Beginning in the fall semester, Indiana University South Bend will be offering a Clinical Laboratory Science degree program for students who want a career in diagnostic laboratory medicine.
There is a shortage of medical laboratory professionals here and across the country, said Ian Clift, Ph.D., Program Director in Division of Health Sciences at the Vera Z. Dwyer College of Health Sciences at IU South Bend and the director of the Clinical Laboratory Science Program. Our goal is to address this shortage by being a source for medical laboratory professionals who excel in the 21st century health care environment.
Starting salaries for medical laboratory professionals range from $40 -50,000 per year and the average salary for the professional population in this field is $76,000 per year, according to national surveys. Graduates of the program will be prepared to take a national certifying exam in Medical Laboratory Science administered by the American Society of Clinical Pathology Board of Certification, which is the most common certification required for entry into the clinical laboratory profession. Areas of employment covered by the exam are laboratory chemistry, hematology, blood banking, urinalysis, immuno diagnostics, and microbiology.
Courses will include a specific focus on hospital based diagnostic testing and practices. These courses include introductions to clinical chemistry, hematology, microbiology, immuno diagnostics, blood banking, and urinalysis. The students will also be required to complete a series of competency requirements at regional laboratory organizations.
The program will be housed in the newly renovated Riverside Hall at IU South Bend which features an 820 square foot teaching laboratory and associated cell culture room. The lab will be equipped with semi-automated instrumentation used for diagnostic testing as well as benches for performing laboratory diagnostic training.
Students working in this facility will not only get hands on laboratory experience, but also be exposed to real-world interdisciplinary health care. Riverside Hall will also be the home to the new IU South Bend Health and Wellness Center, a pharmacy, and exam rooms operated by HealthLinc, a federally qualified health center. The Riverside Hall renovation was made possible by a gift from the Vera Z. Dwyer Charitable Trust.
Students interested in the Clinical Laboratory Science program should contact Dr. Clift at icclift@iusb.edu/.
