Surgical Technologist

The goal of this program is to prepare competent entry-level surgical technologists in the cognitive (knowledge), psychomotor (skills), and affective (behavior) learning domains. Graduates of this program know basic concepts of anatomy and physiology, pathology, microbiology, and pharmacology. They understand operating room design, surgical equipment and instrumentation, safety standards, and asepsis and sterile techniques. Graduates can prepare, clean, and restock operating rooms; use and maintain surgical equipment; perform scrub and circulator duties in a number of surgical specialties; and contribute to pre- and post-operative patient care. They value critical thinking, communication, diverse perspectives, technology and information literacy, and patient and safety care.

• Surgical Technologist

The Surgical Technologist Associate’s Degree program at the Hennepin/Anoka, Minnesota campus; the Central Pasco, Florida, campus; and the Rockford and Romeoville/Joliet, Illinois, campuses is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP.org) on the recommendation of the Accreditation Review Council on Education in Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting (ARC/STSA). Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP), 9355 113th Street N., #7709, Seminole, FL 33775-7709, 727-210-2350, caahep.org.

The Surgical Technologist Associate’s Degree program is only offered at the following campuses: Central Pasco, FL; Hennepin/Anoka, MN; Rockford, IL; and Romeoville/Joliet, IL.

Applicants to this program must meet program-specific admissions requirements, in addition to all general Rasmussen University admissions requirements. Please see the application procedures for this program under Academic Information and University Policies.

The Surgical Technologist Associate’s Degree contains both online and residential courses and is designed to lead to careers in Florida, Illinois, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. While this program is only offered at selected campuses in those states, determinations regarding professional licensure or certification have been made for other states as displayed below. “Meets” means that the program meets the educational requirements for professional licensure or certification or that there is no license or certification. “Undetermined” means that Rasmussen makes no determination whether this program meets the educational requirements for professional licensure and prospective students located in these states cannot enroll in this program.

• Meets: FL, IL, MN, ND, AL, GA, IA, IN, KY, MO, SD, WI
• Undetermined: AK, AR, AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, DE, HI, ID, KS, LA, MA, MD, ME, MI, MS, MT, NC, NE, NH, NJ, NM, NV, NY, OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, SC, TN, TX, UT, VA, VT, WA, WV, WY, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, Northern Marianas Islands, U.S. Virgin Islands

Graduation from a campus with programmatic accreditation is a requirement to sit for the Certified Surgical Technologist (“CST”) certification through the National Board of Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting (NBSTSA). The CST certification may be required for state professional licensure or certification. Other eligibility requirements may apply to state and national licenses and certifications; please verify your eligibility against applicable rules, which may change at any time.

This program requires specific immunizations prior to professional practice experience.

Applicants must complete the following steps to be considered for admission:

1. Applicants pursuing admittance into the Surgical Technologist program must meet one of the following requirements to be deemed eligible for Admission:
   1. Achieve a score on the School of Nursing and School of Health Sciences Entrance Exam acceptable for admission per the School of Nursing and School of Health Sciences Entrance Exam policy:
      1. HESI® Admission Assessment, a Cumulative Score of 65% or higher. The Cumulative Score must include Reading Comprehension, Vocabulary & General Knowledge, Basic Math Skills, and Anatomy & Physiology exams, or
      2. TEAS Admission Assessment, a Total Score of 48.5% or higher.
   2. Conferred associate’s degree or higher in a health sciences-related program from a United States (U.S.) accredited institution of higher learning as recognized by the U.S. Department of Education or by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) with a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or higher and awarded within five (5) calendar years of the date the student starts in the program.
   3. Completion of at least 20 quarter credits of college-level health sciences, natural sciences or math coursework completed at a United States (U.S.) accredited institution of higher learning as recognized by the U.S. Department of Education or by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) within five (5) calendar years of the date the student starts in the program. One Composition or Communication course may be applied to meet this requirement. A grade of C or higher in each course is required.
   The University must receive official transcripts showing either a conferred degree in a health sciences-related program or completion of a minimum of 20 quarter credits of eligible coursework no later than the sixth business day of the first quarter of enrollment or the student will be withdrawn.
2. Complete the following prior to being deemed eligible for consideration for admission:
   • Application and enrollment agreement
   • Background screening
   • Any additional program specific requirements as specified at the time of enrollment

A health physical may be required and completed within the six months prior to internship/practicum as specified by the clinical facility.

Current students in other programs wishing to transfer into a course of study requiring the admissions standards outlined above will be required to meet one of the acceptance requirements outlined in number one above plus any additional acceptance requirements.

Once the applicant file is complete, the University will schedule an interview between the applicant and Program Coordinator/Director.

Students accepted into their program will receive written communication from the University. The University may choose two additional applicants as alternates to join the program if another applicant is deemed ineligible or decides not to begin classes. These two alternates must complete all the necessary steps for admission. Alternates will be guaranteed the opportunity for enrollment into the next cohort provided they remain eligible for admission. Students must attend programmatic orientation as well as general orientation or risk being removed from the cohort.

In addition to meeting all other acceptance requirements, Illinois campus applicants must successfully pass a background check through Rasmussen University’s chosen third-party vendor. In addition to meeting all other acceptance requirements, Florida campus applicants must successfully pass two background checks—one through Rasmussen University’s chosen third-party vendor, and one meeting the Florida statutory definition of a Level 2 background check. In addition to meeting all other admissions requirements, Minnesota campus applicants must successfully pass two background checks—one through Rasmussen University’s chosen third-party vendor, and one through the Minnesota Department of Human Services. An additional background check may also be required during active enrollment prior to practicum or clinical placement depending on site requirements. Any prospective student must also consider their history, lifestyle, and future actions before enrolling in this program, and carefully consider whether their actions may prevent them from attaining employment in the field they choose to pursue. Additional requirements, such as industry-specific training may be required to obtain employment in this field. Applicants for careers in this field may be subject to pre-employment screenings such as, but not limited to, criminal background checks, and drug/or alcohol testing. Employment decisions, including whether to require background checks and other tests, are made at the discretion of the employer.