Academic Catalog 2023-2024

Clinical Laboratory Science Major

Major Requirements

The courses required for completion of a major in clinical laboratory science are listed below. Completion of the Concordia College liberal arts core curriculum and the clinical laboratory science preprofessional curriculum by the end of the junior year will qualify a student to apply for clinical internship, which will be carried out during the senior year (see the academic program director for model course schedules). Students may also complete four years of study at Concordia before entering the clinical training experience if they prefer. Transfer students may be admitted to the program, but the academic program director should be consulted to arrange program details. Transfer students must spend at least one academic year at Concordia to be eligible to apply for clinical training.

Preprofessional Curriculum

(taken on campus at Concordia College)

Clinical Laboratory Science Courses
MATH 205Introduction to Statistics4
BIOL 121Cell Biology4
BIOL 222Genetics and Molecular Biology4
BIOL 306Human Anatomy and Physiology4
BIOL 352Immunology and Parasitology4
BIOL 407Microbiology4
CHEM 127General Chemistry I4
CHEM 128General Chemistry II4
CHEM 341Organic Chemistry I4
CHEM 342Organic Chemistry II4
CHEM 373Biochemistry I4
Total Hours44

Other strongly recommended courses include:

CHEM 330Analytical Chemistry I4
CHEM 431Analytical Chemistry II4
PHYS 111General College Physics I4
  • Hematology and Pathogen Microbiology (available through the Tri-College University)
  • Courses in management and small-group communication

Clinical Internship Curriculum

(taken at Sanford Medical Center, Fargo)

Concordia College is affiliated with the School of Clinical Laboratory Science at Sanford Medical Center in Fargo, N.D. Students must apply to the affiliated hospital for acceptance into the clinical internship by Oct. 1 of their junior (or senior) year and are notified of a decision by Dec. 1. Admission is based on the student’s grade point average (generally 3.0 or better for admission), letters of recommendation, and a mandatory on-site personal interview. Admission is competitive, and students are not guaranteed an internship upon completion of the preprofessional curriculum. However, Concordia students have been very successful in obtaining internship positions.

Clinical training begins in the summer following the junior year. During clinical training, students spend six to 10 hours per week in lectures, workshops and seminars, with the balance of the 40-hour week devoted to structured practical experiences in the clinical laboratory. Courses taken during the internship year are listed here.

Degree and Graduation Requirements
In addition to the program-specific requirements listed above, all students must complete the graduation requirements specified for their degree.  See the Degree and Graduation Requirements section for more information.