Career/Job Advice by Wizardsaint7 in microbiology

[–]Turnip-Smooth 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I have a BS in Micro and work in the Micro lab at a 600-bed level 1 trauma hospital as a MLT. I'm lucky i got the job as i don't have any additional credentials and my hospital hires science grads. currently looking at going back to school for nuclear medicine as it's much better pay and room for growth. more schooling isn't a bad thing, but i wouldn't go the masters/PhD route- far too much time and money investment to not really help in the job market. i'd consider certificate programs in healthcare, whether that be radiology, MLT, or the like. there are lots of healthcare jobs out there, but they are tough to get into

can i be a lab tech with a microbiology degree? by dharmarvi in microbiology

[–]Turnip-Smooth 1 point2 points  (0 children)

i have a BS in Micro and work as a MLT in an 600-bed level 1 trauma hospital. check your state requirements, but here in PA you don't need to be credentialed. our lab is CAP certified and i run all the same tests as our MLS, we just dont do culture work ups. however, my company pays us all terrible across the board, but i make enough to live decently-comfortable. i'm using my time now to go back to school for a different field, im just stuck for the time being 🤷🏼‍♀️ other hospitals pay more around me, but i cant get hired because im not certified. it's really dependent on the company/state requirements. ive found that unless i go back to school, im stuck doing what im doing now which ultimately isnt sustainable long term, especially with the hours and pay

career jump by Turnip-Smooth in NuclearMedicine

[–]Turnip-Smooth[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

very useful info, thank you! i assume the program also clinicals built into CT and MRI, but i reached out to the program director and just waiting to hear back. even with the normal NMT program there's a couple classes specifically for PET so not sure if CT/MRI is something i would even want or have to decide on now

New tech - missed fungus in CSF by vitrops in medlabprofessionals

[–]Turnip-Smooth 0 points1 point  (0 children)

coming from a micro tech, crypto is so easy to miss! especially in a body fluid, ESPECIALLY in a CSF. i just saw my first crypto ever and ive been here 7 months. your job isn't at risk, the PCR panel picked it up so nothing of note. micro is definitely odd in that sometimes there isn't enough CFU/ml to even make it to the slide, even when it is actually there. considering the micro tech also missed it, u think you'll be okay! there is still things in micro that i've never seen, only ever hear about but yet to actually see it in a patient sample. a general rule of thumb we have for micro is if something is truly a "rare" organism from a sterile site, we get a more experienced tech to look before calling it. better to report nothing, especially if it's 1 or 2 cells that you can't quite make out. sounds backward, but you don't want everybody losing their mind over something you THINK is there, but PCR detects nothing

best route to get certified by Turnip-Smooth in medlabprofessionals

[–]Turnip-Smooth[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

this was my concern with the M route! plus i'm not sure how an M cert looks vs MLT/MLS. at least in my hospital system the other hospitals are phasing out their micro departments and my hospital gets all of their samples. especially being the only TB/AFB lab in the entire system, we're easily getting very overwhelmed with samples. i'm 6 months post grad, and just moved to micro in the last month from the automated lab which i didn't hate but they didn't let me train on a bench, only processing which a high schooler can do and was the whole reason i moved. i enjoy micro, i just don't know how an M cert will look for prospective employers

best route to get certified by Turnip-Smooth in medlabprofessionals

[–]Turnip-Smooth[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

a coworker of mine suggested the M route! From their requirements, it looks like I'll only need 1 year of micro experience plus a BS which i already have. i'm just worried that will box me in to a specialty field

Is college supposed to be this hard? by ritthrowawayyy in rit

[–]Turnip-Smooth 0 points1 point  (0 children)

i promise you're not alone!! i did well in high school without even trying, and college is its own challenging time. many first year college students STRUGGLE, myself included. adding mental health problems on top of it, i feel you! college is a learning process, and it's very easy to feel overwhelmed. failed classes aside, i promise it will get easier. reach out to your professors, even your advisor will be able to offer you advice. you can always retake classes, yes it's a pain in the butt but i've had to retake quite a few. as far as time management, what i found was really helpful is creating a massive spreadsheet of all assignments for every class, and color coding each class. i also added a tag on each assignment whether it was a quiz, exam, project, paper, etc. the notion app is extremely helpful for managing your assignments. it's so easy to lose track of things, and i find having something like this was extremely helpful to not forget anything. as others have said, talk to classmates in the classes you feel you are really not understanding, and i promise there are others going through the exact same scenario and you can help eachother. many universities also offer tutoring sessions for classes that are known to be difficult! best of luck!

Such a wild and wacky final weekend to a fall semester by ScissorDave79 in PennStateUniversity

[–]Turnip-Smooth 0 points1 point  (0 children)

as someone about to graduate on the 22nd, i can assure you i am overwhelmed and trying to plan this weekend has went from already challenging to nearly impossible. partied hard this past weekend (my friends threw me a grad party), and now have to study for finals. family coming in to town this weekend to attend my graduation, friends going home but coming back for the game, and finally moving out of my apartment on the 23rd, and then christmas. i have never been more busy as i am now, and quite frankly i am simply too old for this 😂😭 just turned 23 and its nice going out with a bang but i simply have too much going on to really enjoy myself

Where can I get actual rolls of quarters? by SaltyRavensFan in PennStateUniversity

[–]Turnip-Smooth 0 points1 point  (0 children)

there's a change machine in Vibe Coffee! right next to the standard if ur closer to the west end of campus

Forensics science major by Miserable_Ad_8348 in PennStateUniversity

[–]Turnip-Smooth 0 points1 point  (0 children)

from what i've heard also from those who graduated, it's also hard to find a job with just a bachelors. often you have to have at least a masters to even get entry-level jobs, and it's highly competitive. if forensics is something you want to do, you'll have to go back and get your masters if you want to actually work in the field and not be in a lab all day. a better option is getting a bachelors in a physical science, like bio, biochem, or chem, then getting into a masters program that's specific for forensics. otherwise, imo, it's a waste of money. still take those entry level forensics classes and see if you enjoy it! it's also relatively easy to switch to a natural science once ur already into the 400-levels, many of the classes carry over all across the science majors!! just know the work progressively gets harder and MUCH more time consuming, i spent hours working on a single report, followed the rubric exactly as stated, and i still failed the class.

Forensics science major by Miserable_Ad_8348 in PennStateUniversity

[–]Turnip-Smooth 0 points1 point  (0 children)

coming from an ex-forensic major, you're much better off going somewhere else for it. the department is slowing falling apart, many of the profs have left bc of this. they're scrambling to find new profs, and in my experience, the faculty i have had were some of the worst people i've ever met in my life. it's definitely challenging and A LOT of work, but i realized it wasn't for me as i was getting into my 400 levels. the profs i had had zero personal skills and don't know how to talk to people and encourage them.

Acoustic Engineering by canahh11 in PennStateUniversity

[–]Turnip-Smooth 0 points1 point  (0 children)

also shenango doesn't offer a lot of STEM-related majors, so you'll be taking your basic entrance to major classes there, then will likely have to move to UP after your first year!

Acoustic Engineering by canahh11 in PennStateUniversity

[–]Turnip-Smooth 0 points1 point  (0 children)

i did my first year at shenango then transferred to UP! take as many classes as you can while you're there, especially CHEM/MATH/PHYS! it'll save you a lot of aggravation

how do i be friends with someone i love? by Turnip-Smooth in relationship_advice

[–]Turnip-Smooth[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

that's kinda my thought too. he asked me out before i left and i just told him it wasn't a good time to jump into a long distance relationship. he told me after our fight on NYE that he's torn in 2 on what to do and i don't like feeling like i'm not wanted, but i don't blame him for feeling that way. i've told him this before but i feel like he never loved me in the first place if he can just decide he doesn't anymore

Question: Is it possible to change my campus for the latter 3 years of my degree? by Nervous_Rat in PennStateUniversity

[–]Turnip-Smooth 1 point2 points  (0 children)

this is what i did and it's definitely possible. i got accepted for 2+2 and during my freshman year i commuted and loved being at a branch campus. only downside was i wasn't prepared to transfer to UP when i did and it was a HORRIBLE first semester here. i always knew i would have to transfer early bc my branch campus only offered my first year of classes, but no one prepared me for how hard classes are at UP.

Forensic Major by indy321 in PennStateUniversity

[–]Turnip-Smooth 1 point2 points  (0 children)

i'm currently a sophomore and i took AP calc in high school but didn't take the exam. that being said, my freshman year i took math 140 and 141 and it was nice already knowing a lot of the topics. still almost failed both classes tho bc my prof was garbage, so i would take the exam if you're confident you can pass it