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Curriculum

Mayo Clinic respiratory therapy student practicing a procedure with a mannequin with a faculty member supervising
64%

time spent in clinical settings

15%

time spent in labs

21%

time spent in classroom

Student experiences

Classroom learning

Students are first introduced to the respiratory therapy field through topics that include patient assessment, laboratory and chest X-ray interpretation, oxygen therapy, and medication delivery. You’ll then move on to more advanced topics like mechanical ventilation, pathophysiology, cardiopulmonary diagnostic testing, and hemodynamic monitoring.

Labs and simulation

Before entering any clinical care setting, you’ll first practice the skills you learned in one of our labs or simulation centers, sometimes working with live actors.

Hands-on clinical rotations

Mayo Clinic is among the largest, most advanced medical centers in the world. Your clinical education will primarily take place at Mayo Clinic Hospital, Saint Marys Campus, a 1,157-bed facility. Within Saint Marys Campus is the 85-bed Mayo Eugenio Litta Children's Hospital. Students also have rotations within Mayo Clinic Health System.

Facilities and faculty

Learn more about the facilities and faculty of the Respiratory Care Program (Minnesota).

Hours

For the majority of the Respiratory Care Program, your learning schedule will include eight-hour and 12-hour days, five days a week.

Course sequence

There are a total of 61 credits in the program.

Grading or evaluation

As you move through the respiratory care rotations, you’ll be evaluated in each clinical area by the supervising therapists, the program director and the clinical supervisor. Clinical performance is evaluated using a competency-based evaluation system and performance appraisals.

Mayo Clinic School of Health Sciences uses these evaluative tools:

  • Written examination
  • Demonstration of skills
  • Self-assessment exercises
  • Faculty reviews

Mayo's system of evaluation provides students and faculty with a comprehensive look at individual performance. This allows faculty and administrative staff to direct students who are experiencing academic difficulty to the appropriate support resources, including tutoring programs and counseling opportunities.

Graduation and certification

Students participate in an extensive exam review before the end of the junior and senior year. After successful completion of the senior-year course work, you’re eligible to complete the National Board of Respiratory Care (NBRC) board examinations to get the Registered Respiratory Therapist (RRT) credential.

When you successfully complete the Respiratory Care Program, you’ll receive a Bachelor of Science in Health Professions from the University of Minnesota Rochester and a certificate of completion from Mayo Clinic School of Health Sciences.

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