Emergency Medicine (BS)

Proof of Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) certification is required to apply for the Pitt EM program. If students do not have this certification, courses/classes are offered at Pitt to prepare them for the test.

This course provides learners with the cognitive knowledge and values to develop as an emergency medical professional at the basic life-support level. This course meets all the minimum training requirements as established by the U.S. Department of Transportation in the EMT, National Education Standards. It also provides the learner with the opportunity to develop basic life-support psychomotor skills. Successful completion of this course makes the learner eligible to become certified by the National Registry of EMTs and the Pennsylvania Department of Health.

The course is held at 3396 Fifth Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15213.

Due to high enrollment requests the program utilizes a Qualtrics survey for permission code requests. Please only complete the survey once.

For questions about any of these courses, please contact Natalie Schwarzwalder (NES94@pitt.edu).

FBI Background Check Requirement

All individuals pursuing an EMT certification after January 1, 2026, will be required to submit an FBI fingerprint-based criminal history background check. The background check cannot be more than ninety (90) days old at the time of submission of a complete and accurate application. The individual applying for certification is responsible for all expenses related to the FBI background check. This must be completed prior to the start of class, so students can submit their certification application at the start of the semester.

To get an FBI background check in Pennsylvania, candidates can register online at uenroll.identogo.com, enter service code 1KG756, and select “Schedule or Manage Appointment” to complete their application. Candidates will then need to go to an approved fingerprinting location with the confirmation email and a valid photo ID to have their fingerprints taken. The program recommends scheduling an appointment as soon as possible. It may take several weeks to get an appointment. There are no exceptions to this requirement. Please see this PDF for more information.