The Clinical Laboratory Scientist Training Program at San Jose State University is
a 12 month training program that prepares students to take the ASCP national exam
for Clinical Laboratory Scientists. The training program is a 40 hour per week commitment
with an emphasis on hands-on learning in the hospital setting. Most weeks students
will spend 32 hours training at a clinical site and 8 hours in lecture.
Where is training provided?
Our students train in our affiliate hospital laboratories located throughout the State of California. Students who train at hospitals in the San Jose bay area attend lectures on campus here at San Jose State University. Students who train outside of this area participate live online. For a list of our clinical affiliates, see PDF below. (Not all clinical affiliates participate each cycle. Some sites take student(s) each cycle, others take a student(s) once a year or once every 18 months.)
When does the program begin?
After an interview process, selected students enroll in the program for 3 continuous semesters. We take two cohorts a year, one beginning in August/September and one in February/March. The lecture portion of training begins a few weeks in advance of the clinical rotations.
What are the program requirements?
Bachelor Degree
Minimum GPA of 2.8
Hematology, Immunology and Medical Microbiology must have been completed within 5 years with a grade of B or better.
All prerequisites completed and grades documented with official transcripts (see complete prerequisite list provided in application instruction PDF below).
(Applicants who have completed prerequisites or degree in a foreign country, please see additional requirements provided in application instruction PDF below).
What is the application deadline?
Fall Session - January 15. As the 15th falls on a weekend, application including supporting letters and transcripts must be either received or postmarked by Monday, January 17.
Applications are now open for Fall 2017. We will be happy to begin collecting letters and transcripts in advance of the application deadline. When we receive any of your supporting documents, a file will be created. When we receive your application, we will confirm its receipt and provide a link to a google doc where you can track our receipt of your supporting documents.
Monday lecture begins mid August / Tuesday - Thursday internship begins early September and is one calendar year in length.
Interviews for Fall are generally in late February.
Spring Session - July 15 of preceding year (next Spring Session will be Spring 2018 with deadline of July 17, 2017 as the 15th falls on a weekend.)
Monday lecture begins mid February / Tuesday - Thursday internship begins early March and is one calendar year in length.
Interviews for Spring are generally in late September.
Please note the change in our policy. We will no longer accept supporting documents after the application deadline. (We will accept unofficial transcripts pending receipt of official transcripts for courses that were recently completed, but all grades and bachelor degree must be documented by the application deadline).
When should I apply?
Grades for all prerequisite courses and bachelors degree must be posted to transcripts and be available to the selection committee by the application deadline. It is up to you to plan your application accordingly.
Is there a limit to the number of times I can apply?
Please note the change in our policy: We are now limiting the number of applications to three.
What is the cost of the program?
The cost of the program is 3 semesters / 15 semester units. Current rate is $280/unit.
How successful are the students in our program?
Prospective students can be confident that our program will prepare them for a career as a CLS. We provide a comprehensive program and are proud of our student's success.
Our success rate over last 5 years:
| Completed | Passed ASCP | |
| Program | MLS Exam | |
| 2015 | 100% | 100% |
| 2014 | 100% | 100% |
| 2013 | 100% | 100% |
| 2012 | 97% | 100% |
| 2011 | 100% | 97% |
For additional information including data covering the life of both our CLS and CGMBS programs, see Progress Report (PDF provided below).
Accreditation:
The SJSU CLS Training Program is approved by Laboratory Field Services, a division of the California State Health and Human Services Department.
The program is accredited by the National Accreditation Agency for Clinical Laboratory Science (NAACLS) (http://www.naacls.org), thus our students can take the ASCP national certification exam. For more information, you can contact NAACLS directly at: 5600 N. River Road, Suite 720, Rosemont, IL 60018 or by calling 773-714-8880. You can also reach them on the web by emailing info@naacls.org.
See PDFs below for more more information. Prerequisites are listed within the application instructions.
For more Information on career as a CLS: California Lab Science Career Project
CLICK FOR LINK TO: Clinical Genetic Molecular Biologist Scientist Training Program
Duncan Hall room 251, on Wednesdays from 10:00 - 12:00 on a first-come first-served basis most days during the regular Spring and Fall semesters.
We do not have regular office hours during Summer semester or during breaks between semesters. Keep in mind we are not available for office hours when the campus is closed during Spring and Holiday breaks or when we have Orientation and Interviews scheduled.
If you are making a special trip to campus to meet with us, it is always a good idea to confirm that we are holding office hours. We will update this page when we have to cancel office hours.
Office Hours will continue most Wednesdays from 10-12 in Duncan Hall, Room 251.
NO OFFICE HOURS September 28
Contact Information:
Suzanne Gayrard, Program Director
Sharlene Washington, Program Coordinator
San José State University, CLS Training Program
One Washington Square
San José, CA 95192-0100
Email inquiries preferred: cls-group@sjsu.edu
Message: 408-924-5098
