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 program offers two formats: a face-to-face program for students meeting pre-requisite requirements, and an online option for students meeting pre-requisites and currently working in a histopathology laboratory. The courses comprising the technical portion will be taken in Fort Worth at the Richard C. Schaffer Educational Building for the face-to-face program and online for the online option. Clinical experiences are completed at 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. Students interested in completing the online option should be currently employed in a histopathology laboratory or have access to training in a histopathology laboratory through their employer.
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 certified Histotechnician.
Designed With You in Mind
Our department faculty members are certified Histotechnologists 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.
Employment
The Department actively collects information regarding potential jobs and makes this information available to all students. Services of the University Placement Offices are also available. Graduates of the program are employed throughout the North Central Texas area as well as the state and the nation. The need for Certified Histology Technicians is growing. HT graduates will find employment in a variety of fields including both research and industrial hospital settings.
Admission Requirements
HT Program applicants must complete an application and supply three reference letters (one from the community college advisors and two from faculty). Applicants for the online option must submit a Clinical Site Information Sheet with their application materials. The Tarleton HT program has a minimum requirement of 23 semester hours applicable toward an Associate of Applied Science (AAS) Degree that must be completed prior to admission. Students entering with an associates or baccalaureate degree must have 8 hours of biology including microbiology, 4 hours of chemistry, 3 hours of math (MATH 1314 or higher) and 3 hours of English.
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:
Estimated Completion
60 credit hours (2 years)
Application Process
- HT Application Form
- HT Reference Form
- HT Application Fee Payment
- HT Clinical Site Information Sheet (online option only)
To apply to this program, complete the HT application and mail to the address on the application with the $35 non-refundable application fee. Three academic and/or professional references are required along with original transcripts from all universities and/or colleges attended.
After you are accepted into the program, you will then be instructed to apply to Tarleton State University:
Cost
Locations Available
- Fort Worth
- Hybrid
Department
College
Application Procedures & Deadlines
Three classes per year are accepted, one in Spring, one in Summer, and one in Fall. Students are admitted on a competitive basis through an evaluation based on academic performance from transcripts and letters of reference. Official transcripts from all colleges must be submitted. A $35 non-refundable application fee will be charged for all applications. Application deadlines are March 15 for Summer classes, June 15 for Fall classes and October 15 for Spring classes. All transcripts, applications and references must be received prior to deadline dates. All applicants must reapply if they wish to be considered for future entry dates.
Apply now to the Histotechnology Program.
Outcomes for NAACLS Program
Effective July 1st, 2020, we are required to notify you about licensing/certification requirements in other states. The TSU HT curricula prepare students to sit for the ASCP Board of Certification exam, for details on the ASCP BOC and licensure requirements in other states (Texas does not have licensure requirements), please see https://www.ascp.org/content/board-of-certification/get-credentialed/#state-licensure
Upon successful completion of the professional program, graduates are eligible to take the national certification exam, Histotechnician, HT (ASCP). Students will receive their Associate of Applied Science (AAS) degree from Tarleton State University. Awarding of the certificate and degree from Tarleton is not contingent upon passing national certification exams. View the outcomes of our students from 2012 to 2019 for receiving certification and employment after graduation.
Histotechnology
| Year | Certification Pass Rate | Employment/Further Education Rates | Graduation Rate* |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019-2020 | 75% (9/12) | 100% (13/13) | 100% (13/13) |
| 2020-2021 | 90% (9/10) | 100% (12/12) | 100% (12/12) |
| 2021-2022 | 71% (5/7) | 100% (11/11) | 100% (11/11) |
| 2022-2023 | 100% (8/8) | 100% (9/9) | 100% (9/9) |
| 2023-2024 (Data still being collected) | 75% (6/8) | 100% (10/10) | 90.9% (10/9) |
| 2024-20205 (Data still being collected) | (0/0) | 100% (3/3) | 75% (3/4) |
*The Graduation Rate for the HT program is calculated by comparing the number of students beginning the advanced portion of instruction to the number of students graduating for that year.
HT Professional Courses
HLAB 2414, 2415, 2424, 2425, 2335, 2364, 2182, 2285, 2495, 2496, 2497
Prerequisite courses may also be completed at the community colleges below with the course numbers listed at the hyperlink
- Central Texas College
- Cisco College
- Collin College
- DCC College
- Grayson County College
- Hill College
- McLennan College
- Navarro College
- North Central Texas College
- Vernon College
- Tarrant County College
- Temple College
- Weatherford County College
*Students with an associate degree or baccalaureate degree who do not wish to earn the AAS from Tarleton must have the following prerequisites: Biology: 12 hours including Microbiology; Chemistry: 4 hours; Math: 3 hours; English: 3 hours
Partners
Located in the central hospital district of Fort Worth, at 1501 Enderly Place, the Department has current affiliations with area hospitals:
Histotechnology Clinical Sites
- Ameripath, A Quest Diagnostics Company
- Baylor Scott & White All Saint’s Hospital
- Baylor Scott & White University Medical Center
- Baylor Scott & White Medical Center at Irving
- Children’s Medical Center Dallas
- Cook Children’s Medical Center
- Inform Diagnostics
- Medical City Plano
- Medical City Fort Worth
- Parkland Memorial Hospital
- PBM Laboratories
- ProPath
- Texas Health Resources Arlington Memorial Hospital
- Texas Health Resources Harris Methodist Fort Worth Hospital
- Texas Health Resources Harris Methodist Southwest Hospital
- Texas Health Resources Harris Methodist HEB
- Texas Health Resources Huguley
- Tissue Techniques
- UT Southwestern Medical Center
- Veterans Affair Hospital Dallas
Plan Your Future
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!
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 offers a variety of professional development opportunities that can translate into careers. A few of these programs include:
Resume assistance
Handshake
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 | 2364 | Immunohistochemistry & Advanced Techniques |
| 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
Located in the central hospital district of Fort Worth, the department has current affiliations with hospitals such as:
Baylor Scott & White All Saint’s Hospital
Baylor University Medical Center
Cook Children’s Medical Center
Medical City Plano
Medical City Fort Worth
UT Southwestern Medical Center
Texas Health Resources: DFW Metroplex and surrounding areas
Veterans Affairs Hospital, Dallas
Several private reference laboratories in the DFW Metroplex
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
Colleges from which prerequisites courses are currently being accepted from include:
Central Texas College
Cisco Junior College
El Central College
Grayson County College
Hill College
McLennan Community College
Navarro College
North Central Texas College
Vernon College
Tarrant County College
Temple College
Weatherford College
Contact
Maria Artiles, HT(ASCP)
Histotechnology & HPT Program Director & Instructor
10850 Texas Rider Drive
Fort Worth, TX 76036
martiles@tarleton.edu
Phone: 817-926-1101