Respiratory Therapy Schools in California
Individuals who are planning on attending respiratory therapy school in California have several options. Many community colleges, universities, and private technical schools in California offer a respiratory therapy program.
All programs require students to complete classroom work as well as a specific number of supervised clinical hours at various hospitals. All programs teach the needed skills to assess and treat patients with various types of respiratory problems.
Students considering attending respiratory therapy school in California should be aware in order to be eligible to take the state boards and national certification exam; schools must be accredited by the Committee on Accreditation of Respiratory Care. Prospective students should also check with individual schools for the latest admission requirements and tuition costs.
Community college programs are one option for people planning to attend respiratory school in California. Several community colleges throughout California have a respiratory program. One advantage of attending community colleges in California is the tuition tends to be much less expensive than university or private school programs. Most community college respiratory therapy programs award an associate degree.
One northern California community college that offers a respiratory therapy program is Napa Valley College. They admit 30 students to their respiratory therapy program each fall. Students must complete college level classes in algebra, chemistry, and human anatomy as a prerequisite to the program. The traditional program takes five semesters to complete including a six week summer semester. Napa Valley College does have a three-year program which is one option for students who are working full time.
Also located in Northern California in Sacramento is American River College. Their two-year respiratory therapy program also admits students each fall and takes four semesters to complete. Prerequisites to the program are completion of a college level algebra and biology class.
The program uses a mix of small community hospitals and medical centers for student rotations including large teaching hospitals such as the University of California at Davis Medical Center.
Several community colleges in southern California also have respiratory therapy programs including East Los Angeles College. Similar to other community college programs it takes two years to complete. As a prerequisite for admission classes need to be completed in algebra and chemistry.
There are a large number of medical centers and community hospitals in southern California that provide an excellent learning opportunity for students during their clinical rotations.
Students who want to complete a respiratory program quicker may want to consider a private technical school or college. San Joaquin Valley College has several locations in California. They offer a respiratory therapy program at campuses in southern California including Bakersfield and Rancho Cucamonga and central California at the Visalia campus and the Sacramento campus in northern California.
The program takes eighteen months to complete and most campuses start a new group of students three times a year. Students need to complete 900 hours of clinical rotations in areas such as pediatrics, adult critical care, neonatal intensive care, and pulmonary rehabilitation. Entrance into the program is based on an admission test and personal interview with the program director. Students graduate with as associate degree as well as certification in Advanced Cardiac Life Support and Neonatal Resuscitation.
In southern California, Concord Career College is an option for those interested in a private technical school. The college has four locations in the Los Angeles and San Diego area. The program takes 60 weeks to complete and an associate degree is awarded. Over 800 hours of clinical experience needs to be completed at various southern California hospitals.
For individuals who are interested in earning a bachelors degree in respiratory therapy Loma Linda University is an option. The university is located in southern California near Los Angeles.
The first two years of the program general education classes are taken as well as science classes needed such as chemistry and microbiology. The second two years are spent taking respiratory therapy classes such as pharmacology, pediatric respiratory care, and critical care. Clinical rotations are part of the program. Loma Linda also has a large university medical center where students can learn with state of the art medical equipment. The admission process involves an application to the program as well as a personal interview with program faculty.
California College San Diego also offers a BS in Respiratory Therapy
Western Career College offers a Associate degree and a Certificate in respiratory training
