MLT (ASCP) study guide

MLT (ASCP), administered by American Society for Clinical Pathology, Board of Certification (ASCP BOC), is mapped here as 8 topic areas; the heaviest are Chemistry (22%), Hematology (22%) and Blood Banking (17%).

About this course: A domain-weighted drill built natively on the ASCP seven-area blueprint: worked lab calculations walked step by step, transfusion-safety directions locked in, and practice across the seven content areas.

MLT (ASCP) at a glance

Questions

100

Time allowed

150 minutes (2 hours 30 minutes)

Passing standard

Minimum passing SCALED score = 400 (ASCP criterion-referenced CAT scale, ~100-999)

Format

Computer Adaptive Testing (CAT) at Pearson VUE: each answer sets the difficulty of the next (targets ~50% correct probability)

Standard / edition

Current ASCP BOC MLT content guideline (stable exam; no 2026 blueprint overhaul)

Administered by

American Society for Clinical Pathology, Board of Certification (ASCP BOC)

Source: Current ASCP BOC MLT content guideline (stable exam; no 2026 blueprint overhaul), American Society for Clinical Pathology, Board of Certification (ASCP BOC). Confirm current details with the exam owner before you book.

Topic areas and weights

Study plan in this course

1. The Bench Briefing: Your MLT Exam — 5 cards · free
2. The Chemistry Bench: Electrolytes, Enzymes & Calculations — 10 cards · free
3. The Hematology Bench: Indices, Morphology & Coagulation — 10 cards · full course
4. The Blood Bank: Typing, Antiglobulin & Transfusion Safety — 9 cards · full course
5. The Micro Bench: Gram Stain, ID Trees & Susceptibility — 9 cards · full course
6. The Serology Bench: Antibodies, Hypersensitivity & Markers — 7 cards · full course
7. The UA Bench: Sediment, Casts & Body Fluids — 6 cards · full course
8. The QC Bench: Quality Control, Order of Draw & Safety — 6 cards · full course

Exam Orientation

Exam Orientation is one of the 8 areas in this course's MLT (ASCP) blueprint. The course teaches it in 1 study unit: The Bench Briefing: Your MLT Exam.

Official references for Exam Orientation

• ASCP BOC content guideline / About the Examination
• ASCP BOC scoring description
• ASCP BOC scoring description + mlsiacademy MLT-ASCP-scoring
• ASCP BOC MLT Content Guideline
• medicaltechnologyschools.com 'ASCP vs. AMT'
• ASCP MLT content guideline revised July: 2023

In the app this area comes with 5 memory cards and 5 module-quiz questions and is part of the free starting modules.

Chemistry

Chemistry carries 22% of the MLT (ASCP) blueprint used in this course, the largest of its 7 weighted areas. The course teaches it in 1 study unit: The Chemistry Bench: Electrolytes, Enzymes & Calculations.

Official references for Chemistry

• NBME Laboratory Reference Values
• StatPearls 'Biochemistry, Anion Gap'
• Standard clinical chemistry
• Standard analytical/clinical chemistry
• ADA laboratory recommendations 2023, doi:10.2337/dci23-0036

In the app this area comes with 10 memory cards and 22 module-quiz questions and is part of the free starting modules.

Hematology

Hematology carries 22% of the MLT (ASCP) blueprint used in this course, the second-largest of its 7 weighted areas. The course teaches it in 1 study unit: The Hematology Bench: Indices, Morphology & Coagulation.

Official references for Hematology

• NCBI Clinical Methods 'Red Cell Indices'
• NCBI Clinical Methods
• Standard hematology
• htct.com.br reticulocyte reference ranges
• Standard hematology laboratory methods
• ASH Blood 'The 2016 revision to the WHO classification of myeloid neoplasms and acute leukemia'
• Standard hematology atlas references
• htct.com.br
• Standard hemostasis references
• Sysmex XN-1000 manufacturer brochure: separately enumerated NRBC and WBC
• WHO fifth-edition classification of myeloid and histiocytic/dendritic neoplasms

In the app this area comes with 10 memory cards and 22 module-quiz questions in the full course.

Blood Banking

Blood Banking carries 17% of the MLT (ASCP) blueprint used in this course, the third-largest of its 7 weighted areas. The course teaches it in 1 study unit: The Blood Bank: Typing, Antiglobulin & Transfusion Safety.

Official references for Blood Banking

• StatPearls 'ABO Typing Discrepancies'
• AABB Technical Manual
• Canadian Blood Services Pre-transfusion testing: 2020-07-13

In the app this area comes with 9 memory cards and 17 module-quiz questions in the full course.

Microbiology

Microbiology carries 17% of the MLT (ASCP) blueprint used in this course, the 4th-largest of its 7 weighted areas. The course teaches it in 1 study unit: The Micro Bench: Gram Stain, ID Trees & Susceptibility.

Official references for Microbiology

• Standard clinical microbiology
• ASM Clinical Microbiology Reviews
• StatPearls 'MacConkey Medium'
• ASM
• LibreTexts 'Kirby-Bauer'
• WHO laboratory methods manual 1997: 9241544953

In the app this area comes with 9 memory cards and 17 module-quiz questions in the full course.

Immunology

Immunology carries 7% of the MLT (ASCP) blueprint used in this course, the 6th-largest of its 7 weighted areas. The course teaches it in 1 study unit: The Serology Bench: Antibodies, Hypersensitivity & Markers.

Official references for Immunology

• StatPearls 'Physiology, Antibody'
• StatPearls
• Standard immunology
• NCBI ANA/SLE literature
• Wiley 'HBsAg/anti-HBc IgM in acute HBV'
• Standard clinical immunology
• CDC serology guidance and seroconversion definition
• CDC: Clinical Testing and Diagnosis for Hepatitis B

In the app this area comes with 7 memory cards and 7 module-quiz questions in the full course.

Urinalysis & Body Fluids

Urinalysis & Body Fluids carries 7% of the MLT (ASCP) blueprint used in this course, the 7th-largest of its 7 weighted areas. The course teaches it in 1 study unit: The UA Bench: Sediment, Casts & Body Fluids.

Official references for Urinalysis & Body Fluids

• ScienceDirect urine specific gravity
• Medscape Urinalysis
• NCBI Clinical Methods 'Urinalysis'
• NCBI Clinical Methods
• StatPearls 'Urinary Crystals'
• Standard clinical laboratory references
• ICS/NCCP pleural-effusion guideline 2024: PMC11093145

In the app this area comes with 6 memory cards and 7 module-quiz questions in the full course.

Laboratory Operations

Laboratory Operations carries 8% of the MLT (ASCP) blueprint used in this course, the 5th-largest of its 7 weighted areas. It spans 1 concept. The course teaches it in 1 study unit: The QC Bench: Quality Control, Order of Draw & Safety.

What Laboratory Operations covers

• Which Westgard rule only WARNS, and which REJECT? — Westgard QC, rule originator: Westgard Rules and Multirules

Official references for Laboratory Operations

• Standard laboratory QC
• WHO 'Levey-Jennings control charts and Westgard rules'
• westgard.com Westgard Rules
• CLSI order-of-draw convention
• Standard laboratory safety/regulatory references
• Westgard QC, rule originator: Westgard Rules and Multirules
• ASCP MLT content guideline July: 2023

In the app this area comes with 6 memory cards and 8 module-quiz questions in the full course.

Official references

• ASCP BOC content guideline / About the Examination
• ASCP BOC scoring description
• ASCP BOC scoring description + mlsiacademy MLT-ASCP-scoring
• ASCP BOC MLT Content Guideline
• ASCP MLT content guideline revised July: 2023
• ASCP BOC About the Examination
• WHO fifth-edition classification of myeloid and histiocytic/dendritic neoplasms
• medicaltechnologyschools.com 'ASCP vs. AMT'
• NBME Laboratory Reference Values
• StatPearls 'Biochemistry, Anion Gap'
• Standard clinical chemistry
• Standard analytical/clinical chemistry
• ADA laboratory recommendations 2023, doi:10.2337/dci23-0036
• NCBI Clinical Methods 'Red Cell Indices'
• NCBI Clinical Methods
• Standard hematology