| Carla V. "In the UK, the Anatomical Pathology Technologist (or APT for short) is responsible for assisting Pathologists—medical doctors—with autopsies. The APT carries out the evisceration of the deceased patient and removes any specimens such as toxicology and histology as well as running the mortuary, training other APTs, assisting families with viewings, and much more." |
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Education
Required License(s)
In order to be an APT you have to obtain a Trainee APT position and train on the job. You receive your Certificate and then Diploma in Anatomical Pathology Technology. (Each one takes two years and involves a log book of technical skills as well as classes and examinations.) This has recently changed to a Level Three and Level Four Diploma but it's mostly the same content. |
Required Degree(s)
More recently, a degree (Bachelor of Science or similar). The job used to require only minimum qualifications (as you actually train on the job) but it's so popular people with degrees tend to apply now making competition harder |
Importance of GPA
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What do you need to do to maintain your license(s)?
I remain a member of the Association for Anatomical Pathology Technologists in the UK (www.aaptuk.org) in order to stay up to date with any changes in the profession.
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Carla's Highest Degree: Bachelor's degree (Bachelor of Science)
Carla's College Major: Forensic and Biological Sciences
Salary
Varies depending on experience,
but at Senior Level expect around £30,000 (about $41,000).
It depends on location and whether or not the mortuary is Coronial or part of the NHS as well as other factors.
Getting the Job
How did you get your job?
I took a year out and volunteered at an embalmers before I did my degree. I also volunteered at the local mortuary during my degree and I worked in a lab as a Quality Control Scientist for a diagnostic antibiotics manufacturer. I lived and breathed science, biology and the death industry for a long time before I was employed!
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How important was networking to landing your position?
Very. The volunteer work helped, as did attending lots of Forensic conferences and even short courses which I funded myself. Once trained, there is an annual conference for APTs to attend and you can contribute to the website, Twitter, and Facebook Groups to remain in touch with other APTs. I also work as a locum APT (which means I travel the UK and work in different mortuaries for short periods of time) and in addition I set up my own dating/networking site for people who work in all death professions called Dead Meet. It's like a "Linked In" for embalmers, funeral directors, APTs, histologists etc.
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Life on the Job
What is a typical day (or week) for you like?
There's no answer to that as it depends if I'm locuming in a mortuary or curating! In a mortuary, it would involve autopsies in the morning (generally) and releasing deceased to funeral directors or setting up viewings in the afternoon. In the Pathology museum, I might be teaching medical students medical history, repairing human anatomical specimens, or organising events and handling social media.
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How closely does your typical day (or week) match up to the general "job description" for your position?
My job is very unusual in that I have two roles so I'm not sure if there is a general job description!
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Does being a woman affect any aspect of your career?
I don't think so. There are many women in the industry now.
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What is the best thing about your job?
Every day is different. You can never guess what you'll be dealing with
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What is the worst thing about your job?
You have to get used to some very strong smells! Decomposed remains, formaldehyde, etc.
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How demanding is your job?
Very. I'm incredibly dedicated to exercising regularly to keep my strength up and build muscle. During a Forensic autopsy, it can be mentally harrowing but also physically grueling. You can be on your feet for 8-12 hours.
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Do you have any advancement opportunities?
The highest step you can take at the moment is become a Senior APT which will allow you to be a mortuary manager. I discovered, however, that the higher up I was, the less post-mortems I was able to carry out and I had a lot more paperwork to do. Instead, I advanced my career by becoming a Technical Curator of a pathology museum. I repair anatomical specimens which are 200-250 years old, and I teach medical students and the public about pathology and the history of anatomy, etc. I'm now working on my Masters which is a higher qualification so I see my new role as an advancement.
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Advice for You
What are the skills, characteristics, or talents that are most important to be effective in your position?
You need to be analytical, sensitive to families needs, and yet not let every case get to you. You have to be fascinated by the human body because a post-mortem is a very multi sensory experience! You also need to understand it is hard work: it involves lots of cleaning and heavy lifting. There may be quiet days when you have to empty out entire fridge units and clean them or do stock takes—the less "glamorous" things you don't see on TV.
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What advice would you give to someone thinking about pursuing a career like yours?
Don't watch something like Silent Witness or CSI and think working in a mortuary will be like that. It involves lots of hard work and mundane tasks but it is a spectacularly rewarding job.
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If you could do it over again, would you still pursue the same career?
I don't know. I often think I would take the longer route of becoming a medical doctor then a qualified Forensic Pathologist. However, what I do at the moment is so varied (for example, I consult on films, I appear on the TV and Radio ,and I've written a book 'Past Mortems' which will be released in Spring 2017 by Sphere). I couldn't do it all if I was constantly in the mortuary working on cases, heading to crime scenes, and testifying in court, as pathologists do.
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Follow Up
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