Medical Technologist Forum - Getting a start as a MT?: You can't "work your way up to being an ...

You can't "work your way up to being an MT" as most places do not have on the job training and are very strict about you having the proper degree and certification before being hired. That being said I also started off as a phlebotomist and did that job as I worked my way through college and it was a good experience, decent pay, and gave me a lot of knowledge about the laboratory. If you want to be an MT the best way to go about it is to get a 4 year degree in Medical technology that has a 1 year internship includes in the degree, OR a 4+1 program where you apply for an internship after you graduate at a local hospital. You wrote "another 4 years of school" If you already have a bachelors degree then you have a good start. You can simply get a second med tech bachelors degree by taking 1 year of science of classes or if you already have a general bachelors in science, you can apply to a Med Tech internship as long as you have the base classes they require. There is one other option... The national Guard has a 1 year training program. http://www.nationalguard.com/68k-medical-laboratory-specialist You get 1 year of training and you are basically an MLT (medical laboratory technician) This is the way I would go if you are adverse to getting a bachelors degree.