Estimated Completion
60 credit hours (2 years)
Application Process
- Complete and submit the Histotechnology Application
- Print out 3 reference letters for professors to fill out
- Once accepted to program, apply to Tarleton State University - Undergraduate Studies Admissions
Cost
Locations Available
Department
College
A.A.S. in Histotechnology
Overview
The Associate of Applied Science degree in Histotechnology prepares students for careers as Histotechnicians. This program includes a combination of both basic prerequisite and technical courses. In the technical portion, students will learn to prepare tissue, blood, and fluid samples for histologists or pathologists to examine under a microscope, and look for signs of abnormality or disease. The courses comprising the technical portion will be taken in Fort Worth at the Richard C. Schaffer Educational Building and affiliated clinical hospital sites.
Jump Right In
Acceptance to the HT program is on a competitive basis. Students must successfully complete prerequisites prior to entering the technical portion of the program.
After successful program completion, students will be eligible to take the histotechnician exam, which is administered by the American Society for Clinical Pathology (ASCP) Board of Registry. Upon passing the exam, students will be ready to start their career as a Histotechnician.
Designed With You in Mind
Our department faculty members are certified Medical Laboratory Technicians with advanced degrees and/or specialty certifications and have various clinical experiences that offer a diverse academic presentation. Additionally, our staff is assisted by pathologists and medical laboratory scientists from several affiliated clinical laboratories.
Accreditations
- Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC)
- National Accrediting Agency for Medical Laboratory Sciences (NAACLS)
Related Programs
Not what you were looking for? Tarleton State University offers over 100 different degrees and certifications that may be of interest to you, including:
Plan Your Future
Career Opportunities
HT graduates are employed in numerous hospital and reference laboratory locations across the North Texas region, throughout Texas, and the nation. Graduates are frequently employed by their clinical practicum affiliate such as:
- Baylor Medical Centers across the north Texas region
- Texas Health Resources hospitals
- HCA hospitals
- JPS Health Network
- Parkland County hospital facilities
As well as numerous clinical and reference sites in Austin, and much more!
Get Certified
Our Histotechnology program has an 84% completion rate. Students who complete the histotechnology program have a 96% first-time pass rate on the Histotechnology National Board of Registry exam administered by the American Society for Clinical Pathology (ASCP). Our program is fully accredited by the National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Sciences (NAACLS). 98% of our graduates find employment in histotechnology laboratories within six months of graduation.
Career Services
Career Services offers a variety of professional development opportunities that can translate into careers. A few of these programs include:
- Resume assistance
- Hire a Texan - Online Job Board
- Job fairs
- Mock interviews
And much more!
Coursework Outline
Prerequisites
| Class | Number | Class Name |
|---|---|---|
| BIOL | 2401 or 2402 | A & P I or A & P II |
| HPTC | 3350 | Microbiology for Allied Health Professions |
| CHEM | 1407 | Fundamentals of Chemistry |
| PYSC | 2301 | General Psychology |
| ENGL | 1301 | Composition I |
| MATH | 1314 or 1332 | College Algebra or Contemporary Mathematics |
| Humanities or Fine Arts Elective |
Required Histotechnology Courses
| Class | Number | Class Name |
|---|---|---|
| HLAB | 2182 | Introduction to Medical Laboratory Sciences |
| HLAB | 2285 | Capstone Cases and Review |
| HLAB | 2334 | Functional Histology |
| HLAB | 2335 | Histotechnology III |
| HLAB | 2414 | Introduction to Histotechnology |
| HLAB | 2415 | Histotechnology I |
| HLAB | 2424 | Functional Histology II |
| HLAB | 2425 | Histotechnology II |
| HLAB | 2495 | Clinical Histotechnology I |
| HLAB | 2496 | Clinical Histotechnology II |
| HLAB | 2497 | Clinical Histotechnology III |
For more information on course, please refer to the university catalog.
Please note that all required Histotechnology courses (37 credit hours) will be taken at the Fort Worth campus.
Facilities and Features
Affiliates
Located in the central hospital district of Fort Worth, the department has current affiliations with hospitals such as:
- Baylor All Saint’s Hospital
- Baylor University Medical Center
- Cook Children’s Medical Center
- The Medical Center of Plano
- Plaza Medical Center of Fort Worth
- UT Southwestern Medical Center
- Texas Health Resources: DFW Metroplex and surrounding areas
Facilities
The Richard C. Schaffer Educational Building, located in the central hospital district in Fort Worth, consists of three lecture rooms, six laboratories, a computer lab, and a library. Laboratories housed in the Schaffer Building include:
- Hematology, hemostasis and urinalysis/body fluids
- Chemistry
- Histology
- Immunohematology and immunology/serology
- Microbiology/parasitology /mycology
- Molecular diagnostics: Amplification, pre-amplification/nucleic acid extraction, NGS
- Protein laboratory: Blotting techniques
Consortium Colleges
Colleges from which prerequisites courses are currently being accepted from include:
- Central Texas College
- Cisco Junior College
- El Centro College
- Grayson County College
- Hill College
- McLennan Community College
- Navarro College
- North Central Texas College
- Vernon College
- Tarrant County College
- Temple College
- Weatherford College