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School of Medical Laboratory Science

Program Director: Stephen Johnson, MT(ASCP), MS
Accreditation: NAACLS
Program Length: 52 weeks
Students per year: 12

About the program

The Saint Vincent Hospital (SVH) School of Medical Laboratory Science is accredited by the National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Sciences (NAACLS). The school has been educating medical laboratory scientists since 1946 and is an academic affiliate of several colleges and universities in Pennsylvania, Ohio and New York. The affiliates grant the baccalaureate degree upon successful completion of the SVH program year. Agreements with non-affiliated schools are arranged as needed.

Accreditation information

The School of Medical Laboratory Science is accredited by the National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Sciences (NAACLS).

NAACLS
5600 N. River Road, Suite 720
Rosemont, IL 60018-5119

Phone:  (773) 714-8880
Fax: (773) 714-8886
Email

Admission information

Admission requirements for the School of Medical Laboratory Science include the following:

  • Satisfactory completion of 3 years in an accredited college (90 semester hours or 135 quarter hours) or a baccalaureate degree; students who have not already obtained a baccalaureate degree must be guaranteed one by their home college upon successful completion of the program at Saint Vincent as described in the Academic Affiliation Contract
  • Courses and other academic requirements listed on the school's Admission Requirement form; these must be documented by an official transcript
  • Three letters of recommendation

The following are required before acceptance into the school:

  • Personal interview
  • Complete physical examination, including blood work, and certain immunizations

Application information

Applications are accepted at any time. Students are encouraged to apply before the end of October each year, but this is not a requirement. There is no charge for filing an application for admission.

Please contact the program director with any questions.

Essential functions

  1. Adequate physical health is necessary to meet the job requirements of a Medical Laboratory Scientist and avoid presenting hazards to the health of others..
  2. Adequate emotional health is necessary to work in a safe manner and produce accurate results while under stress.
  3. Adequate hand-eye coordination and fine-motor skills are necessary to meet the job requirements of a Medical Laboratory Scientist.
  4. Normal or corrected eyesight is necessary to work in a safe manner and produce accurate results. Colorblindness will not preclude admission, but will be noted and compensated for during the program year in order to correctly interpret testing procedures that depend on accurate color recognition and interpretation.

Technical standards

  1. Students must provide their own health insurance coverage during the program year.
  2. Students must maintain a minimum 70% grade performance in all lecture subjects in order to advance to the Clinical Rotation portion of the program year.
  3. Students must maintain a minimum 70% grade performance in all Clinical Rotation Review Examinations in order to complete that part of the program year.
  4. A nonrefundable deposit of $500.00 is required of all individuals accepting an offer of admission in order to hold a seat in the upcoming class. This deposit is deducted from the total tuition charge.
  5. Quarterly tuition payments are suggested. Payment of half the tuition charge prior to the end of January, and of the remaining half prior to the end of June, is acceptable.
  6. If a student withdraws from the School of Medical Laboratory Science, or is dismissed, tuition payments will be refunded on a monthly basis.
  7. Textbooks are purchased individually by each student through Rittenhouse Distributors’ Pro Forma Program. Expenses and refund arrangements for textbooks are determined by Rittenhouse policies in effect at the time of purchase.
  8. Students are personally responsible for paying fees for criminal background checks, child abuse history, and fingerprinting. No refunds are available for these fees.
  9. Students who complete their undergraduate education in countries where English is not the predominate language must submit results of the TOEFL Examination. Information regarding this examination and its fees is available at toefl.org.
  10. Students who complete their undergraduate education outside the United States must submit a transcript evaluation indicating individual course grades, grade point average, and credits earned in terms equivalent to those commonly used in the United States. Information and a fee schedule are available at World Education Service, wes.org.
  11. Students are responsible for the total amounts charged for tuition, fees and textbooks, including any amounts in excess of financial aid received.
  12. All tuition charges must be paid in full before the student sits for the Final Examination.
  13. Students interested in working as a Medical Laboratory Scientist in states with licensure must verify that their degree and our program certificate will meet the requirements of the state licensure agency.
  14. Students must provide their own personal professional liability insurance coverage for the clinical year. Students will be provided a list of approved vendors. The cost of the insurance is modest.

Visit www.ascp.org/board-of-certification

Contact us

Saint Vincent Hospital School of Medical Laboratory Science

All questions are to be referred to: Stephen Johnson, MT(ASCP), MS Program Director

Mailing address:
Saint Vincent Hospital School of Medical Laboratory Science
232 West 25th  Street
Erie, PA 16544

Phone: (814) 452-5365

Facebook page: AHN Saint Vincent School of Medical Laboratory Science 

Instagram profile: AHNSaintVincent MLS

Curriculum

Classes begin each July and continue for a full 52 weeks.

Lectures and student laboratory experiences are completed from July through March of the program year.

From April through June, clinical rotations are completed in the laboratories of Saint Vincent Hospital, Associated Clinical Laboratories and Community Blood Bank of Northwest Pennsylvania. Graduates are eligible to take the ASCP Board of Certification MLS Examination.

Courses and credits

  • Hematology & Coagulation - SVHC 401 (4 credits)
  • Clinical Chemistry - SVHC 402 (8 credits)
  • Immunohematology - SVHC 403 (4 credits)
  • Parasitology - SVHC 404 (1 credit)
  • Urinalysis - SVHC 405 (3 credits)
  • Mycology - SVHC 406 (1 credit)
  • Immunology & Serology - SVHC 407 (4 credits)
  • Bacteriology - SVHC 408 (6 credits)
  • Education - SVHC 409 (0.5 credit)
  • Management - SVHC 410 (0.5 credit)

(32 semester hours total)

Non-discrimination statement

Saint Vincent Hospital, a part of Allegheny Health Network, operates and provides care, treatment, and services without discrimination and limitation on the basis of age, AIDS or HIV status, ancestry, race, color, physical or mental disability, gender/sexual identity, expression or preference, gender dysphoria, national origin, ethnicity, culture, language, socioeconomic status, source of payment, religion/religious creed, sex, sexual orientation, union status, or any other characteristic protected by law or regulation in compliance with federal and state regulations and civil rights laws including, but not limited to: Title VI of the Federal Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act, the Pennsylvania Department of Health Regulations, The Joint Commission accrediting standards, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C.A. § § 12101—12213) and Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act. This notice does not create legal obligations above and beyond those contained within established state and federal law.

Saint Vincent Hospital does not discriminate when: providing inpatient or outpatient admission or care; assigning patients or residents to rooms, floors, and sections; asking patients or residents about roommate preferences; assigning staff to patient or resident services; utilization of the health care facility; transfers of patients or residents from their rooms; and granting staff privileges of professionally qualified personnel.

In order to include and treat individuals in a nondiscriminatory manner, Saint Vincent Hospital provides free aids and services to people with disabilities to communicate effectively with us, such as qualified interpreters for people whose primary language is not English, sign language interpreters, and translators.

If you believe that Saint Vincent Hospital has failed to provide these services or discriminated in another way based upon race, color, national origin, age disability, sex or other grounds set forth above, you can file a grievance with the Grievance Officer, 232 West 25th Street, Erie, PA 16544 or by calling (814) 452-7081. You can also file a civil rights complaint with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights via https://ocrportal.hhs.gov/ocr/portal/lobby.jsf, by mail at 200 Independence Avenue SW., Room 509F, HHH Building, Washington DC 20201 or by calling 1(800) 868-1019 or (800) 537- 7697 (TDD). Complaint forms are available at https://www.hhs.gov/civil-rights/filing-a-complaint/index.html.

Outcome measures

The Job Placement Rates within three months of Graduation for 2020 through 2022 are as follows:

  • 2022: 100%
  • 2021: 100%
  • 2020: 100%

The First Time Pass Rates on the ASCP Board of Certification Examination for the Medical Laboratory Scientist (MLS) designation for 2020 through 2022 are as follows:

  • 2022: 86%
  • 2021: 64%
  • 2020: 100%

The Graduation Rates for 2020 through 2022 are as follows:

  • 2022: 100%
  • 2021: 100%
  • 2020: 100%

Tuition and fees

Tuition for the 2023 – 2024 program year is $11,382.

Textbooks cost approximately $850 for the program year.

Incoming students must pay for a medical examination with lab tests, criminal background checks, and drug screening during the first week of classes. Charges vary for these services.