Total Semester Hours required for the Degree: 120 semester hours

This cooperative degree program, administered by the Pre-Health Professions Advisor, leads to the Bachelor of Science degree. It is a four-year program including three years of college courses followed by one year of work in an affiliated hospital. The degree requires 120 semester hours of credit including 90 semester hours at EIU (or a combination of transfer credits and credits earned at Eastern totaling 90 semester hours) and 32 semester hours credit for successful completion of a one-year program in clinical laboratory science at a National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Science (NAACLS) affiliated hospital. Upon successful completion of the hospital work, the student becomes a candidate for a Bachelor of Science degree in Clinical Laboratory Science and is eligible to take the certifying examinations of the American Society of Clinical Pathologists (ASCP) for registry as a Medical Laboratory Scientist. The clinical hours taken at the affiliated hospital will be treated as courses taken at EIU counting in residency hours and will be included in EIU grade point average. Since the clinical hours are treated as EIU residency hours, CLS majors are required to satisfy the standard 42 EIU residency hours, the 32 hour junior/senior year and 12 hour senior year residency hours despite being cooperative degree students. EIU cannot guarantee admission to any of its affiliated hospitals.