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Train for a Career in Sterile Processing
Gain hands-on experience and classroom instruction in our Central Service Technician program. You’ll learn to decontaminate, sterilize, and distribute surgical instruments in hospitals and surgical centers. This program includes a 400-hour clinical externship, preparing you for the Healthcare Sterile Processing Association (HSPA) CRCST certification exam.
- Prerequisite: High school diploma or GED
- Included in course fee: Textbook and one certification exam attempt
- Financial assistance: Grant-funded programs may be available for eligible students
Next session: Fall 2025
Schedule: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday | 6 – 10 pm
- Cleaning & Processing: Proper techniques for decontaminating and preparing medical equipment.
- Sterilization & Disinfection: Methods to ensure surgical instruments meet safety standards.
- Packaging & Storage: Best practices for maintaining sterility and organization.
- Equipment Maintenance: Routine care and troubleshooting of sterilization tools.
- Inventory Control: Managing supplies to ensure availability and compliance.
- Surgical Instrument Identification: Recognizing and handling essential surgical tools.
All requirements must be completed by Friday of the 1st week of class. Please note that it can take 2 weeks to approximately 2 months to complete the requirements.
- Physical Exam
- Immunizations including Tdap, flu, PPD test, and titers for MMR, Hepatitis B, and Varicella (quantitative labs results only) (if not immune, then boosters are required)
- Proof of Health Insurance
- Clear criminal background and urine drug screen
- Purchase of scrubs (more information will be provided at the the start of the program)
- High school diploma or equivalent
- 18 years or older
- Must own a laptop and have reliable access to the internet
- American Heart Association BLS/CPR certification
- Resume for Hospital Externship
- Scrubs may be required to purchase
Rowan College at Burlington County (RCBC), within its mission to “transform lives by delivering innovative, high-quality and affordable educational experiences in an accessible and diverse environment,” seeks to provide a safe and effective educational experience for all students, faculty, and staff and all others who may come in close contact with RCBC students, faculty or staff.
Due to the current state of the Coronavirus pandemic, several health and safety protocols have been either implemented by RCBC, imposed on RCBC by partners who offer experiential learning opportunities, or both.
One such health and safety protocol is the requirement that all Health Science students and faculty verify vaccination against COVID-19 prior to participating in clinical experiences. The close nature of clinical experiences, as well as the often vulnerable position of patients to illness, necessitates that students and faculty demonstrate this measure of protection.
As a result, all health science program students and faculty must verify vaccination against COVID-19 two weeks before participating in clinical experiences.
Suppose RCBC health science students cannot participate in the live clinical environment. In that case, there are no alternative avenues for them to experience high-quality, real-world situations and gain the skills necessary for success if they cannot participate in the live clinical environment.
Therefore, students who have not provided proof that they have been fully vaccinated two weeks before their clinical experience will be de-registered from their program. Students with specific questions may address them with their program director.