The Surgical Technology curriculum prepares individuals to assist in the care of the surgical patient in the operating room and to function as a member of the surgical team.

Students will apply theoretical knowledge to the care of patients undergoing surgery and develop skills necessary to prepare supplies, equipment, and instruments; maintain aseptic conditions; prepare patients for surgery; assist surgeons during operations.

Graduates of accredited programs will be eligible to apply to take the national certification exam for Surgical Technologists which is administered by the National Board of Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting. Employment opportunities include labor/delivery/emergency departments, inpatient/ outpatient surgery centers, dialysis units/facilities, physicians’ offices, and central supply processing units.

The Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs accredits the Surgical Technology Program (www.cahep.org) upon the recommendation of the Accreditation Review Council on Education in Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting (ARC/STSA).

Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs
1361 Park Street
Clearwater, FL 33756
727-210-2350
www.caahep.org

Surgical Technology Student Work Policy

All Edgecombe Community College Surgical Technology student activities associated with the curriculum, especially while students are completing clinical rotations, will be educational only in nature. Students will NOT receive any monetary remuneration during this educational experience, nor will the student be substituted for hired staff personnel within the clinical institution in the capacity of a surgical technologist or other hired staff personnel.

Admission Policy for the Surgical Technology Program

The Surgical Technology program admits students following policies established by the faculty and approved by the administration. The college does not guarantee admission to all students who apply to the surgical technology program. The college uses a competitive points-based ranking system for admission. Completion of the program does not guarantee success in passing the national exam.

A student must be admitted/readmitted to the surgical technology program to receive credit for any surgical technology (SUR) course. Students may take curriculum courses other than SUR courses before admission to the program or after acceptance in the sequence offered.

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

The surgical technology applicant is required to meet steps I-IV before enrollment in the fall semester. Students must complete each step of the admission process before advancing to the next step.

Step I Application Process

1. Submit an Edgecombe Community College Admissions Application.
2. Submit an official transcript of high school graduation or GED. Currently enrolled high school students should submit a partial transcript. Students should submit a final transcript at the time of graduation.
3. Submit official transcripts from all colleges attended.
4. Attend a mandatory Surgical Technology 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 Surgical Technology program application at the session. The college will establish subsequent dates for acceptance of applications if space becomes available before the fall semester.

Step II ATI/TEAS

1. Take the Test of Essential Academic Skills (ATI/TEAS) before March 1st.
2. ATI/TEAS scores must meet the following criteria to be eligible for ranking:

• A minimum overall score of 58%.
• Testing occurred within the last 5 years before 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 took place.
• The student must take all four sections of the ATI/TEAS test.
• ATI/TEAS may be taken up to twice in an academic year, at least 28 days apart.

3. The college will use the highest of up to four ATI/TEAS scores for ranking.

Step III Ranking and Conditional Acceptance

1. Students who score an overall minimum score of 58% on the ATI/TEAS will be competitively ranked.
2. The college includes all points from the ATI/TEAS score and from the GPA on all ECC Surgical Technology curriculum general education courses that a student completes from any college in the calculation, including classes with less than a “C.” The ranking GPA also includes all curriculum courses that a student completes more than once. Only transfer credits from regionally or nationally accredited institutions will be accepted.
3. The highest-ranking applicants will receive a letter of conditional acceptance.
4. Students must accept or reject the seat in writing to Surgical Technology Admissions Counselor.
5. The college will mail a waiting list letter to the 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 Surgical Technology seat, the student must meet the following requirements to be fully accepted:

1. Attend mandatory Health Science Orientation and Surgical Technology 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. Submit evidence of current (within the last year) Health Care Provider CPR certification by the American Heart Association by the required deadline.
4. Curriculum students should be ENG/MAT “ready” to enter ECC Health Sciences programs. For clarification, students must be eligible to take ENG-111 and/or MAT-110 with or without the RISE co-requisites by the program start date.

Prerequisite Coursework:

• BIO-094 or Test Out
• ENG-002 P2
• DMA 010-050 or MAT-003

6. Demonstrate a 2.0 GPA on all ECC Surgical Technology curriculum general education courses that have been completed up to the point of enrollment in the program. The college will use the highest grade on all completed courses from all colleges in this calculation, including classes with less than a “C.”
7. Demonstrate an overall 2.0 GPA on courses completed at ECC up to the point of enrollment.
8. Submit a criminal background check and a drug screen by the required deadline.
9. Failure to meet deadlines will result in the withdrawal of acceptance status.

Surgical Technology students must sit for the certification exam to complete the requirements for the program.