How to hire a cytogenetic technologist

How to hire a cytogenetic technologist, step by step

Here's a step-by-step cytogenetic technologist hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a cytogenetic technologist job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new cytogenetic technologist
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a cytogenetic technologist do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the cytogenetic technologist you need to hire. Certain cytogenetic technologist roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a cytogenetic technologist to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a cytogenetic technologist that fits the bill.

   Here's a comparison of cytogenetic technologist salaries for various roles:

   Type of Cytogenetic Technologist	Description	Hourly rate
   Cytogenetic Technologist	Medical laboratory technologists (commonly known as medical laboratory scientists) and medical laboratory technicians collect samples and perform tests to analyze body fluids, tissue, and other substances.	$18-36
   Laboratory Aide	A laboratory aide is primarily responsible for maintaining the cleanliness and order in laboratories, all while performing support tasks for scientists. Their duties revolve around arranging specimens and samples, transporting materials from one laboratory to another, preparing apparatuses and machines, and storing them accordingly... Show more	$9-18
   Laboratory Coordinator	A laboratory coordinator is responsible for supporting laboratory examinations and experiments, collecting laboratory samples, and ensuring the efficiency and performance of laboratory tools and equipment. Laboratory coordinators maintain the cleanliness and orderliness of the laboratory facility at all times to avoid contaminations and hazards that may affect laboratory results and accuracy of examinations... Show more	$18-34

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Harvest
   • Patients
   • ASCP
   • Test Results
   • Laboratory Equipment
   • Microscopic Analysis
   • Tissue Culture
   • CG
   • CLIA
   • Proficiency Testing
   • Chromosome Analysis
   • Situ Hybridization
   • Specimen Handling
   • Slide Preparation

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Accomplish at using/troubleshooting with programs such as ASI for image capture/analysis and karyotyping.
   • Help maintain boats cages and feed barge.
   • Follow FDA guideline to report results and document maintenance.
   • Operate boats safely to and from work sites on ocean.
   • Organize data and records on all fin clipping traceability back to the hatchery.
   • Assist in the training of genetics technology students, genetics fellows and postdoctorate students.

   More cytogenetic technologist duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your cytogenetic technologist job description helps attract top candidates to the position. A cytogenetic technologist salary can be affected by several factors, such as geography, experience, seniority, certifications, and the prestige of the hiring company.

   For example, the average salary for a cytogenetic technologist in Mississippi may be lower than in Alaska, and an entry-level cytogenetic technologist usually earns less than a senior-level cytogenetic technologist. Additionally, a cytogenetic technologist with certifications may command a higher salary, and working for a well-known company or start-up may also impact an employee's pay.

   Average cytogenetic technologist salary

   $54,242yearly

   $26.08 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level cytogenetic technologist salary

   $39,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 16, 2025

   Average cytogenetic technologist salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Massachusetts	$59,307	$29
   2	Connecticut	$59,223	$28
   3	Oregon	$59,204	$28
   4	Washington	$58,936	$28
   5	New York	$58,927	$28
   6	California	$58,926	$28
   7	Maryland	$57,120	$27
   8	Pennsylvania	$55,940	$27
   9	Ohio	$55,598	$27
   10	Michigan	$54,930	$26
   11	Virginia	$54,391	$26
   12	Utah	$53,861	$26
   13	Arizona	$53,335	$26
   14	Wisconsin	$53,266	$26
   15	Illinois	$52,781	$25
   16	Texas	$50,920	$24
   17	Nebraska	$50,764	$24
   18	Kansas	$49,672	$24
   19	Missouri	$49,598	$24
   20	Tennessee	$48,650	$23

   Average cytogenetic technologist salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	University of California-Berkeley	$80,947	$38.92
   2	Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center	$65,702	$31.59	18
   3	Brigham and Women's Hospital	$64,836	$31.17	111
   4	Seattle Cancer Care Alliance	$63,962	$30.75
   5	Moffitt Cancer Center	$63,712	$30.63	12
   6	Sanofi Genzyme	$63,119	$30.35
   7	Montefiore Mount Vernon Hospital	$62,091	$29.85	5
   8	Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago	$61,757	$29.69	18
   9	Cedars-Sinai	$61,345	$29.49	104
   10	Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings	$60,150	$28.92	418
   11	University Hospitals	$60,019	$28.86	26
   12	Nebraska Medicine	$59,281	$28.50	32
   13	Genesys	$58,514	$28.13
   14	University of Washington	$58,328	$28.04	36
   15	NeoGenomics Laboratories	$57,863	$27.82	20
   16	RWJBarnabas Health	$57,764	$27.77	92
   17	Legacy Health	$57,268	$27.53	5
   18	Oregon Health & Science University	$56,950	$27.38	17
   19	LifePoint Health	$56,740	$27.28	229
   20	Texas Tech University	$56,325	$27.08	3

4. Writing a cytogenetic technologist job description

   A cytogenetic technologist job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. Below, you can find an example of a cytogenetic technologist job description:

   Cytogenetic technologist job description example

   Cytogentic lab seeks Cytogentics Technologist to complete Cytogenetics analysis of body fluids/tissues from human subjects to confirm or rule out a clinical diagnosis. Proficient in all routine and special cytogenetic technique maintenance of all pertinent equipment and lab organization. Make and receive telephone calls, communicate efficiently with hospital personnel/physicians/patients. Maintain laboratory records/statistics. Maintain cell lines and long-term storage techniques of call lines. Order and maintain laboratory supplies and equipment.
   Enter demographics for Molecular genetics and fax and mail reports. Mail Cytogenetics reports
   Dispatch of bio hazardous patient specimens(blood, amniotic fluid, tissue, etcl0 to the appropriate laboratories, Cytogenetics and molecular Genetics
   Provide clients, health providers, external institutions and laboratories with detailed information and assistance regarding available test services fee information and transportation of bio hazardous specimens, etc.
   Prepare extensive laboratory purchase orders for office/laboratory supplies, chemical and reagents, equipment, etc., and submit to Laboratory Administrator for approval
   Answer telephone calls and incoming faxes
   Screen visitors/couriers/vendors from Laboratory Accession area
   Receive incoming correspondences, reviews and distributes mail and answers routine correspondence independently.
   Maintain lab data and statistics including accessioning of samples that come in on a daily basis
   Maintain chemical and equipment inventory
   Chemical waste disposal
   Culture set up and maintenance, harvest, slide prep, staining and screening of amniotic fluid, CVS, POC, PBL, BM, LN and any other body tissue or fluid
   Preparation of all solutions required in Clin Cytogenetics.
   All Banding techniques
   Screening and analysis of chromosomes and FISH
   FISH Methodology both liquid and Tissue
   
   Qualifications:
   New York State Department of Education Clinical Laboratory Technologist License or a limited permit is required.
   One year training in clinical cytogenetics
   A minimum of one year experience in clinical and cancer cytogenetic techniques required.
   NCA certification and/or a master degree desirable. BA or BS degree (evaluated in the USA) in medical technology or life sciences required
   Knowledge of computer skills
   
   The hours are 10:00 am - 6.30 pm Monday through Friday.
   
   $5,000.00 sign on bonus for the selected applicant.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are a few common ways to find cytogenetic technologists for your business:

   • Promoting internally or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to meet candidates with the right educational background.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to recruit passive job-seekers.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your cytogenetic technologist job on Zippia to find and recruit cytogenetic technologist candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites such as healthcarejobsite, health jobs nationwide, hospitalcareers, medreps.com.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting cytogenetic technologists requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

   Remember to include a few questions that allow candidates to expand on their strengths in their own words. Asking about their unique skills might reveal things you'd miss otherwise. At this point, good candidates can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new cytogenetic technologist

   Once you've found the cytogenetic technologist candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

   It's also important to follow up with applicants who do not get the job with an email letting them know that the position is filled.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new cytogenetic technologist. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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How much does it cost to hire a cytogenetic technologist?