FAQs

What are the educational requirements to becoming a perfusionist?

The American Board of Cardiovascular Perfusionists (ABCP) and the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAHEP) are the organizations responsible for providing education and certification guidelines for cardiovascular perfusionist training programs. There are three main ways to become a cardiovascular perfusionist; 1- having obtained a required amount of credits and pre-requisites the student is admitted to a program that awards at least a bachelors of science, 2- an applicant applies to a program having already attained a minimum of a bachelors degree with the required pre-requisites and are then awarded a certificate of completion and are then able to apply for the exams, and lastly- the applicant has already attained an associates or bachelors and are awarded a masters degree and are eligible for examination. Each certified program will have different requirements for admission so applicants must submit their transcripts for evaluation to find out which program best fits their background and educational expectations.

Does UT Health San Antonio have any clinical affiliations?

UT Health San Antonio currently maintains clinical agreements with State University of New York (SUNY) Upstate and UT Health Houston McGovern Perfusion program (links below). Students are hosted year round are able to participate in a wide range of cases, including pediatric heart surgery. Recent students have been found employment all over the country in adult and pediatric programs.

UT Health Houston Perfusion Program »
SUNY Perfusion Program »

At this time there are no programs located in San Antonio, but UT San Antonio does provide clinical rotation site for two programs as previously mentioned

Is a background in healthcare required?

The current environment surrounding perfusion application is extremely competitive. Having a background in healthcare is not a requirement but it provides a significant advantage during the selection process. If your not actively employed in health care, many heath care systems have volunteer programs that can help bolster your application. Having experience in critical care settings does provide an advantage during the educational process as there is significant overlap of knowledge. Health care professions that are typical backgrounds are respiratory therapy, nursing, and other allied health professions.

What are average salaries for new graduates?

This is largely affected by the geographic location, volume of work, and method of employment (self
employed, hospital based, university based, etc…). By searching for the information you’ll find wide ranges of
averages starting as low as $130k. This value is difficult to assess as there are many other factors that affect
this salary.

How expensive are perfusion programs and are there education loan
programs available for perfusion education?

Each school will have information pertaining to loans, grants, and other resources available to applicants.
Typically, state schools have lower tuition costs but one must also look at geographical costs of living when
assessing cost of education.

Am I able to work while in school?

Each program has requirements and recommendations regarding employment during admission to their
programs. This is a question that one would ask during the interview process.