Master of Science in Medical Laboratory Sciences (MSc. MLS)

Our Master of Science in Medical Laboratory Sciences is a professional degree designed to meet the needs of the Clinical Laboratory Scientist in an increasingly complex healthcare environment. This degree includes a clinical experience and research project. It features at least 4 semester credits of advanced, hands-on MLS studies at one of our nationwide affiliate clinical and research facilities. Areas of study include laboratory administration, clinical laboratory science education and medical laboratory practice in Medical Microbiology, Clinical Biochemistry, Hematology, Immunology and Molecular Biology.

Vision:

• The Master of Science in Medical Laboratory Sciences Program at the Gulf Medical University will be distinguished for:
• Clinical excellence and advancement of evidence informed Medical Laboratory Sciences practice.
• Scholarly achievements and professional recognition of students, faculty and clinical collaborators.
• Dedication to the health and well-being of the UAE community.

Mission:

The mission of the Master of Science in Medical Laboratory Sciences Program of Gulf Medical University is:

a) Fosters excellence through its dedication to Medical Laboratory Sciences, clinical skill proficiency, research and evidence-based practice, service & professional duty, and lifelong learning.
b) Fosters innovative education to progress the science of Medical Laboratory, to influence current and emerging health care practices and policies, and to advance the profession at national and international level.
c) Engage in community and university activities as representative of our teaching, research and professional functions that benefits the quality of health and life of all people.

• Emphasis on advanced laboratory skills
• Evidence-informed practice
• Hands-on training in state of the art laboratory/research facility
• Flexible study schedule for working professionals
• Curricular Concentration on Research projects and publication
• 360-degree clinical assessment and feedback.

Admission Criteria

• Applicants shall meet all admission criteria for entry into the higher education programs offered by the University, as laid down in the Standards (2011) published by the Commission for Academic Accreditation (CAA), Ministry of Education – Higher Education Affairs, UAE.
• A Bachelor’s degree in Medical Laboratory Sciences/Bachelor of Biomedical Sciences or equivalent from an accredited University in the UAE or equivalent one from outside the UAE.
• Distinct undergraduate performance of cumulative grade point average (CGPA) GPA of 3 on a 4-point scale, or equivalent grade (“B”).
• A CGPA less than 3.0 may be admitted conditionally provided that the student registers 6-9 credits hours in the first semester of his/her studies and obtains a “B” average or above.
• A Valid license to practice in Laboratory issued from MoH / DHA / HAAD is preferable.
• The Applicant must complete English proficiency requirement before admission.

Selection is based on interview with Admissions Committee.

Conditional Graduate Admission Read More

Required mandatory documents:

• Recognized baccalaureate degree and transcripts attested from the Ministry of Education, UAE
• Equivalency certificate for graduates from outside UAE
• Passport copy and Emirates ID Card (if UAE Resident- Family book)
• Valid English Proficiency Score sheet (EmSAT/IELTS/TOEFL etc.) or evidence of undergraduate medium of instruction
• Passport-size Photographs x 5
• Curriculum vitae
• Two Recommendation letters
• Statement of Purpose
• Relevant academic or professional experience certificates if any

By the end of the course the graduate of the Master of Medical Laboratory Sciences (MSc-MLS) program will be able to:

PLO1. Apply comprehensive and highly specialized knowledge in medical laboratory practice

PLO2. Provide medical laboratory services and interpret a full range of advanced laboratory tests using an evidence-based approach

PLO3. Apply principles in quality assurance and management in diagnostic laboratory.

PLO4. Conduct laboratory based research and critically evaluate the findings and its implications to advance medical laboratory sciences

PLO5. Demonstrate a satisfactory level of competence and assist in the management of patients in the context of medical laboratory services in highly complex health care systems.

PLO6. Abide by ethical practices for specialized medical laboratory services and ensure its compliance at practice site.

PLO7. Demonstrate highly developed and specialized interpersonal communication skills as a member of a team and as a leader for effective information exchange with patients, laboratory personnel, other health care professionals, and the public.

PLO8. Demonstrate self-assessment, self-directed learning, and manage change by training self and others in the profession.

Study Plan

The program is composed of four semesters.

First semester courses are composed of four common obligatory to all the students.

Second semester courses:
Two common obligatory: Research Methodology and Biostatistics courses.
Three elective courses: The students should choose only three courses from the list of the fifteen elective courses according to their area of interest.

Third semester:
Starting their research project and laboratory rotation course fields.

Forth semester:
Complete the laboratory rotation course with submitting and defending the thesis to the satisfaction of the thesis judging committee.
The thesis will be carried out independently by students under the guidance and supervision of faculty members.

Educational Methods for Medical Laboratory Professionals course.

 

 

YEAR I
Semester	Course Code	Pre-requisites	Course	Credit Hour/s	LH	PH
I	MLS-LQA 602	NIL	Laboratory Management and Quality Assurance	2	1	2
	MLS-CII 603	NIL	Clinical Immunology and Immunogenetics	2	1	2
	MLS-MBB 604	NIL	Molecular Biology and Bioinformatics	3	1	4
	MLS-ALS 605	NIL	Advanced Concepts in Medical Laboratory Sciences	4	3	2
Total				11
II	MS-RM 609	NIL	Research Methodology	2	1	2
	MS-BS 610	NIL	Biostatistics	2	1	2
	ELECTIVES *			9
Total				13
YEAR II
Semester	Course Code	Pre-requisites	Course	Credit Hour/s	LH	PH
III	MLS-LAR 611	All the courses in semester I and II	Laboratory Rotations	4	0	24
	MLS-THS 613		Thesis	2	0	10
IV	MLS-EML 612	NIL	Educational Methods for Medical Laboratory Professionals	1	0	2
	MLS-LAR 611	All the courses in semester I and II	Laboratory Rotations	1	0	6
	MLS-THS 613		Thesis	4	0	20
Total				36

 

*List of Elective courses:

 

Course Code	Pre-requisites	Course	Credit Hour/s	LH	PH
MLS-ISC 606	NIL	Instrumentation and  Special Areas in Clinical Chemistry	3	2	2
MLS-ACB 607	NIL	Advances in  Clinical Biochemistry	4	2	4
MLS-END 608	NIL	Endocrinology	2	1	2
MLS-ACH 606	NIL	Advances in Clinical Hematology	4	3	2
MLS-ADH 607	NIL	Advanced Hemostasis	2	1	2
MLS-ACI 608	NIL	Advanced Concepts in Immunohematology	3	2	2
MLS-ADM 606	NIL	Advanced Concepts in Diagnostic Microbiology	4	2	4
MLS-ACV 607	NIL	Advanced Clinical Virology	2	1	2
MLS-CPM 608	NIL	Clinical Parasitology and Mycology	3	2	2
MLS-MGM 606	NIL	Molecular Diagnostics in Genetic Diseases and Personalized Medicine	3	2	2
MLS-MID 607	NIL	Molecular Diagnosis of Infectious Diseases	3	2	2
MLS-MCO 608	NIL	Molecular Diagnostics in Clinical Oncology	3	2	2
MLS- SCI 606	NIL	Special Area in Clinical Immunology	3	2	2
MLS-TTI  607	NIL	Advanced Concepts in Tumor and Transplantation Immunology	3	2	2
MLS-IMA 608	NIL	Immune response to microbial infections and Allergic diseases	3	2	2

 

Course Description

Semester – 1

MLS-LQA 602: Laboratory Management and Quality Assurance

The course is on the different types of medical laboratories, management functions, in clinical laboratories, organization and supervision involving laboratory design & space utilization, steps in clinical laboratory workflow, work schedule and workload measurements, productivity. Emphasis on quality control in clinical laboratories, preventive maintenance and safety measures in quality control monitoring, budgeting consideration in clinical laboratory.

MLS-CII 603: Clinical Immunology and Immunogenetics

In this course, the clinical practice and science of immunodiagnostics has been integrated with methods of clinical immunology laboratory testing. Students will be trained in the use and interpretation of immunology tests utilizing the case study approach. Actual cases and published case studies will be reviewed, analyzed and presented. Case records will be reviewed from first contact, through the differential diagnostic process, to final diagnosis, disposition and current follow-up.

MLS-MBB 604: Molecular Biology and Bioinformatics

This course covers the biochemical mechanisms that control the maintenance and expression of genes. It also contains an introduction to the application of computational methods to biological data analysis.  It provides students with advanced molecular biology techniques and the application and value of these techniques in the investigation of diseases.

MLS-ALS 605: Advanced Concepts in Medical Laboratory Sciences

The course covers the advances in medical laboratory science. The course introduces the student to advanced concepts and principles in medical laboratory science including the hematology, microbiology, clinical biochemistry changing and pathogenicity related to these disorders with major emphasis on the consequent diagnostic and prognostic approaches in medical laboratories.

Semester – 2

MS-RM 609: Research Methodology

The course focuses on the principles of research and the ethical and legal principles pertaining to the research. Opportunities will be provided to develop an inquisitive attitude on the part of the trainee by active participation in clinical or laboratory research, research seminars and presentations.

MS-BS 610: Biostatistics

This course will equip the student with advanced knowledge in the application of descriptive and inferential statistics in biomedical research. The focus will be on numerical computation and interpretation of outcome from a given data set. This course will help students to develop advanced skills in analyzing and interpreting data from Health and Allied Health settings through classroom demonstrations and ‘hands on’ experience with MS Excel for data management and statistical analysis software such as Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) for analysis. This course will give focus to communicating complex statistical information effectively.

MLS-ISC 606: Instrumentation and Special Areas in Clinical Chemistry

The course will introduce the student to the principles and procedures of common tests performed in Clinical Chemistry.  Advance clinical chemistry laboratory techniques and instrumentations for estimation of different types of analytes. The methodology and clinical correlations will be discussed to highlight the physiological basis, the principle, procedure for the test and the clinical significance of the test results including quality control and normal value. This course will also cover special topics in clinical chemistry including inborn errors of metabolism and therapeutic drug monitoring.

MLS-ACB 607: Advances in Clinical Biochemistry

The course will provide the students with the updates on additional core areas of clinical chemistry as well as organ assessment biochemistry and in-depth knowledge of core areas of the topics covered, and in depth understanding of new procedures and methodologies, the skills to critically assess efficient utilization of laboratory services and appropriate laboratory investigations for given clinical conditions and correlate test results with patient conditions. The clinical significance of diagnostic testing and analytical methods employed to assess the following are also covered: purine metabolism, water and electrolyte balance, acid/base homeostasis, tumour markers, body fluid and trace elements analysis.

MLS-END 608: Endocrinology

This module will provide the students with up to date knowledge of selected metabolic and endocrine disorders including the mechanisms of control and action, the recent advances in biochemical investigations and their interpretation in conjunction with clinical information and then discusses methods for measuring hormones.

MLS-ACH 606: Advances in Clinical Hematology

The course will cover the advanced techniques used for diagnosis of different red blood cell disorders including inherited and acquired types of anemia. The course will also cover neoplastic white blood disorders with emphasis on the advanced methods for the diagnosis and monitoring.

MLS- ADH 607:  Advanced Hemostasis

This course will cover all aspects of Clinical and Laboratory Hemostasis and thrombosis theory and procedures. The study and performance of tests related to the enumeration and identification of the cellular elements especially platelets and plasma proteins which focuses on diagnosing and monitoring bleeding abnormalities, clotting abnormalities, and platelet disorders and miscellaneous other coagulation testing and associates hemostatic dysfunction with clinical disease.

MLS-ACI 608: Advanced Concepts in Immunohematology

The course deals with the procedures of collecting, handling, storage of blood and blood components. The course also includes the study of the red cells antigen-antibody systems, antibody screening , identification, hemolytic disease of the newborn, neonatal and obstetrical transfusion practice, compatibility testing of blood and immunopathologic conditions, blood donor requirements, blood components preparation and therapy.

MLS-ADM 606: Advanced Concepts in Diagnostic Microbiology

This course is designed to provide the graduate students with current advanced topics in clinical microbiology. This rigorous course includes many medically important etiological bacterial agents responsible for infectious diseases and a brief clinical description, clinical applications and advances in the diagnostic methods are emphasized. It provides students with practical laboratory skills to allow accurate identification of the more commonly encountered microbial agents of infection.

MLS-ACV 607: Advanced Clinical Virology

This course is a comprehensive presentation of the classification, pathophysiology, diagnostic, epidemiology, prevention and control of viruses. It is designed provide postgraduate students further knowledge on the description infectious and clinical aspects of diverse viruses, with emphasis on the properties of viruses of medical importance in humans and the diseases they cause.

MLS-CPM 608:  Clinical Parasitology and Mycology

This course designed to provide students with a comprehensive understanding of parasitic infections of humans. The course will cover the biology of the parasites, life cycles, epidemiology, clinical features, and advanced laboratory diagnosis of human parasitic infections. In this course students will also learn about the fungi (molds and yeasts) of medical importance and the disease they cause. The classification, structure physiology, and culture characteristic of fungi will be discussed. Students will gain practice in the laboratory diagnosis of human parasitic and fungal infections.

MLS-MID 607: Molecular Diagnosis of Infectious Diseases

The course will cover the molecular basis and analysis of infectious diseases including viruses, bacteria, bloodstream and fungal infections. The course also provides an insight into how molecular studies can be employed to further medical research and aid in the development of novel treatments and therapeutics.

MLS-MCO 608: Molecular Diagnostics in Clinical Oncology

The course has been designed to provide an understanding of cancer biology and its diagnosis using advanced molecular techniques. The main key concepts that are covered in this course are hallmarks properties of cancer, common molecular diagnostic techniques in cancer, molecular markers for testing in solid tumors and molecular diagnostics in hematological malignancies.

MLS-MGM 606: Molecular diagnostics in Genetic Diseases and personalized medicine

The course is designed to provide students with advanced knowledge on the molecular basis of human genetic diseases, as well as their inheritance patterns. It focuses on methods employed for deriving disease genes and covers current strategies in diagnosis and screening of genetic diseases, risk assessment and genetic counseling.

This course will also cover special topics in Molecular Medicine including personalized medicine, DNA fingerprinting, gene therapy and quality assurance and quality control in the molecular laboratory.

MLS- SCI 606: Special Area in Clinical Immunology

This course helps the students in understanding the immune mechanisms of autoimmune disorders and concepts behind the immunodeficiency with working knowledge and diagnostic procedures associated with recent advanced techniques for diagnosis and monitoring of these immune disorders.

MLS-TTI 607: Advanced Concepts in Tumor and transplantation Immunology

The course is designed so that the students with the understanding of mechanism underlying cancer and tumour immunology, diagnosis and prognosis of different types of cancer by using advanced immunological techniques and immunomodulation. The course also covers the immune mechanisms associated with allograft rejection. The course emphasizes the diagnostic methods used to assay procedures for tissue typing, diagnosis and monitoring of transplant rejection.

MLS-IMA 608: Immune response to microbial infections & Allergic diseases

This course addresses the adaptive immune response to various microbial infectious diseases and immunoprophylaxis. The course also covers the technology platforms used in laboratory diagnosis of different microbial infectious agents based on different immunological techniques. This course is also designed to provide the students with a working knowledge and immune mechanisms of various allergic diseases and the diagnostic procedures associated with advanced immunological methods for diagnosis and monitoring.

Semester – 3 and Semester – 4

MLS-LAR 611: Laboratory Rotations

Allocated time of clinical hours will be spent by students in affiliated hospital laboratories in order to acquire technical and practical experience in Medical laboratory fields including the Clinical Biochemistry, Hematology, Microbiology, Immunology and Molecular fields. Student activities and training performance will be evaluated by academic and training supervisors.

MLS-EML 612: Educational Methods for Medical Laboratory

This course provides an overview of educational issues and methods in order to prepare students for future roles as educators in the clinical laboratory profession. Key principles of teaching and learning, the characteristics of the learner, techniques and strategies of teaching and learning will be covered. Students should be able to understand how to facilitate learning, and assess learning and to understand change management and leadership

MLS-THS 613:  Thesis

Introducing students to the instructions and guidelines used when a research project is conducted and exposing them to the proper methods used in writing and presenting a scientific paper. Research projects in the field of clinical laboratory will be carried out independently by students under the guidance and supervision of faculty members

Master of Science in Medical Laboratory Sciences program (MSc. MLS) at Gulf Medical University is a graduate program aimed to equip students with advanced Microbiology, Hematology, Clinical Chemistry, Immunology, molecular techniques, and evidence-based professional practice training as a next-generation clinical scientist.

Hands-on training at our Thumbay Research Institute for Precision Medicine (TRIPM) and CAP accredited Thumbay Labs.

• Clinical Scientist in diagnostic laboratories.
• Director of Laboratory.
• Managerial position in a medical laboratory.
• Research Scientist.
• Higher Education – Academia.
• Individual Practice.
• Application specialist in medical companies.
• Public health organizations.
• Pursue higher education and research career.

Completion Requirements of the MSc-MLS Program includes:

• Successful completion of 36 credits
• A minimum pass mark of 80% (Grade B) for each course
• Securing a minimum attendance of 80%
• Submitting and defending a thesis to the satisfaction of the thesis judging committee with a minimum pass mark of 80%