Three Advanced Care Paramedic students in uniform organizing equipment in red first-aid kits in a simulation lab

Serve your community as an Advanced Care Paramedic (ACP)

Advanced Care Paramedic Ontario College Graduate Certificate program

Become a leader in emergency situations. Acquire advanced knowledge and skills for emergency health care. Nationally recognized faculty.

Program code PARM
Duration 1 Year
Credential Ontario College Graduate Certificate
Program Delivery Full-time
Program delivery method(s) In person What does this mean?

Program information

Program description

Students acquire advanced knowledge and skills that prepare them to function as leaders in emergency situations, and practice out of hospital health care. Graduates demonstrate the ability to care for patients from diverse populations and to provide advanced medical treatment. Students experience classroom instruction, online learning, skills and patient simulation labs, as well as hospital, clinical, and field placements.

Intake information

Start dateCampus
Fall 2024 Barrie

Tuition and fees

Work-integrated learning

  • This program includes an internship component. During your final semester, you’ll take part in a supervised, structured work opportunity and apply your academic knowledge in a setting directly related to your program.
  • Learn about types of work-integrated learning at Georgian.

What are the admission requirements for the Advanced Care Paramedic program?

Advanced Care Paramedic admission requirements

  • two-year Ontario College paramedic diploma or equivalent  
  • Advanced Emergency Medical Care Attendant (AEMCA)   
  • a minimum of 4000 hours of work experience within the last five years with a licensed land paramedic service demonstrated by providing letter(s) from current or recent employers
  • applicant must be currently (within 1 year) employed by a licensed land paramedic service
  • letter of current good standing from the applicant’s base hospital or regulatory body (from out of province applicants)

Selection Process
  •  selection testing in Primary Care Paramedic Theory (cut score 70%)
  •  If English is not your first language, refer to the English Language Proficiency Policy.

Criminal Reference/Vulnerable Sector Check

Placement agencies require an up-to-date clear criminal reference check and vulnerable sector check prior to going out on placement. Students should obtain their criminal reference three months prior to placement; checks conducted earlier may not be considered current. As some jurisdictions require longer lead-time for processing, please check with the program coordinator to ensure you allow for sufficient turn-around time. It is the student’s responsibility to provide the completed document prior to placement start.

NOTE: Individuals who have been charged or convicted criminally and not pardoned will be prohibited from proceeding to a clinical or work placement.

Additional information

A current AEMCA is required to work as a Paramedic in Ontario. International applicants are required to complete the Ontario equivalency process. Please contact the Ministry of Health and Long Term Care for information regarding the equivalency process.

Completion of the college Clinical Preparedness Permit is required for all hospital and field placements.

Verification and retention of all Clinical Preparedness Permit requirements is outsourced to an external agency. Students are responsible for any fees incurred for this service.

In order to provide quality practicum placements, students will be placed in a variety of agencies or services in the region serviced by the campus. While every effort is made to arrange placements in the planned sequence, placements are dependent upon availability and may need to be completed at a later date. Students are required to provide their own transportation.

Information about placement requirements

To help you navigate the requirements to complete the clinical placement component(s) of this program (e.g. immunization, First Aid and CPR, criminal record screening and other non-academic requirements), please review the details below.

For more information about placements, visit the Placement Offices webpage.

Placement requirementsGeorgian College Chevron

In order to provide quality practicum placements (“Placements”), students are placed in a variety of agencies, largely in the region serviced by the campus. Students are required to provide their own transportation to Placements. Placements may vary in length (e.g. six to 12 hour days) and may include weekends and evenings, with varying start and end times (e.g. day, afternoon, overnight).

Many programs, including Health and Wellness, have immunization, First Aid and CPR, criminal record screening and  other non-academic requirements that need to be met prior to Placements starting. You are responsible for carefully reviewing and meeting these requirements. The failure to meet them may mean that the host agency may refuse to accept you for a Placement or, if you have started one, that you may be prevented from continuing. The result may be that you cannot complete your program. Program-specific requirements can be found on page 2 of the Clinical Preparedness Permit specific to your program.

You are responsible for meeting all immunization, criminal screening and other requirements by the deadline provided by your program and before you start your Placement.

Notes regarding the Criminal Record Check (“CRC”) and Vulnerable Sector Screening (VSS)

Individuals who have been charged or convicted criminally and not yet pardoned or who have adverse entries on their CRC or VSS will be prohibited from proceeding to a Placement. Such a student will normally be counselled to withdraw from the program because the successful completion of a Placement is a program requirement.

Obtaining the CRC and VSS usually requires a processing time of up to 12 weeks and can vary between police jurisdictions. As some jurisdictions require longer lead time for processing, ensure you allow for sufficient turn-around time. Record checks and screenings conducted earlier than six months may not be considered current and not be acceptable. Refer to your Clinical Preparedness Permit for information regarding this. A host agency may refuse a Placement if the CRC or VSS is not satisfactory to it. It is the student’s responsibility to provide the necessary completed documents prior to the start of a Placement at the designated check time, and in the format set by Georgian College and stated in the Clinical Preparedness Permit Information Package. More information can be found on the Placement Offices webpage.

The costs associated with the provision of the CRC and VSS, anything related to them (including, if applicable, obtaining a pardon), and meeting any immunization and other Placement requirements, are to be borne by the student. The non-academic requirements of clinical agencies as described in the Clinical Preparedness Permit are subject to change at any time and host agencies may accept or decline students for any reason at their discretion. Georgian College  is not responsible for any of the costs associated with the foregoing, nor for the consequences of failing to comply with, any of the requirements set out above.  

What career paths can I take in paramedicine?

Your Advanced Care Paramedic graduate certificate gives you many career opportunities

Graduates who possess provincial certification at the Advanced Emergency Medical Care Assistant (A.E.M.C.A.) level will, after successful completion of the Advanced Care Paramedic (ACP) Program, be eligible to write the Ontario ACP certification exam and gain employment as ACPs with paramedic services. 

Experiential learning opportunities

Paramedic lab

Georgian has a state-of-the-art paramedicine lab where you’ll practise life-saving procedures using simulators and live actors.

During lab time, prepare for your future career with scenarios like accident-scene extrication, and cardiac arrest protocol. Plus, the driving simulator will help prepare you for different road conditions.

Paramedic training vehicle

Georgian also has a leading-edge paramedic training vehicle equipped with all the bells and whistles of standard ambulances, including lights and sirens, a radio for call details, and storage shelves and compartments.

You’ll have the opportunity to apply what you learn in the classroom on the road, practising in this vehicle on a weekly basis.

Accreditation

Paramedic Association of Canada

The Advanced Care Paramedic program at Georgian College follows the National Occupational Competency Profile for Paramedics as approved by the Paramedic Association of Canada and is accredited by EQual™ Accreditation Canada.

Paramedic Association of Canada logo

What courses are included in the Advanced Care Paramedic graduate certificate program?

Course overview

8 Program Courses
1 Internship

Program-specific courses

Semester 1 courses are listed below. For a full list of courses in the program including course descriptions, view the Advanced Care Paramedic program outline.

  • PARM 1000 – Advanced Pharmacology
  • PARM 1001 – Advanced Patient Care Theory 1
  • PARM 1002 – Advanced Care Paramedic Skills
  • PARM 1005 – Advanced Patient Care Simulation

Your course delivery method(s)

In person

This program is delivered fully in person and requires you to attend campus.

Please note, delivery methods are based on planning for the upcoming semester and are subject to change.

Do you have questions about Advanced Care Paramedic? Contact us!

Thinking about applying to Georgian?

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Already applied to Georgian?

Connect with the Office of the Registrar for admissions-related questions.

Are you an international student?

Contact our international recruitment team to learn more about studying at Georgian. 

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