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Laboratory Technician Professional Programme
This programme can be taken from anywhere in New Zealand with our distance delivery which participants say is more personal than much in-person delivery.
Credits
120
Level
6

People successfully completing this programme are awarded the New Zealand Diploma of Applied Science (Level 6).

This programme has three sets of modules.  All modules are Level 

 

Set 1 (take all)

  • SCI6014 Using Specialised Literature    20 credits
  • SCI6004 Importance of Laboratory Results    15 credits
  • SCI6005 Laboratory Career Development    10 credits
  • SCI6006 Laboratory Safety Judgements    15 credits

 

Set 2 (take one)

  • SCI6001 Quality Systems Introduction    20 credits
  • SCI6007 Laboratory Quality Improvement    20 credits

                 (Most people take SCI6001.  SCI6007 is for people at laboratories with less fully developed quality systems.)

Set 3 (take two)

  • SCI6008 Microbiology Tests and Assays I    20 credits
  • SCI6009 Microbiology Tests and Assays II    20 credits
  • SCI6010 Chemical Tests and Assays I    20 credits
  • SCI6011 Chemical Tests and Assays II    20 credits
  • MET6012 Standards Traceability and Measurement Uncertainty I    20 credits
  • MET6013 Standards Traceability and Measurement Uncertainty II    20 credits

 

Requirements for endorsements (You can also take programme without a specific endorsement.)

  • SCI6008 and SCI6009 required for an endorsement in microbiology
  • SCI6010 and SCI6011 required for an endorsement in chemistry
  • SCI6012 and SCI6013 required for an endorsement in metrology

 

Who for
primarily for people who are already employed in a professional, science laboratory and already have a range of key basic skills who want to increase the sophistication of their understanding of the importance and basis of laboratory work
Fees

There are three fee statuses.  Click here for details.FeeTypes

NZ domestic: Currently no fees due to generous support through the Tertiary Education Commission.  Without that support, the fee would be over $7200.

International: $30,100

Global: Click here for details.

Indicative content

(Varies with electives chosen)

  • Keeping flexibility while not being aimless
  • Referees
  • Anatomy of original research articles
  • Biological safety
  • Biological safety cabinets
  • Career planning
  • Centrifuge
  • Characteristics of groups of microbes
  • Chemical hygiene plan
  • Chemical safety
  • Chemical spill response
  • Chemical storage and labeling
  • Chromatography
  • Client needs and expectations
  • Composition of media
  • Compressed gas cylinder safety
  • Concentration standards
  • Consequences of laboratory mistakes
  • Consultation and interpretation by laboratories
  • Content of Certificate of Analysis
  • Covering letter crafting
  • Cryogenic safety
  • CV crafting
  • Different types of scientific literature
  • Dilemmas
  • Distillation
  • Electrical safety
  • Electrophoresis
  • Emergency response procedures
  • Emergency shower and eyewash stations
  • Employment contracts
  • Ethical aspects
  • Extraction
  • Eye and face protection
  • Facilities requirements of ISO 17025
  • Filtration
  • Finding opportunities
  • Fire safety
  • First aid in laboratories
  • General requirements of ISO 17025
  • Gold standard methods
  • Hazard communication
  • Hazardous materials handling
  • Hazardous materials transportation
  • Hazardous waste disposal
  • How journal articles get published
  • Human requirements of ISO 17025
  • Importance of quality systems of ISO 17025
  • Interviewing
  • Interviewing
  • ISO 17025 topics
  • Laboratory access control
  • Laboratory decommissioning
  • Laboratory equipment safety
  • Laboratory ergonomics
  • Laboratory fume hoods
  • Laboratory hazard assessment
  • Laboratory housekeeping
  • Laboratory incident reporting
  • Laboratory inspection and auditing
  • Laboratory safety committees
  • Laboratory safety culture
  • Laboratory safety equipment
  • Laboratory safety signs and labels
  • Laboratory safety training
  • Laboratory security
  • Laboratory security policies
  • Laboratory ventilation
  • Laboratory waste management
  • Laser safety
  • Legal aspects
  • Microscope types
  • Microscopy concepts
  • MPN
  • Nanomaterial safety
  • Overview of getting a science job
  • Personal protective equipment (PPE)
  • Plate counts
  • Preparing samples for microscopy
  • Process requirements of ISO 17025
  • Professional expectations
  • Questions for which ready-made answers should be planned
  • Radiation safety
  • Radioactive material safety
  • Resource requirements of ISO 17025
  • Safety data sheets (SDS)
  • Searching the specialised literature
  • Specialist literature other than journal articles
  • Spectrophotometry
  • Standards
  • Strategy
  • Structural requirements of ISO 17025
  • Structure of ISO17025
  • Taking care of yourself
  • Taxonomy
  • Terminology for quality systems
  • Titration
  • Types of journal articles
  • Types of media
  • Using general literature where appropriate
  • Using materials not in English
  • Ways of killing microbes
  • What results are used for
  • Who depends on results
Learning outcome(s)

People successfully completing this component will be able to…

  • locate, appropriately select and analyse scientific information
  • make appropriate judgement s about laboratory safety scenarios
  • continue development as a laboratory professional
  • perform authentic laboratory work in compliance with laboratory quality measures
  • apply understanding of the operating principles and significance of results of selected analyses to solve, and problems, make decisions and consider alternative approaches.
Assessment types

For an explanation about the nature of the following assessments please click here.

  • assignment
  • verbal follow-up
  • attestation
Entry requirements
  • demonstration of understanding of the programme and general suitability for the study through Real World Education's pre-entry process, and

  • recommendation of a Delivery Site willing to host the applicant for the parts of the programme requiring laboratory training, experience and practice, and

  • evidence of a range of professional laboratory skills at least typical of someone completing a year of professional laboratory work, and

  • for International participation, has a current IELTS (Academic) score of 6.0 or better with no less than 5.5 in writing and reading, and no less than 6.0 in speaking and listening (or evidence of equivalent English proficiency based on other NZQA approved tests)


 

Intakes

Code for intake: PRO6-4G        Start: 15-Apr-2024
Code for intake: PRO6-4J        Start: 13-May-2024
Code for intake: PRO6-4M        Start: 17-Jun-2024
Code for intake: PRO6-4P        Start: 15-Jul-2024
Code for intake: PRO6-4R        Start: 19-Aug-2024
Code for intake: PRO6-4T        Start: 16-Sep-2024
Code for intake: PRO6-4V        Start: 14-Oct-2024
Code for intake: PRO6-4Y        Start: 11-Nov-2024
Code for intake: PROF6-5C        Start: 27-Jan-2025
Code for intake: PROF6-5D        Start: 17-Feb-2025
Code for intake: PROF6-5F        Start: 17-Mar-2025
Code for intake: PROF6-5H        Start: 07-Apr-2025
Code for intake: PROF6-5J        Start: 12-May-2025
Code for intake: PROF6-5L        Start: 16-Jun-2025
Code for intake: PROF6-5N        Start: 21-Jul-2025
Code for intake: PROF6-5Q        Start: 18-Aug-2025
Code for intake: PROF6-5S        Start: 15-Sep-2025
Code for intake: PROF6-5U        Start: 13-Oct-2025
Code for intake: PROF6-5X        Start: 24-Nov-2025
 

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