University, New York University, and Vanderbilt University.
Some great schools for clinical laboratory assistants are hard to get into, but they also set your career up for greater success. The list below shows the most challenging universities to get into for clinical laboratory assistants based on an institution's admissions rates, average SAT scores accepted, median ACT scores accepted, and mean earnings of students six years after admission.
1. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
Admissions rate
8%
SAT average
1,508
2. New York University
New York, NY • Private
Admissions rate
20%
SAT average
1,419
3. Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN • Private
Admissions rate
10%
SAT average
1,514
4. Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, MD • Private
Admissions rate
11%
SAT average
1,513
5. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
Admissions rate
8%
SAT average
1,492
6. Columbia University in the City of New York
New York, NY • Private
Admissions rate
6%
SAT average
1,512
7. Northeastern University
Boston, MA • Private
Admissions rate
19%
SAT average
1,466
8. Boston University
Boston, MA • Private
Admissions rate
22%
SAT average
1,420
9. Georgetown University
Washington, DC • Private
Admissions rate
15%
SAT average
1,456
10. Case Western Reserve University
Cleveland, OH • Private
Admissions rate
29%
SAT average
1,443
Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for clinical laboratory assistants
The easiest schools for clinical laboratory assistants to get into are AdventHealth University, gwynedd mercy university, and barry university.
Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a clinical laboratory assistant without much hassle, check out the list of schools where you will be accepted in no time. We compiled admissions rates, average SAT scores, average ACT scores, and average salary of students six years after graduation to uncover which were the easiest schools to get into for clinical laboratory assistants.
1. AdventHealth University
Orlando, FL • Private
Admissions rate
87%
SAT average
1,016
2. Gwynedd Mercy University
Gwynedd Valley, PA • Private
Admissions rate
92%
SAT average
1,031
3. Barry University
Miami, FL • Private
Admissions rate
91%
SAT average
1,006
4. D'Youville College
Buffalo, NY • Private
Admissions rate
100%
SAT average
1,072
5. Notre Dame College
Cleveland, OH • Private
Admissions rate
90%
SAT average
994
6. University of the Incarnate Word
San Antonio, TX • Private
Admissions rate
88%
SAT average
1,044
7. Kean University
Union, NJ • Private
Admissions rate
86%
SAT average
991
8. Thomas More University
Crestview Hills, KY • Private
Admissions rate
90%
SAT average
1,099
9. Cardinal Stritch University
Milwaukee, WI • Private
Admissions rate
71%
SAT average
1,035
10. Midwestern State University
Wichita Falls, TX • Private
Admissions rate
71%
SAT average
1,033
Average clinical laboratory assistant salary by education level
| Clinical laboratory assistant education level | Clinical laboratory assistant salary |
|---|---|
| Master's Degree | $35,886 |
| High School Diploma or Less | $29,645 |
| Bachelor's Degree | $35,097 |
| Doctorate Degree | $35,572 |
| Some College/ Associate Degree | $32,394 |
Clinical laboratory assistant education FAQs
Have more questions? See all answers to common healthcare practitioner and technical questions.
Search for clinical laboratory assistant jobs
Updated January 8, 2025
Updated January 8, 2025