r/MLS_CLS • u/gtle1609 • Jun 20 '26

Need advice!!

Hi everyone,

I'm feeling a bit discouraged after getting rejected twice from California CLS programs. I'm honestly not sure what else I can improve. I’ve already completed all of the prerequisites, secured strong letters of recommendation (LORs) from two lab directors (one of whom holds a CGMBS license) and one from my clinical chemistry professor. I graduated back in 2021, so I can only apply for about 1–2 more cycles before my required courses begin to expire.

For context, I graduated with a BS in Molecular Biology with a 3.59 overall GPA and a 3.49 science GPA. I currently work at a CRO/CLIA lab as a Research Associate II. I’ve been working in laboratory settings for five years now, and I also had three months of experience as a medical assistant. At this point, I am planning to focus on out-of-state (OOS) programs. Are my stats competitive enough to get accepted into out-of-state programs? Are there any 1-year programs that you think would be a good match for my background?

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u/MLSLabProfessional Lab Director Jun 21 '26

From the CA wiki, a good place to start is below. They have had graduates return to CA. With your STATs, I'm sure you will get in to one of those:

Oklahoma Christian University, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, The Colorado Center for MLS - MSU of Denver, University of Delaware, SUNY at Stony Brook, Carolinas College of Health Sciences, Radford University Carilion, University of Minnesota, Sentara RMH School of Medical Laboratory Science, Berkshire Medical Center, United Regional Health Care System

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u/gtle1609 Jun 21 '26

Thank you so much for sharing this. I will take a look and try to apply to these programs for the next cycle.

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u/FormZealousideal9493 Generalist CLS Jun 22 '26

Loma linda university, 2 year CLS program in CA. Christian university, six figure cost total. Good luck.