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Oklahoma City - An OSU Degree in OKC.

Paramedic - Frequently Asked Questions

HOW DO I BENEFIT FROM ATTENDING OSU-OKC FOR MY PARAMEDIC TRAINING?

  • There are many benefits 
    • Our students have a high success rate on the NREMT cognitive and psychomotor exams
    • Being part of Oklahoma State University, our students have the resources to help them succeed and move forward with their academic careers
    • Receive your degree from Oklahoma State University
    • All of our full-time faculty and program director continue to work as providers in the field
    • Traditional in-class and online/hybrid classes available
    • Accredited program where you’ll receive BLS, ACLS, and PALS certificates
    • Partnerships with local EMS agencies and fire departments
    • Partnership with OSU football to provide EMS coverage at all home football games
    • Partnership with operating room to get real intubations on live human patients

IS THERE A DEADLINE TO APPLY?

  • There is no application deadline. However, once classes are filled you will have to wait until the next available class.

HOW MUCH DOES IT COST?

WHAT DO I HAVE TO DO TO GET ENROLLED?

  • Complete the admissions process as outlined in the school catalog, or;
  • Be a current student in good standing; and
  • Provide all required documentation and vaccination records.
  • Send an email to the program director to get enrolled

WHAT ITEMS WILL I NEED PRIOR TO STARTING?

CAN I JUST REGISTER ONLINE FOR MY PARAMEDIC CLASS?

  • Yes. However, all Paramedicine classes require the approval from the Program Director. You will need to send an email to the program director for this approval. Once they give you the override you can enroll yourself online.

ARE CLASSES ONLINE, IN CLASS, OR BOTH?

  • We offer classes both online, in class, and as hybrid versions.

HOW ARE CLASSES SCHEDULED?

  • We have a diverse schedule with classes available during the day and/or in the evenings.

WHAT ARE THE HOURS OF THE CLASSES?

HOW DO I SIGN UP FOR CLINICALS?

  • OSU-OKC uses Fisdap to schedule all clinical (hospital) and field (shifts). Fisdap is an online scheduling tool that each student is required to purchase prior to the start of class. All clinical and field shifts are scheduled by week 3 of the semester. Students are able to select the shifts that best meet their own personal or work schedules.

WHERE DO I GO TO CLINICALS?

  • OSU-OKC has clinical contracts with many agencies across the state. We do shifts with hospitals, fire departments, EMS agencies, OSU football games, and other facilities here on our campus. If you are a distance learner, contact us to see if we have agreements with agencies in your area. If we do not, just let us know what agencies you would like to work with and we can get an agreement set up.

WHO IS MY POINT OF CONTACT DURING CLINICALS?

  • Your first point of contact is our Clinical Coordinator. They are available 24/7 to assist students with clinical concerns. Your second point of contact would be the Program Director who is also available 24/7 for students. However, many of the hospital clinicals will have an OSU-OKC clinical instructor available to them during the entire shift.

IS THERE ADDITIONAL COST BEYOND TUITION?

  • Yes. There are several additional costs beyond tuition. Please download the enrollment guide for specifics.

WHAT TYPES OF CLINICALS WILL I DO?

  • A complete listing of our clinical requirements are listed in the enrollment packet.

WHERE CAN I GET MORE ANSWERS?

  • You can contact the Paramedicine program office at 405-945-6778.

IS YOUR PROGRAM ACCREDITED AND WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?

  • Yes. The OSU-OKC Paramedicine program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs upon the recommendation of the Committee on Accreditation of Educational Programs for the Emergency Medical Services Professions (CoAEMSP).

DO I NEED TO COMPLETE THE ENTIRE DEGREE BEFORE BECOMING A PARAMEDIC?

  • No. The entire degree program is 74 credit hours. Most students are eligible to sit for the National Registry exams after completing around 47 credit hours of core course work.

I AM ALREADY A NURSE, RESPIRATORY THERAPIST, OR PHYSICIAN. DO I HAVE TO TAKE ALL OF THE PARAMEDIC CLASSES?

  • All advanced placement requests are reviewed on a case-by-case basis.  Please contact the Program Director for details   

HOW OFTEN DOES THE PROGRAM START?

  • The traditional in-class paramedic program starts each spring semester. The online/hybrid version starts each fall semester.

DO I GET COLLEGE CREDIT FOR THIS?

  • Yes. All courses taken at OSU-OKC towards the Associate of Applied Science in EMS receive full college credit.

DOES THE PROGRAM PROVIDE LIABILITY COVERAGE, I.E., MALPRACTICE INSURANCE?

  • Yes. All students pay a small fee each semester which provides them with liability insurance for all clinical shifts.

IS FINANCIAL AID AVAILABLE?

HOW CAN I PREPARE MYSELF FOR THE BEGINNING OF THIS PROGRAM?

  • This is a very time-intensive program. Planning ahead is very important to ensure that you have enough time to study, come to class, and attend your clinicals. It is encouraged to discuss the time requirements with your family and/or employer prior to starting the program.
  • It is recommended to complete your A&P requirement prior to starting the paramedic program. While you can complete A&P during your first semester, you will have a much less restrictive schedule if A&P is completed first.

WILL THIS HELP ME GET HIRED AS A FIREFIGHTER?

  • Yes! Many fire departments provide Advanced Life Support (ALS) to their communities. This means they send paramedics to 911 calls as well as firefighters. Firefighter/paramedics are in high demand all across the country, including right here in Oklahoma.

CAN I TAKE ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY OUTSIDE OF OSU-OKC?

  • Yes. However, A&P must be completed at a college or university. Contact your advisor for further details.

IF I HAVE A FELONY OR ARREST HISTORY, CAN I STILL GET ADMITTED?

  • OSU-OKC does not restrict who enrolls in the paramedic program based on criminal background. However, many of our clinical partners have strict requirements on who they allow to clinicals at their facility. If our clinical partners will not allow you to attend their facility then you would not be able to successfully complete our program. Likewise, once you complete the program, you would still need to become certified through the National Registry of EMTs. They have their own requirements related to criminal backgrounds. If you feel you have something on your background check that may hinder your ability to complete clinicals or become Nationally Registered, it is highly recommended that you discuss this with the Paramedicine Program Director as well as the National Registry. Their website can be found here: http://www.nremt.org/

HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE TO BECOME A PARAMEDIC?

  • OSU-OKC’s paramedic program core courses can be completed in as little as 16 months.

WHERE CAN I GET A JOB AS A PARAMEDIC?

  • Paramedics have many jobs to choose from once they become certified and licensed. Here are just a few of the places where you can work as a paramedic: 
    • Ambulance services
    • Fire departments
    • Emergency Departments
    • Intensive Care Units
    • Casinos and theme parks
    • Military careers
    • Helicopter services as a flight paramedic
    • Schools and other educational institutions
    • Federal opportunities such as forest service and disaster assistance teams

DO I NEED TO BE AN EMERGENCY MEDICAL TECHNICIAN PRIOR TO STARTING PARAMEDIC?

  • Yes. In order to become a paramedic, you must first be a certified and licensed EMT. However, there is a small grace period where you can enter the paramedic program even though you have not yet passed your NREMT exam. Students may enter Paramedic Care 1 with successful completion of an EMT program but do not yet have their EMT certification. In this case, the student must successfully obtain their EMT certification in order to successful pass and complete Paramedic Care 1.

I AM ALREADY AN EMT-I, AEMT, OR MILITARY MEDIC. DO I HAVE TO START AT THE BEGINNING?

  • All advanced placement requests are reviewed on a case-by-case basis.  Please contact the Program Director for details   

CAN I COMPLETE THIS PROGRAM WHILE WORKING FULL TIME?

  • Yes, it is possible. This program is very time-intensive. Students have been able to complete this program while working full time. However, it is advised to plan far ahead in order to ensure you have enough time to complete all of the required tasks of the program.

FOR THE ONLINE PROGRAM, HOW ARE LABS SCHEDULED?

  • Labs are scheduled as 9 hour days with a lunch break. The labs for the first semester are roughly every 3-4 weeks. All subsequent semesters have lab every 2-3 weeks. Lab days will be posted prior to the beginning of class on our website.

FOR THE ONLINE PROGRAM, HOW ARE EXAMS COMPLETED?

  • Some of our exams can be taken at home. However, some of our exams require they be proctored in a secure environment. All proctored exams will be available in the OSU-OKC testing center here in Oklahoma City or in a proctored online environment. If you are a distance learner, we can also set up proctored exams at an academic institution near you. Other institutions may charge a small fee for each exam which the student would be responsible for. It is also the student’s responsibility to notify their instructor ahead of time if they need to have a test proctored in their local area.

FOR THE ONLINE PROGRAM, CAN I DO CLINICALS CLOSE TO WHERE I LIVE?

  • For the most part, yes! Clinical requirements are in the enrollment packet.
  • This document shows which clinicals can be completed close to where you live. Again, it is the student’s responsibility to discuss with their instructor which agencies have clinical agreements and which ones do not.

FOR THE ONLINE PROGRAM, HOW OFTEN DO I NEED TO COME TO CAMPUS?

  • You will need to come to campus for all labs and practical exams.

FOR THE ONLINE PROGRAM, HOW ARE LECTURES COMPLETED?

  • Lectures are completed via our online classroom.