# Mt. San Antonio College August 2010



## Cawolf86 (May 18, 2010)

Hey there, I am registered for the August 2010 Paramedic course at Mt. SAC; for which the pre-course begins in late June. Anyone else on the boards happen to be attending this session? ^_^


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## themooingdawg (May 18, 2010)

I thought you do the pre-course first and then if you are placed in the top 20-30 student in class, then you get in the paramedic program?


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## Cawolf86 (May 18, 2010)

Generally yes, but the consensus from the staff is that the precourse will weed out the group to where if you pass the precourse you get into the paramedic program.


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## dudemanguy (May 18, 2010)

What is the pre course, an EMT basic course?


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## Cawolf86 (May 18, 2010)

After you apply to the paramedic program you get an invitation to register for the precourse. The precourse is technically EMS 1 - Fundamentals for Paramedics. This course runs for 8 hours a session and is 2-3x per week for 2 months. It covers review material that you are given prior to the course.


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## B.K. (May 18, 2010)

yes i am also going to this upcoming pre-course! my friends talked me into going there for medic school but said i would have to study my butt off.
what kind of materials have you been studying? im almost nervous from hearing so many horror stories of how hard the course is!


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## Cawolf86 (May 18, 2010)

Oh awesome! I have been studying the material they gave us for about a month. Making note cards for all the terms in both books and the packets and going through the recommended drug math and anatomy/physiology books. I too feel unprepared because I do not know exactly what we will be tested on. 

I see you live in Santa Clarita (I am from the SFV), will you be commuting?


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## B.K. (May 18, 2010)

yeah im gunna have to drive down there for each class during the pre-course, but im pretty sure its only on the weekends so at least theres no traffic. and if i do get accepted to the program (*knock on wood) im gunna look into renting a room somewhere in diamond bar/pomona area. there's the cal poly campus down the street from mt sac so theres gotta be a lot of college students looking to share rent or somethin.
and thats pretty much the same approach to studyin im taking, just drowning my brain in flash cards. but i know they start testing you the very first day so i guess we better get used to it. and did u turn in your application yet? if so, do you know the actual date/time of the first day of class?


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## AnthonyM83 (May 19, 2010)

For those asking, the pre-course material is EMT material....except you're now expected to actually know it. Word for word definition of medical terms and suffixes for example.

For you two in it, study your asses off right now. I've been told countless times how absolutely brutal the class is. From the dozens in the precourse, 20 to 30 (or whatever) will go into the program, but I heard only about 6 or so end up graduating. Everyone else fails out (including people who are taking it for the 2nd or 3rd time around).

Study like you had a gun to your head. Or a family member's head. Or if this was the only thing the existed in the world. Or as if only the person who did the best would pass, only the top student (cause it's almost close to the truth). Or whatever works for you.

Take care of any unfinished life business now (finishing the deck, fixing your car, trying to land that girl in bed, whatever...cause there'll NO time for it during class). This is what I'm told...


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## Cawolf86 (May 19, 2010)

That is what I am doing right now; constant studying of the pre-precourse packets. Any tips on what was covered the most in your experience? Assuming you went there, I guess I just did because of your prior post.


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## AnthonyM83 (May 20, 2010)

Naw...but new a few smart guys who did (and failed out). I did buy the pre-course materials at one point when I was considering going there. Never signed up, though.

Heard the main guy there finally retired, though...so maybe? it won't be quite as tough


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## Cawolf86 (May 20, 2010)

Steve, the one who created the course is who I believe you are referring too. That is what I heard as well though his name is listed as the precourse intructor.


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## themooingdawg (May 20, 2010)

from what ive heard, the real hard part about the mt sac paramedic program is that you absolutely are not given any help; you go into class like any other lectures, they lecture, and thats it, no help whatsoever from the instructor, so you're pretty much left to do everything yourself. The tests/quizzes at mt sac also consists of fill in and short essays, unlike the usual multiple choice, which i think gets alot of people as well too


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## Cawolf86 (May 20, 2010)

Yah my concerns are more that I feel unprepared for the precourse; even with all my studying.


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## jgmedic (May 21, 2010)

themooingdawg said:


> from what ive heard, the real hard part about the mt sac paramedic program is that you absolutely are not given any help; you go into class like any other lectures, they lecture, and thats it, no help whatsoever from the instructor, so you're pretty much left to do everything yourself. The tests/quizzes at mt sac also consists of fill in and short essays, unlike the usual multiple choice, which i think gets alot of people as well too



Why would anyone want to go to a program like that, with no real instruction outside of lecture. I have heard that many Mt SAC grads can recite the whole brady book from memory, due to the obscure test questions used. I just don't see how this style of educating is any good at all for EMS or any other field for that matter.


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## B.K. (May 22, 2010)

jgmedic said:


> Why would anyone want to go to a program like that, with no real instruction outside of lecture. I have heard that many Mt SAC grads can recite the whole brady book from memory, due to the obscure test questions used. I just don't see how this style of educating is any good at all for EMS or any other field for that matter.



i agree that its not the best way to teach everyone, the tough-love/sink-or-swim style. but i've worked with a couple of guys who got their P-card there and from what i've seen, Mt SAC just seems to generate professional, intelligent, confident, think-on-their-feet medics. i was truly impressed working with those guys, and i learned something from them every shift. and i have a feeling that this whole idea of an entire medic course consisting of just a single 6-month-long lecture is something of an urban myth created by former drop outs who still hold a grudge. at least i hope thats the caseh34r:


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## themooingdawg (May 22, 2010)

jgmedic said:


> Why would anyone want to go to a program like that, with no real instruction outside of lecture. I have heard that many Mt SAC grads can recite the whole brady book from memory, due to the obscure test questions used. I just don't see how this style of educating is any good at all for EMS or any other field for that matter.



it really depends on you, but you have to think about it this way; everybody that passes the program is guaranteed to come out knowing literally EVERYTHING there is to know about paramedicine, in and out.


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## terrible one (May 22, 2010)

themooingdawg said:


> it really depends on you, but you have to think about it this way; everybody that passes the program is guaranteed to come out knowing literally EVERYTHING there is to know about paramedicine, in and out.



Sorry to nit-pick but its not possible to know EVERYTHING about paramedicine. You will know what there is to know as an entry level medic and progress from there.


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## themooingdawg (May 23, 2010)

B.K. said:


> i agree that its not the best way to teach everyone, the tough-love/sink-or-swim style. but i've worked with a couple of guys who got their P-card there and from what i've seen, Mt SAC just seems to generate professional, intelligent, confident, think-on-their-feet medics. i was truly impressed working with those guys, and i learned something from them every shift. and i have a feeling that this whole idea of an entire medic course consisting of just a single 6-month-long lecture is something of an urban myth created by former drop outs who still hold a grudge. at least i hope thats the caseh34r:



prob not, the medics that told me this graduated from mt sac


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## themooingdawg (May 23, 2010)

but then again, fail % shouldnt matter to anyone. If you go to mt. sac, pti, freeman, it shouldnt matter where it is, you should be studying just as hard to learn more; after all, you'll need to have the base of knowledge when you go in to do your clinicals/internship or you'll fail out either ways


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## terrible one (May 23, 2010)

themooingdawg said:


> but then again, fail % shouldnt matter to anyone. If you go to mt. sac, pti, freeman, it shouldnt matter where it is, you should be studying just as hard to learn more; after all, you'll need to have the base of knowledge when you go in to do your clinicals/internship or you'll fail out either ways


 
in LA co-
its pretty difficult to fail clinicals. the internship, depending where you go and what agency your affiliated with, you could pass without displaying adequate knowledge


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## jgmedic (May 25, 2010)

terrible one said:


> in LA co-
> its pretty difficult to fail clinicals. the internship, depending where you go and what agency your affiliated with, you could pass without displaying adequate knowledge



Or you could fail for not playing the games a lot of stations like to throw at the interns. I'm not saying to be disrespectful or not help out, you are in their house after all, but a medic intern is not a probationary FF and should not be treated as such.


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## Cawolf86 (Jun 2, 2010)

Bump - anyone else registered for this pre-course?


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## CSLEMT (Jun 11, 2010)

*Russ Weck: LACOFD Prep Course*

Russ Weck: LA County Fire

Does anyone have a contact number or link to sign up for his prep course?


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## Cawolf86 (Jun 11, 2010)

CSLEMT said:


> Russ Weck: LA County Fire
> 
> Does anyone have a contact number or link to sign up for his prep course?



http://www.mtsac.edu/instruction/technology/medical/courses.html

All of the required forms and transcripts need
to be in by June 18th.  

Good luck.


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## Cawolf86 (Jun 24, 2010)

Last bump of my old thread - anyone else registered for the pre-course starting Monday?


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## Cawolf86 (Jun 28, 2010)

First day of the pre-course for Class #70 is done!

So was anyone else there?


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## B.K. (Jun 29, 2010)

yeah i was there alright and it turns out i need to re-learn math lol. should be a fun course though


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## realitycheck1 (Oct 15, 2010)

If Stephen Williams is still teaching there, I recommend waiting until he retires.  In my short experience listening to him "teach," I've concluded that your time is better spent at some other school.

I graduated from USC and I'm now attending medical school. For anyone else who has attended any college level course at a decent college, you will sit through his "lectures" and want to tear your hair out.  There is about 2% substance, and 98% random rants in an abnormally slow cadence.  He treats the students as though they were kindergarteners, repeatedly telling us that "this is not like anything you've done before" and urging us to change our study habits.

The paramedic precourse at Mt Sac used to be SIGNIFICANTLY shorter.  They've extended it a couple of times, and now they have many more hours of prep course than they know what to do with.  Sure, it's one of the cheaper options, especially if you can get financial aid for the course.  Just don't expect to actually learn anything if this guy is still teaching.  You'll learn on your own, and if you have the patience to sit through his 8 hour random ramblings, then you're set.  Otherwise, do something more productive with your time.  The rest of this post is just a taste of what a day will be like with Stephen.

On the first day of the prep course, he arrived 30 minutes late, stating that students usually show up late, so he didn't want to start teaching until everyone was there.  I let that one slide.  He then started talking about everything except what was relevant to becoming a paramedic, which included: rambling on about Mt. Sac's president, registering problems, parking/tickets, fire captains hating students, something about Gaelic, and having a question and answer session for idiots that in itself lasted 20 minutes.  Finally, he started talking about the course.  However, instead of jumping right into the materials, he spoke for 1 hour about what the course will cover.  As though we are not capable of reading a syllabus ourselves?  Next, he talked about an orientation flier for 30 minutes.  A great use of our time.  

Finally we got started on some vocabulary words. Fine.  He slowly starts going around the room picking people to guess what each word means.  As some struggle through the terms that they've never seen before, he just sits there waiting...time spent: another 1.5 hours.  Vocabulary words covered: 10-15...not exactly efficient.


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