We’ll be taking our time to thoroughly look into everything histology, like the histology technician salary, the kind of programs that can qualify you as a histology technician, the school, and its requirements.
Aside from stating how much a histology technician takes home at the end of the day, it is quite essential that we also discuss what kind of jobs you can take on and where these jobs are readily available. You might want to take a comfortable position as we get down to brass tacks.
An Overview of Histology
Histology is the branch of science that studies the anatomy of tissues through the help of a microscope.
This is why it is also called microscopic anatomy, unlike its sister subject gross anatomy, where you learn about human structures with the naked eye without the help of any scientific magnifier.
Histology teaches the types of tissues housed in the plant, human, or animal body and how they are organized. The type of microscope you can use, how to preserve the tissues, how to prepare your slides, and the preferred dyes suitable for staining these tissues. With histology, it is all about viewing the world through the lenses of a microscope.
Who is a histology technician?
A histology technician is a trained medical individual who takes tissue samples already collected by a pathologist from the ailing area in a patient’s body to the laboratory to prepare slides and, in the process, check for the disease. A histology technician can carry out such samples with animals or plants depending on their area of specialization and their work placement.
Furthermore, this category of professionals in the medical field makes use of special equipment in their line of work aside from the popular microscope. Histotechnicians use a special type of knife called microtome to slice the tissues into very thin sections without harming the contents and getting them stained and ready for the microscope.
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Say you paid attention, you must have noticed where we said that histology technicians carry out their duties in the lab; that means that the laboratory is where you can find them, not in an office section or the theater.
These laboratories cut across the human, veterinary, forensic, university, and pharmaceutical labs. They work hand in glove with pathologists, doctors, and researchers to execute their duties.
By virtue of their work, the United States Bureau of Labour surveyed these professionals’ annual pay in 2021. Their statistics showed that the median histology technician’s salary is about $57,800. This is based on their work settings and hierarchy.
Histology technician jobs and their salaries
Histology technician’s jobs are all over the United States of America with different work times and salaries.
You can see numerous jobs with their unique requirements on job vacancy sites like Glassdoor and job specifics, and we have some listed below in no order of preference:
Research histology technician at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
Full-time
Location: New York
Salary: $51.95 per hour
Histology technician needed at Mount Carmel health system
Full-time
Location: Columbus, OH
Salary: $50,000 to $72,000
Histology technician needed at Westlake Dermatology
Location: Austin, Tx
Salary: $27.50 per hour
Histology technician needed at Northwell Health
Full-time
Location: New Hyde Park, NY
Salary: $46.23 per hour
Histotechnician needed at Yesomite Pathology Medical Group
Full-time
Location: Modesto, CA
Salary: $48-62,000
Histology technician programs
Training to become a histo-technician requires you to go through specific programs channeled toward the job line.
These programs are offered by accredited schools to teach students the right subjects that will help them not only pass their board examination but also make them grounded in their job and BE employable. You will spend more time in the laboratory with microscopes during the program, which may run for a year or less, depending on your school of choice.
Insisting on attending a school that is not accredited by the National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Science, the body that governs the program, will only make your efforts futile, no matter how good your grades are, and you may not be allowed to sit for your license examination or practice.
Histology technician schools
To become a practicing histology technician, you must follow due process and get trained and certified. There are many histo-technologist-accredited schools all over the United States, and they have very flexible study hours for students.
More so, these schools are not only on-campus; you can decide to enroll in online classes so long as it is accredited. Whichever you choose will still bring you to the authentic finish line. We have a list of these schools for you to begin your research for enrollment.
Mayo School of health sciences is accredited to offer histology technician studies. The school also provides prerequisite courses to students without a background in the required science courses.
The histology technician program at Mayo School of health sciences lasts about nine months before graduation. Successful graduation from this school will earn you a certificate.
The University of North Dakota School of Medicine and health sciences, situated at Grand Forks, North Dakota, is also an accredited school for students seeking to become histology technicians. Students attend online classes because the university already provides this option.
However, students must be present for the laboratory classes in various affiliated labs. At UND, this program runs for about nine months, with almost three semesters and a certificate at the end of the program.
Goodwin University offers an associate degree or a certificate degree for students. Students from this University made a record for passing the certification exam in 2017.
Histology technician requirements
Firstly, note that your certification as a qualified histology technician must be stamped by the American Society for Clinical Pathology ASCP.
This certificate comes when you must have fulfilled all the requirements to identify with this profession. Here are the requirements to become a professional in this profession:
- Pursue a bachelor’s degree in a science-related course
- Become certified in histology
- Obtain an associate degree
- Become certified by completing and earning a histology technician (HT) certificate.
Conclusion about the Histology technician salary
To conclude this topic, histology technician salaries may not look like a lot if the mentions of a lot of dollars only drive you.
However, it is a fulfilling job and career to those passionate about human lives and how they can help curb diseases and provide lasting health solutions. Regardless of any bias, histology technicians are the top pillars of the medical field.
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