Pathology Collector

Across a year, your roster changes what the work pays more than the hourly rate does. Hospital and health service posts usually sit under an enterprise agreement that pays penalty rates for weekends, public holidays and on-call, while community collection centres tend to run weekday hours with fewer loadings. Ask before you sign how travel between home visits is handled and whether on-call time is paid or expected.

• Working through the day's appointment list while walk-ins arrive at the counter
• Taking blood from patients who range from relaxed to needle-phobic to a squirming toddler
• Labelling each tube at the patient's side and checking the details against the request form
• Talking a nervous patient or a child through what happens before the needle comes out
• Restocking the room, sealing the sharps container and keeping the queue moving when a difficult draw runs long

1. 1
   Complete a Certificate III in Pathology Collection

   This is the qualification most job ads ask for. It runs about six months to a year, covers venepuncture, specimen handling and infection control, and includes supervised collections plus a work placement, so you practise on real patients before you apply for paid work.

2. 2
   Sort out your vaccinations and checks

   Pathology providers generally ask for up-to-date hepatitis B immunisation, and often a first aid certificate, a police check and a working with children check. Start the immunisation series early, because it takes months and placement providers usually want it done before you begin.

3. 3
   Apply to a pathology provider directly

   Public health pathology services and the large private laboratories run collection centres, hospital rounds and home-visit services, and they recruit continuously. Ask which settings the roster covers, since a hospital round and a quiet suburban centre are different jobs.

4. 4
   Get signed off on supervised collections

   Your first weeks are supervised, and an assessor signs off your competency across a required number of successful collections before you work alone. Some providers train collectors themselves, which can be a way in if you have not done the certificate.

5. 5
   Build on the certificate later

   The patient care and specimen handling carry over into enrolled nursing, which takes a diploma, or laboratory technician work, which takes further study in laboratory techniques. If you plan to step up, ask whether your employer funds further study.

Move to	Typical pay change	Overlap	Retraining
Registered Nurse Pathology collectors can become registered nurses by completing a nursing degree, drawing on their patient care experience.Known move	+$34,000	38%	requalify
Medical Laboratory Scientist Pathology collectors with a science degree can advance to medical laboratory scientist, applying their specimen handling to diagnostic testing.Known move	+$26,900	24%	requalify
Laboratory Technician Pathology collectors bring sample handling and laboratory familiarity to laboratory technician work, with further study in laboratory techniques.Known move	+$13,300	18%	reskill
Enrolled Nurse Pathology collectors can move into enrolled nursing by building on their clinical skills through a diploma.Known move	+$12,400	38%	reskill

Moves are chosen from Jobs and Skills Australia's Data on Occupation Mobility, which follows income tax records between 2011-12 and 2020-21, together with entry requirements and skill overlap. A known move is one people were seen making in that data. Pay change compares median full-time pay for the two roles.

44

Median age

90%

Female share

43%

Full-time

+2h

vs all-jobs avg

Based on our synthesis of professional-body surveys and public accounts of the role, not first-person verified reviews.