University of Massachusetts Lowell
UML Home News Calendar Directory Maps & Directions Libraries Questions
UML Search:
Undergraduate Online Academic Catalog

Clinical Laboratory and Nutritional Sciences: Major Requirements

Quick Links

Major
Minor
All Courses
View Faculty
Department Website
Printer-Friendly Version
Department Description
How to Apply



Degree Requirements:
B.S. Clinical Laboratory Sciences

Clinical Sciences Option
Medical Technology Option
B.S. Nutritional Sciences
Nutritional Sciences Option

GENERAL ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS FOR ALL B.S. GRADUATES

Entry level practitioners in Clinical Laboratory and Nutritional Sciences require the accumulation of scientific knowledge and essential skills necessary to accurately and safely work in a variety of clinical, industrial and educational settings.

Department faculty  have the responsibility to graduate students who are well educated and possess the qualities of:

  • critical thinking
  • sound judgment
  • emotional stability
  • maturity
  • mental stamina
  • empathy

In order to fulfill this responsibility, the faculty maintain that certain minimal essential functions must be met in a timely manner by every applicant, with reasonable accommodations or academic adjustments consistent with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

These essential functions include the following skills:

  • communication
  • large and small motor skills
  • professional and application skills
  • professional judgment
  • maturity.

Students must have the ability to complete reading assignments and search and evaluate the literature.

In order to be successful, prospective students must meet the following essential functions:

I.  Communication skills

II.  Large and small motor skills

III.  Professional and application skills

IV.  Other physical requirements

I.  Communication skills

  • "Communicate effectively in written and spoken English
  • Comprehend and respond to both formal and colloquial English person to person, by telephone, and in writing
  • Appropriately assess nonverbal and verbal communication"

II.  Large and small motor skills

  • "Move freely from one location to another in physical settings such as clinical laboratories, patient care areas, schools, corridors, and elevators"
  • Ability to use computers in data entry, administration, and education with facility
  • Ability to perform delicate manipulations of specimens, instruments, and tools with facility and accuracy.
  • "Grasp and release small objects (e.g. test tubes, pipette tips, microscope slides and coverslips); twist and turn dials/knobs (e.g. on microscopes, balances, centrifuges, spectrophotometers)"
  • Manipulate other laboratory materials (e.g. reagents, manual and automated pipettes)

III.  Professional and application skills

  • "Follow written and verbal directions"
  • Ability to apply mathematical skills necessary in job related problems
  • "Work independently and with others under time constraints
  • Prioritize requests and work concurrently on at least two different tasks
  • Maintain alertness and concentration during a normal work period
  • Apply knowledge, skills, and values learned from course work and life experiences to new situations"
  • Exercise good judgment, function effectively under stress, display flexibility
  • Recall, interpret, analyze, synthesize, evaluate and then apply the information obtained from reading, lecture, and discussion materials
  • "Show respect for self and others
  • Project an image of professionalism including appearance, dress, and confidence"
  • Ability to function effectively using all necessary skills under normal working conditions
  • "Recognize emergency situations and take appropriate actions"
  • Work safely with potential chemical, radiological, and biological hazards using the standards established in the department chemical hygiene plan, safety manual, and the blood-borne pathogen policy
  • Problem solve and comprehend spatial relationships of structures
  • Follow all institutional, local, state and federal regulations related to the medical laboratory

IV.  Other physical requirements

  • "Identify and distinguish objects macroscopically and microscopically
  • Read charts, graph, and instrument scales/readout devices accurately
  • Lift and move objects of at least 20 pounds"
  • Ability to distinguish objects by touch and temperature

Essential Functions adapted from: Body of Knowledge, American Society of Clinical Laboratory Sciences, 1998.

While no applicant with a disability is required to disclose that disability as part of the application process, if you believe that you require reasonable accommodations and/or academic adjustments to meet any of the essential functions, you may choose, at your option, to contact Dr. Chandrika Sharma, Disability Services, 978-934-4512, or e-mail: Chandrika_Sharma@uml.edu.

top

Disclaimer
One University Avenue . Lowell, MA 01854 . 978-934-4000 - Contact Us
This is an OfficialPage/Publication of the University of Massachusetts Lowell