WEST PLAINS, Mo. – Area residents interested in the Associate of Applied Science in Respiratory Care degree program at Missouri State University-West Plains are invited to attend one of three open houses/informational sessions in coming months.
Dates are Aug. 23, Sept. 13 and Oct. 23 in Looney Hall Room 205 on the Missouri State-West Plains campus. The drop-in open houses will run from 4 to 6 p.m., with informational sessions set at 4:15 and 5:15 p.m. for convenience.
During the sessions, prospective students will learn more about the program, academic requirements and enrollment procedures, as well as tour classrooms, laboratories and the simulation lab. A question/answer session also is planned, and refreshments will be served, university officials said.
“If you are interested in a health care profession that is fast paced and rewarding, you should look into this program,” said director Cindy A. Smith.
After successfully completing the two-year degree, students will be qualified to become a Registered Respiratory Therapist (RRT) credentialed by the National Board for Respiratory Care (NBRC), she said. People possessing this credential are qualified to work in any state, she said, adding demand for therapists is high. In Missouri, the average salary for RRTs is greater than $45,000 a year.
Those who attend sessions can apply for admission to the program’s new cohort, which will being in January 2018 and graduate in December 2019. Admission is on a competitive basis, and certain minimum standards must be met, Smith said. The deadline for applications is Nov. 1, 2017.
Missouri State-West Plains’ respiratory care program holds provisional accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation for Respiratory Care (CoARC), 1248 Harwood Road, Bedford, Texas, 76021-4244, (817) 283-2835, http://www.coarc.com.
For more information about the program and how to be admitted to the new cohort, contact Smith at 417-255-7250 or CindyASmith@MissouriState.edu.