Accelerated Program Leveraging Satellite Network Designed to Address National Gap in Licensed Cytologists with Reduced Tuition Rates for Fall 2026 Enrollees
Two new institutions have joined Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences’ growing network of Satellite Extension Sites to support the hybrid track of its accelerated Master of Science degree in Cytotechnology and Molecular Cytology. The University of Wisconsin-Madison in Madison, Wisconsin and Health First Holmes Regional Medical Center in Melbourne, Florida now offers the ACPHS 16-month accelerated program.
As a satellite partner, they will provide the 58-credit program’s laboratory portions while students learn in real-time alongside their peers at the Albany campus via access to online synchronous ACPHS lectures and additional learning activities. In addition, the program is currently offering a reduced per credit hour tuition rate for Fall 2026 enrollment.
“We were monitoring a growing gap in the cytology field and realized we could offer our high-quality program leveraging satellite partners to reach more people,” said ACPHS Program Director, Jenna LeBlanc. “By obtaining a master’s degree in cytotechnology and molecular cytology, students can acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to assist the cytopathology team in making specific diagnoses that aid in the development of appropriate treatment plans for patients dealing with infections, autoimmune diseases, or cancer.”
Graduates of the program boast a 100% American Society for Clinical Pathology exam pass rate and 100% job placement. Students can also apply what they are learning in the classroom and lab to a real-world environment through a broad range of 40 clinical rotation sites and a capstone project in the final semester.
University of Wisconsin-Madison in Madison, Wisconsin
The ACPHS program is offered through the Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene (WSLH), the state’s public, environmental and occupational health laboratory. As part of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and as an auxiliary unit reporting to the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, the WSLH is committed to exploring new ideas which benefit the state, the nation and the world. Through analytical services, research and development, public health programs, laboratory proficiency testing, and training and education of students and professionals, the WSLH’s work is vital to Wisconsin’s and the nation’s public and environmental health.
“The mid-west is enduring an acute shortage of CLS and Cytology professionals, so we were very excited to begin working with Jenna and all the great faculty at ACPHS to facilitate cytology education at our lab,” said Joshua Faulkes SCT(ASCP), Cytology Services Manager, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.
Health First Holmes Regional Medical Center in Melbourne, Florida
Home to the only Pediatric ER in Brevard County, Florida, the hospital features 550 beds and more than 500 highly skilled physicians. As the region’s premier tertiary referral hospital, Holmes Regional Medical Center offers patients life-saving technology at every turn. The Medical Center encompasses the Heart Center at Holmes Regional Medical Center, 24/7 trauma care and rapid patient transport via First Flight, Health First’s air ambulance, the Birth Suites Mother/Baby Unit offers Brevard’s first Level II Neonatal ICU, and state-of-the-art robotics-assisted surgery for Urology, Prostate, and Gynecological conditions, advanced anterior hip replacement and reverse shoulder surgeries, as well as a Primary Stroke Center including Interventional Neuro-Radiology procedures for advanced stroke treatment.
For more information, visit the ACPHS Cytotechnology and Molecular Cytology program page.
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