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Respiratory Therapy
The Respiratory Therapy degree curriculum provides students with the life support, monitoring, drug administration, and patient treatment skills needed to function as respiratory therapists.
Begin Your Journey
- Gain the fundamental knowledge and skills needed for patient assessment and treatment of cardiopulmonary diseases.
- Receive hands-on training and gain valuable connections in a clinical setting with local employers.
- Enter into a program where 95% of students go directly into the workforce.
Graduates may be eligible to take entry-level examinations from the National Board of Respiratory Care and the Advanced Practitioner examination. Graduates have employment opportunities in hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, education, industry, and home care. Local employers include Central Carolina Hospital, Scotland Memorial Hospital, First Health of the Carolinas in Pinehurst and Rockingham, Harnett Health in Dunn and Lillington, Cape Fear Medical Center in Fayetteville, Kindred and Moses Cone Hospitals in Greensboro, and the University of North Carolina Hospital System in Chapel Hill. Explore a career in respiratory therapy.
Expenses estimated over the two-year program timeline.
In addition to tuition and books, students are responsible for extra costs for uniforms, supplies, medical exam, insurance, and travel to clinical sites.
ITEM | IN-STATE COST | OUT-OF-STATE COST |
Tuition* | $5,624.00 | $19,832.00 |
Student Activity Fee | $175.00 | $175.00 |
Technology Fee | $240.00 | $240.00 |
General Education Course fees | $0-100.00 | $0-100.00 |
Additional Program fees | $120.00 | $120.00 |
Malpractice Insurance | $18.00 | $18.00 |
Medical Record Tracking | $20.00 | $20.00 |
Textbooks | $800.00 | $800.00 |
Uniform | $350.00 | $350.00 |
Supplies | $250.00 | $250.00 |
Criminal Background Check & Drug Screening | $108.00 | $108.00 |
*Program credit hours: 74 – $76.00 per credit hour in-state tuition, $268.00 per credit hour out-of-state tuition.
Sandhills is committed to the belief that every student should have an opportunity to pursue an education, regardless of financial resources. We are here to guide you through the financial aid system to make costs more manageable and higher education more accessible.
Admissions Process
- College Application: Complete a SCC admissions application online.
- Prerequisite Classes: Anatomy & Physiology (or BIO 094) AND Chemistry is required with a grade of C or better verified by college or high school transcript. For students entering the program in Fall 2025, Medical Terminology (MED 120) is required with a grade of C or better verified by college or high school transcript.
- Course Placement Requirements: Students must place into ENG 111 without a corequisite and out of Math Modules DMA 010-DMA 050 or Transition Math Tiers 1 and 2.
- GPA: All applicants must have at least a 2.0 GPA to be considered for admission.
- HESI A2: Take the HESI Admission Assessment Exam. A 75+ cumulative score is required to apply in Early Consideration. Students who do not achieve a 75 may apply in Late Consideration.
- Health Sciences Application: Submit an online application by the deadline.
Application Deadlines
Early Consideration: Last Friday in January
Late Consideration: Last Friday in April
Students who are offered seats in a Health Science program must complete additional requirements such as CPR certification and other requirements detailed below prior to beginning clinical training. The clinical training onset varies by program. Specific dates and details will be communicated in your acceptance letter.
Essential Functions
Before official enrollment in program courses, students must present a personal statement to verify that they can fulfill certain essential functions. These include, but are not limited to: Physical Ability, Visual Acuity, Hearing Acuity, Speech/Communication, Critical Thinking, Emotional Stability, Personal Attributes, and Ability to Travel. A complete list of essential functions can be obtained from the Program Coordinator.
Program Orientation
Attend the mandatory program orientation where all conditional acceptance requirements will be detailed. Failure to attend may result in your acceptance being revoked.
Drug Screen & Criminal Background Check
Drug screens and criminal background checks are required by our clinical affiliates in order to attend clinical rotations. Students with positive drug screen, criminal charges, or criminal convictions may not be able to attend clinicals, and therefore will be unable to progress within the program. Complete information regarding the procedure will be provided at the program orientation.
Immunization Requirements
Proof of all childhood immunizations and other specific vaccines, including:
Tdap (Tetanus, Diphtheria, & Pertussis)
Varicella (Chicken Pox)
MMR (Measles, Mumps, & Rubella)
Hepatitis B* (six month series)
Tuberculosis Skin Test
Influenza: required annually
COVID-19: see below
Sandhills Community College does not require specific immunizations in order to enroll or attend classes on campus. However, Health Sciences and Nursing programs require clinical hours. Students admitted to an SCC Health Sciences or Nursing program must comply with the requirements set by outside clinical agencies, which may include a criminal background check, drug screen, physical, and/or specific vaccines. Decisions about an individual student’s presence in the clinical environment are made by the clinical agencies.
We are guests in our clinical facilities and in order to have clinical privileges, must abide by their requirements for students and faculty. Notice of changes of agency requirements may or may not provide us with much notice.
If requirements are made by a SCC clinical agency and a student chooses not to comply, they may not be eligible to complete the clinical requirements of the program and thus become unable to enter or complete a course and the program.
Management of these requirements is reserved to Sandhills Community College employees only. Students may not contact clinical agencies directly to discuss requirements. Doing say may result in denial of admission or dismissal from a program.
All immunizations must be completed before program entrance.
The Respiratory Therapy program at Sandhills is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Respiratory Care (264 Precision Blvd, Telford, TN 37690, 817-283-2835)
Commission on Accreditation for Respiratory Care: Outcomes data from the Annual Report of Current Status
CoARC # 200229
CoARC accredits respiratory therapy education programs in the United States. To achieve this end, it utilizes an ‘outcomes based’ process. Programmatic outcomes are performance indicators that reflect the extent to which the educational goals of the program are achieved and by which program effectiveness is documented.
* This program is financial aid eligible.
Course Hours Per Week | Semester Hours | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
First Semester (Fall) | Class | Lab | Clinic | Credit | |
ACA-115 | Success & Study Skills | 0 | 2 | 1 | |
BIO-168 | Anatomy and Physiology I | 3 | 3 | 4 | |
CHM-151 | General Chemistry I | 3 | 3 | 4 | |
ENG-111 | Writing and Inquiry | 3 | 0 | 3 | |
RCP-110 | Intro to Respiratory Care | 3 | 3 | 4 | |
RCP-114 | C-P Anatomy & Physiology | 3 | 0 | 3 | |
Credit Hours | 15 | 11 | 0 | 19 | |
Second Semester (Spring) | Class | Lab | Clinic | Credit | |
BIO-169 | Anatomy and Physiology II | 3 | 3 | 4 | |
CHM-152 | General Chemistry II | 3 | 3 | 4 | |
ENG-112 | Writing/Research in the Disc | 3 | 0 | 3 | |
RCP-111 | Therapeutics/Diagnostics | 4 | 3 | 5 | |
RCP-113 | RCP Pharmacology | 2 | 0 | 2 | |
Credit Hours | 15 | 9 | 0 | 18 | |
Third Semester (Summer) | Class | Lab | Clinic | Credit | |
RCP-115 | C-P Pathophysiology | 2 | 0 | 2 | |
RCP-210 | Critical Care Concepts | 3 | 3 | 4 | |
*** | Humanities/Fine Arts Elective | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
Credit Hours | 8 | 3 | 0 | 9 | |
Fourth Semester (Fall) | Class | Lab | Clinic | Credit | |
RCP-139 | RCP Clinical Practice I | 0 | 0 | 27 | 9 |
RCP-211 | Adv Monitoring/Procedures | 3 | 3 | 4 | |
RCP-213 | Neonatal/Ped's Concepts | 2 | 0 | 2 | |
Credit Hours | 5 | 3 | 27 | 15 | |
Fifth Semester (Spring) | Class | Lab | Clinic | Credit | |
RCP-149 | RCP Clinical Practice II | 0 | 0 | 27 | 9 |
RCP-215 | Career Preparation | 0 | 3 | 1 | |
*** | Social/Behavioral Sciences Elective | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
Credit Hours | 3 | 3 | 27 | 13 | |
Total Required Minimum Semester Hours Credit | 74 |
Contact
General Health Sciences Admissions Questions
donadiot@sandhills.edu
Ty Ronda Pettigrew, MSRT, RCP Program Director
166 Kennedy Hall
(910) 695-3836
pettigrewt@sandhills.edu
Andrea Morrison, RCP Director of Clinical Education
165 Kennedy Hall
(910) 695-3748
morrisona@sandhills.edu