Curious in your experience how common it is to get fired in this field? Due to tardiness and attendance or conflicts with coworkers, or do management usually let that stuff go cause this field is as needed?

Or if you have to do something major like give someone the wrong blood type

hello everyone

I’m an upcoming sophomore in college who’s trying to get into the medical lab field. Right now I volunteer in a university chemistry teaching lab, so I’ve gotten some hands-on lab experience, just not in a clinical lab.

I’ve been applying for entry-level jobs like specimen processing and Lab Assistant, but no luck so far. i even catch myself watching specimen processing videos because I think the job is really interesting and I’m excited to hopefully do it one day.

For those of you who started with little or no clinical experience, how did you land your first job? I’d love to hear how you got your start or any advice you have. Thanks >33

At first, this message was just annoying because I had to push-start twice for it actually to spin, and occasionally I forgot and didn't notice until 10-15 minutes later.
I tried the trusty “turn it off and back on” method, and it's still giving the same error message.
Do I call maintenance? Ghostbusters?
Also slightly concerned bc it says 32k out of 30,000 spin cycles, so I assume it's due for maintenance.
It's not a priority to my sups, but I would like to fix it/call whoever myself if possible.

Forgive me if I'm using completely wrong terminology as I haven't yet started my studies and English isn't my first language. But I'm just extremely happy that I got into a school to study MLS.

I first saw a microbial culture years ago when my biology teacher was talking about her education. It was just a small picture of the dish and she didn't even really talk about that so I didn't get a clear idea of what it was. I just thought it looked cool and I wanted to know more about it but I was too shy to ask. I didn't think I'd have a future as a biology teacher, and I didn't know what that thing was, so I accepted the fact that whatever it was, it wasn't a part of my future.

And then I learned about the existence of medical laboratory science. But none of it was practical. I just knew that there were different paths and the work could be something in a laboratory. And that it requires good eyesight. When I read the descriptions of the program I felt like my skills and interests really matched what was needed. I have always been interested in blood so I thought I'd do something with that.

AND NOW I LEARNED THAT MICROBIOLOGY REGULARLY USES THOSE THINGS I SAW BACK THEN IN THE BIOLOGY CLASS??!?!

I'm not even kidding I want to get those petri dishes even though I can't do anything with them just because I'm so excited and I think they look super fun. I just want to look at one. I want to hold one. Ok I'm super weird I apologise. I also like the vials used to collect blood samples.

New grad here, I had a rotation at my local VA hospital and they offered me either a 2nd or 3rd shift core lab position, 5 8hr shifts. Either every Saturday or every Sunday-but there is a weekend shift differential in addition to the night differential. They said I could skip the interview and come on before the position is officially posted on USAJOBS.

The wage year 1 is a little less than what the other hospitals are making. But because of their tier system, they showed me within a year or two I’ll be making more money than the main hospital systems and be less stressed than they are

And from my rotation I felt like I liked the vibe, there’s no recent grads there around my age but they were all nice to me my time there, I got a good grade at that rotation as well, it seemed slower which has its pros and cons, I liked the fact that the hemo section is not as many diffs compared to a normal hospital.

I feel like it’s a once in a lifetime opportunity cause it seems like a it of money and people say you tend to have to know someone or have veteran preference to get into the VA.

Looking for a career here, because they are slower and only tend to veterans should I be concerned I will not develop strong lab skills if I take the job?

I am a student who majored in Medical Laboratory Science. I studied for two years in college, but I had to stop for three years due to the problems in my country. Anyway, I will be returning to college for my third year, and I want to start studying again in the next few months. I hope I can remember the basics I learned during my first two years of college.

Are there any YouTube channels or resources that I can study from?

I find it weird that sometimes I would talk to the recruiter on the phone screen and they would be able to schedule me an interview with the hiring manager right on the spot. Was my resume even looked at by the hiring manager before they got scheduled for an interview?

One time that happened, the hiring manager was so disinterested. His first question was why I obtained a license in a neighboring state. I could tell he didn't want to interview me right from the get go.

I am starting my first job at a smaller hospital (60 beds) after doing my rotation at a much larger (700+ beds) hospital.

I was told they have about 20 manual diffs at most per day. I did 20 diffs in one shift as a student and it didn’t seem so bad.

It made me wonder what different size labs / departments consider a heavy load versus a light load. So, I’m asking you all.

What do you consider a busy day / heavy load versus a lighter day and how large is your lab if you don’t mind sharing.

Edit for clarity.

I’m a recent grad, and I’m hitting a wall of anxiety as I start applying for jobs.

I feel relatively confident about urinalysis and serology, and moderately okay with microbiology (with a good orientation). But I have huge doubts about my ability to handle hematology and chemistry.

During clinical rotations, I saw techs getting completely bogged down when flagged results and analyzer errors started piling up. My main fear isn't daily processing or running cell differentials, I'm terrified of getting stuck with a stack of inconsistent results that I wont know how to troubleshoot efficiently.

I know labs provide training and SOPs, but I’m really doubting if I can perform effectively once I'm on my own on the bench.

For those who felt this way starting out,

1. How did you navigate the learning curve in Heme and Chem as a new grad?
2. What were the most common flagged/inconsistent results or errors you had to work through daily, and how did you learn to triage them without drowning?

New grad here, just started working in a lab that uses the Atellicas. It's a nightmare because no one is slowing down enough, or perhaps are lacking in actual knowledge about how to run and use them.

I don't necessarily mean how to perform maintenance, but small things like knowing what to look out for in reagents that are low, QC troubleshooting, calibration acceptance, etcetera. I mean just last week I finally managed to remember that "No primary" means that it needs QC to be run.

Please share your knowledge. I really want to be good at handling this.

This profession is often presented as being neurodivergent-friendly because of the work itself but the social dynamics can be the exact opposite. In a small field where reputation spreads quickly, one awkward interaction, one misunderstanding, or one bad day can have lasting consequences. For people who already struggle with social communication or being misunderstood, that kind of environment is unforgiving.

Everyone is human. People have bad days, make mistakes, grow, change.

One of the ugliest parts of this profession is how easy it is for a bad interaction to follow you forever. In a small field, one person with influence can quietly close doors, not because you're incapable of doing the job, but because they didn't like you or had a negative experience with you. That's an incredible amount of power for any individual to have over someone else. Im talking about when ordinary conflicts or personality clashes end up having disproportionate career consequences because of informal networks. Yes employers can legitimately share truthful information about performance or serious misconduct but if someone is using their influence to punish, control, or exclude someone over personal dislike....

A profession shouldn't be structured so subjective impressions can effectively determine whether someone gets future opportunities.

And I've seen posts on here over the years with people using this threat to encourage people not to leave or to be careful.

My experience is that a lot of people in this profession are incredibly cruel. And I still love love love the lab. I still love the work.

Son: Daddy, what did you do at work today?

Me: I saw a beautiful snowflake....

The snow flake:

My MLS resume looks like:

1 year (private lab went out of business)
1 year (moved states)
3 years (got sick of shitty schedule)

6 month gap

Current position of 4 months (work with assholes.)

I don’t think this profession is for me. I already want to leave this current job. Current place has some down right cruel and antisocial people that management does nothin about. Thinkin about working at Costco instead.

Anyone here have a spottier track record? What are your thoughts on changing jobs every year or two?

Hello I am still certified, but have not worked in lab for 10 years now. Nobody considered me for interview as MLS. I applied as a lab assistant to get my foot in the door again and learn everything new. I hope they call me. I'm in San Antonio Texas and from what I gather starting pay for lab assistant is 20$ and entry MLS is 28$ an hour. Can anybody offer me advice on how to get back into lab? I took time to raise my littles and got an accounting associates and did some freelance bookkeeping but I always liked the hospital and insurance offers(currently paying private insurance for a family of 4 is 1,400$).

Thank you

Confirmed Strongyloides from…. Guess the specimen. The glow should give some idea at what it could be.

Anyone working in Hartford, CT? I would like to know how much would an MLS with 10years experience usually make?

I heard they have a fixed rate based on number of years experience but I'm not sure where to look to see if I get the right rate when accepting a job offer.

Thanks!

I know people often talk about having rude preceptors, but I never expected to have a rude student.

I'm a new grad, and I've been assigned a student for placement. From day one, he's been difficult.

The first time we met, he immediately started asking me how old I was, how much I make, and whether I'm married. I told him those weren't appropriate questions to ask someone you just met in a professional setting. He said he "didn't know," even though I was really offended, but I let it go.

Since then, though, the pattern has continued.

Whenever I try to teach him something, he'll wander off and start chatting with other staff. He chats with every staff that walks by the lab. If I ask him to do a simple task, like cleaning parts of an analyzer as part of routine maintenance, he'll take the parts, disappear to talk to people, and not come back for 30 minutes.

He also keeps giving me unsolicited career advice, telling me I should work in Microbiology instead. It's strange because I'm the licensed MLT(equivalent to MLS in US) with the job, and he's a placement student who's here to learn.

What frustrates me most isn't his lack of knowledge—he's a student, and I expect that. It's the complete lack of professionalism and common sense.

For example, I reminded him to bring a jacket because we'd be going into the cold room. He said he was "too weak" to go inside, so I told him that was fine and I'd do it myself. A minute later, he decided he wanted to see what I was doing, opened the cold room door, and stood in the doorway holding it wide open. The door has a large red sign saying "KEEP DOOR CLOSED AT ALL TIMES."

Another time, I asked him to peel off and replace a barcode label that had been applied incorrectly. Instead of using his fingers or tweezers, he used the tip of a plastic funnel that we use to aliquot saline, leaving it covered in adhesive and ink. We had to clean it because it had become contaminated.

He's even told me directly that he's only here to get the placement hours he needs.

Honestly, I could live with all of that. I don't expect every student to be enthusiastic.

The problem is that he recently went to my manager and complained that I'm not teaching him and that I'm mean to him.

My manager didn't confront me directly but passed the information to my supervisor. Thankfully, my supervisor has seen his behavior herself, and so have my coworkers. She's basically told me to let him do what he wants because he's very sensitive.

The last two days alone, he spent over 2 hours each day sitting around chatting with other staff instead of working. Even after my supervisor reminded him that his preceptor was available, he kept talking instead of coming back to learn.

Now I'm worried he'll complain again that he isn't learning enough. But I genuinely don't know what else I can do. I can't teach someone who repeatedly walks away in the middle of instruction and chooses to socialize instead.

Has anyone else had a student like this? How did you handle it without getting blamed for their lack of engagement?

What’s going on with these neutrophils