Cooperative education of respiratory therapy students

Cooperative education (coop), applied to respiratory care students at Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts since 1974, is designed to enhance self-realization and direction by integrating classroom study with experience in educational, vocational, and cultural learning situations outside the classroom. Achievement of this goal requires a curriculum that allows paid work periods at intervals in the program and acceptance by the institution of responsibility for finding work positions for the students. For students coop education gives reality to learning, increases educational motivation, provides financial aid, and provides useful employment contacts. For the employer it provides a source of labor, facilitates recruitment and retention, and permits better utilization of personnel. For the University it permits more effective use of the physical plant, encourages greater community support, and provides benefits to the faculty. The cooperative education plan offers advantages for respiratory therapy training on both the Association and Baccalaureate level. Successful implementation of the program requires the institution to assume responsibility for integrating the experiential phase into the education process.