Echocardiography, Associate of Applied Science Degree

Overview

Offered at the Augusta Campus

Entrance Dates:	Fall
Length of Program:	Seven Terms
Credit Hours Required for Graduation:	73

Admission: Echocardiography is a competitive program. Students who meet the College criteria for admission will be admitted to the College to take prerequisite courses.  Prerequisite courses (ENGL 1101, Humanities/Fine Arts Area IV  [refer to options], MATH 1111, MATH 1127, PSYC 1101, BIOL 2113, BIOL 2113L, BIOL 2114, BIOL 2114L, PHYS 1110, and PHYS 1110L) must be completed with a minimum GPA of 2.75 on a 4.0 scale by the designated deadline to be evaluated for program admission. The ranking/academic order for admission is determined using the grade point average in MATH 1111, BIOL 2113, BIOL 2113L, BIOL 2114, BIOL 2114L, PHYS 1110, and PHYS 1110L). Students who are not selected for admission may consider another program or resubmit an admission application and a new Competitive Ranking Application by the next ranking cycle deadline. High school graduation or GED is required for admission to this program. For more information regarding this process, please contact the Admissions Office at [phone]. Refer to program related deadlines.

Program Description: Echocardiography is a program of Augusta Technical College and University Hospital‘s Harry T. Harper, Jr., M.D., School of Cardiac and Vascular Technology. The off-campus site is centered at the Heart and Vascular Institute at University Hospital.

The Echocardiography program is a technical program designed to prepare students for work in the allied health field as Echocardiographers. The program offers both clinical and didactic instruction. Upon completion of the Echocardiography program, the student is eligible for a national certification examination.

The program is accredited by The Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs—Joint Review Committee on Education in Cardiovascular Technology. The contact information for the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs is as follows: 9355 - 113th St. N, #7709, Seminole, FL, 33775, 727-210-2350, www.caahep.org. Students take the National Registry in Cardiac or Vascular Technology before graduation.

Employment Opportunities: Echocardiographers may pursue career opportunities within hospitals, physician offices, medical clinics, mobile outreach companies, cardiac equipment companies, or research groups.

Credentialing (Optional):  Satisfactory completion of all program courses entitles students to sit for the American Registry for Diagnostic Medical Sonography (ARDMS) Adult Echocardiography (AE) – ARDMS examination.

Curriculum Outline

General Core Courses, 19 credits

ENGL 1101	COMPOSITION AND RHETORIC	3
MATH 1111	COLLEGE ALGEBRA	3
MATH 1127	INTRODUCTION TO STATISTICS	3
XXXX XXXX	HUMANITIES/FINE ARTS AREA IV*	3
PHYS 1110	CONCEPTUAL PHYSICS	3
PHYS 1110L	CONCEPTUAL PHYSICS LAB	1
PSYC 1101	INTRODUCTORY PSYCHOLOGY	3

*A list of General Education Area I, II, III, IV courses can be found in the General Education

Core Curriculum Section of this catalog.

Non General Education Degree Courses, 8 credits

BIOL 2113	ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY I	3
BIOL 2113L	ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY LAB I	1
BIOL 2114	ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY II	3
BIOL 2114L	ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY LAB II	1

Occupational Courses, 46 credits

CAVT 1030	ELECTROPHYSIOLOGY AND CARDIAC ANATOMY	3
CAVT 1080	ADVANCED HEMODYNAMICS AND CARDIAC PHYSIOLOGY	3
CAVT 1090	DRUG CALCULATIONS AND ADMINISTRATION	2
DMSO 1040	SONOGRAPHIC PHYSICS AND INSTRUMENTATION	3
DMSO 1080	SONOGRAPHIC PHYSICS AND INSTRUMENTATION REGISTRY REVIEW	1
ECHO 1100	ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY FUNDAMENTALS	3
ECHO 1310	ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY I	3
ECHO 1320	ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY II	3
ECHO 1370	ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY CLINICAL I	7
ECHO 2360	ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY CLINICAL II	7
ECHO 2370	ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY CLINICAL III	10
ECHO 2400	COMPREHENSIVE REGISTRY REVIEW	1

Notes:

• A grade of “C” or higher is required for all courses.
• Students must have received a grade of a “C” or less in order to retake a course for ranking purposes. The first grade and the retake grade(s) will be averaged to determine the grade used for ranking purposes. This policy also applies to students with a transfer grade of a ‘C”. The transfer grade of a “C” and the retake grade will be averaged to determine the ranking grade.
• A student who receives a grade of less than a “C” in two or more prerequisite courses is not eligible for program progression/admission. This includes less than a “C” in the same or a different course. This includes courses taken under any program of study at Augusta Technical College and transcripts from colleges/universities previously attended.
• If a student makes less than a “C” in a prerequisite course that includes a lab, this will be counted as “one” academic failure or unsuccessful attempt. The student will be required to retake the component (lab or theory) in which a grade of less than a “C” was awarded in order to meet the prerequisite requirement. The theory letter grade will be averaged with the corresponding letter grade in lab to determine the final letter grade for ranking purposes.
• Unsuccessful course attempts that led to ineligibility for competitive progression evaluation will expire after five years.
• Prior to participation in campus/clinical labs, students are required to submit completed medical and dental examination forms. All required immunizations, including Hepatitis B, must be accompanied by documentation. Students who refuse to take the Hepatitis B vaccination series must sign a declination form and be aware that clinical practicum sites may refuse them an opportunity to gain clinical experience.
• A student who does not earn a grade of “C” or higher in one course with the CAVT, DMSO or ECHO prefix will be suspended from the program for one year. A student who does not earn a grade of “C” or higher in any two courses with these prefixes will not be allowed to re-enter the Cardiovascular Technology Program.
• Conviction of a felony or gross misdemeanor may prohibit employment in field and may make a student ineligible to take licensing/certification exam(s) required for the profession. A background check and/or drug screen may be required by some agencies before a student attends a clinical practicum. For more information, contact the appropriate program advisor.
• Student activities associated with the curriculum, especially while students are completing his or her clinical rotations, will be educational in nature. Students will not be receiving monetary remuneration during this educational experience, nor will he or she be substituted for hired staff personnel within the clinical institution in the capacity of a cardiovascular technologist.
• Natural Science prefix courses older than 5 years will not be considered for program progression evaluation. Students will need to retake these courses to become eligible for program progression evaluation.
• Prior to participation in campus/clinical labs, students are required to show proof of current health insurance. Students who cannot show proof of health insurance need to be aware that clinical practicum sites may refuse to allow them the opportunity to gain clinical experience at their facility.

Guided Pathway

You may click on any course below to view the course description and prerequisite information.

Students who do not follow the Course Sequence listed below may not be able to complete the program in the number of semesters shown.

Augusta/University Hospital Day Program

PROGRAM NAME: Echocardiography

AWARD: Associate of Applied Science Degree

CAMPUS: Augusta/University Hospital Day Program

Year 1 Fall Semester

ENGL 1101	COMPOSITION AND RHETORIC	3
MATH 1111	COLLEGE ALGEBRA	3
PSYC 1101	INTRODUCTORY PSYCHOLOGY	3
BIOL 2113	ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY I	3
BIOL 2113L	ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY LAB I	1

Year 1 Spring Semester

XXXX XXXX	HUMANITIES/FINE ARTS AREA IV*	3
MATH 1127	INTRODUCTION TO STATISTICS	3
BIOL 2114	ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY II	3
BIOL 2114L	ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY LAB II	1
PHYS 1110	CONCEPTUAL PHYSICS	3
PHYS 1110L	CONCEPTUAL PHYSICS LAB	1

*A list of General Education Area I, II, III, IV courses can be found in the General Education

Core Curriculum Section of this catalog.

Year 1 Summer Semester

Students are ranked for admission to the program summer semester

Year 2 Fall Semester

CAVT 1030	ELECTROPHYSIOLOGY AND CARDIAC ANATOMY	3
ECHO 1100	ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY FUNDAMENTALS	3
DMSO 1040	SONOGRAPHIC PHYSICS AND INSTRUMENTATION	3

Year 2 Spring Semester

CAVT 1080	ADVANCED HEMODYNAMICS AND CARDIAC PHYSIOLOGY	3
ECHO 1310	ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY I	3
ECHO 1370	ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY CLINICAL I	7
DMSO 1080	SONOGRAPHIC PHYSICS AND INSTRUMENTATION REGISTRY REVIEW	1

Year 2 Summer Semester

ECHO 1320	ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY II	3
ECHO 2360	ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY CLINICAL II	7
CAVT 1090	DRUG CALCULATIONS AND ADMINISTRATION	2

Year 3 Fall Semester

ECHO 2370	ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY CLINICAL III	10
ECHO 2400	COMPREHENSIVE REGISTRY REVIEW	1

 

Accreditation

The Echocardiography Program is accredited by The Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs—Joint Review Committee on Education in Cardiovascular Technology. The contact information for the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs is as follows: 9355 - 113th St. N, #7709, Seminole, FL, 33775, 727-210-2350, www.caahep.org. Students take the National Registry in Cardiac or Vascular Technology before graduation.

Student Achievement Data is available on the program's student achievement data page.