Primary Care Paramedic

Certificate

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Are you ready to embark on a rewarding career that makes a significant impact in people's lives? Our comprehensive Primary Care Paramedic (PCP) program will equip you with the knowledge, hands-on skills and practical experience needed to deliver high-quality care to patients in need.

As a PCP, you will be the first responder to emergency situations, providing immediate care for patients with a variety of injuries and medical conditions. As a student in our program, you’ll benefit from expert instruction from industry professionals, hands-on training in our state-of-the-art Centre for Advanced Medical Simulation and practicum placement to gain invaluable real-world experience.

Our graduates are in high demand by employers and our program proudly maintains a 100% employment placement rate. Start your PCP journey today and become a part of the dedicated team of healthcare professionals who are committed to saving lives and making a difference in their communities.

Upcoming Intakes

Select your preferred intake to see relevant program information. Program details, including tuition and course information, may vary by intake.

Selection	Start Date	Delivery Mode	Time	Campus	Length	Domestic Status	International Status
	Jan. 08, 2026 (Winter)	In-person	Weekdays - Daytime	Main	1 Year (Full-time)	Open	N/A

Swipe table to view more information for each intake.

Hands-on, industry-relevant training

In this certificate program you will learn about providing basic emergency care, including assessment and treatment of patients with a variety of medical disorders and injuries. Your learning environment will consist of lectures, labs, clinical simulations and practicum. Areas of learning will be focused on but are not excluded to:

Introduction to emergency medical services and pre hospital care
Human anatomy, physiology and pathophysiology
Basic life support skills including medical and trauma management
Pharmacology
Diverse patient populations including management of some pediatric disorders and assisting with childbirth

You will also be trained in physical and mental health self-care, to ensure you are prepared for a demanding patient care environment.

Practicum will consist of placement with an ambulance service and one week in an acute care hospital emergency department. You will be expected to work shifts including evenings, nights and weekends, and you may be required to travel outside of Edmonton for your practicum placement.

The first 6 courses in the program consist of a mixture of lectures and labs of approximately 400 hours, and the last course will consist of practicum placement of approximately 240 hours.

You can expect to spend, on average:

28 hours per week attending classes over the course of a semester
15 to 20 hours per week studying and completing class assignments
40 hours per week on practicum

Program Goals:

To foster an environment of clinical and academic excellence that prepares students to function as competent and active members of, and leaders in the health care community.
To graduate students who demonstrate entry‐level skills necessary to competently and safely perform procedures as specified in the National Occupational Profile (NOCP).
To graduate students who demonstrate professional and ethical behavior.
To provide an educational experience that instills in the graduate a commitment for continued learning and an inquiring attitude.
To develop the students communication, critical thinking, problem solving, and leadership skills.
To graduate students who demonstrate compassionate, safe, and quality health care to a diverse population.
To graduate students who will experience a high degree of satisfaction with their learning journey in all program components.
To graduate students with whom employers will experience a high degree of satisfaction.

Career Outcomes

Employment as a Primary Care Paramedic is subject to licensing requirements for the province you work in under the respective college. Please refer to the Alberta College of Paramedics website to learn more about their requirements for licensing/registration and licensing exam requirements.

Industries

Private or public funded ambulance services
Integrated fire and ambulance services
Acute healthcare hospital settings

Median Starting Salary

The expected starting salary for individuals with a(n) Primary Care Paramedic Certificate is $60,000.
This salary information was based on graduate data from the past 3 years and reflects annual salaries for graduates who claimed they were working more than 30 hours per week. Graduates who quoted salaries below $10,000 and above $200,000 per year have been excluded. Note that NAIT publishes the median salary instead of the average to minimize the potential of outlying salaries distorting the mean. Data represented here may differ from other data sources due to differences in definition or differences in timing.

Grad Employment Rate

Employment rates are reported by NAIT alumni, are for information purposes, and do not guarantee future employment opportunities. Please note that data for newer programs may not be included within this report.

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View Work Integrated Learning

Work Experience Placements

Students in this program gain valuable work experience with Work Integrated Learning (WIL). WIL is a form of experiential learning that integrates academic studies with relevant work-based learning. The WIL placement in this program is a Clinical Placement.

Clinical Placement

A Clinical Placement involves work experience under the supervision of an experienced registered or licensed professional (e.g. preceptor) in any discipline that requires practice-based work experience for professional licensure or certification. Practica are generally unpaid and the work is done in a supervised setting.

Duration	6 weeks
Compensation	No
International Students	Co-op Work Permit required
Placement Identified By	Program Staff - Students are placed with employers by the program.
Student Interview Required	No

Non-academic requirements

Police Check
Students are required to provide a current Police Information Check (also referred to as a Security Clearance or Criminal Record Check) which must include a Vulnerable Sector Search. Please do not proceed with the Police Information Check until an offer of acceptance and follow-up instructions have been issued by the program. The Police Information Check is only considered valid when reviewed by a NAIT official within 90 days of completion. If you do not meet the police information check requirements, your work integrated learning experience (clinical training) may be refused by a clinical site, which may ultimately impede your progress in the program.

Immunization - General
Once accepted into the program, students must ensure their immunizations are current to the Alberta Health Services Immunization Standards. The program will contact you with specific instructions for completing the immunization requirements. If you do not meet the immunization requirements, your work integrated learning experience (clinical training) may be refused by a clinical site, and there may be restrictions to campus lab and clinic experience, which may ultimately impede your progression in the program.

N95 Testing
It is a program requirement to fit test students to an N95 respirator prior to your clinical placement to ensure proper PPE safety. For an effective N95 respirator seal, you must be clean shaven during your fit testing session and clinical rotation. You will be required to be fit tested every two years or sooner depending on the policies of your work site. If there is a change in facial features due to weight gain/loss, pregnancy, dental work, etc. you will also need to be refitted to ensure an effective respirator seal.

Benefits of a Clinical Placement

Understand more about career opportunities, expectations and requirements of the professional field
Gain the opportunity to apply classroom knowledge in a real-world environment
Create networking opportunities in your chosen industry
Develop and improve communication, interpersonal and employment skills
Gain confidence in your professional skills
Practice job placement skills including job search, resume preparation, interviewing
Explore career options and program specialization within the industry
Improve application for future positions by gaining industry experience and increasing your employability
Possibility of employment after graduation
Potential financial benefits if the placement is paid

Contact

Courses and Advanced Credit

Current and recently admitted students can find information and updates about their program on their My Program page in the MyNAIT Portal. To monitor your course progress and the courses still needed to graduate, visit your Academic Progress Report.

Advanced Credit

You may apply for advanced credit once you have been accepted into the program. Advanced credit can be Transfer Credit (for completed post-secondary courses) or PLAR (Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition).

Transfer Credit

In addition to the common guidelines outlined on the Transfer and Credit Options section, your program has other advanced credit requirements that are applied to each request including:

You must have completed the course or program no more than 5 year(s) ago unless a formalized articulation agreement is in place
You must have a minimum mark of C in the course(s) or program

Read more about advanced credit or contact us about applying for credit for this program.

Scholarships & Awards

NAIT awards over $6 million in scholarships and bursaries to more than 4,000 students each year, with the support of donors and the government. A variety of awards are available, including ones for academics, community involvement, equity/diversity grants, bursaries for financial need, program-specific awards and more!

Learn how to apply for awards

Admission Requirements

This content is specific to the selected Jan 08, 2026 intake.

Minimum entrance requirements

The specific academic requirements you must meet to be considered for admission. Where applicable, the minimum accepted Alberta high school courses are listed in round brackets ( ). Equivalent or higher-level courses are also accepted.

Grade 12 Language Arts (English 30-2)
Grade 11 Mathematics (Math 20-2)
Grade 12 Biology or Science (Biology 30 or Science 30)
Proof of English Language Proficiency
Successful completion of Emergency Medical Responder or NAIT Medical First Responder program. Students who are enrolled in the Emergency Medical Responder or NAIT Medical First Responder program by the application deadline but have not yet completed the program must submit proof of enrolment by the application deadline. Final proof of completion must be submitted by October 15th for the January intake.
18 Years of age - Students must turn 18 years of age prior to the program start date. A copy of a government-issued ID must be submitted.
CPR-C (Basic Life Support - BLS) - Students must provide evidence of current BLS certification for entry into the program, and remain current throughout clinical training. One of the following courses or certifications can be used to meet this requirement:
- NAIT CPRS100 - Basic Life Support
- NAIT CPRS500 - Standard First Aid and CPR/AED Level C
- Canadian Ski Patrol (CPR-C or HCP)
- Heart & Stroke Foundation (BLS)
- Lifesaving Society (CPR-C or HCP)
- Red Cross (CPR-C or HCP)
- St. John Ambulance (CPR-C or HCP)
Online Interview - See Competitive Entrance Requirements for details.

Competitive entrance requirements

Admission for this program is not guaranteed by only meeting the minimum requirements, as the program has competitive entrance and/or an interview process. Learn more about competitive entrance or program interviews.

Applicants who meet the program’s minimum entrance requirements and submit all required documents will be invited to a program interview. After the interview, applicants with the highest interview score will be admitted first. Approximately 4 months after applications open, if additional seats are available, varying interview scores may be considered. The scores required for admission can vary by program and intake.

The 1st round of interviews is expected to occur mid March. The timing of your invitations will be based on when your completed application was submitted.

More information about the program interview process can be found on the program interview page.

Due to the high volume of interviews in the School of Health and Life Sciences, the program(s) is unable to provide applicants with feedback on their interview submissions.

Additional requirements & considerations

Post-admission requirements

Although not required for admission, you must meet the following requirement(s) in order to progress in your program.

Immunization – School of Health and Life Science:

For the 2024-25 academic year, NAIT has partnered with Verified by Synergy Gateway Inc. to provide support and clearance for the School of Health and Life Sciences clinical placement requirements. The Synergy Gateway platform allows you to digitally upload the documentation for your program and practicum requirements.

The program will contact you with specific instructions and information for completing the immunization requirements. It is the responsibility of the student to ensure that all the necessary documents are obtained and submitted to Verified by the deadlines provided by the program.

If you do not meet the immunization requirements, your work-integrated learning experience (clinical training) may be refused by a clinical site, and there may be restrictions to campus lab and clinic experience, which may ultimately impede your progression in the program.

Any associated fees for Verified by Synergy Gateway Inc. to complete the pre-placement requirements are the sole responsibility of the student.

Police Check – School of Health and Life Science:

Students are required to provide a current Police Information Check (also referred to as a Security Clearance or Criminal Record Check) which must include a Vulnerable Sector Search. Please do not proceed with the Police Information Check until an offer of acceptance and follow-up instructions have been issued by the program. The Police Information Check is only considered valid when submitted within 90 days of the program start date. If you do not meet the police information check requirements, your work-integrated learning experience (clinical training) may be refused by a clinical site, which may ultimately impede your progress in the program. If you have concerns about the clearance status of your Police Information Check, contact SHLSWIL@nait.ca immediately upon acceptance to the program.

It is the responsibility of the student to ensure that all the necessary documents are obtained and submitted to Verified by the deadlines provided by the program. Any associated fees for Verified by Synergy Gateway Inc. to complete the pre-placement requirements are the sole responsibility of the student.

N95 Testing: It is a program requirement to fit test students to an N95 respirator prior to your clinical placement to ensure proper PPE safety. For an effective N95 respirator seal, you must be clean shaven during your fit testing session and clinical rotation. You will be required to be fit tested every two years or sooner depending on the policies of your work site. If there is a change in facial features due to weight gain/loss, pregnancy, dental work, etc. you will also need to be refitted to ensure an effective respirator seal.

Not sure if you meet the requirements?

Learn more about how NAIT evaluates applications, and find resources on how to satisfy admissions criteria.

How applications are evaluated Submitting required documents

Dates & Deadlines

International
Applications Deadline:

Once the program is full

Domestic
Applications Open:
Mar 01, 2025

Application Deadline:
Once the program is full

Term Start Date:
Jan 08, 2026

Seats are limited - Apply early! Applications will remain open for at least one month from the open date. If the program/waitlist fill after that date, applications will close.

International Applicants

This program does not accept international applicants. International applicants interested in this program may contact a NAIT International Academic Advisor to discuss their options.

Want to learn more about this program?

Thank you for your interest! We want to get you in contact with the right person to answer your questions. If you are a current or recently admitted student you can find program and course information as well as contact details for your program on the My Program page on the MyNAIT Portal.

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