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The differences between medical laboratory specialists and laboratory specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a medical laboratory specialist and a laboratory specialist. Additionally, a medical laboratory specialist has an average salary of $51,304, which is higher than the $50,357 average annual salary of a laboratory specialist.
The top three skills for a medical laboratory specialist include patients, urinalysis and body fluids. The most important skills for a laboratory specialist are chemistry, patients, and test results.
| Medical Laboratory Specialist | Laboratory Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $51,304 | $50,357 |
| Hourly rate | $24.67 | $24.21 |
| Growth rate | - | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 89,770 | 68,634 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 41% | Bachelor's Degree, 53% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
A Medical Laboratory Specialist performs tests on the tissue, blood, and body fluids of patients. They determine patients' blood types for transfusions, as well as conduct medical research and analysis.
A laboratory specialist develops the areas assigned to them and promotes maximum resource allocation and utilization to achieve their goals. Laboratory specialists handle storage and backup devices, support telecommunication-associated equipment, and relay customer requests and issues. It is their job to process specimens in toxicology, coagulation, microbiology, hematology, chemistry, and urinalysis. Skills and knowledge in a photo lab, cell culture, customer service, and test cases are necessary for this position.
Medical laboratory specialists and laboratory specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Medical Laboratory Specialist | Laboratory Specialist | |
| Average salary | $51,304 | $50,357 |
| Salary range | Between $37,000 And $71,000 | Between $36,000 And $69,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | Boston, MA |
| Highest paying state | - | Hawaii |
| Best paying company | - | Nokia |
| Best paying industry | - | Health Care |
There are a few differences between a medical laboratory specialist and a laboratory specialist in terms of educational background:
| Medical Laboratory Specialist | Laboratory Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 41% | Bachelor's Degree, 53% |
| Most common major | Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science | Biology |
| Most common college | SUNY Stony Brook | SUNY Stony Brook |
Here are the differences between medical laboratory specialists' and laboratory specialists' demographics:
| Medical Laboratory Specialist | Laboratory Specialist | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 56.2% Female, 43.8% | Male, 47.3% Female, 52.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 13.2% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 17.1% Asian, 11.0% White, 52.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% | Black or African American, 10.8% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 17.3% Asian, 12.0% White, 54.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 8% |