How to hire a medical laboratory specialist

How to hire a medical laboratory specialist, step by step

Here's a step-by-step medical laboratory specialist hiring guide:

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

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you post your medical laboratory specialist job, you should take the time to determine what type of worker your business needs. While certain jobs definitely require a full-time employee, it's sometimes better to find a medical laboratory specialist for hire on a part-time basis or as a contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

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

   Yes

   No

   A medical laboratory specialist's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, medical laboratory specialists from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   This list shows salaries for various types of medical laboratory specialists.

   Type of Medical Laboratory Specialist	Description	Hourly rate
   Medical Laboratory Specialist	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.	$17-34
   Pharmacist Technician	Pharmacist technicians assist pharmacists in their daily activities. They receive prescription medicine order requests of customers, validate the prescription, prepare the medicines, properly label medicine bottles, and hand them off to customers... Show more	$12-23
   Pharmacist Technician Trainee	A pharmacist technician trainee is responsible for supporting the staff on pharmacy operations, assisting patients on their medications, and providing other needs according to prescriptions. Pharmacist technician trainees maintain the cleanliness and orderliness of the facility, including the adequacy of medicine storage and creating purchase requests... Show more	$11-50

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Patients
   • Urinalysis
   • Body Fluids
   • Hematology
   • Blood Specimens
   • Capillary Puncture
   • Blood Products
   • Serology
   • Clinical Chemistry
   • Clinical Laboratory Procedures
   • Microbiology
   • Phlebotomy
   • ASCP
   • Blood Bank

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Assist in managing office functions through strong knowledge of PACS, Fuji CR, and EMR systems.
   • Complete classes in chemistry, blood bank, hematology, microbiology, serology, and parasitology.
   • Perform Phlebotomy procedures for collection of donor blood samples for laboratory testing.
   • Perform appropriate QC on equipment and specimens.
   • Conduct necessary quality control (QC) procedures.
   • Operate, calibrate, maintain and troubleshoot all chemistry and hematology analyzers.

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your medical laboratory specialist job description is one of the best ways to attract top talent. A medical laboratory specialist can vary based on:

   • Location. For example, medical laboratory specialists' average salary in alabama is 44% less than in alaska.
   • Seniority. Entry-level medical laboratory specialists 48% less than senior-level medical laboratory specialists.
   • Certifications. A medical laboratory specialist with certifications usually earns a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for an established firm or a new start-up company can make a big difference in a medical laboratory specialist's salary.

   Average medical laboratory specialist salary

   $51,304yearly

   $24.67 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level medical laboratory specialist salary

   $37,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 26, 2026

4. Writing a medical laboratory specialist job description

   A medical laboratory specialist 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 medical laboratory specialist job description:

   Medical laboratory specialist job description example

   The ASVAB isn't the only test that matters in the military. A Soldier's tissue, blood, and body fluids also need to be tested to detect and identify diseases. As a Medical Laboratory Specialist in the Army National Guard, you will perform these clinical tests that the healthcare team will use to diagnose, treat, and prevent illness of their patients.
   
   In this role, you will examine blood and bone marrow samples; test for bacteria or viruses; and analyze tissue, blood, and fluid specimens for diagnostic information.
   
   Perform elementary blood banking and clinical laboratory procedures in hematology, immunohematology, clinical chemistry, serology, bacteriology, parasitology, and urinalysis
   Collect blood specimens by venipuncture and capillary puncture
   Pack, unpack, inspect, store, and distribute blood products
   Assemble, disassemble, and maintain laboratory equipment
   
   Some of the Skills You'll Learn
   Medical laboratory procedures
   Study of human parasites and diseases
   Laboratory administration and record keeping
   
   Helpful Skills
   Interest in biology, chemistry, and algebra
   Ability to follow detailed procedures precisely
   
   Through your training, you will develop the skills and experience to enjoy a civilian career with privately owned laboratories, hospitals, clinics, or research institutions. The certifications available to you after continued study and experience are medical laboratory technician, cytotechnologist, and clinical laboratory technician. Specific educational criteria must be met before you can qualify for certification.
   
   Earn While You Learn
   Instead of paying to learn these skills, get paid to train. In the Army National Guard, you will learn these valuable job skills while earning a regular paycheck and qualifying for tuition assistance.
   
   Job training for Medical Laboratory Specialist consists of 10 weeks of Basic Training, where you'll learn basic Soldiering skills, and 52 weeks of Advanced Individual Training. Training consists of both classroom and field work.
   
   Benefits/Requirements
   
   Benefits
   Paid training A monthly paycheck Montgomery GI Bill Federal and State tuition assistance Retirement benefits for part-time service Low-cost life insurance (up to $400,000 in coverage) 401(k)-type savings plan Student Loan Repayment Program (up to $50,000, for existing loans) Health care benefits available VA home loans Bonuses, if applicable Most non-prior service candidates will earn between $200 and $250 per drill weekend, subject to change
   Requirements Military enlistment in the Army National Guard Must be at least a junior in high school, or have a high school diploma or a GED certificate Must be between the ages of 17 and 35 Must be able to pass a physical exam and meet legal and moral standards Must meet citizenship requirements (see NATIONALGUARD.com for details)
   
   Requires military enlistment. Programs and benefits are subject to change. Ask your Army National Guard recruiter for the most up-to-date information. Actual MOS assignment may depend on MOS availability.
   
   Other Job Information
   
   Job Category: Medical
   Age Requirements: Must be between the ages of 17 and 35 lab tech technician

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5. Post your job

   There are a few common ways to find medical laboratory specialists 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.

   To find medical laboratory specialist candidates, you can consider the following options:

   • Post your job opening on Zippia or other job search websites.
   • Use niche websites that focus on engineering and technology jobs, such as healthcarejobsite, health jobs nationwide, hospitalcareers, medreps.com.
   • Post your job on free job posting websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit medical laboratory specialists, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   You should also ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match the ideal candidate profile you developed earlier. Candidates good enough for the next step can complete 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 medical laboratory specialist

   Once you've selected the best medical laboratory specialist candidate for the job, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, this letter should include details about the benefits and perks you offer the candidate. Ensuring that your offer is competitive is essential, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and you should be open to discussion. After you reach an agreement, the final step is formalizing the agreement with a contract.

   You should also follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that you've filled the position.

   To prepare for the new employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is 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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