Cardiovascular Technology (CVT)

The CVT Program is a full-time, 16-month program with a new cohort of students beginning each Fall semester. There are currently no part-time options for this program. The delivery of coursework material includes online lectures, in-person labs, and in-person clinical experiences. See the Program Course Information section for more specific information related to the delivery of material and required CVT program courses.

The CVT program is offered as part of the Educational Partners in Collaboration (EPiC) Consortium and provides a sound base of clinical practice in conjunction with regular academic coursework. CVT courses are delivered asynchronously online with an in-person lab component that is conducted every other week. Clinical learning experiences will be provided by a partnering hospital with a cardiac catheterization lab. 

Faculty will facilitate your learning by planning, selecting, administering and assessing learning experiences to meet the objectives and eligibility requirements of the Registered Cardiovascular Invasive Specialist (RCIS) board certification exam and to meet the standards set forth by the Joint Review Committee on Cardiovascular Technology (JRC-CVT).

The program prepares students to become eligible to complete the CVT certification exam, the RCIS, administered by Cardiovascular Credentialing International (CCI). The program awards an Associate of Applied Science degree upon successful completion of all coursework. 
 

This program exists in partnership with the EPiC Consortium as a result of funding provided through the Strengthening Community Colleges federal grant program. The coursework will be accessed by all students through the EPiC Consortium’s learning management system instead of their college’s standard online learning platform.

The CVT Program consists of online coursework, in-person labs, and in-person clinical experience. All CVT program coursework follows the GRCC Academic Calendar, including in-person clinical courses. 

The CVT is a full-time program with no part-time options at this time. Please visit the GRCC Academic Catalog Cardiovascular Technology A.A.A.S. Page for more detailed course descriptions. 

Online coursework

All course lectures throughout the duration of the program will be delivered in an asynchronous online manner. There will be no set meeting times for classroom lectures. Recorded lecture material and assignments will be posted each Monday and will be due the following Sunday night, unless otherwise stated in the course syllabus. 

In-person labs

In-person labs will be held every other week during the first and second semesters of the program. Students will learn foundational hands-on skills that can be applied to working in the clinical setting. Labs are currently offered at two locations: GRCC’s main campus and Mott Community College in Flint.

In-person clinical experience

All students will be required to complete a minimum of 800 hours of clinical experience to be eligible for graduation and to sit for the RCIS board exam. Students will be provided a schedule by their assigned clinical site each semester, schedule days and times will vary based on placement. Regular in-person clinical attendance will be required each week beginning in the second semester and will continue throughout the remainder of the program (January-December). 

Courses by semester

Please note: some of the courses listed are 7 week accelerated courses.

First semester courses (fall)

Second semester courses (winter)

Third semester courses (summer)

Fourth semester courses (fall)

Please review the entire list of requirements. All of these will need to be completed prior to program application submission. It’s highly recommended to meet with an academic advisor through the GRCC Academic Advising and Transfer Center to ensure all requirements are met or to create an academic plan for completion. 

You can also visit the GRCC Academic Catalog Cardiovascular Technology A.A.A.S. Page for program information and requirements.

In order to be eligible for admission into the CVT program, students must have successfully completed any required foundational courses with a grade of C or higher. To be eligible for graduation and continuing semesters within the program, CVT program students must earn a minimum of “C” in each CVT program course. A grade of C- or below will result in program dismissal.

Please note: It’s recommended to complete all general education courses prior to program entry due to the didactic and clinical nature of the CVT program and full-time course load. We do not offer any part-time options at this time. Courses such as PL 206 Biomedical Ethics and GH 110 can be completed prior to program start. 

General Requirements

Be a high school graduate or have passed the high school equivalency GED (General Educational Development) test.

Have a cumulative high school or college GPA of at least 2.0.

Math, Reading, and Writing Requirements

Students must meet minimum requirements listed on the admissions website to be eligible to enroll in EN101.

Math competency must be demonstrated through at least one of the following ways within the last 5 years:

• Completion of college level algebra or higher with a grade of C or higher

Or

• GRCC ALEKS Math Assessment with a score of 30 or higher.           

Biology Requirements

Earn a grade of C or better within two attempts+ in the following course(s) (a withdrawal or drop is considered an attempt) within the last 7 years:

• BI 117 (or equivalent transferred into GRCC) 

Or

• BI 121 AND BI 122 (or equivalent transferred into GRCC) 

Misdemeanor or Felony Convictions

Students with felony convictions may be prevented from taking the national registry examination through Cardiovascular Credentialing International (CCI). This may impact employment options following completion of the program. If you think this might apply to you, then you should complete the Pre-Application Criminal Matters form and submit it to CCI as instructed in the document for further review prior to applying to the program.

Application Deadline: June 1st

Applying to the program does not guarantee admission into the program. All documents must be submitted by June 1st for review. Students will be notified via email by June 15th regarding program acceptance.

Please read all instructions regarding the application process and how to send in your completed application. Be sure to review the exam qualifications and requirements prior to applying to the program using the following link:

Cardiovascular Credentialing International (CCI) RCIS exam Qualifications

Steps for Applying

Step 1

1. You must Apply to GRCC, if you are not a current student, and complete all GRCC admissions requirements.
2. All transcripts from other colleges or universities attended must be received by GRCC’s Enrollment Services by June 1, to be considered for the fall admission process. Courses not transferred to GRCC by the deadline may result in disqualification in the application process due to missing required information.

Step 2

1. Complete the Health Admissions Application Form.
2. Once this application is processed, you will receive an email with the CVT program application requirements and how to submit these documents (it may take up to two weeks to receive this email).

Completing the Health Admissions Application and the CVT Program Application does not guarantee admission to the program. All requirements must be met and the Program Director will provide an official letter of acceptance once admitted. 

To ensure successful progress towards entering a health program, it is your responsibility to confirm that records, transcripts, and any other documents are received by the Health Admissions Office. 

Contact information

If you have questions regarding the Health Admissions Application process, please call (616) 234-4348 or email healthprograms@grcc.edu.

If you would like to remove your name from a wait list or cancel your application, please fill out the Exit Form.

Please email CVT@grcc.edu for questions regarding the program or application process. 

The Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA), as amended by the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008 (HEOA), requires colleges participating in federal student aid programs to make certain disclosures. In compliance with these federal laws, GRCC is providing information for specific programs offered at GRCC, which incur additional costs of attendance due to a portion of the program being completed at an off-campus location. The Cardiovascular Technology Program requires off-site instruction, which accounts for approximately 22% of the program courses and includes 936 externship hours at major hospitals in West Michigan. 

The off-site locations are located within a 153 mile radius of the GRCC’s main Grand Rapids campus. Students are responsible for transportation to the off site locations and any other costs associated with attending the off-campus location. Costs range from $1.00 to $35.00 per trip and may include mileage, parking, and other costs related to the off-site placement (e.g., uniform).

The following list includes possible sites where a student could be assigned to complete their off-campus requirements for the program. The following information is accurate as of January 2025.

Student clinical placements will be determined at the time of acceptance. Students may be placed at any one of the clinical sites across Michigan. Cardiac catheterization labs are smaller procedural areas with a limited amount of staff available for training. For the safety of the patient, staff, and student, as well as the efficacy of learning, only one student may be placed at each clinical site. Placements are determined based on a variety of factors and every effort is made to place students as close to their home address as possible.

If a student is unable to travel to the clinical site that they are assigned upon admission into the program, the student may defer their application until the following year if no other clinical sites are available, however, this does not guarantee that they will be placed at a specific clinical site in the future.

At times, clinical sites are unable to accommodate a student due to staffing, training, or other reasons. Due to unforeseen circumstances, students may be placed at an alternative clinical site other than the one originally assigned to.

Current list of clinical partners as of January 2025:

• Corewell Health West (Formerly Spectrum Health)- Grand Rapids
• Trinity Health- Grand Rapids
• U of M West- Grand Rapids
• Trinity Health- Grand Rapids
• Trinity Health- Muskegon
• Ascension Borgess- Kalamazoo
• Bronson Methodist- Kalamazoo
• Corewell Health Southwest (Formerly Spectrum Health Lakeland/St. Joseph)
• McLaren- Lansing
• Sparrow- Lansing
• Ascension Genesys- Grand Blanc
• McLaren- Flint
• Hurley- Flint
• MyMichigan Health- Midland
• Henry Ford Hospital- Detroit

The off-site locations are located within a 153 mile radius of the GRCC’s main Grand Rapids campus. Students are responsible for transportation to the off site locations and any other costs associated with attending the off-campus location.
 

Graduates will be eligible to sit for the Registered Cardiovascular Invasive Specialist (RCIS) examination administered by Cardiovascular Credentialing International (CCI).

A felony or misdemeanor conviction may affect the graduate’s ability to sit for examination. It is strongly recommended to contact CCI prior to program start or early on in the program regarding the Pre-Application Criminal Matters Form to determine a student’s eligibility to sit for the exam if previously convicted of a felony or misdemeanor.

Information regarding the RCIS exam application can be found at CCI’s website: cci-online.org.

Cardiovascular Credentialing International (CCI)
3739 National Drive, Suite 202
Raleigh, NC 27612 USA
(919) 861-4539

This program exists in partnership with the EPiC Consortium as a result of funding provided through the Strengthening Community Colleges federal grant program. Below are the estimated program costs as of 2025 for GRCC students.

Estimated total for all tuition, fees and textbooks: $16,827.05

Tuition and course fees for CVT-specific courses (gen eds/prerequisites not included)

General education estimated costs (based on GRCC in-district tuition rates

CVT program textbooks

GRCC clinical site partners have specific requirements students may need to meet before participating in clinical experiences including Basic and/or Advanced Life Support training, clinical site orientation, vaccines, immunizations, background checks, health physical documentation and proof of health and car insurance, among other requirements. GRCC will inform clinical partners about any requests for exemptions to these requirements; however, clinical partners are not required to accommodate them, potentially limiting the student's ability to complete graduation requirements. Contact the Health Admissions Department at (616) 234-4348 or email healthprograms@grcc.edu for information about clinical site requirements.