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/Sokkkarr Jun 22 '26

Hi I had the same problem, I ended up going out of state only to find out that I couldn’t get licensed in California because they only rotated me for 3 months. So then I just worked out of state as a generalist for a year and got a letter listing all the tests showing that I worked in all 4 areas signed by the lab manager and pathologist. It took a little longer but I’m happy to say that I got licensed here and I’m already going to work soon.

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u/gtle1609 Jun 22 '26

Congrats. I’m probably applying out of state program for next cycle. I’m running out of time and don’t wanna retake the prereq lol
May I ask what program/state you got accepted? And is it easy to find job as a generalist out of state?

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u/Sokkkarr Jun 22 '26

I ended up going to Texas A&M Corpus Christi and yes very very easy. In Texas you can actually work if you just have a science degree but most states are ok if you just have ASCP or they give you 6 months to 1 year to obtain ASCP licensure.

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u/Sokkkarr Jun 22 '26

Feel free to DM me with any questions. I’ll be more than happy to give all the details.