---
title: "Histotechnologist"
description: "Apply knowledge of health and disease causes to evaluate new laboratory techniques and procedures to examine tissue samples. Process and prepare…"
canonical: "https://nuecareer.com/careers/histotechnologist"
last-updated: "2026-08-23T15:56:39.581Z"
---

# Histotechnologist

**Category:** Healthcare Practitioners and Technical · **SOC code:** 29-2011 · **O\*NET-SOC code:** 29-2011.04

Apply knowledge of health and disease causes to evaluate new laboratory techniques and procedures to examine tissue samples. Process and prepare histological slides from tissue sections for microscopic examination and diagnosis by pathologists. May solve technical or instrument problems or assist with research studies.

Also advertised as: Clinical Lab Manager (Clinical Laboratory Manager); Histology Lab Manager (Histology Laboratory Manager); Histology Specialist; Histology Technologist; Histotechnologist.

## At a glance

- **Median annual wage:** $62,930 (BLS OEWS, May 2025)
- **Median hourly wage:** $30.26/hr
- **Wage range (10th–90th percentile):** $38,910 to $100,990, with the middle half between $47,650 and $81,450
- **Total US employment:** 332,940
- **Typical entry education:** Bachelor's
- **Preparation required:** Medium preparation — O\*NET rates this "Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed"
- **Projected growth:** +1.7% over 2024–2034 (BLS EP, 2024–2034)
- **Annual job openings:** 22,600 openings a year
- **AI-resilience score:** 30/100 — a NueCareer heuristic over O\*NET work activities and context, not a BLS or O\*NET figure

## Pay

National wage distribution, BLS OEWS, May 2025, across 332,940 US jobs.

| Percentile | Annual wage |
| --- | --- |
| 10th | $38,910 |
| 25th | $47,650 |
| 50th (median) | $62,930 |
| 75th | $81,450 |
| 90th | $100,990 |
| Mean (average) | $67,350 |

### Pay by state

The 15 highest-paying states, by median annual wage. The cost-of-living-adjusted column divides the state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity, so the columns answer different questions: the first is what the job pays there, the second is what that pay buys there.

| State | Median annual wage | Cost-of-living adjusted | Employment |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| NY | $97,280 | $90,140 | 16,460 |
| OR | $83,010 | $80,311 | 2,660 |
| NH | $81,020 | $77,780 | 800 |
| MA | $79,120 | $74,813 | 10,850 |
| VT | $78,680 | $80,320 | 460 |
| DC | $76,560 | $69,663 | 960 |
| CA | $76,010 | $68,651 | 29,210 |
| RI | $75,780 | $74,091 | 1,060 |
| MN | $74,440 | $75,481 | 7,190 |
| WA | $72,760 | $67,992 | 7,430 |
| IL | $71,950 | $71,980 | 10,330 |
| CO | $70,050 | $67,975 | 5,000 |
| ME | $68,690 | $70,778 | 1,250 |
| DE | $68,630 | $68,762 | 690 |
| NJ | $68,450 | $62,911 | 7,000 |

39 more states with published wage data are omitted here. The full table for all 54 states is at https://nuecareer.com/careers/histotechnologist/salary-by-state, or as JSON at https://nuecareer.com/api/v1/careers/histotechnologist.

## Outlook

BLS projects employment to move from 351,200 in the 2024–2034 base year to 357,200 by the end of the cycle — a gain of 6,000 jobs, or +1.7%. Slower than average: 1.7% against 3.1% projected for all occupations over the same cycle. About 22,600 openings a year are expected on average, counting openings from growth as well as from workers leaving the occupation permanently. Source: BLS EP, 2024–2034.

## How to get in

- **Typical entry education:** Bachelor's degree (BLS Employment Projections).
- **Preparation level:** Medium preparation — O\*NET's preparation band for this occupation is "Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed".
- **Related work experience typically required:** None.
- **Typical on-the-job training:** None.

### Education people in this job actually hold

O\*NET surveys incumbents, so this distribution describes who is in the job today and can differ from the BLS entry requirement above.

| Education level | Share of workers |
| --- | --- |
| Bachelor's Degree | 42.9% |
| Associate's Degree (or other 2-year degree) | 19.1% |
| Post-Secondary Certificate | 14.3% |
| Master's Degree | 9.5% |
| High School Diploma | 4.8% |
| Some College Courses | 4.8% |

## What the work involves

- Embed tissue specimens into paraffin wax blocks, or infiltrate tissue specimens with wax.
- Cut sections of body tissues for microscopic examination, using microtomes.
- Stain tissue specimens with dyes or other chemicals to make cell details visible under microscopes.
- Compile materials for distribution to pathologists, such as surgical working drafts, requisitions, and slides.
- Compile and maintain records of preventive maintenance and instrument performance checks according to schedule and regulations.
- Operate computerized laboratory equipment to dehydrate, decalcify, or microincinerate tissue samples.
- Prepare substances, such as reagents and dilution, and stains for histological specimens according to protocols.
- Resolve problems with laboratory equipment and instruments, such as microscopes, mass spectrometers, microtomes, immunostainers, tissue processors, embedding centers, and water baths.

## Skills and knowledge

### Essential skills

- Reading Comprehension — importance 3.5 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Critical Thinking — importance 3.4 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Monitoring — importance 3.4 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Active Listening — importance 3.3 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Speaking — importance 3.3 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Active Learning — importance 3.3 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Writing — importance 3.1 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Science — importance 3.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

### Transferable skills

These are the skills that carry into other occupations, and they drive the related-occupation and career-change rankings on this site.

- Judgment and Decision Making — importance 3.4 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Complex Problem Solving — importance 3.3 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Operations Monitoring — importance 3.3 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Time Management — importance 3.1 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Coordination — importance 3.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Social Perceptiveness — importance 2.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Quality Control Analysis — importance 2.8 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Systems Evaluation — importance 2.8 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

### Knowledge areas

- Biology — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Production and Processing — importance 3.5 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Chemistry — importance 3.5 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Customer and Personal Service — importance 3.4 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- English Language — importance 3.2 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Administrative — importance 3.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

### Abilities

- Near Vision — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Written Comprehension — importance 3.8 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Oral Comprehension — importance 3.5 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Arm-Hand Steadiness — importance 3.5 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Oral Expression — importance 3.4 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Written Expression — importance 3.4 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

## Who it suits

O\*NET rates every occupation on the six Holland (RIASEC) interest areas, on a 1–7 scale. This occupation's strongest areas are Investigative (I), Realistic (R), Conventional (C).

| Interest area | Score (1–7) |
| --- | --- |
| I — Investigative | 6.56 |
| R — Realistic | 5.72 |
| C — Conventional | 5.16 |
| S — Social | 2.89 |
| A — Artistic | 1.31 |
| E — Enterprising | 1.05 |

### Personality fit

These scores are **derived by NueCareer**, not published by any government agency: they are cosine similarities between a personality type's trait profile and this occupation's O\*NET interest and work-style ratings, expressed 0–100. Treat them as a starting point for exploration, not as evidence that a type belongs in a job.

| Type | Fit score (0–100) |
| --- | --- |
| ISTJ | 87.1 |
| ISTP | 78.1 |
| INTJ | 77.6 |
| ISFJ | 70.1 |
| ESTJ | 63.2 |

Best-fitting types: ISTJ. The bank also flags this occupation as introvert-friendly, meaning O\*NET work-context ratings put it low on public contact and performing for the public.

## Related occupations

O\*NET's primary related occupations, in its own ranked order.

- [Histology Technician](https://nuecareer.com/careers/histology-technician) — median $62,930
- [Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technician](https://nuecareer.com/careers/medical-and-clinical-laboratory-technician) — median $62,930
- [Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technologist](https://nuecareer.com/careers/medical-and-clinical-laboratory-technologist) — median $62,930
- [Cytogenetic Technologist](https://nuecareer.com/careers/cytogenetic-technologist) — median $62,930
- [Cytotechnologist](https://nuecareer.com/careers/cytotechnologist) — median $62,930
- [Microbiologist](https://nuecareer.com/careers/microbiologist) — median $87,990
- [Phlebotomist](https://nuecareer.com/careers/phlebotomist) — median $45,230
- [Cardiovascular Technologist and Technician](https://nuecareer.com/careers/cardiovascular-technologist-and-technician) — median $74,310
- [Biological Technician](https://nuecareer.com/careers/biological-technician) — median $57,510
- [Neurodiagnostic Technologist](https://nuecareer.com/careers/neurodiagnostic-technologist) — median $50,290

## Sources

- **O\*NET** — O\*NET 30.3 Database, May 2026. https://www.onetcenter.org/database.html
- **BLS OEWS** — BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. https://www.bls.gov/oes/
- **BLS EP** — BLS Employment Projections, Table 1.2, 2024–2034. https://www.bls.gov/emp/
- **BLS OOH** — BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2024–2034 edition. https://www.bls.gov/ooh/
- **BEA RPP** — BEA Regional Price Parities by State, 2024. https://www.bea.gov/data/prices-inflation/regional-price-parities-state-and-metro-area

---

This bank includes information from the O\*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). O\*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. NueCareer has transformed the data by joining it to BLS wage and projection data and deriving facet, personality-fit and AI-resilience scores. BLS and BEA data are public domain (17 U.S.C. §105).

O\*NET content is used under [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). How these figures are sourced and derived: https://nuecareer.com/careers/methodology

JSON representation of this page: https://nuecareer.com/api/v1/careers/histotechnologist