A group of medical professionals and students in white coats and blue gloves practice respiratory care techniques on a mannequin in a clinical training room. One individual uses a purple respiratory device near the mannequin’s mouth, while others observe and assist. Medical equipment, including an IV pole and red curtains, is visible in the background.

Respiratory Therapists (RTs) are in high demand to care for the increasing number of people with acute and chronic breathing disorders. They treat a range of people and patients, such as premature infants whose lungs are not fully developed, and adults with long COVID or with heart failure. RTs provide supplemental oxygen, manage ventilators, and administer drugs to the lungs. They primarily work in hospitals, but many also start their own companies or move into equipment marketing and sales.  

After completing a respiratory therapy degree program, graduates must take the certification exam to become a certified RT (CRT) or a registered RT (RRT). Every state (except Alaska) requires that RTs also obtain a state license. Almost all NY and NJ area hospitals have a need for these providers and are offering starting salaries of > $80,000/year with full benefits for licensed program graduates.

The Bachelor of Science (BS) in Allied Health Technology/Respiratory Care Concentration is a four-year program that provides the graduate with the knowledge, skills, and clinical experience to perform entry-level competencies as a Respiratory Therapist/Respiratory Care Practitioner in a range of health care settings. In addition, the program will provide curricular content including management, quality, finance, research, and advanced clinical practice for the graduate Respiratory Care Practitioner, to assume leadership roles in the health care profession.

We are currently approved by the New Jersey Presidents’ Council (NJPC) to administer this degree program, awaiting Commission on Accreditation of Respiratory Care (CoARC) accreditation (Dec 2025), and preparing to enroll students for Fall 2026.  If you are interested in becoming a RT, please join one of our CoNAH Info-Sessions for the most updated information on student enrollment in this track.

In accordance with CoARC, the primary objectives for this program are:

  • To prepare graduates with demonstrated competence in the cognitive (knowledge), psychomotor (skills), and affective (behavior) learning domains of respiratory care practice as performed by RRTs.
  • To prepare leaders for the field of respiratory care by including curricular content with objectives related to the acquisition of skills in one or more of the following: management, education, research and advanced clinical practice (which may include an area of clinical specialization).

Admission Requirements

Graduates from an accredited high school/secondary school with a record indicating the potential to succeed in college will be considered for admission into this program. This includes:

  • Completion of the following high school coursework:
    • 4 units (20 credits) in English
    • 3 units (15 credits) in Mathematics
    • 3 units (15 credits) in Science, including 1 unit (5 credits) Biology w/Lab
    • 2 units (10 credits) in Social Studies/History
  • High school GPA of 3.0 or higher.

FDU Students Interested in Changing Major into the Respiratory Therapy Program

RT curricula will begin in the fall semester of junior year for students who change their major to the RT program. Students can apply/process the change of major form after meeting the following requirements:

  • Completion of all first-year (for students seeking change of major after freshman year) and second-year courses (for students seeking change of major after sophomore year) in Sciences, Math, Writing, and University Core (see academic program plan below)
  • Cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher
  • Repeat of any Science and Math course only once, and achievement of a grade of B-
  • Achievement of these requirements does not guarantee change of major as seats are limited 

NOTES

  • A 4-credit General Chemistry or higher-level Chemistry course and earned grade of B- or higher in both lecture and lab, can substitute for CHEM1107/1117.  Course can be confirmed using NJTransfer against FDU benchmark CHEM1107/1117.  Introduction to Chemistry is not a sufficient substitution.
  • Statistics course must include descriptive and inferential statistics. Introduction to Statistics is not a sufficient substitution. Course can be confirmed using NJTransfer against FDU benchmarks of PSYC2210, MATH2335/2337, or higher level.
  • Students must achieve a grade of C (74+) in all general education courses, electives, and major electives, to receive credit toward the BS degree. Students who apply for change of major into the RT Program will not be deferred because of a lower grade in such courses (as long as other criteria are met) but will need to repeat the course to receive credit toward the degree.

Curriculum

General Education Requirements* (43 credits)

  • Written & Oral Communication (9 credits) 
    • WRIT1002 Composition I: Rhetoric and Inquiry
    • WRIT1003 Composition II: Research and Argument
    • MEDT2005 Professional Communication
  • Information and Technological Literacy (3 credits) 
    • MEDT2217 Info Systems and Applications in Health Care
  • Ethical Reasoning (3 credits) 
  • Global and Cultural Understanding (6 credits) 
  • Scientific and Quantitative Analysis (8 credits)
  • Social and Behavioral Analysis (6 credits)
    • Social Science: MEDT1120 Introduction to Medical Sociology  
    • Behavioral Science: PSYC1201 General Psychology
  • Inquiry in the Arts & Humanities (6 credits)
    • Creative & Expressive Arts: Select from GenEd options
    • Humanities: Select from GenEd options
  • University Core (2 credits)
    • UNIV1001 Transitioning to University Life
    • UNIV1002 Preparing for Professional Life

Allied Health Technology Major Requirements (20 credits)

Respiratory Care Concentration Requirements (54 credits)

  • BIOL2125/BIOL2126 Microbiology for Health Sciences + Lab (4 cr)
  • MEDT4302 Health Care Law and Policy (3 cr)
  • MEDT4308 Management Principles for Healthcare (3 cr)
  • MEDT4301 American Health Care (3 cr)
  • MEDT4308 Management Principles for Healthcare (3 cr)
  • RESP 1001 Foundations of Respiratory Care (2 cr)
  • RESP 1011 Foundations of Respiratory Care Lab (1 cr)
  • RESP 1041 Core Concepts in Respiratory Care (2 cr)
  • RESP 1021 Cardiopulmonary Pharmacology (3 cr)
  • RESP 1031 Cardiopulmonary Anatomy and Physiology (3 cr)
  • RESP 1201 Clinical Experience I (2 cr)
  • RESP 2001 Cardiopulmonary Pathophysiology (3 cr)
  • RESP 2051 Cardiopulmonary Evaluation (2 cr)
  • RESP 2011 Mechanical Ventilation I (2 cr)
  • RESP 2021 Mechanical Ventilation Lab I (1 cr)
  • RESP 2120 Clinical Experience II (2 cr)
  • RESP 2061 Neonatal/Pediatric Respiratory Care (2 cr)
  • RESP 2071 Neonatal/Pediatric Lab (1 cr)
  • RESP 2081 Respiratory Care in Alternate Care Sites (2 cr)
  • RESP 2091 Mechanical Ventilation II (2 cr)
  • RESP 2101 Mechanical Ventilation Lab II (1 cr)
  • RESP 2301 Clinical Experience III (3 cr)
  • RESP 2111 Special Topics in Respiratory Care (2 cr)
  • RESP 2401 Clinical Experience IV (3 cr)
  • RESP 4001 Application of Advanced Respiratory Care (2 cr)

Elective Requirements (minimum 3 credits)

  • Elective in the major (select from MEDT courses)

 

Academic Program Plan

A minimum of 120 credits is required for graduation from the FDU BS in Allied Health Technology degree program.  

**Accuplacer reading/writing scores and math assessment scores will determine which reading/writing and math courses first time, first year students will take.  Those with reading/writing placement scores below the standards must complete courses in prerequisite skills (e.g., WRIT 1000, WRIT 1001, READ 1000). Those with math placement scores below the standards must complete courses in prerequisite skills (e.g., MATH 0298, MATH 1100).  These credits are applied toward free electives or are non-credit-bearing.  This requirement applies to all first time, first year students, even if they have been accepted into this program track. 

1st Semester (15 credits)

  • WRIT1002 Composition I: Rhetoric & Inquiry* (3 cr)
  • BIOL2203/BIOL2223 Human Anatomy and Physiology I + Lab* [must pass to progress] (4 cr)
  • CHEM1107/CHEM1117 Chemistry for Health Sciences + Lab [must pass to progress] (4 cr)
  • UNIV1001 Transitioning to University Life* (1 cr)
  • MEDT1201 Introduction to Medical Sociology* OR PSYC1201 General Psychology* 

2nd Semester (16 credits)

  • WRIT1003 Composition II: Research & Argument* (3 cr)
  • BIOL2125/BIOL2126 Microbiology for Health Sciences & Lab [must pass to progress] (4 cr) 
  • BIOL2204/BIOL2224 Human Anatomy and Physiology II & Lab [must pass to progress] (4 cr)
  • MATH1105 College Algebra; OR MATH1107 Precalculus; OR MATH1201 Calculus I; OR MATH1203 Calculus I* [must pass to progress] (4 cr)
  • UNIV1002 Preparing for Professional Life* (1 cr)

3rd Semester (15 credits)

  • MEDT1120 Introduction to Medical Sociology* OR PSYC1201 General Psychology* 
  • MEDT2210 Pathophysiology [must pass to progress] (3 cr)
  • MEDT3204 Social Determinants of Health (3 cr)
  • MEDT2005 Professional Communication* (3 cr)
  • UNIV2001 Cross-Cultural Perspectives* (3 cr)

4th Semester (15 credits)

  • UNIV2002 Global Issues* (3 cr)
  • Creative & Expressive Arts* OR Humanities*: Select from GenEd options (3 cr) 
  • MEDT2217 Information Systems and Applications in Healthcare* (3 cr)
  • MEDT1130 Bioethics* (3 cr)
  • MEDT4308 Management Principles for Healthcare (3 cr)

5th Semester (16 credits)

  • MEDT4301 American Health Care (3 cr)
  • RESP 1001 Foundations of Respiratory Care (2 cr)
  • RESP 1011 Foundations of Respiratory Care Lab (1 cr)
  • RESP 1041 Core Concepts in Respiratory Care (2 cr)
  • RESP 1021 Cardiopulmonary Pharmacology (3 cr)
  • RESP 1031 Cardiopulmonary Anatomy and Physiology (3 cr)
  • RESP 1201 Clinical Experience I (2 cr)

6th Semester (13 credits)

  • STATISTICS: Select either MATH1133 Applied Statistics OR PSYC2210 Psychological Statistics (3 cr)
  • RESP 2001 Cardiopulmonary Pathophysiology (3 cr)
  • RESP 2051 Cardiopulmonary Evaluation (2 cr)
  • RESP 2011 Mechanical Ventilation I (2 cr)
  • RESP 2021 Mechanical Ventilation Lab I (1 cr)
  • RESP 2120 Clinical Experience II (2 cr)

7th Semester (14 credits)

  • MEDT4430 Utilization of Healthcare Research (3 cr)
  • RESP 2061 Neonatal/Pediatric Respiratory Care (2 cr)
  • RESP 2071 Neonatal/Pediatric Lab (1 cr)
  • RESP 2081 Respiratory Care in Alternate Care Sites (2 cr)
  • RESP 2091 Mechanical Ventilation II (2 cr)
  • RESP 2101 Mechanical Ventilation Lab II (1 cr)
  • RESP 2301 Clinical Experience III (3 cr)

8th Semester (16 credits)

  • RESP 2111 Special Topics in Respiratory Care (2 cr)
  • RESP 2401 Clinical Experience IV (3 cr)
  • RESP 4001 Application of Advanced Respiratory Care (2 cr)
  • MEDT4302 Health Care Law and Policy (3 cr)
  • Creative & Expressive Arts* OR Humanities*: Select from GenEd options (3 cr) 
  • Elective in the major (select from MEDT courses) (3 cr)

To Apply for the RT Program:

Apply for undergraduate allied health and health studies programs at https://fdu.elluciancrmrecruit.com/Apply/Account/Login

Contact Information
Kathy Smith-Wenning or Jacqueline Bonaparte
k.smithwenning@fdu.edu
(201) 692-2388
CONAH-hs@fdu.edu