Career
Path Forecast
Employment of
clinical laboratory workers is expected to grow by 14 percent between
2008 and 2018, faster than the average for all occupations. The volume
of laboratory tests continues to increase with both population growth
and the development of new types of tests.
Technological advances will
continue to have opposing effects on employment. On the one hand, new,
increasingly powerful diagnostic tests and advances in genomics—the
study of the genetic information of a cell or organism—will encourage
additional testing and spur employment. On the other hand, research and
development efforts targeted at simplifying and automating routine
testing procedures may enhance the ability of nonlaboratory
personnel—physicians and patients in particular—to perform tests now
conducted in laboratories.
Although hospitals are
expected to continue to be the major employer of clinical laboratory
workers, employment is expected also to grow rapidly in medical and
diagnostic laboratories, offices of physicians, and all other ambulatory
healthcare services.
Job opportunities are
expected to be excellent because the number of job openings is expected
to continue to exceed the number of jobseekers. Although significant,
job growth will not be the only source of opportunities. As in most
occupations, many additional openings will result from the need to
replace workers who transfer to other occupations, retire, or stop
working for some other reason. Willingness to relocate will further
enhance one’s job prospects.
Note: Some resources in this section are provided by the US Department
of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics.
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