Academic Focus

MLS Student working in a lab

We're the oldest baccalaureate medical laboratory educational program in the U.S.

The University of Minnesota’s Medical Laboratory Sciences program is the oldest baccalaureate medical laboratory educational program in the United States, having begun in 1922 with the first student graduating in 1923.

Our academic focus teaches students to analyze blood and body fluids such as bone marrow, joint fluids and tissue samples, identify infectious organisms, monitor patients’ overall health and treatment, and detect disease.