Medical laboratory scientist vs pathologist

The differences between medical laboratory scientists and pathologists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a medical laboratory scientist, becoming a pathologist takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a pathologist has an average salary of $61,808, which is higher than the $54,377 average annual salary of a medical laboratory scientist.

The top three skills for a medical laboratory scientist include patients, ASCP and clinical laboratory. The most important skills for a pathologist are patients, patient care, and diagnosis.

Medical laboratory scientist vs pathologist overview

	Medical Laboratory Scientist	Pathologist
Yearly salary	$54,377	$61,808
Hourly rate	$26.14	$29.72
Growth rate	-	7%
Number of jobs	121,913	20,340
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 74%	Bachelor's Degree, 40%
Average age	44	48
Years of experience	2	6

What does a medical laboratory scientist do?

As a medical laboratory scientist, you will be responsible for analyzing various types of body specimens, including blood, tissue, and urine. You will conduct scientific testing on samples and report the results to physicians. These results play an essential role in the diagnosis and treatment of medical conditions or illnesses such as heart disease and diabetes. Your duties and responsibilities may include maintaining laboratory equipment such as microscopes and cell counters, tracking patient outcomes, and conducting differential cell counts. You are also expected to oversee the work of laboratory technicians.

What does a pathologist do?

Pathologists are medical healthcare professionals who are responsible for conducting examinations of bodies and body tissues. These pathologists must perform laboratory tests of body fluids and tissues to help primary care doctors make a diagnosis about the health of patients who are with chronic conditions. They specialize in genetic testing that will examine a tissue biopsy to determine whether a tumor is benign or cancerous. Pathologists must also perform autopsies to inform family members of the deceased about the cause of death and help them take preventive action for their own health.

Medical laboratory scientist vs pathologist salary

Medical laboratory scientists and pathologists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Medical Laboratory Scientist	Pathologist
Average salary	$54,377	$61,808
Salary range	Between $41,000 And $71,000	Between $25,000 And $148,000
Highest paying City	Reno, NV	Anchorage, AK
Highest paying state	Alaska	Alaska
Best paying company	Eli Lilly and Company	UT Medical Group, Inc.
Best paying industry	Health Care	-

Differences between medical laboratory scientist and pathologist education

There are a few differences between a medical laboratory scientist and a pathologist in terms of educational background:

	Medical Laboratory Scientist	Pathologist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 74%	Bachelor's Degree, 40%
Most common major	Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science	Physiology And Anatomy
Most common college	University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill	Stanford University

Medical laboratory scientist vs pathologist demographics

Here are the differences between medical laboratory scientists' and pathologists' demographics:

	Medical Laboratory Scientist	Pathologist
Average age	44	48
Gender ratio	Male, 33.7% Female, 66.3%	Male, 40.7% Female, 59.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.8% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 17.3% Asian, 12.7% White, 53.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%	Black or African American, 5.2% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 9.9% Asian, 20.4% White, 59.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	8%	13%

Differences between medical laboratory scientist and pathologist duties and responsibilities

Medical laboratory scientist example responsibilities.

Attain extensive phlebotomy experience with a challenging pediatric patient population.
Perform complex laboratory diagnostic tests as medical laboratory scientist in hematology, clinical chemistry, microbiology, urinalysis and blood bank.
Evaluate quality control within the laboratory using standard laboratory test and measurement controls while maintaining compliance with CLIA and OSHA.
Execute and analyze test in areas including, hematology, urinalysis, serology, bacteriology, chemistry and transfusion services.
Assist in Cerner LIS system implementation and resource as super user.
Experience in immunology, infectious disease testing, and therapeutic drug monitoring.

Pathologist example responsibilities.

Supervise and manage pathology, microbiology and biochemistry laboratory.
Provide consultations to care providers and interpret laboratory findings and diagnosis to patients.
Screen by ELISA & immunoblots.
Result in answering an FDA concern regarding device.
Participate in FDA submissions, plan 510k and PMA submissions.
Perform oncology markers and hormonal assays by Elisa and Delfia system.

Medical laboratory scientist vs pathologist skills

Common medical laboratory scientist skills

Patients, 13%
ASCP, 11%
Clinical Laboratory, 10%
MLS, 8%
Proficiency Testing, 5%
Patient Care, 4%

Common pathologist skills

Patients, 31%
Patient Care, 11%
Diagnosis, 8%
GI, 4%
GYN, 4%
Frozen Sections, 3%

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Medical Laboratory Scientist vs Pathologist

Updated January 8, 2025

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