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The Respiratory Therapy curriculum prepares individuals to function as respiratory therapists. In these roles, individuals perform diagnostic testing, treatments, and management of patients with heart and lung diseases.

Students will master skills in patient assessment and treatment of cardiopulmonary diseases. These skills include life support, monitoring, drug administration, and treatment of patients of all ages in a variety of settings.

Graduates may be eligible to take entry-level examinations from the National Board of Respiratory Care. Respiratory Therapy graduates may also take the Advanced Practitioner examination. Graduates may be employed in hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, education, industry, and home care.

The Respiratory Therapy program is accredited by the Committee on Accreditation for Respiratory Care (Co ARC).

Admission Policy for the Respiratory Therapy Program

Students are admitted to the respiratory therapy program in accordance with policies established by the faculty and approved by administration. The college does not guarantee admission to all students who apply to the respiratory therapy program. Admission is competitive and is based on a points-based ranking system. Completion of the program does not guarantee success in passing the national exams.

A student must be admitted/readmitted to the respiratory therapy program in order to receive credit in any respiratory therapy (RCP) course. Curriculum courses other than RCP courses may be taken before admission to the program or after admission in the sequence offered.

Respiratory therapy students are assigned clinical rotations with area healthcare agencies. Students must meet employee health standards and the criminal background and/or drug screening requirements of the agencies at the student’s expense at any time after admission to the program.

The respiratory therapy applicant is required to meet steps I-IV before enrollment fall semester. Each step of the admission policy must be completed before advancing to the next step.

Step I Application Process

1. Submit an Edgecombe Community College Admission Application.
2. Submit official transcript of high school graduation or GED. Currently enrolled high school students should submit a partial transcript. A final transcript must be submitted at the time of graduation.
3. Submit official transcripts from all colleges attended.
4. Attend a mandatory Respiratory Therapy information session before March 1st. The student must attend the session each year that application is made to be aware of curriculum and admission policy changes.
5. Complete a Respiratory Therapy program application at the session. Subsequent dates for acceptance of applications will be established if space becomes available prior to fall semester.

Step II TEAS V

1. Take the Test of Essential Academic Skills (TEAS V) before March 1st.
2. TEAS V scores must meet the following criteria to be eligible for ranking:
   • A minimum overall score of 62%.
   • Testing occurred within the 24 months prior to the March 1st application deadline
   • The student has released the scores to ECC with ATI if testing occurred at a site other than at ECC OR the scores are officially delivered to ECC by the school where the test was taken.
   • All four sections of the TEAS test were taken.
   • TEAS V may be taken up to twice in an academic year, at least 28 days apart.
3. The highest of up to four TEAS scores will be used for ranking.

Step III Ranking and Conditional Acceptance

1. Students who score a 62% on the TEAS V will be competitively ranked.
2. Points from the TEAS score and from the GPA on all ECC Respiratory Therapy curriculum general education courses that have been completed from all colleges, including courses with less than a C, are included in the calculation. The ranking GPA also includes all curriculum courses that have been completed more than once.
3. The highest ranking applicants will receive a letter of conditional acceptance.
4. Students must accept or reject the seat in writing to the Respiratory Therapy Admissions Counselor.
5. A waiting list letter will be mailed to remaining eligible applicants.
6. Students will continue to be accepted from the waiting list until the program is full.

Step IV Full Acceptance

After accepting a respiratory therapy seat, the student must meet the following requirements in order to be fully accepted:

1. Attend mandatory Health Science Orientation and Respiratory Therapy Orientation sessions.
2. Submit a completed medical form provided by the college, including required immunizations, performed within a 12-month time frame by the required deadline.
3. If developmental courses were required upon admission to the college, the developmental prerequisites for ECC Respiratory Therapy curriculum general education courses must be completed prior to enrollment in the program.
4. Demonstrate a 2.5 GPA on all ECC Respiratory Therapy curriculum general education courses that have been completed up to the point of enrollment in the program. The highest grade on all completed courses from all colleges will be used in this calculation, including courses with less than a C.
5. Demonstrate an overall 2.0 GPA on courses completed at ECC up to the point of enrollment.
6. Submit criminal background check and a drug screen by the required deadline.
7. Failure to meet deadlines will result in withdrawal of acceptance status.

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