Online Associate’s Degree Programs at the Pima Medical Institute
Pima Medical Institute appears in our ranking of the Top 10 Affordable Associate’s in Health Services Administration Online.
The Pima Medical Institute offers several online degree programs for students across the nation that include two options for those seeking an associate’s degree. One of those options is the institute’s advanced placement track radiography program. The institute only offers this program for students who have some radiography experience and want to meet the requirements for getting a certificate in this field. Students will need to submit their resumes and/or other proof of their experience, but they can graduate in 15 months or less. Radiography Biology, Physics, and Positioning are some of the courses in this program. It also includes Advanced Radiographic Imaging and Special Procedures. Students who complete the full program can sit for the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists (ARRT) certificate exam.
Also available is an online associate’s degree in health care administration. This is an Associate of Applied Science (A.A.S.) degree program that prepares students for handling administrative duties and tasks in a health care facility, including ordering supplies and working with patients. Students can transfer up to 28 credits and enroll in the institute’s advanced standing program. All other majors need to take general education and some basic health care courses, including Medical Terminology and Basic College Mathematics. Some of the other courses they take include Electronic Health Records, Office Management, Introduction to the Health Care System and Medical Law and Ethics.
Students can easily transition into one of the institute’s online bachelor’s programs once they complete an associate’s degree too. The health care administration program lets students use the skills they developed in the associate’s program as they learn more about administration and management practices. Most of the other online programs focus on advanced health care subjects, including respiratory therapy, physical therapy assisting and radiologic science. The institute also allows students to take mammography classes online and to finish a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) after they transfer from another nursing program.
About the Pima Medical Institute
The Pima Medical Institute is a private career training institute that operates several campuses in the United States. Established in 1971, it opened after Richard Luebke Senior and his wife saw the need for trained nursing assistants in Tucson, Arizona. They opened a small campus in the city that offered a nurse assisting program. That campus is still open today, though the state is also home to three other campuses. The number of degree programs available slowly grew as the institute realized that there was a high need for trained workers in other fields. This also led to the opening of new campuses in seven other states, including California and Washington.
Also known as PMI, the institute now operates 17 campuses, most of which are in the southwest. Citing the need for opportunities for online students, PMI introduced its first online programs in 2006. It now offers five online bachelor’s programs and two online associate’s programs as well as some online classes. All the programs offered by PMI are in the health education field. Students have the chance to gain practical experience in the health care field through internships and other special programs, which the institute offers for online students too.
Pima Medical Institute Accreditation Details
Eight of the degree programs offered by PMI have accreditation from agencies and organizations. That accreditation comes from the Accrediting Bureau of Health Education Schools (ABHES) and the Commission on Accreditation for Respiratory Care (COARC) among others. The accreditation that the institute holds can vary between programs because it often applies to each individual campus rather than the school itself. Students applying to PMI and those who currently attend the school can use some of this accreditation to apply for financial aid also.
Pima Medical Institute Application Requirements
PMI has specific admissions requirements that incoming students must meet and steps that they will need to take before they can enroll. Incoming students need either a passing score on the GED exam or a high school diploma. They can submit their school transcripts or a GED score to pass this requirement. Students can enroll if they are under the age of 18 and have a high school diploma, but they will need to submit a form completed and signed by a parent or legal guardian. This form shows that the student has permission to enroll in a PMI program.
An entrance exam is another requirement that the institute has. Students who live in California and have an associate’s degree or any other type of college degrees do not need to take this exam if they provide transcripts that show the degrees they completed. The institute will also accept an ACT or SAT score and use this score in lieu of the entrance exam. Students need to apply and submit their transcripts and any other documents prior to the beginning of the semester. The campus director has the discretion to allow students to enroll after the semester starts. Most programs also have an interview requirement but can schedule the interview around the student’s schedule.
Tuition and Financial Aid
The cost of attending PMI is different for all students. It depends both on the campuses they attend and the programs they choose. Students pay anywhere from $12,000 to more than $15,000 a year. PMI charges a tuition rate that is less than what some other career training schools do. The amount that students pay will include their tuition and fees as well as the books needed in their classes. If the program has any offline work, the cost will also include the scrubs and other equipment that students need in the field.
To pay for school, PMI recommends that students use the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Nearly all online students will qualify for federal direct loans. The government allows freshmen to borrow a small amount and will increase the amount they can borrow every year as they make progress towards their degrees. PMI encourages students to look at all types of loans such as government loans and those that come from private lenders. It also asks students to complete loan counseling and to look at scholarships and other funding sources. Students in the online associate’s degree programs offered by the Pima Medical Institute can begin repaying their loans before they graduate too.
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