Surgical Technology Admission Requirements

Start: Fall 2024

Location: Moorhead campus

Round 1 application deadline: May 15, 2024
Round 2 application deadline: August 1, 2024

Thank you for your interest in the Surgical Technology program at Minnesota State Community and Technical College. This program is designed to prepare students to care for patients and participate as active members of the perioperative team. Graduates will have the entry-level knowledge to assist physicians, anesthesiologists and registered nurses throughout the perioperative experience; demonstrate proficiency with sterile techniques; prepare and use surgical equipment, instruments and supplies; and demonstrate an understanding of anatomy, physiology, pathophysiology and microbiology.

Important information:

  • The following biology courses have a five-year recency requirement, meaning they must have been taken within five years of the programs start date. For Fall 2024 admission, courses will need to be taken Fall 2019 or later to be valid.
    • BIOL 2260/2261 Human Anatomy & Physiology I Lecture/Lab
    • BIOL 2262/2263 Human Anatomy & Physiology II Lecture/Lab
    • BIOL 2267/2268 Medical Microbiology Lecture/Lab
  • General education courses required for the Surgical Technology AAS degree may be completed at any of the M State campuses or online.
  • Students who complete the M State application process and have graduated from high school or earned a GED certificate will be accepted into the college for general education courses. Acceptance to the college is not a guarantee of admission into the Surgical Technology program. Admission to the core program is based on competitive eligibility admission criteria outlined below.
  • There are 20 available seats for the Fall 2024 Surgical Technology program. 
  • You may apply before all the prerequisite courses are complete, but your application will not be reviewed until all prerequisite coursework is complete with a grade of C or higher.
  • The Surgical Technology program curriculum information is available at https://www.minnesota.edu/degrees/475. 

We are pleased you are considering M State and look forward to receiving your application. We strongly encourage you to discuss the admission and program requirements with one of our academic advisors.

Surgical Technology admission information: 

Apply to M State

To be considered for the Surgical Technology program, students must be accepted to M State. The application for the Surgical Technology program is separate. You must be accepted to M State to access the Surgical Technology program application. 

New to M State - Follow the admissions checklist at www.minnesota.edu/admissions. 

Returning to M State - Submit an online application for admission at www.minnesota.edu/admissions. If you have attended another college since you last attended M State, you will also need to request the official transcript be sent to records@minnesota.edu. They may also be mailed to the M State Processing Center.   

M State Processing Center
1414 College Way 
Fergus Falls, MN 56537

Students should allow up to six weeks for transfer work to be received, evaluated and entered onto their Degree Audit Report. Transfer courses will not count toward admission to the program until they have been evaluated by the M State transfer specialist and successfully transferred.

Current M State student - If you are currently attending M State, you will not need to update your application to the college. 
Apply to Surgical Technology program

The Surgical Technology program application must be submitted for an applicant to be considered for the program. The eligibility criteria must be read and understood prior to applying. You must be accepted to M State to access the program application.

Surgical Technology Program Application
Placement testing

Applicants must complete all developmental English and/or math courses with a grade of C or higher. Placement in these courses may be determined by ACT, SAT, Accuplacer assessment or high school GPA. Guided self-placement for students who do not have an ACT, SAT, Accuplacer or high school GPA waiver on file cannot be used for Surgical Technology applicants.

Complete the Accuplacer assessment to determine which, if any, English and/or math developmental courses you need to complete. Sign up for the Accuplacer assessment at www.minnesota.edu/testing. 

Transfer students may have previous coursework to satisfy developmental coursework and therefore may not need to assess. 
High school status

High school graduates are encouraged to register for college general education courses while they pursue acceptance into the program. GED completers must supply the college with a GED transcript or certificate in order to gain acceptance.

Surgical Technology program eligibility criteria: 

Students must meet the following eligibility criteria. 

Prerequisite coursework requirements and GPA

Applicants must earn a C grade or higher and a cumulative GPA of 2.5 or higher in the program prerequisite courses:

  • ENGL 1101 College Writing
  • BIOL 2260 Anatomy and Physiology I Lecture*
  • BIOL 2261 Anatomy and Physiology I Lab*
  • PSYC 2222 Lifespan Development 
  • HLTH 1116 Medical Terminology*
  • SURT 1200 Introduction to Surgical Technology

*Course must have been completed within five years prior to the program start date. For the Fall 2024 start, the course must have been taken Fall 2019 or later.
Math and English requirements

Math scores on the Accuplacer/ACT or high school GPA must place the student into Math 1020 Intermediate Algebra or higher. Students testing into developmental math must complete the highest level developmental course with a grade of C or higher prior to starting the program.

Reading scores on the Accuplacer/ACT or high school GPA must place the student into ENGL 1101 College Writing. Students testing into developmental English must complete the course(s) with a grade of C or higher, along with ENGL 1101, prior to starting the program.

Admission of students to the Surgical Technology program: 

Applicants who meet all requirements for admission will have the greatest chance of being admitted into the program. Students are encouraged to submit the program application even if they are in the process of meeting all the requirements for admission to the program. If the application deadline has passed, check this page to see if applications are still being accepted. 

Students must have all math, English and prerequisite coursework complete, meeting the GPA minimum. 

If there are more eligible applicants than seats available, applicants will be ranked by prerequisite course GPA, and the top applicants will be admitted. If an applicant does not accept their seat, it will be offered to the first person on the wait list.

In the case of one or more ties, an earned grade in BIOL 2262 Anatomy and Physiology II Lecture will be used as a tie-breaker. 

If seats are available after the application deadline review, a secondary deadline will be posted and will be reviewed after summer term.

Acceptance notification: 

Each student who has submitted a complete admissions file by a posted deadline will receive an email from the college indicating whether he or she is accepted into the program, placed on the program waiting list or currently ineligible for the program. Please be sure to provide your current email address on your program application. 

Applicants will be notified within 30 days after the application deadline. 

Additional program requirements for accepted students: 

Correspondence from the college will provide more information related to the following. However, program applicants are encouraged to consider these requirements ahead of time. 

Laptop requirements
 Surgical Technology students will be required to have a laptop. The cost will be in addition to the cost of tuition, fees and books. The required computer specifications can be found at minnesota.edu/degrees/475.
CPR

Current American Heart Association BLS CPR/AED (Healthcare Providers) certification must be completed by August 1 and remain current throughout. Students are to upload documents to the Student Passport System.
Minnesota Department of Human Services background study

Accepted Surgical Technology students are required to have a cleared Minnesota Department of Health background study by August 1 to be eligible to start classes in the fall. The cost of the background study is $30. Students are responsible for the cost.

Accepted students who choose not to complete the background study or who do not clear may not be permitted to attend clinical experiences or service-learning opportunities. In such cases, the college cannot guarantee alternative learning opportunities, which ultimately will affect the students’ ability to complete the program.
National Background Check

Accepted Surgical Technology students are required to have a cleared National Background Check by August 1 to be eligible to start classes in the fall, even if they have completed a National Background Check for employment. National Background Checks are completed through a third-party vendor. Instructions and codes will be provided via official M State email from Joel Hoffman. The cost of the background check is $45.75. Students are responsible for the cost.

Accepted students who choose not to complete the background study or who do not clear may not be permitted to attend clinical experiences or service-learning opportunities. In such cases, the college cannot guarantee alternative learning opportunities, which ultimately will affect students’ ability to complete the program.
North Dakota State Board of Nursing Registry requirement
 Students are required to register as an Unlicensed Assistive Personnel-Surgical Technology Student through the North Dakota Board of Nursing. This registry will take place during the first week of fall semester. The cost includes an application fee of $60 and a background check fee of $41.25.
Student Passport

Health forms, supporting documentation and American Heart Association BLS CPR/AED (Healthcare Providers) documentation are required to be uploaded to the Student Passport system by August 1. Information on Student Passport will be sent via M State email to all accepted Surgical Technology students.
CST Exam

Students are required to sit for the national certification exam in their last fall semester at a cost of $247.

If you experience any issues with the application, please call 877.450.3322 or email info@minnesota.edu.