Biomedical Science Major: Medical Laboratory Science Option (B.S.)

Medical Laboratory Science Information Sheet

How long is the clinical internship?

• The clinical internship is a 16-week unpaid clinical experience where students train alongside laboratory technologists in the areas of hematology, chemistry, microbiology and blood bank.
• Following the completion of the clinical internship, students are eligible to sit for the national certification exam offered by the American Society of Clinical Pathology (ASCP) to become certified Medical Laboratory Scientists.

What is the benefit of completing the clinical internship?

• Graduates who complete the clinical internship are eligible to sit for the ASCP certification exam. Passing the ASCP certification exam makes students eligible to be hired as nationally certified Medical Laboratory Scientists.
• Medical Laboratory Scientists are in high demand: job growth is currently projected to be above average for many years.
• All clinical internship graduates since 2014 have had a 100% employment rate upon graduation from the program.

What is your first-time pass rate on the ASCP certification exam?

• The first-time pass rate on the ASCP certification exam was 97% from 2013-2015 and 92% from 2016-2018.
• The national first-time pass rate for hospital-based programs during these times was 79% and 84%, respectively.

Where do students go to participate in their clinical internship?

• Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center is our primary clinical affiliate, taking approximately 9 students each year.
• Other clinical sites include Wentworth-Douglass Hospital, Catholic Medical Center, Lahey Clinic, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Portsmouth Regional Hospital and NorDx/Maine Medical Center.

What are the eligibility requirements for the clinical internship?

• A minimum 2.5 cumulative GPA and a minimum 2.5 GPA in the required Medical Laboratory Science courses.
• Positive recommendation and evaluation from three out of the four Medical Laboratory Science faculty.
• A minimum average of 70% on all lecture exams in the required Medical Laboratory Science courses.

Where are your program graduates employed once they complete the clinical internship?

• Graduates can be found in virtually every hospital in NH!
• NH sites include Wentworth-Douglass Hospital, Exeter Hospital, Portsmouth Regional Hospital, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center and Concord Hospital.
• Sites outside of NH include Gifford Hospital, Lahey Clinic, Boston Medical Center, St. Joseph’s Hospital (Bangor, ME) and Fletcher-Allen Medical Center.

What other career options are there for students in the major who may not be interested in the clinical internship?

• Students have a wide variety of career options when graduating with a degree in Biomedical Science: Medical Laboratory Science.
  • Many of our students that do not complete the clinical internship pursue careers as physician assistants or enroll in accelerated nursing programs.
  • Students also pursue careers in public health, as research scientists in the biomedical industry, in technical writing, in business and marketing and many, many others.
• Faculty advisors work individually with students to determine their career goals and select the courses that best prepare that student to be a competitive entry-level applicant in their chosen field.

Where are your program graduates employed that do not complete the clinical internship?

Program graduates who do not earn certification as a Medical Laboratory Scientist work in a variety of places based on their career choices, including Lonza, Cell Signaling Technologies, the Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Toxikon, Idexx, Joslin Diabetes Center and Thermo-Fisher Scientific amongst many others.

How does the phlebotomy internship work?

• The phlebotomy internship is an 80-hour unpaid clinical experience at a hospital or outpatient draw facility, typically performed over the summer between sophomore and junior year.
• Students are placed at sites local to their home and are frequently offered per-diem employment upon successful completion of their internship.

Is it possible to study abroad in this major?

• Absolutely! It is easier for students to study abroad if they are not pursuing the clinical internship because the courses the students need are only available on the UNH campus.
• Students who are interested in studying abroad work with their advisor to carefully map out their coursework and typically plan to study abroad through one of UNH’s many sponsored programs in the spring of their junior year.
  • Often, coursework taken during the semester abroad fulfills Discovery requirements but does not typically fulfill any major requirements.

Can I complete a minor?

• Definitely! Again, it is easier to complete a minor if a student is not completing the clinical internship because there is greater flexibility in course selection but even for the clinical track students it can be done.
• Faculty typically encourage students to pursue a minor starting in their sophomore or juniors years, once they have a better idea about their career interests.

The clinical program within the Medical Laboratory Science option has had a 3-year pass rate on the American Society of Clinical Pathologists Board of Certification exam of 85% between 1/1/2018 and 5/31/2021. There is 0% attrition and a 100% graduation rate for all students beginning the 2nd half of the program. One hundred percent of the clinical students find employment within a very short period of time after graduation and many are hired before they even complete the program.

Student Learning Objectives

As part of the University of New Hampshire’s Discovery Program requirements, all students must complete a Capstone experience. 

Capstone Experiences 

• Closed Course Form

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