Clinical Laboratory Science, Bachelor of Science
This degree will prepare students for certification and employment as Medical Laboratory Scientists. Graduates from this professional program are part of the health care team and play a vital role in the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of disease through the performance of laboratory tests in hospital laboratories, physician office labs, and reference labs. It also serves as an excellent undergraduate option for those students planning on applying to the graduate physician assistant program and medical and dental school. Students who plan to apply to the physician assistant program or medical or dental school should check for additional course requirements. Students must apply to the CLS program and be admitted to this major.
Core Curriculum - 42 Hours
The Core Curriculum serves as a broad foundation for the undergraduate degree. All candidates for a bachelor’s degree must achieve core student learning outcomes, including communication, critical thinking, empirical and quantitative skills, teamwork, personal responsibility and social responsibility, by completing courses within each category or component area of the Core Curriculum as outlined below.
The University has approved specific courses that satisfy Core Curriculum Requirements. Approved courses can be found on the Core Curriculum Page. Students seeking the most efficient way to complete the core curriculum and major or minor requirements are advised to take approved courses that can fulfill both requirements. Although core curriculum courses can also be used to fulfill major or minor requirements, earned credits hours are only applied once. The courses listed below fulfill core curriculum and major requirements. Students who have completed a core curriculum category with courses other than those listed below will still be required to take the listed course(s) to meet major requirements.
030 Life and Physical Sciences – 6 hours
090 Integrative and Experiential Learning – 6 hours
BIOL 1406 is given one credit hour for the lab component. The remaining three credits will be applied in the support courses below.
Major Requirements - 81 hours
Required Courses - 59 hours
Supported Courses - 22 hours
Total Credit Hours: 42
Total Credit Hours: 123
Major Admissions Requirements
Admission requirements required for this program beyond university admission requirements.
The Clinical Laboratory Science Program begins in the fall semester. In order to be considered for admission, the student should submit an application by March 31. The admissions committee meets in April to consider all applications received by March 31. Applications received after March 31 are considered on a space-available basis.
A completed application must include official transcripts and three letters of reference.
Successful completion of a criminal background check is also required for full admission into the Clinical Laboratory Science Program. Additional information may be found on the College of Health Affairs website. Students will be required to submit a physical examination form once they are admitted to the program. This must document that they have the required immunizations or proof of immunity including measles, mumps, tetanus/diphtheria, rubella, and the hepatitis B vaccine.
Students should complete all non-clinical laboratory science coursework prior to entering the professional phase of the program. Students who are lacking no more than two non-science prerequisite courses may be considered for admission if they have at least a minimum overall GPA of 3.0. Preference is given to students who have completed all prerequisite coursework. A minimum GPA of 2.0 and a minimum science GPA of 2.0 is required for admission to the program.
Applicants who plan to utilize coursework more than seven years old in the areas of general chemistry or the biological sciences will be required to demonstrate an up-to-date knowledge in these areas. This may be accomplished by either of the following:
- Completion of at least one formal course in chemistry and one formal course in the biological sciences within the last five years with a grade of at least C.
- One year of relevant experience in the field of clinical laboratory science within the last five years.
Non-degree Seeking Students
A student who does not wish to receive a degree from UT Rio Grande Valley, but who wishes to attend the professional portion of the curriculum for certification purposes must meet one of the following requirements:
- Hold a baccalaureate degree from an accredited institution and have a minimum of 12 semester hours of chemistry including inorganic and organic or biochemistry and 16 semester hours of biology including microbiology and a college-level math course.
- Hold a foreign baccalaureate degree from an international institution, meet all admission requirements of UT Rio Grande Valley and have his or her transcript evaluated by agencies acceptable to the National Certification Agencies. This evaluation must show that his or her degree is equivalent to a baccalaureate in the United States with appropriate coursework in biology, chemistry and mathematics.
Readmission
Students who are dropped from the program for academic reasons are not automatically readmitted. Students must make a formal written request for readmission. Readmission depends on space availability and the student’s previous performance in CLSC courses. Students will be notified of their readmission by August 1. The admission committee may require repetition of foundation clinical laboratory science courses or other remedial work in addition to the repetition of courses, which the student previously failed. Students who receive a grade of ‘D’ or lower in the same course twice or drop the same CLSC course twice to avoid a failing grade are ineligible for readmission into the CLSC Program.
Major Progression Requirements
Progression requirements required for this program.
Students are required to maintain a grade of ‘C’ or better in all Clinical Laboratory Science courses. Courses with grades lower than ‘C’ must be retaken at the next regularly scheduled time that it is offered. Students who earn a grade less than a ‘C’ in any CLSC prerequisite course will not be allowed to take any advanced CLSC courses, which require that course as a prerequisite. All on-campus courses must be completed with a ‘C’ or better prior to beginning the clinical rotations. If a student fails to earn a ‘C’ or better in any two courses, or earns a grade lower than a ‘C’ in any required course two times, he/she will not be permitted to continue in the program.
Major Graduation Requirements
Specific graduation requirements required for this program beyond university bachelor’s degree requirements.
Students must complete all professional courses (CLSC courses) with a grade of ‘C’ or better. Must complete all courses in the professional portion of the curriculum within a period of four consecutive years from the date of first enrollment in the program.