SLLE Laboratory Syllabus: 9 Sections and Their Weights

Information last checked: 31 October 2026. Exam details can change, so check the SCFHS licensure exam dates page and the SLLE content guideline (PDF) before you start studying. This is an independent website. It has no connection with the Saudi Commission for Health Specialties (SCFHS) or Prometric.

The SLLE is one exam for laboratory specialists. It has nine sections, and four of them (blood bank, clinical chemistry, hematology and microbiology) carry 15 to 20% each. The section weights tell you where the points are, so use this page to decide what to study first.

Exam format at a glance

The pass mark was set by SCFHS in a standard-setting exercise in November 2019 and approved by its Central Assessment Committee. You may see 554 on some websites. It comes from an older guide, so use 530.

The exam mixes recall questions with scenario questions. Theoretical questions ask you to apply knowledge, calculate a result or link patient results to a disease. Procedural questions ask you to choose a technique, evaluate laboratory data or follow quality assurance rules.

The nine sections and their weights

SCFHS publishes a range for each section, and says the real distribution can differ by up to 5% at each level. The last column is the split we use in our 200-question mock exams, picked from inside each official range so the total is 200:

The four large sections add up to 134 of the 200 questions in our mock exam. The five small sections add up to 66. Our practice questions follow the same split, and your result shows a percentage for each section.

Section 1: Blood Bank (15–20%)

The outline has four areas: blood group nomenclature and antigens, antibody screen and identification with ABO discrepancy, crossmatch and special tests, and donation, transfusion therapy and reactions.

• Blood group systems: ABO, Rh, Lewis, MNS, P, Kell, Kidd, Duffy, Lutheran, high and low incidence antigens, HLA, and genetics and inheritance of blood groups.
• Antibodies: antibody screen, alloantibodies and autoantibodies, and resolving ABO discrepancies.
• Special tests: crossmatch, direct antiglobulin test (DAT), phenotyping and genotyping, elution and adsorption, titration and the pre-warm technique.
• Donation and components: whole blood and apheresis, donor selection, donor testing, and preparation and storage of RBC, platelets, FFP, cryoprecipitate and granulocytes.
• Clinical use: transfusion therapy, autoimmune hemolytic anemias, transplant support, transfusion reactions, and hemolytic disease of the fetus and newborn (HDFN), including intrauterine and exchange transfusion, Rh immune globulin (RhIG) eligibility, rosette and Kleihauer-Betke tests.

Typical question types: pick the next test from a panel result, decide which component to issue, recognise a transfusion reaction, and decide whether a mother needs RhIG.

Section 2: Urinalysis and Other Body Fluids (5–10%)

• Urine: color, volume, odor and clarity, specific gravity and osmolality, reagent strip results and confirmatory tests, and microscopic findings (cells, casts, crystals, contaminants and artifacts).
• Other fluids: CSF, amniotic, synovial, serous and seminal fluid, and feces, each with collection, preservation, physical, chemical and microscopic examination.

Typical question types: identify a cast or crystal, decide which strip result needs a confirmatory test, and match a fluid result to a condition.

Section 3: Clinical Chemistry (15–20%)

• Carbohydrates, acid-base and electrolytes: glucose and glycated hemoglobin, pH, pCO2 and pO2, osmolality, sodium, potassium, chloride, bicarbonate and anion gap, calcium, magnesium and phosphorus.
• Proteins and nitrogen compounds: total protein, albumin, globulins, ferritin, transferrin, iron and TIBC, ammonia, creatinine, BUN, uric acid, troponin and BNP; heme derivatives (bilirubin, urobilinogen).
• Enzymes, lipids and lipoproteins: amylase, lipase, AST, ALT, CK, LD, ALP, GGT; cholesterol, HDL, LDL, triglycerides.
• Special chemistry: thyroid and reproductive hormones, cortisol, tumor markers, therapeutic drug monitoring, drugs of abuse and toxicology.
• Molecular techniques: targeted mutation analysis such as PCR, detection of unknown mutations, copy number variation and basic molecular biology.

Typical question types: calculate an anion gap or LDL, read an acid-base pattern, and choose the marker for a given disease.

Section 4: Hematology (15–20%)

• Samples: tube types, adequacy (EDTA, sodium citrate) and sample integrity (clotted, hemolyzed, lipemic).
• Counts and indices: RBC, hemoglobin, hematocrit, WBC differential and platelet count, with histogram interpretation on the analyzer.
• Other tests: reticulocyte count, ESR, sickle cell tests, hemoglobin electrophoresis and RBC enzymes such as G6PD.
• Morphology: RBC shape, size and color, inclusions and parasites (Plasmodium, Babesia, microfilaria, trypanosomes), mature versus immature WBCs, platelet estimation and clumping.
• Leukemia work-up: flow cytometry principles, main CD markers, and cytogenetics such as JAK2 and BCR-ABL.
• Coagulation: PT, INR and ISI, aPTT, TT, fibrinogen, D-dimer, factor assays, inhibitors and lupus anticoagulant, mixing studies, anticoagulant therapy and its effect on results, hypercoagulability tests (protein C and S), and disease correlation such as DIC and hemophilia.

Typical question types: corrected reticulocyte count, a smear picture matched to a diagnosis, and an abnormal PT or aPTT followed through a mixing study.

Section 5: Immunology and Serology (5–10%)

• Immunity: physiology of the immune system and immune responses.
• Autoimmunity: ANA, anti-DNA, CRP, RF and thyroid antibodies.
• Infectious disease serology: EBV and infectious mononucleosis, hepatitis, HIV, HTLV and CMV, rubella and measles, and syphilis testing.

Typical question types: read a hepatitis panel, pick the right test for a suspected infection, and match an ANA pattern to a disease.

Section 6: Histo- and Cyto Techniques (5–10%)

• Before analysis: patient and specimen identification, containers, fixation, grossing and sample rejection.
• Analysis: processing, embedding, cutting, routine and special stains, immunohistochemistry, frozen section, molecular pathology, and liquid-based cytology, cell block and FNA processing.
• After analysis: sample retention and storage, disposal laws, report and document retention, quality assurance and safety.

Typical question types: fix a processing error, choose the stain for a target, and apply retention rules.

Section 7: Microbiology (15–20%)

• General principles: taxonomy, normal flora, specimen management, sterilization, disinfection and QC, diagnostic approaches including biochemical, serologic and molecular methods such as MALDI-TOF, and antimicrobial susceptibility testing.
• Bacteriology: Gram-positive cocci and bacilli, Enterobacterales, other Gram-negative bacilli, Gram-negative cocci (Neisseria, Moraxella), anaerobes, mycobacteria, spirochetes and atypical bacteria.
• Mycology: yeasts, dimorphic fungi, dermatophytes, zygomycetes, molds and Pneumocystis.
• Virology: viruses in human disease, from hepatitis A to E and herpesviruses to influenza, dengue and coronaviruses.
• Parasitology: blood and tissue protozoa, intestinal and urogenital protozoa, and intestinal and tissue helminths.

Typical question types: identify an organism from a Gram stain and biochemical results, pick the media or test, and interpret a susceptibility result.

Section 8: Laboratory Operations (5–10%)

• Quality assessment: pre-analytical, analytical and post-analytical phases, reference values, predictive value, clinical sensitivity and specificity, quality control, control curves, proficiency testing and Westgard rules.
• Compliance and regulation: procedures, SOPs, corrective actions, OSHA, CLIA and HIPAA.
• Safety: safety levels, biological pathogens, exposure, radiation, chemical and fire risks, electricity and waste handling.
• Management and education: purchasing, inventory, staff competency, training and problem solving.
• Mathematics and instruments: concentrations, units, dilutions, standard deviation, calibration, manual and automated instruments, and laboratory information systems with data security.

Typical question types: prepare a dilution, apply a Westgard rule to a control run, and calculate sensitivity or specificity.

Section 9: Patient Safety and Professionalism (5–10%)

• The Saudi law for health practitioners.
• Patients' rights, safety and privacy.
• Teamwork and inter-professional collaboration, professional attitudes and ethical behavior, and Islamic, legal and ethical principles in practice.

SCFHS lists the Saudi Ministry of Health patient rights document and the Law of Practicing Healthcare Professions as the references for this section. Questions are scenario-based and test what you should do at work.

What the exam expects you to be able to do

The competency statement (Appendix B of the guideline) is the same across body fluids, blood bank, chemistry, hematology, immunology and microbiology. In short, you are expected to:

• apply theory, principles and standard operating procedures, and know the sources of error in laboratory testing;
• select the right controls, instruments, reagents, sample type and procedure;
• prepare and process controls, equipment and instruments;
• calculate results;
• assess results by correlating them with clinical data, quality control data and results from other methods;
• evaluate sources of error, corrective actions and quality control procedures;
• recognise abnormal results, resolve inconsistent ones, verify results for reporting and recognise related disease states;
• show professionalism: follow Saudi healthcare regulations, work in a team, behave ethically and apply Islamic, legal and ethical principles.

Calculation questions come up in several sections, so practise them separately: dilutions, corrected reticulocyte count, anion gap, LDL by the Friedewald equation, RhIG dose, sensitivity and specificity, and Westgard rules.

Official reference list

SCFHS lists these books as a study aid. It says the list is not an endorsement and that questions are not necessarily taken from these books.

How our practice follows this syllabus

Our questions are in English, as in the real exam, with every option explained in Arabic and English. The topic list for each section follows Appendix A of the guideline, and the full mock exam uses the 200-question split in the table above. To plan your weeks around these weights, read the study plan. For dates, permits and exam-day rules, read the registration guide.