Histopathology Technician

Who May Apply: US Citizens In order to qualify, you must meet the experience requirements described below. Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community; student; social). You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Your resume must clearly describe your relevant experience; if qualifying based on education, your transcripts will be required as part of your application. Additional information about transcripts is in this document.

Specialized Experience: One year of specialized experience which includes hard-resin embedding, cutting, chemically treating and staining tissue; operating and calibrating electron microscopy systems; managing file inputs and outputs including daily imaging; and conducting quality control procedures on histopathology equipment.. This definition of specialized experience is typical of work performed at the next lower grade/level position in the federal service (GS-08).

Some federal jobs allow you to substitute your education for the required experience in order to qualify. For this job, you must meet the qualification requirement using experience alone--no substitution of education for experience is permitted. Preferred but not required: A U.S. Certified Histotechnician (HT) or Histotechnology (HTL) through the American Society of Clinical Pathology (ASCP) Board of Registry or comparable certification.

Perform special processing procedures such as myocardial biopsy processing, special and immunoperoxidase stains, bone and teeth decalcification, frozen section tissue preparation and brain/nerve tissue processing.,Independently select stain based on an understanding of the underlying chemical reactions of the stains on certain tissues or cells and their value in the establishment of the correct results for the diagnostic, didactic, and research purposes.,Stain slides using variety of stains such as Periodic Acid Schiffs and Leder Stains requiring many complex and delicate procedures and careful control of the staining reaction to achieve precise staining results.,Select the proper controls to assure correct results of the stain or reaction, review staining quality for acceptability, and forward complete slide(s) to the pathologist.,Adapt technical procedures for a number of different variables in the process of fixing and staining tissue.,Conduct quality control procedures on equipment, reagents, and maintain proper records for quality control reports. Accept and reject slides on basis of proper staining by assessing the characteristics and quality of the stained material.