bbtech55 0 Posted January 18, 2018 I am looking for advice on pursuing an online SBB program to eventually take the SBB exam while working FT. I am currently a technical specialist in transfusion with 18+ years bb experience. I wish to eventually go this route but I do not know anyone personally who has their SBB that can share info with me. Is this a possibility while already working FT? I do not want to set myself up for failure as I know it will be time consuming and I am a mom to two busy teenagers. I would appreciate any information you guys could share with me. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Barb Thompson 28 Posted January 21, 2018 I did an online program while working 3 jobs. Its a lot of work. Check aabb.org; they have a listing of programs out there. Some are on site, some on line. For the most part, it's a 12 month program, so there is light at the end of the tunnel. If you really want it, you'll find a way to do it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tbostock 1,061 Posted January 22, 2018 I did mine FT while also working FT. It was brutal, but it was the fastest 12 months of my life. Takes a lot of discipline, at least 3 hours every night. You can't skip more than 2 days or you reach the point of no return. As soon as I started to feel overwhelmed, I would take a day off from work to catch up. You have NO social life during this time. However, you have a MUCH better chance of passing the test if you do it FT and then commit to take the test within 2 months of ending. Private message me if you want more info. 3 dragonlady97213, John C. Staley and Eman reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
R1R2 291 Posted January 22, 2018 On 1/18/2018 at 12:42 PM, bbtech55 said: I am looking for advice on pursuing an online SBB program to eventually take the SBB exam while working FT. I am currently a technical specialist in transfusion with 18+ years bb experience. I wish to eventually go this route but I do not know anyone personally who has their SBB that can share info with me. Is this a possibility while already working FT? I do not want to set myself up for failure as I know it will be time consuming and I am a mom to two busy teenagers. I would appreciate any information you guys could share with me. With your many years of work experience, have you thought about studying on your own and taking the exam? 1 MOBB reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AMcCord 1,171 Posted January 22, 2018 I did mine by taking a review course that was 120 hours of classroom time, 4 times in a year. I studied on my own 3-4 hours a day 90% of the time and at least 2 hours a day the rest of the time, including my birthday and Christmas. I had about 14 years work experience. I only took the exam once. You'll learn so much you'll be amazed at how little you actually knew before you studied. 2 MOBB and John C. Staley reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hmlange 0 Posted January 23, 2018 I had 5 years blood bank experience when I started my 18 month online SBB program 4 years ago. I spent about 18 hours a week on it while working full time. I had to take a total of 3 weeks off work for rotations at a ref lab, transplant/histo lab, and donor testing facility and I took an additional day off work every 2-3 weeks just to keep up. I learned SO much and enjoyed it but the board exam was still really difficult and I scored moderately. I don't understand how people can pass the exam with self study only - kudos to them! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Eagle Eye 202 Posted January 28, 2018 1) Think about taking the exam without the online course. 2) I had less than two years BB experience and was new QA position and took online course....lots of work but as suggested earlier in the post you have to have a set schedule...3-4 hours daily dedicated for this...you can do it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
