To meet the increasing demand for health care professionals, Felician College, in collaboration with the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey—SHRP—recently announced the launch of a joint degree program leading to a Bachelor of Science in Allied Health Technologies to be offered at Felician College. In announcing the newest program within the Department of Allied Health Professions at Felician College, Professor Marilyn Rubin—Department Chair—points out that “employment opportunities are expected to increase significantly through the next ten years as the demand for health care services increases.” Degree candidates can major in Medical Sonography, Nuclear Medicine Technology, Respiratory Care, or Vascular Technology.

On the heals of this announcement comes news that the Medical Laboratory Technology (MLT) program at Felician College has been awarded full re-accreditation status through 2007, without any recommendations, by the National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Sciences (NAACLS)—the program’s fourth re-accreditation since it opened in 1973.

A two-year, seventy-one credit associate degree program that includes over 1,000 contact hours spent in the clinical laboratory sciences, the Medical Laboratory Technology curriculum encompasses highly specialized science and technical courses. Courses within the program include Hematology, Urinalysis, Clinical Chemistry, Blood Banking, Immunology, Coagulation, Mycology, Parasitology, Phlebotomy, and Clinical Microbiology.

“The MLT program prepares students for a professional career in the medical laboratory field with numerous job opportunities available to graduates,” notes Rubin who says that Felician College graduates have found satisfying employment in hospital laboratories, private laboratories, pharmaceutical companies, research laboratories, physicians’ offices, cosmetic companies, and food manufacturing plants. Some graduates also go on to earn additional degrees in medicine, dentistry, optometry, pharmacy, biology, education, and Clinical Laboratory Sciences, she says.

“Many people are choosing careers in Medical Laboratory Technology due to an active job market, new duties and responsibilities developing within the field, and an ever-increasing body of knowledge which defines the health care profession,” says Rubin who in addition to her standing as Chair of Allied Health Professions, serves as Coordinator of the Clinical Laboratory Science Programs, and Associate Professor of Medical Laboratory Technology at Felician College.

To fully prepare students with the skills needed to launch a successful career in the field of Medical Laboratory Technology, each course incorporates extensive audio-visual aids, computer-aided instruction, and comprehensive laboratory sessions, says Rubin. MLT students also receive their clinical training by rotating through four of the area’s top hospital clinical laboratories.

“Upon completion of the program, graduates are awarded an Associate in Applied Science Degree (A.A.S.) in Medical Laboratory Technology, and have very marketable skills,” says Rubin. Graduates are also eligible to take certification exams administered nationally by the American Society of Clinical Pathologists (ASCP) or the National Credentialing Agency for Medical Laboratory Personnel (NCA).

Other degree programs offered by Felician College’s Division of Health Sciences include undergraduate and graduate degree programs in nursing, a bachelor degree program in Clinical Laboratory Sciences, and an associate degree program in Psychosocial Rehabilitation. For more information, call the Office of Admission at 201-559-6131 or the Department of Allied Health Professions at 201-559-6185.