Purpose: The curriculum is designed to develop the competencies needed to prepare the student to be certified as a Nationally Registered Emergency Medical Technician-Intermediate and/or Paramedic.
Transfer Information: Transfer is not the primary purpose of an A.A.S. program, but NOVA has articulation agreements that facilitate the transfer of this and other career-oriented programs to selected senior institutions. Students interested in transfer should contact a counselor or their academic advisor early in their program.
Admission Requirements:
Students must:
- Comply with all General Admission Requirements for Allied Health Programs.
- Attend a mandatory EMS Department information session, held bi-monthly, or online. Check website for dates; www.nvcc.edu/medical
- Be 16 years of age for the EMT-Basic training (first semester); must be 18 years of age or older for EMT-Intermediate or Paramedic training.
- Hold, at a minimum, a high school or general equivalency diploma. Students may apply for Dual Enrollment for attendance during the first semester.
- Be proficient in reading, writing and speaking the English language, and attain satisfactory scores on the NOVA math and English placement assessments.
- Have attained a 2.0 GPA at last school attended. Students in Dual Enrollment must maintain 2.0 GPA during concurrent high school courses.
- Have no physical or mental impairment that would render you unable to perform all skills required for EMS training at any level.
- Possess a national background check, including urine drug screen, with no record of any sexual crime and be at least five years past final release of any felony or drug-related convictions. Go to www.certifiedbackground.com , put in code “#OR21.” Bring receipt to campus, to EMS administrative assistant, or any EMS Faculty, for drug screen form. Cost is approximately $100. This must be repeated annually.
Completion Requirements:
- Hold a current certification in CPR – Healthcare Provider. Must hold prior to first day of class and maintain throughout time in the program.
- After successful completion of the first semester, the following additional requirements must be achieved and maintained throughout attendance in the second through fifth semesters:
- Personal Liability Insurance, with a minimum of $1,000,000 coverage. Proof of insurance must remain with the student at all times, while on campus and clinical properties.
- Provide Health History and Physical, including annual flu shot. Must be repeated annually.
- Complete NAS 150 Human Biology or its equivalent with a grade of “C” or better prior to entry into second semester.
Special Program Completion Requirements:
Students must successfully attain each certification level prior to continuing in EMS sequence (EMT-Basic after first semester, EMT-Intermediate after third semester). Continuation to paramedic certification requires successful completion of EMT-Intermediate testing. After successful completion of 2nd year, student is eligible for NREMT-Paramedic testing. Students entering program with prior certifications must attend information session for specific course entry requirements.
Generally, EMS courses must be taken in sequence, but general studies courses may be taken in any order, and at any time. Exceptions to this policy are discussed in the monthly information sessions. Effective Fall 2005, all students continuing to Paramedic certification are required to complete the A.A.S degree requirements by their NREMT-P test date.
- 1. Students who receive an “I” (incomplete) grade in any of the courses in the EMS sequence must resolve the Incomplete before continuing in the EMT sequence.
- 2. Students must receive a grade of C or higher in core EMS courses in order to be eligible for the National Registry certifying examinations.
- 3. All clinical and internship requirements must be met prior to taking any Virginia and/or National Registry certifying examination(s).
Re-Enrollment: Students must follow the re-enrollment requirements for all Allied Health students.
Special Accreditation Status: The program is accredited by the Commission on the Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) in cooperation with the Committee on Accreditation of Educational Programs for Emergency Medical Services Professions (CoAEMSP).
EMS-prefix courses must be taken in the sequence listed above. General education courses may be taken in any order, but all must be successfully completed, ensuring student eligibility for A.A.S. prior to NREMT-P testing, following fifth semester.
1 NAS 150 Human Biology is the mandatory Anatomy & Physiology pre-requisite to enter into the Advanced Life Support curriculum. This requirement can be met by any 4 credit Anatomy & Physiology course, such as BIO 141, NAS 161 or equivalent. However, if students take these course, they must complete the sequence prior to graduation. Although students who have graduated with a transfer-oriented A.A., A.S., or A.A. & S. degree or any baccalaureate or higher degree from a regionally accredited United States institution of higher education will have most of their general education considered as met, they must meet the math and science requirements specified for this program. Exceptions must be approved by the division dean responsible for the student's curriculum.
2 Orientation to Health Care meets SDV requirement, which must be completed by 16th credit. Any SDV course is acceptable for this requirement.
3 HLTH 250 + EMS 213 are equivalent to EMS 209. Students cannot get credit for both this sequence as well as EMS 209.
4 The social science elective may be selected from the social/behavioral sciences courses listed under General Education Electives.
5 HIM 130 Healthcare Information Systems, awards the required computer competencies. Several other 3-credit courses under ITE or related discipline can also meet this requirement.
6 Humanities elective students are encouraged to take PHI 227, Bio-Medical Ethics.