Laboratory Technologist (Various)

Exam

Third-party exam

Education

Degree

Experience

Experience

Background check

None

The Nevada State Health Division, Bureau of Health Care Quality and Compliance issues certificates for several laboratory technology occupations including Clinical Laboratory Technologist, Cytotechnologist, Histotechnologist, and Blood-Gas Technologist. Applicants for a CLINICAL LABORATORY TECHNOLOGIST certificate must: 1a) Complete a bachelor's degree in medical technology from an accredited institution and pass a national certification exam approved by the Board, or b) Complete a bachelor's degree in one of the chemical, physical, or biological sciences at an accredited institution, and have at least 1 year of additional full-time experience or training in the specialty or subspecialty in which (s)he performs tests, and pass a national certification examination approved by the board, or c) Have passed the clinical laboratory technologists exam given by the U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services. Applicants for a CYTOTECHNOLOGIST certificate must complete 2 years of course work in an accredited institution with at least 12 semester hours in science, 8 hours of which are in biology, and complete at least 12 months of training in an accredited school of cytotechnology; or, meet the requirements for an equivalent combination of education and experience. Applicants must pass a national certification examination. Applicants for a HISTOTECHNOLOGIST certificate must complete a bachelor's degree from an accredited institution, with 32 semester hours in science that includes 12 hours in chemistry and 16 hours in biology, histology, zoology, anatomy and physiology, and have 1 year of experience in a histopathology laboratory under the supervision of a board-certified pathologist; or, meet the requirements for an equivalent combination of education and experience. Applicants for a BLOOD-GAS TECHNOLOGIST (Respiratory) certificate may qualify by obtaining one of the following credentials: 1) National Board for Respiratory Care certification as a certified respiratory therapist, or as a registered respiratory therapist. (Note that Respiratory Therapists are profiled separately and are licensed by the Board of Medical Examiners). Laboratory Technologists may also obtain an additional certificate in one or more of the following specialty areas by meeting specified education and certification requirements. Specialty areas include chemistry, microbiology, hematology, immunology, immunohematology, nuclear medicine, histocompatibility, histology, cytology, and biotechnology. Provisional certificates will be issued for those licenses requiring an applicant to pass a national certification examination if the applicant has been accepted as a candidate for testing and has shown that they meet all other requirements. The provisional certificate expires 180 days from the issue date. The Bureau does not administer the national tests to applicants, but does accept results of national examinations given by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services or other approved national agencies or boards. Contact the Bureau for information on the approved exams. Fees may be subject to change. Fees are: initial certification--$113; certification renewal--$75.