How to hire a senior laboratory specialist

How to hire a senior laboratory specialist, step by step

Here's a step-by-step senior 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 senior laboratory specialist job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new senior laboratory specialist
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the senior laboratory specialist you need to hire. Certain senior laboratory specialist roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

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

   Yes

   No

   Hiring the perfect senior laboratory specialist also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

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

   Type of Senior Laboratory Specialist	Description	Hourly rate
   Senior 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.	$19-35
   Medical Technologist, Generalist	A Medical Technologist Generalist performs day-to-day operations in the laboratory such as routine testing, quality control, and maintenance of instruments. They also develop, perform, and evaluate the accuracy of laboratory procedures.	$20-37
   Medical Technologist-Microbiology	A Medical Technologist-Microbiology helps in the detection and diagnosis of diseases and infections through appropriate laboratory analyses. They perform a wide range of virological, mycological, bacteriological, and parasitological tests to provide information on the causes and progress of diseases.	$19-36

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2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Technical Support
   • Test Results
   • Lab Equipment
   • Cell Culture
   • Data Analysis
   • Molecular Biology
   • Assays
   • Lab Safety
   • RNA
   • R
   • Tissue Culture
   • Electrophoresis
   • Western Blotting
   • Research Projects

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage supply inventory and maintain cleanliness.
   • Experience as an ISO train auditor.
   • Maintain, calibrate, and troubleshot GC equipment in the polymerization methods.
   • Assist in monitoring and controlling the requirements of ISO 17025 and ISO 9001:2000.
   • Develop and validate HPLC methods to quantify the aerosolized drugs and their degradation products.
   • Execute and analyze tests in various areas including hematology, chemistry, immunology, histology and bacteriology culture analysis.

   More senior laboratory specialist duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your senior laboratory specialist job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A senior laboratory specialist salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, senior laboratory specialists' average salary in oklahoma is 37% less than in massachusetts.
   • Seniority. Entry-level senior laboratory specialists earn 44% less than senior-level senior laboratory specialists.
   • Certifications. A senior laboratory specialist with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a senior laboratory specialist's salary.

   Average senior laboratory specialist salary

   $55,556yearly

   $26.71 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level senior laboratory specialist salary

   $41,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 30, 2026

   Average senior laboratory specialist salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Pennsylvania	$70,137	$34
   2	District of Columbia	$67,339	$32
   3	California	$62,624	$30
   4	Washington	$60,234	$29
   5	New York	$58,579	$28
   6	Michigan	$56,698	$27
   7	Virginia	$56,209	$27
   8	Maryland	$53,248	$26
   9	Colorado	$51,892	$25
   10	Utah	$50,260	$24
   11	Texas	$50,156	$24
   12	Florida	$46,776	$22
   13	South Carolina	$45,817	$22

   Average senior laboratory specialist salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	AstraZeneca	$82,502	$39.66	3
   2	Con Edison	$65,568	$31.52
   3	Thermo Fisher Scientific	$64,615	$31.06	17
   4	Merck	$63,682	$30.62	1
   5	Sharp HealthCare	$63,538	$30.55	5
   6	Regeneron	$62,189	$29.90	3
   7	Ricoh	$60,642	$29.15
   8	WestRock	$59,627	$28.67	1
   9	Parkland Hospital	$58,675	$28.21	2
   10	Florida State University	$58,529	$28.14	3
   11	University of Michigan	$57,640	$27.71	28
   12	Seagen	$56,966	$27.39
   13	Univ Of Colorado-Colorado Spgs	$56,493	$27.16
   14	St Joseph Medical Group	$56,386	$27.11	75
   15	University of Virginia	$56,259	$27.05	31
   16	Paramount	$55,926	$26.89
   17	Con Edison Development	$55,880	$26.87
   18	Triumvirate Environmental	$55,776	$26.82
   19	Taconic Biosciences	$55,764	$26.81
   20	University of Colorado Boulder	$54,971	$26.43	3

4. Writing a senior laboratory specialist job description

   A senior 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. To help get you started, here's an example of a senior laboratory specialist job description:

   Senior laboratory specialist job description example

   We are seeking a highly-skilled, professional technical manager to join our dynamic and growing team. In this position, you will oversee all technical matters associated with the biorepository. You will work collaboratively with eye banks, the development team, and various stakeholders within the project to ensure the characterization and processing of all samples in an efficient, timely manner.
   Mission Statement
   
   Michigan Medicine improves the health of patients, populations and communities through excellence in education, patient care, community service, research and technology development, and through leadership activities in Michigan, nationally and internationally. Our mission is guided by our Strategic Principles and has three critical components; patient care, education and research that together enhance our contribution to society.
   
   Why Join Michigan Medicine?
   
   Michigan Medicine is one of the largest health care complexes in the world and has been the site of many groundbreaking medical and technological advancements since the opening of the U-M Medical School in 1850. Michigan Medicine is comprised of over 30,000 employees and our vision is to attract, inspire, and develop outstanding people in medicine, sciences, and healthcare to become one of the world's most distinguished academic health systems. In some way, great or small, every person here helps to advance this world-class institution. Work at Michigan Medicine and become a victor for the greater good.
   
   What Benefits can you Look Forward to?
   
   * Excellent medical, dental and vision coverage effective on your very first day
   * 2:1 Match on retirement savings
   
   Responsibilities*
   
   * Work closely with the administrative project manager during all phases of the development lifecycle
   * Work closely with Eyebanks for shipment and reception of samples
   * Responsible for in-house characterization (OCT, fundus imaging and, histological characterization) of all donor tissues
   * Responsible for preparing the tissues (dissection and processing) following standard operating procedures.
   * Work closely with the administrative project manager and the UM central biorepository to maintain the sample inventory up to date.
   * The technical biorepository manager will also work with the PI to advance and manage the in-house projects including multi-omics analysis.
   * Report progress and provide insight and suggestions for improvement of the process.
   * Contribute to study design and deliver results consistently and on time
   * Ensure final sample and datasets produced meets expected quality
   
   Required Qualifications*
   
   * Bachelor's Degree in a recognized field of science or learning which is directly related to the duties of the position is required.
   * 5-6 years of related experience, i.e., published in a field of specialty and academic knowledge in a field or discipline.
   * Supervisory and financial management experience required.
   
   Desired Qualifications*
   
   * Master's or Doctoral Degree preferred.
   * Evidence of experience in laboratory management
   * Evidence of leadership skills and teamwork
   
   Background Screening
   
   Michigan Medicine conducts background screening and pre-employment drug testing on job candidates upon acceptance of a contingent job offer and may use a third party administrator to conduct background screenings. Background screenings are performed in compliance with the Fair Credit Report Act. Pre-employment drug testing applies to all selected candidates, including new or additional faculty and staff appointments, as well as transfers from other U-M campuses.
   
   Application Deadline
   
   Job openings are posted for a minimum of seven calendar days. The review and selection process may begin as early as the eighth day after posting. This opening may be removed from posting boards and filled anytime after the minimum posting period has ended.
   
   U-M EEO/AA Statement
   
   The University of Michigan is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer.
   
   U-M COVID-19 Vaccination Policy
   
   COVID-19 vaccinations, including one booster when eligible

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right senior laboratory specialist for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with senior laboratory specialists they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit senior laboratory specialists who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your senior laboratory specialist job on Zippia to find and attract quality senior laboratory specialist candidates.
   • Use niche websites such as healthcarejobsite, health jobs nationwide, hospitalcareers, medreps.com.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting senior laboratory specialists requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

   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 senior laboratory specialist

   Once you have selected a candidate for the senior laboratory specialist 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.

   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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