Post job

Pathology laboratory technologist education requirements

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read

There are several educational requirements to become a pathology laboratory technologist. Pathology laboratory technologists usually study biology, clinical/medical laboratory science, or biochemistry, biophysics, molecular biology. 72% of pathology laboratory technologists hold a bachelor's degree, and 14% hold an associate degree. We analyzed 197 real pathology laboratory technologist resumes to see exactly what pathology laboratory technologist education sections show.

The most common colleges for pathology laboratory technologists are the University of California, Santa Barbara and the University of California, Santa Barbara.

There are also many online pathology laboratory technologist courses to help get the education required to be a pathology laboratory technologist.

What education do you need to become a pathology laboratory technologist?

What degree do you need to be a pathology laboratory technologist?

The most common degree for pathology laboratory technologists is bachelor's degree, with 72% of pathology laboratory technologists earning that degree. The second and third most common degree levels are associate degree degree at 14% and associate degree degree at 6%.
  • Bachelor's, 72%
  • Associate, 14%
  • Master's, 6%
  • Diploma, 3%
  • Other Degrees, 5%

What should I major in to become a pathology laboratory technologist?

You should major in biology to become a pathology laboratory technologist. 45% of pathology laboratory technologists major in biology. Other common majors for a pathology laboratory technologist include clinical/medical laboratory science and biochemistry, biophysics, molecular biology.

Most common colleges for pathology laboratory technologists

Pathology laboratory technologists often get their degrees at University of California, Santa Barbara, University of Iowa, and University of South Florida. Here are the most common colleges for pathology laboratory technologists in the US based on their resumes.
Pathology laboratory technologist common collegePercentages
University of California, Santa Barbara12.20%
University of Iowa9.76%
University of South Florida7.32%
Eastern Michigan University4.88%
University of Houston4.88%

Best majors for pathology laboratory technologists

Best colleges for pathology laboratory technologists

The best colleges for pathology laboratory technologists are University of Pennsylvania, Columbia University in the City of New York, and Johns Hopkins University.

A pathology laboratory technologist with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for pathology laboratory technologists. We based this list on several metrics: admissions rate, retention rate, mean earnings of graduates, the ratio of working vs. non-working students ten years after admission, the average cost of attendance, and median debt for graduates who become pathology laboratory technologists.

1. SUNY Stony Brook

Stony Brook, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$9,625

Enrollment

17,407

2. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$55,584

Enrollment

10,764

3. New York University

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$51,828

Enrollment

26,339

4. University of South Florida

Tampa, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,410

Enrollment

31,321

5. University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

Minneapolis, MN • Private

In-state tuition

$14,760

Enrollment

31,451

6. University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

Ann Arbor, MI • Private

In-state tuition

$15,262

Enrollment

30,079

7. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Chapel Hill, NC • Private

In-state tuition

$8,987

Enrollment

18,946

8. Ohio State University

Columbus, OH • Private

In-state tuition

$10,726

Enrollment

45,769

9. Georgetown University

Washington, DC • Private

In-state tuition

$54,104

Enrollment

7,089

10. Thomas Jefferson University

Philadelphia, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$40,651

Enrollment

3,495

20 best online courses for pathology laboratory technologists

Advertising disclosure

1. CertNexus Certified Ethical Emerging Technologist

coursera

The Certified Ethical Emerging Technologist (CEET) industry validated certification helps professionals differentiate themselves from other job candidates by demonstrating their ability to ethically navigate data driven emerging technologies such as AI, Machine Learning and Data Science.\n\nOrganizations and governments are seeking out ethics professionals to minimize risk and guide their decision-making about the design of inclusive, responsible, and trusted technology. An algorithm not...

2. Trauma Emergencies and Care

coursera

Welcome to Trauma Emergencies and Care. In this course, you will learn about some of the mechanics and physics of trauma on the human body, and how this can cause injury. You will continue to expand your new vocabulary with medical terminology, and learn how to describe the different injuries you may see. You will also learn about the trauma system itself- and when it is important to transport patients to a trauma center. Then we will dive into specific injuries based on what part of the body...

3. Become a Microbiology Laboratory Technician

udemy
4
(339)

Microbiology...

4. Customer Service Mastery: Delight Every Customer

udemy
4.7
(18,204)

Master Customer Service using this practical customer care course...

5. Emergency Care: Pregnancy, Infants, and Children

coursera

Welcome to the final course of lectures in your quest to master EMT basics. In this course, we will cover some of the highest-stress patient populations: pregnant patients and kids, also known as pediatrics. To wrap up your EMT knowledge we will end this course with information about hazmat situations, extricating patients from tight spots and finally how you write a note about your patient care. You will learn to ensure it communicates what your assessment of the patient was, what...

6. Prehospital care of acute stroke and patient selection for endovascular treatment using the RACE scale

coursera

Acute stroke is a time-dependent medical emergency. In acute ischemic stroke, the first objective is to restore brain flow using sistemic thrombolytic treatment and, in patients with large vessel occlusion, by endovascular treatment. In hemorrhagic stroke there are also specific treatments that can improve the clinical outcome. The sooner the initiation of all these therapies the higher the clinical benefit. Thus, the organization of Stroke Code systems coordinated between emergency medical...

7. Complete Data Entry Skills Course - Learn Data Entry Skills

udemy
4.4
(399)

Learn Essential Data Entry Skills Now To Enhance Your Career -Word - Excel - Database - Data Entry Jobs...

8. Data Entry Skills: A Complete Data Entry Course from Scratch

udemy
4.7
(533)

A Complete Guide to Data Entry Skills: Learn Data Entry Skills and become a Data Entry Pro & Get a Online Data Entry Job...

9. Palliative Care Always Capstone Course

coursera

The Palliative Care Always Capstone course is designed to let you test your knowledge about palliative and help others understand the value of palliative care, while showing your creative side. In this course, you will impact community awareness about palliative care, promote self-care and wellness, show-off your communication skills in a virtual environment, and finish the course off by proving your thoughts on ways to offer psychosocial support to a patient and family...

10. Operations and Patient Safety for Healthcare IT Staff

coursera

Now that you've been introduced to the world of Health IT and the important role played by electronic health records (EHRs), we'll focus on other technologies that play a role in maintaining ongoing operations in healthcare. Telemedicine, patient portals, barcode scanners, printers, and medical devices are just some of the technologies that impact providers and patients. As an IT support specialist, you’ll be asked to troubleshoot issues with a wide variety of tools. You'll see a scenario with...

11. Customer Service Fundamentals: Putting People First

udemy
4.4
(313)

Customer Care Listening Great Customer Service Concern for Others Company Culture Engaging People Responding...

12. Customer Service Foundation

udemy
4.5
(290)

An introductory course about understanding the foundations of Customer Service...

13. Health After Cancer: Cancer Survivorship for Primary Care

coursera

This course presents basic principles of cancer survivorship to primary-care physicians. Developed by a team of experts in caring for cancer survivors, and narrated by a primary-care physician, this course provides practical tips and tools that can be easily integrated into medical practice. You will learn about the complex physical and psychosocial needs and concerns of the growing number of cancer survivors, along with the key role that primary care physicians have in guiding these patients...

14. Traditional herbal medicine in supportive cancer care: From alternative to integrative

coursera

Please join us for an exciting and innovative journey, examining one of the most important and often overlooked aspects of the oncology setting: Traditional Herbal Medicine in Supportive Cancer Care. This course is presented with short lectures offering a wide range of issues related to the principles and practice of herbal medicine in cancer care. The course includes interviews with leading world experts from the field of Integrative Oncology, from the U.S. and Canada, as well as Europe, the...

15. Customer Service & Support For Customer Service Executives

udemy
4.5
(941)

Learn Customer Service Skills & Provide Excellent Customer Support, Customer Experience & How To Manage Upset Customers...

16. The Customer: Build a Customer Service Strategy (BITE SIZE)

udemy
4.5
(10,168)

For you and your team to be successful in providing great customer service, start by putting your customer first...

17. Health for All Through Primary Health Care

coursera

This course explores why primary health care is central for achieving Health for All. It provides examples of how primary health care has been instrumental in approaching this goal in selected populations and how the principles of primary health care can guide future policies and actions. Two of the most inspiring, least understood, and most often derided terms in global health discourse are “Health for All” and “Primary Health Care.” In this course, we will explore these terms in the context...

18. Value-Based Care: Managing Processes to Improve Outcomes

coursera

COURSE 3 of 7. This course is designed to introduce you to critical office-based processes that a value-based practice must manage in the drive towards improved patient outcomes. In Module 2, we’ll focus on office-based and clinical patient-based supporting functions. At every level in healthcare, guidelines, processes, and functions exist to improve outcomes, and following a consistent process will return the best effect. Refine your understanding of value and learn strategies to provide real...

19. Medical Emergencies: CPR, Toxicology, and Wilderness

coursera

In this course, you will develop the knowledge and skills to assess and stabilize certain types of patients for transport. By the end of this course, you will be able to: (1) Identify the signs and symptoms associated with a patient in shock, to describe the major categories of shock, to assess a patient with signs of shock and formulate a plan for treatment to stabilize the patient for transport, (2) Identify a patient in cardiac arrest and to describe the components of high performance CPR...

20. Palliative Care Always

coursera

Palliative Care Always is a specialization for health care practitioners, patients and caregivers. We’ve designed this specialization to demonstrate how palliative medicine integrates with patient care, and to help you develop primary palliative care skills. Over the next five courses, you will develop skills in symptom management, goals of care and effective communication to improve the quality of life for patients and families suffering with serious illness. Our hope is that you feel...

Top 10 most affordable universities for pathology laboratory technologists

The most affordable schools for pathology laboratory technologists are University of Florida, hunter college of the city university of new york, and suny farmingdale.

If the best universities for pathology laboratory technologists are out of your price range, check out these affordable schools. After factoring in in-state tuition and fees, the average cost of attendance, admissions rate, average net price, and mean earnings after six years, we found that these are the most affordable schools for pathology laboratory technologists.

1. University of Florida

Gainesville, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,381

Cost of attendance

21,034

2. Hunter College of the City University of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,182

Cost of attendance

13,998

3. SUNY Farmingdale

Farmingdale, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,306

Cost of attendance

16,091

4. California State University - Bakersfield

Bakersfield, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,309

Cost of attendance

16,714

5. University of South Florida

Tampa, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,410

Cost of attendance

20,456

6. California State University - Los Angeles

Los Angeles, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,749

Cost of attendance

14,823

7. Brigham Young University

Provo, UT • Private

In-state tuition

$5,620

Cost of attendance

18,136

8. California State University - Fullerton

Fullerton, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,886

Cost of attendance

17,645

9. Minot State University

Minot, ND • Private

In-state tuition

$7,064

Cost of attendance

15,576

10. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Chapel Hill, NC • Private

In-state tuition

$8,987

Cost of attendance

25,527

Top 10 hardest universities to get into for pathology laboratory technologists

The hardest universities for pathology laboratory technologists to get into are University of Pennsylvania, Columbia University in the City of New York, and Johns Hopkins University.

Some great schools for pathology laboratory technologists are hard to get into, but they also set your career up for greater success. The list below shows the most challenging universities to get into for pathology laboratory technologists based on an institution's admissions rates, average SAT scores accepted, median ACT scores accepted, and mean earnings of students six years after admission.

1. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

Admissions rate

8%

SAT average

1,492

2. Columbia University in the City of New York

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

6%

SAT average

1,512

3. Johns Hopkins University

Baltimore, MD • Private

Admissions rate

11%

SAT average

1,513

4. Vanderbilt University

Nashville, TN • Private

Admissions rate

10%

SAT average

1,514

5. Stanford University

Stanford, CA • Private

Admissions rate

4%

SAT average

1,497

6. Georgetown University

Washington, DC • Private

Admissions rate

15%

SAT average

1,456

7. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

Admissions rate

8%

SAT average

1,508

8. New York University

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

20%

SAT average

1,419

9. Harvard University

Cambridge, MA • Private

Admissions rate

5%

SAT average

1,520

10. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

13%

SAT average

1,445

Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for pathology laboratory technologists

The easiest schools for pathology laboratory technologists to get into are D'Youville College, barry university, and gwynedd mercy university.

Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a pathology laboratory technologist without much hassle, check out the list of schools where you will be accepted in no time. We compiled admissions rates, average SAT scores, average ACT scores, and average salary of students six years after graduation to uncover which were the easiest schools to get into for pathology laboratory technologists.

1. D'Youville College

Buffalo, NY • Private

Admissions rate

100%

SAT average

1,072

2. Barry University

Miami, FL • Private

Admissions rate

91%

SAT average

1,006

3. Gwynedd Mercy University

Gwynedd Valley, PA • Private

Admissions rate

92%

SAT average

1,031

4. AdventHealth University

Orlando, FL • Private

Admissions rate

87%

SAT average

1,016

5. Notre Dame College

Cleveland, OH • Private

Admissions rate

90%

SAT average

994

6. Kean University

Union, NJ • Private

Admissions rate

86%

SAT average

991

7. Thomas More University

Crestview Hills, KY • Private

Admissions rate

90%

SAT average

1,099

8. Cardinal Stritch University

Milwaukee, WI • Private

Admissions rate

71%

SAT average

1,035

9. Mount Saint Mary's University

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

84%

SAT average

1,031

10. Our Lady of the Lake University

San Antonio, TX • Private

Admissions rate

93%

SAT average

1,002

Average pathology laboratory technologist salary by education level

According to our data, pathology laboratory technologists with a Master's degree earn the highest average salary, at $48,942 annually. Pathology laboratory technologists with a Doctorate degree earn an average annual salary of $48,245.
Pathology laboratory technologist education levelPathology laboratory technologist salary
Master's Degree$48,942
High School Diploma or Less$35,497
Bachelor's Degree$47,139
Doctorate Degree$48,245
Some College/ Associate Degree$41,200

Pathology laboratory technologist education FAQs

Search for pathology laboratory technologist jobs

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

Browse healthcare practitioner and technical jobs