Mission Statement

The mission of the Clinical Laboratory Sciences Program is to provide quality graduates to be employed in the regional health care facilities that the University serves and beyond. The faculty pursue cutting edge developments in their discipline areas and are dedicated to teaching students how to learn by using problem based learning to develop critical thinking skills in our graduates. Eight affiliate hospitals link the CLS Program to health care networks by providing highly technical clinical rotations for senior majors. The program is dedicated to providing an articulation track for associate degree laboratory technicians. CLS graduates will be eligible for three national certifications and most state licensure exams.

Program Goals and Competency Statements (Word document)

Accreditation/Certification/Licensure

Program Accreditation - Western Carolina University’s Clinical Laboratory Sciences Program is accredited by the:
National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Sciences (NAACLS)
8410 W. Bryn Mawr Avenue, Suite 670
Chicago, Illinois 60631 3415
(ph 773-714-8880 ).
NAACLS-approved programs are listed on their website at http://www.naacls.org/.

Certification - Graduation from a NAACLS-approved program guarantees eligibility to sit for three national certification exams. Exams are administered by the National Certification Agency (NCA) www.nca-info.org, the American Society for Clinical Pathologist Board of Registry (ASCP-BOR) http://www.ascp.org/ and the American Medical Technologist (AMT) http://www.amt1.com/.

Graduates sit for at least one of the three national certifying exams. Exam applications are available online. Certification enhances employment and upward mobility.

Licensure - In states having licensure the graduate must become licensed to practice. Most states have reciprocity with the national certifying exams. Some states require the graduate to take their state licensure exam.