Our Accreditation Journey
Neither option aligned with our long-term vision. Our goal has never been to restrict access or raise prices simply to maintain volume. Histology professionals already carry heavy workloads, tight laboratory budgets, and ongoing certification requirements. Increasing financial barriers was not the direction we wanted to take.
So we made a strategic choice.
Introducing Our New Accreditation Partnership: SHAPE
Beginning this year, Histology Education is now accredited through the Society for Histotechnology Advancement & Professional Education (SHAPE). SHAPE is a nonprofit professional association dedicated to advancing histotechnology through:
This collaboration opens the door to something bigger than accreditation alone. It allows us to:
In short, it allows us to serve you better.
What This Means for Histology Education Users
This transition is not about doing less. It’s about doing more. Starting immediately, you can expect:
More Continuing Education Courses Each Year
We are no longer constrained by course submission limits. That means more relevant topics, more technical deep dives, and more practical laboratory content.
And we’re not waiting. A brand-new continuing education course launches next week.
Faster Course Development
Without restrictive volume limitations, we can develop and release new courses more efficiently, allowing us to respond to trends, new technologies, and common laboratory challenges in real time.
Site-wide and Worry-free Program Updates
Since our inception, Histology Education has proudly offered courses accredited through the P.A.C.E.® program with ASCLS. This accreditation has allowed us to provide recognized continuing education credits while building a growing library of relevant, practical, and laboratory-focused learning experiences.
However, for the 2025 accreditation year, the pricing structure and accreditation model changed significantly.
Under the new structure, the cost to maintain unlimited course submissions increased significantly.
Maintaining the lower pricing tier would require limiting the number of courses offered annually.
We faced an important decision.
We could:
- Increase prices for our learners, or
- Limit the number of continuing education courses we provide each year.
Neither option aligned with our long-term vision. Our goal has never been to restrict access or raise prices simply to maintain volume. Histology professionals already carry heavy workloads, tight laboratory budgets, and ongoing certification requirements. Increasing financial barriers was not the direction we wanted to take.
So we made a strategic choice.
Introducing Our New Accreditation Partnership: SHAPE
Beginning this year, Histology Education is now accredited through the Society for Histotechnology Advancement & Professional Education (SHAPE). SHAPE is a nonprofit professional association dedicated to advancing histotechnology through:
- Accessible education
- Professional development
- Meaningful community engagement
This collaboration opens the door to something bigger than accreditation alone. It allows us to:
- Offer more continuing education courses each year
- Turn around new courses faster
- Expand educational programming
- Maintain affordable pricing
- Respond more quickly to emerging laboratory topics and needs
In short, it allows us to serve you better.
What This Means for Histology Education Users
This transition is not about doing less. It’s about doing more. Starting immediately, you can expect:
More Continuing Education Courses Each Year
We are no longer constrained by course submission limits. That means more relevant topics, more technical deep dives, and more practical laboratory content.
And we’re not waiting. A brand-new continuing education course launches next week.
Faster Course Development
Without restrictive volume limitations, we can develop and release new courses more efficiently, allowing us to respond to trends, new technologies, and common laboratory challenges in real time.
Site-wide and Worry-free Program Updates
If you've already taken courses or signed up to a subscription with Histology Education, there's nothing you need to do or change. Courses you took under P.A.C.E. accreditation are still valid. Going forward, new certificates issued will be under the new SHAPE accreditation. Certificates for CEUs for all courses have already been updated to reflect the new course IDs through SHAPE. Previous course IDs that you may see in previous course videos or materials will be updated over time as those courses are periodically reviewed and updated.
The Launch of Our Comprehensive HT/HTL Exam Prep Course
This is something we have been building carefully behind the scenes. We are excited to officially announce that we are launching a comprehensive, easy-to-access, and affordable HT/HTL exam preparation course this April. This program will:
This has been a long time coming, and this new partnership makes it possible to deliver it at the level of quality and accessibility we envisioned. SHAPE offers an extremely affordable Student Membership tier (only $10 annually) for those looking for support as they enter the profession. All Student Members to SHAPE will receive early access and a significant discount to our new exam prep program.
If you are already a Basic or Voting Member of SHAPE, have no fear, we didn't forget about you. We understand that current histology professionals may also be interested in the program. Maybe someone with an HT is looking toward becoming an HTL, or maybe someone who has been working in the laboratory for years is finally ready to take the step to becoming certified. For that reason, we will be extending the same early access and discount benefits to ALL members of SHAPE.
Added Value for SHAPE Members
This collaboration goes even further. In addition to early access and discounts on the new exam prep program, all SHAPE members will also receive significant discounts on Histology Education courses and subscriptions, in addition to the many professional development and community benefits SHAPE provides. We believe that partnering with SHAPE is a win-win. SHAPE advances the profession through nonprofit leadership and community engagement. Histology Education delivers practical, laboratory-focused educational programming. Together, we expand opportunities for professional growth.
Why This Matters
Histotechnology is a highly specialized field that demands precision, skill, and ongoing learning. Our responsibility as educators is to remove barriers, not create them. At Histology Education we believe:
This transition allows us to continue building without compromise.
Looking Ahead
We are incredibly excited about what this new chapter means for the future of Histology Education. More courses. Faster development. Expanded programs. A stronger professional community. And most importantly... greater value for you! Thank you for your continued support, encouragement, and trust. Whether you’ve taken a course, shared our content, supported our educational tools, or simply followed along, you are part of this journey.
The best is ahead!
The Launch of Our Comprehensive HT/HTL Exam Prep Course
This is something we have been building carefully behind the scenes. We are excited to officially announce that we are launching a comprehensive, easy-to-access, and affordable HT/HTL exam preparation course this April. This program will:
- Cover essential exam content areas in depth
- Provide structured learning pathways
- Include practical insights grounded in real laboratory experience
- Present memorization techniques, study guides, and preparation suggestions
- Offer a centralized, organized study solution for students and professionals preparing to sit for the HT/HTL exam
- Provide guided steps for registering to take the exam and what to expect before, during, and after taking (and passing!) your exam
This has been a long time coming, and this new partnership makes it possible to deliver it at the level of quality and accessibility we envisioned. SHAPE offers an extremely affordable Student Membership tier (only $10 annually) for those looking for support as they enter the profession. All Student Members to SHAPE will receive early access and a significant discount to our new exam prep program.
If you are already a Basic or Voting Member of SHAPE, have no fear, we didn't forget about you. We understand that current histology professionals may also be interested in the program. Maybe someone with an HT is looking toward becoming an HTL, or maybe someone who has been working in the laboratory for years is finally ready to take the step to becoming certified. For that reason, we will be extending the same early access and discount benefits to ALL members of SHAPE.
Added Value for SHAPE Members
This collaboration goes even further. In addition to early access and discounts on the new exam prep program, all SHAPE members will also receive significant discounts on Histology Education courses and subscriptions, in addition to the many professional development and community benefits SHAPE provides. We believe that partnering with SHAPE is a win-win. SHAPE advances the profession through nonprofit leadership and community engagement. Histology Education delivers practical, laboratory-focused educational programming. Together, we expand opportunities for professional growth.
Why This Matters
Histotechnology is a highly specialized field that demands precision, skill, and ongoing learning. Our responsibility as educators is to remove barriers, not create them. At Histology Education we believe:
- Continuing education should be affordable, adaptable, and easy-to-access
- Exam preparation should be structured and accessible.
- Professional development should be community-driven.
- Innovation should not be limited by restrictive pricing structures.
This transition allows us to continue building without compromise.
Looking Ahead
We are incredibly excited about what this new chapter means for the future of Histology Education. More courses. Faster development. Expanded programs. A stronger professional community. And most importantly... greater value for you! Thank you for your continued support, encouragement, and trust. Whether you’ve taken a course, shared our content, supported our educational tools, or simply followed along, you are part of this journey.
The best is ahead!
Interested to learn more about SHAPE?
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