Allied Health Professions > Lab Students and Technicians

Medical Technologist (MT) vs Medical Laboratory Technician (MLT)

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Admin:
The informal abbreviations of job titles is a source of confusion. There are many "techs" in a hospital environment, including pharmacy techs, x-ray techs, and respiratory techs. Medical technologists are called "lab techs" or "med techs." This shorthand term is accepted by most healthcare employees, including medical technologists.

Formally, there is a distinction between a technician and a technologist. Technicians generally have no more than a two-year associates degree, and may have less training. A medical laboratory technician (MLT) has an associates degree and can be certified or registered by one or more nationally-recognized professional organizations, however, they may not be certified to perform tests of high complexity. A medical technologist (MT) has a baccalaureate degree, and can be certified or registered by one or more nationally-recognized professional organizations.

Regardless of formal definitions, a medical technologist is usually called a med tech and a medical laboratory technician is called an MLT.
Dr.Mahdi

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