How to hire a pathology assistant

How to hire a pathology assistant, step by step

Here's a step-by-step pathology assistant hiring guide:

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

What does a pathology assistant do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a pathology assistant, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   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 pathology assistant 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 pathology assistant that fits the bill.

   This list shows salaries for various types of pathology assistants.

   Type of Pathology Assistant	Description	Hourly rate
   Pathology Assistant	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.	$10-43
   Certified Pharmacist Technician	A certified pharmacist technician is responsible for assisting patients by providing medicines based on their needs or their physicians' prescriptions. Certified pharmacist technicians must be able to supply the correct medications, including the right dosage to patients... Show more	$12-24
   Clinical Laboratory Technician	A clinical laboratory technician typically works under the direction of a physician or medical technologist to perform tests that will aid in the diagnosis and treatment of medical conditions and illnesses. You will perform various duties, including preparing samples for analysis, monitoring tests and procedures, and matching blood for transfusion... Show more	$17-33

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Patients
   • Frozen Sections
   • Dictation
   • Anatomic Pathology
   • Patient Care
   • Body Fluids
   • Pathology Residents
   • Laboratory Equipment
   • Tissue Specimens
   • Surgical Pathology Specimens
   • Medical Terminology
   • Sectioning
   • Pathology Laboratory
   • Tissue Samples

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage scheduling and patient treatment according to insurance and Medicaid guidelines.
   • Assist QA clerk with processing of QA material on an as-need basis.
   • Perform frozen sectioning, touch preps, and assist in bone marrow aspirations.
   • Direct a complex IHC project to transition staff from a manual process to automation.
   • Collect data on student achievements for the purpose of documenting activities and preparing reports/updating IEP's.
   • Increase client's level of engagement in therapy by producing self-modeling video for pediatric client with autism.

   More pathology assistant duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your pathology assistant job description helps attract top candidates to the position. A pathology assistant 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 pathology assistant in South Carolina may be lower than in Alaska, and an entry-level pathology assistant usually earns less than a senior-level pathology assistant. Additionally, a pathology assistant 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 pathology assistant salary

   $44,978yearly

   $21.62 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level pathology assistant salary

   $22,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 17, 2025

   Average pathology assistant salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$68,953	$33
   2	Massachusetts	$63,061	$30
   3	Arizona	$57,576	$28
   4	New Jersey	$56,682	$27
   5	Texas	$56,640	$27
   6	Hawaii	$56,356	$27
   7	Delaware	$54,136	$26
   8	New York	$52,364	$25
   9	Pennsylvania	$51,133	$25
   10	Ohio	$48,635	$23
   11	Vermont	$47,544	$23
   12	Washington	$43,739	$21
   13	Wisconsin	$40,795	$20
   14	Colorado	$39,631	$19
   15	Florida	$39,223	$19
   16	North Dakota	$39,129	$19
   17	Georgia	$37,354	$18
   18	Nebraska	$36,621	$18
   19	Kansas	$36,607	$18
   20	Missouri	$35,004	$17

   Average pathology assistant salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Brigham and Women's Hospital	$179,515	$86.31	7
   2	Massachusetts General Hospital	$165,242	$79.44
   3	Mount Sinai Health System	$83,869	$40.32	2
   4	Yale University	$74,158	$35.65
   5	University of California-Berkeley	$68,421	$32.89
   6	Thomas Jefferson University	$60,500	$29.09
   7	Sutter Health	$58,526	$28.14	37
   8	Northwell Health	$57,075	$27.44	18
   9	Prime Healthcare	$56,450	$27.14	7
   10	HealthTrust	$55,580	$26.72
   11	CHI St. Alexius Health	$55,350	$26.61
   12	Johns Hopkins Medicine	$55,129	$26.50	1
   13	Sharp HealthCare	$54,938	$26.41
   14	Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings	$53,106	$25.53	54
   15	Mission Regional Medical Center	$52,768	$25.37	7
   16	Cambridge Health Alliance	$52,233	$25.11	2
   17	Cleveland Clinic	$51,983	$24.99	8
   18	Covance	$51,853	$24.93
   19	Tenet Healthcare	$51,781	$24.89	30
   20	The Long Island Home	$47,974	$23.06

4. Writing a pathology assistant job description

   A job description for a pathology assistant role includes a summary of the job's main responsibilities, required skills, and preferred background experience. Including a salary range can also go a long way in attracting more candidates to apply, and showing the first name of the hiring manager can also make applicants more comfortable. As an example, here's a pathology assistant job description:

   Pathology assistant job description example

   • The Pathologists' Assistant must be qualified by academic and practical training to assist in providing service in anatomic pathology under the direction and supervision of an anatomic pathologist
   • Must be are eligible to take the American Society of Clinical Pathology (ASCP) certification examination
   • Bachelor s degree or MS from an accredited Pathologist Assistant program or in a medical or scientific field with at least 1 year of experience directly related to the duties and responsibilities specified

   First established in 1901, Newark Beth Israel Medical Center is a 665-bed quaternary care, teaching hospital that provides comprehensive health care for the region. Staffed with more than 800 physicians, 3200 employees, and 150 volunteers, our hospital is ready to provide you and your family with the quality care you need.

   At Newark Beth Israel Medical Center, we are committed to quality and excellence in patient care. Our goal is to exceed your expectations and to provide you with an environment that is conducive to healing and promotes patient safety. The Newark Beth Israel Medical Center management and staff abide by the philosophy that all patients are to be treated with respect, dignity, and sensitivity.

   The Children s Hospital of New Jersey provides comprehensive inpatient and outpatient pediatric services that include a pediatric intensive care unit, pediatric emergency department, Valerie Fund Children s Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders, and a neonatal ICU with New Jersey s only ECMO unit. The pediatric staff pharmacist works in the decentralized pharmacy satellite and provides collaborative pharmaceutical care to the Children s Hospital of New Jersey including NICU and PICU, and the emergency department.

   We offer a great work environment, competitive rates and excellent benefits, including:

   • Medical/Dental/Vision plans
   • 401 (k)
   • Vacation/Personal/Holiday/Sick Time Off
   • Short & Long Term Disability
   • Basic Life & Accidental Death Insurance
   • Tuition Reimbursement
   • Health Care/Dependent Care Flexible Spending Accounts

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are a few common ways to find pathology assistants 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 pathology assistant job on Zippia to find and attract quality pathology assistant candidates.
   • Use niche websites such as healthcarejobsite, health jobs nationwide, hospitalcareers, medreps.com.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   During your first interview to recruit pathology assistants, engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. During the following interview, you'll be able to go into more detail about the company, the position, and the responsibilities.

   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 pathology assistant

   Once you have selected a candidate for the pathology assistant position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   It's also good etiquette to follow up with applicants who don't get the job by sending them an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new pathology assistant. Human Resources should complete Employee Action Forms and ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc. They should also ensure that new employee files are created for internal recordkeeping.

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 pathology assistant?