Pre-Respiratory Therapy
Offered by Health Science Programs
Degree Options in Respiratory Therapy
Students may enter the respiratory therapy profession at the Bachelor’s Degree level or the Master’s Degree level. Requirements for both options are described below.
Option 1 - Bachelor’s Degree Program: Students may receive a Bachelor of Science Degree in Applied Health Sciences from the University of Nebraska at Kearney after satisfactory completion of a program consisting of 85 semester hours of pre-respiratory therapy and a fourth (12 month) clinical year at Nebraska Methodist college, an affiliated School of Respiratory Therapy. Gaining acceptance into a respiratory therapy professional clinical training program is a competitive process. Completion of the pre-requisite courses does not automatically guarantee admission. The following courses are required prior to application for the respiratory therapy training portion of the program at Nebraska Methodist:
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses | ||
| Take all of the following: | ||
| BIOL 211 | Human Microbiology | 4 |
| BIOL 225 | Anatomy and Physiology | 4 |
| BIOL 226 | Anatomy and Physiology | 4 |
| BIOL 325 | Medical Terminology | 1 |
| ENG 102 | Special Topics in Academic Writing and Research | 3 |
| MATH 102 | College Algebra | 3 |
| SOC 100 | Introduction to Sociology | 3 |
| Take one of the following: | 3 | |
| General Psychology | ||
| Human Development | ||
| Take one of the following: | 4 | |
| Introductory Chemistry | ||
| Introductory Chemistry for the Health Sciences | ||
| General Chemistry and General Chemistry Laboratory | ||
| Take one of the following: | 4-5 | |
| General Physics for Allied Health | ||
| General Physics I and Physics I Laboratory | ||
| Total Credit Hours | 33-34 | |
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| General Education | ||
| Completion of the pre-respiratory therapy courses and a respiratory therapy professional/clinical training program may lead to a Bachelor’s Degree in Applied Health Sciences from UNK. Therefore, students should also complete the remaining requirements for the UNK General Education Program not covered by the Required Courses. | ||
| Respiratory Therapy Electives: | ||
| Take courses from the following list of electives to reach a total of 85 credit hours. A minimum of 5 hours must be upper division (300-400) | ||
| Introduction to Epidemiology | ||
| Bioethics 1 | ||
| Human Genetics | ||
| Counseling Skills | ||
| Health Care Economics | ||
| Orient to Med Prof | ||
| Introduction to Public Health | ||
| Seminar in Health Sciences | ||
| Human Resource Management | ||
| Health Care Management I - Managing People Effectively | ||
| Health Care Management II - Managing Processes Effectively | ||
| Population Health Management: Systems and Policies | ||
| Introduction to Nutrition | ||
| Emergency Medical Response | ||
| Introduction to Health Promotion | ||
| Physiology of Exercise | ||
| Introduction to Logic 1 | ||
| Abnormal Behavior and Society | ||
| Physiological Psychology | ||
| Ethics in Psychology | ||
| Adult Development and Aging | ||
| Psychopharmacology | ||
| Sociology of Health and Illness | ||
| Spanish for Special Purposes (Medical) 1 | ||
| Interpersonal and Relational Communication | ||
| Logic Argumentation and Reasoning 1 | ||
| Elementary Statistics | ||
| May take one of the following: | ||
| Professional Training in Respiratory Therapy | ||
| Students must complete a one year professional/clinical training at an affiliated Hospital/School of Respiratory Therapy. Students must register for HSCI 475 - Health Science Internship: Respiratory Therapy, for 5 credit hours, every semester during the clinical training (fall and spring semesters) for a total of 10 credit hours. Students are awarded a total of 25 credit hours for the respiratory therapy training upon completion of the professional/clinical training program. The University of Nebraska is currently affiliated with the clinical program at Nebraska Methodist College in Omaha. Students in the Nebraska Methodist College program may complete the professional/clinical training in Kearney at Good Samaritan Hospital. | ||
- 1
This course is recommended by NE Methodist College.
Option 2 - Master’s Degree Program: Students may enter the profession by pursuing a master’s degree program after completion of a bachelor’s degree in any discipline at UNK. Students may receive a Master’s Degree in Respiratory Care from the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) through a 21 month graduate program. This program offers more advanced training and a larger scope of practice for professionals. The following prerequisite courses are required for admission to the UNMC Master’s Degree program:
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Take all of the following: | ||
| BIOL 211 | Human Microbiology | 4 |
| BIOL 225 | Anatomy and Physiology | 4 |
| BIOL 226 | Anatomy and Physiology | 4 |
| BIOL 325 | Medical Terminology | 1 |
| CHEM 160 & 160L | General Chemistry and General Chemistry Laboratory | 4 |
| MATH 102 | College Algebra | 3 |
| PHYS 203 | General Physics for Allied Health | 4 |