Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist Degrees (2026 stats)
TL;DR
Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist maps to BLS occupations averaging about $64,987, with roughly 1,596,050 workers nationwide in those roles. About 1,428 bachelor's completions in IPEDS 2023; median in-state published tuition is about $5,060.
Key Statistics
Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist: what the data shows
Common questions about respiratory care therapy/therapist degrees, answered from IPEDS, College Scorecard, BLS OEWS, and O*NET in this repository—not program marketing copy.
What is a respiratory care therapy/therapist degree?
A Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist program is classified under NCES CIP 51.0908 in the Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions field family (51.09).
A program that prepares individuals, under the supervision of physicians, to assist in developing respiratory care plans, administer respiratory care procedures, supervise personnel and equipment operation, maintain records, and consult with other health care team members. Includes instruction in the applied basic biomedical sciences; anatomy, physiology, and pathology of the respiratory system; clinical medicine; therapeutic procedures; clinical expressions; data collection and record-keeping; patient communication; equipment operation and maintenance; personnel supervision; and procedures for special population groups
IPEDS counted 1,428 completions for this CIP in the survey year in our extract.
Types of respiratory care therapy/therapist degrees and related programs
Other NCES program codes in the 51.09 family with pages on EDsmart Data:
- Athletic Training/Trainer (CIP 51.0913)
- Cardiopulmonary Technology/Technologist (CIP 51.0915)
- Cardiovascular Technology/Technologist (CIP 51.0901)
- Diagnostic Medical Sonography/Sonographer and Ultrasound Technician (CIP 51.0910)
- Electrocardiograph Technology/Technician (CIP 51.0902)
- Electroneurodiagnostic/Electroencephalographic Technology/Technologist (CIP 51.0903)
- Emergency Medical Technology/Technician (EMT Paramedic) (CIP 51.0904)
- Gene/Genetic Therapy (CIP 51.0914)
- Hearing Instrument Specialist (CIP 51.0918)
- Hyperbaric Medicine Technology/Technician (CIP 51.0921)
- Intraoperative Neuromonitoring Technology/Technician (CIP 51.0922)
- Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) Technology/Technician (CIP 51.0920)
- Mammography Technology/Technician (CIP 51.0919)
- Medical Radiologic Technology/Science - Radiation Therapist (CIP 51.0907)
- Nuclear Medical Technology/Technologist (CIP 51.0905)
- Orthopedic Technology/Technician (CIP 51.0923)
- Perfusion Technology/Perfusionist (CIP 51.0906)
- Physician Associate/Assistant (CIP 51.0912)
- Polysomnography (CIP 51.0917)
- Radiation Protection/Health Physics Technician (CIP 51.0916)
- Radiologic Technology/Science - Radiographer (CIP 51.0911)
- Surgical Technology/Technologist (CIP 51.0909)
How long does it take to get a respiratory care therapy/therapist degree?
Award levels reported to IPEDS for CIP 51.0908 in our file:
- 4,918 Associate (75.0% of IPEDS total)—about two years of full-time study
- 1,428 Bachelor's (21.8% of IPEDS total)—typically four years
- 151 Master's (2.3% of IPEDS total)—one to two years beyond a bachelor's
- 59 Doctorate (0.9% of IPEDS total)—varies by program
Time to completion depends on enrollment intensity and transfer credits; figures above describe credential type, not calendar time for every student.
What do you learn in respiratory care therapy/therapist?
O*NET skill ratings for occupations mapped to this major emphasize Reading Comprehension, Active Listening, Speaking, Writing, Critical Thinking, Service Orientation, and related competencies. See the Skills section for the full list in our extract.
What degree do you need?
For Teachers, Postsecondary (top mapped occupation), O*NET incumbent surveys in our career profile report these education credentials most often: Some college (29%), High School or Equivalent (27%), Bachelors Degree (22%).
O*NET education distributions describe incumbent workers, not minimum legal or employer requirements.
What jobs can you get with a respiratory care therapy/therapist degree?
Our degree→occupation mapping links Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist to the BLS roles below. Employment is U.S. OEWS; median wage is national May 2024 where published in our extract.
| Occupation | U.S. employment | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Teachers, Postsecondary | 1,500,000 | — |
| Secondary School Teachers | 1,072,540 | $64,580 |
See Careers & Jobs for mean wages and industry context.
Is a respiratory care therapy/therapist degree worth it?
College Scorecard national medians for the Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions bachelor's program family: median debt $23,791, median earnings $70,786 four years after enrollment. Debt-to-earnings proxy: 0.39.
About 1.3% of graduates in this field family were not working and not enrolled one year after completion in Scorecard's national program medians.
Among schools reporting in our Scorecard extract, median published in-state tuition is $5,060 and median net price is $12,844.
We do not score "worth" on opinion—compare debt, earnings, wages for mapped occupations, and completion data above against your cost and career target.
Institutions
Information about the types of higher education institutions that grant degrees in Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist and the types of students that study this field.
Tuition Costs for Common Institutions
$5,060 Median In-State Public
$33,745 Median Out of State Private
Tuition costs for Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist majors are, on average, $5,060 for in-state public colleges, and $33,745 for out of state private colleges.
Tuition costs comparison for Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist programs.
Degrees Awarded Over Time
1,428 Total Degrees Awarded in 2023
This chart shows the number of degrees awarded in Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist from 2015 to 2023.
Historical trend of degrees awarded in Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist.
Top 5 Schools by Enrollment
| # | School | State | Enrollment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Grand Canyon University | AZ | 73,371 |
| 2 | Grand Canyon University | AZ | 73,371 |
| 3 | Arizona State University Campus Immersion | AZ | 64,674 |
| 4 | Texas A&M University-College Station | TX | 59,615 |
| 5 | University of Central Florida | FL | 59,146 |
Schools with the largest enrollment offering Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist programs.
Top 5 Most Affordable Tuition
| # | School | State | Tuition |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Barstow Community College | CA | $1,104 |
| 2 | Antelope Valley Community College District | CA | $1,124 |
| 3 | Woodland Community College | CA | $1,124 |
| 4 | Yuba College | CA | $1,128 |
| 5 | Yuba College | CA | $1,128 |
Schools with the lowest tuition costs for Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist programs.
Top 5 Lowest Net Price
| # | School | State | Net Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Canada College | CA | $32 |
| 2 | New Mexico State University-Grants | NM | $68 |
| 3 | College of the Sequoias | CA | $480 |
| 4 | College of the Sequoias | CA | $480 |
| 5 | College of San Mateo | CA | $536 |
Schools with the lowest average net price for Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist programs.
Graduation Rates
53.13% Median Graduation Rate (150% of normal time)
52.58% Average Graduation Rate
965 Institutions Reporting
40.00% - 65.36% Interquartile Range
Graduation/completion rates for Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist programs across institutions.
Where students complete this major (IPEDS)
Bachelor's-level completions (IPEDS Completions, award level 5) summed by institution state. State is taken from IPEDS Directory (HD2023) for each reporting institution.
Geographic concentration
The largest number of reported bachelor's completions for Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist is in ID (178 completions). That state represents about 12.5% of U.S. bachelor's completions reported for this CIP in the IPEDS file we use.
Among states, the highest concentration relative to all bachelor's degrees awarded in-state is ID (0.63% of that state's bachelor's completions).
Top states by count of bachelor's completions for this CIP (IPEDS).
| State | Bachelor's completions (this CIP) | % of U.S. total (this CIP) | % of state's all bachelor's |
|---|---|---|---|
| ID | 178 | 12.5% | 0.63% |
| CA | 130 | 9.1% | 0.03% |
| TX | 129 | 9.0% | 0.04% |
| OH | 115 | 8.1% | 0.08% |
| GA | 94 | 6.6% | 0.08% |
| AZ | 66 | 4.6% | 0.05% |
| UT | 63 | 4.4% | 0.06% |
| FL | 61 | 4.3% | 0.03% |
| PA | 60 | 4.2% | 0.04% |
| KY | 54 | 3.8% | 0.10% |
| NC | 54 | 3.8% | 0.04% |
| VA | 54 | 3.8% | 0.04% |
| IN | 52 | 3.6% | 0.05% |
| NY | 38 | 2.7% | 0.01% |
| AL | 35 | 2.5% | 0.05% |
| TN | 34 | 2.4% | 0.05% |
| MI | 27 | 1.9% | 0.02% |
| ND | 26 | 1.8% | 0.21% |
Related specializations
Other NCES program codes in the 51.09 CIP family with dedicated pages on EDsmart Data.
- Athletic Training/Trainer CIP 51.0913
- Cardiopulmonary Technology/Technologist CIP 51.0915
- Cardiovascular Technology/Technologist CIP 51.0901
- Diagnostic Medical Sonography/Sonographer and Ultrasound Technician CIP 51.0910
- Electrocardiograph Technology/Technician CIP 51.0902
- Electroneurodiagnostic/Electroencephalographic Technology/Technologist CIP 51.0903
- Emergency Medical Technology/Technician (EMT Paramedic) CIP 51.0904
- Gene/Genetic Therapy CIP 51.0914
- Hearing Instrument Specialist CIP 51.0918
- Hyperbaric Medicine Technology/Technician CIP 51.0921
- Intraoperative Neuromonitoring Technology/Technician CIP 51.0922
- Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) Technology/Technician CIP 51.0920
- Mammography Technology/Technician CIP 51.0919
- Medical Radiologic Technology/Science - Radiation Therapist CIP 51.0907
- Nuclear Medical Technology/Technologist CIP 51.0905
- Orthopedic Technology/Technician CIP 51.0923
- Perfusion Technology/Perfusionist CIP 51.0906
- Physician Associate/Assistant CIP 51.0912
- Polysomnography CIP 51.0917
- Radiation Protection/Health Physics Technician CIP 51.0916
- Radiologic Technology/Science - Radiographer CIP 51.0911
- Surgical Technology/Technologist CIP 51.0909
Degree Levels (IPEDS)
Completions reported to IPEDS for CIP 51.0908 in the survey year used in our extract (6,556 total across levels below).
- 4,918 Associate (75.0% of IPEDS total)
- 1,428 Bachelor's (21.8% of IPEDS total)
- 151 Master's (2.3% of IPEDS total)
- 59 Doctorate (0.9% of IPEDS total)
Source: IPEDS Completions (c2024_a), summed by award level for this CIP.
Careers & Jobs
Occupations linked to this major in our degree→career mapping, with wages and employment from processed BLS career profiles in this repo.
Across these BLS occupations, employment-weighted mean pay is about $64,987. Figures are national OEWS estimates for the occupation—not earnings of Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist graduates alone.
Related occupations (BLS OEWS)
| Occupation | Mean annual wage | U.S. employment |
|---|---|---|
| Teachers, Postsecondary | $36,511 | 1,500,000 |
| Secondary School Teachers | $104,813 | 1,072,540 |
Open each occupation for full career profile charts and industry breakdowns on EDsmart Data.
Program outcomes (College Scorecard)
National medians across bachelor's programs in the Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions CIP family (46 programs reporting debt). Not specific to every Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist graduate.
- $23,791 median federal loan debt among completers
- $70,786 median earnings four years after enrollment (national program median)
- 0.39 debt-to-earnings ratio (Scorecard proxy)
- 1.3% of graduates not working and not enrolled one year out (program cohort)
Source: College Scorecard program-level outcomes aggregated by 4-digit CIP family.
Employment
Wages and industry mix below use BLS OEWS data for occupations linked to this major in our mapping—not a graduate earnings survey.
Yearly Income for Common Jobs
$40,621 Average Wage in Workforce
The average salary for Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist majors is $40,621.
Average annual salaries of the most common occupations for Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist majors.
Occupations by Share
1,596,050 2023 Workforce
The number of Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist graduates in the workforce has been growing.
Various jobs filled by those with a major in Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist by share of the total number of graduates.
Diversity
Demographic information for those who earn a degree in Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist in the United States.
Workforce Age
N/A Average Age in 2023
This chart shows distribution of ages for employees with a degree in Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist.
Age distribution for Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist degree holders in the workforce.
Gender Distribution
Counts below are bachelor's-level completions only (IPEDS Completions, award level 5).
1,428 Total Degrees Awarded
355 Male (24.86%)
1,073 Female (75.14%)
Gender distribution of Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist degree recipients.
Race and Ethnicity Distribution
Counts below are bachelor's-level completions only (IPEDS Completions, award level 5).
737 White (51.61%)
238 Hispanic or Latino (16.67%)
217 Black or African American (15.20%)
85 Asian (5.95%)
43 Two or More Races (3.01%)
Racial and ethnic distribution of Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist degree recipients.
Degrees Awarded
The most common degree types awarded to students graduating in Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Associates Degree.
Distribution of degree types awarded in Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist.
Skills
Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for those working in the Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist field from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Required Skills
Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist majors need many skills, but most especially Critical Thinking, Active Listening, and Reading Comprehension.
Rating of how necessary various skills are for Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist majors.
Skills Bar Chart
This bar chart shows the same information as the radar chart, displaying the importance of each skill.
Skill importance ratings for Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist majors.
About
A program that prepares individuals, under the supervision of physicians, to assist in developing respiratory care plans, administer respiratory care procedures, supervise personnel and equipment operation, maintain records, and consult with other health care team members. Includes instruction in the applied basic biomedical sciences; anatomy, physiology, and pathology of the respiratory system; clinical medicine; therapeutic procedures; clinical expressions; data collection and record-keeping; patient communication; equipment operation and maintenance; personnel supervision; and procedures for special population groups
In 2023, 1,428 degrees were awarded across all undergraduate and graduate programs in Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist.
CIP Code
51.0908 - Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist
What the data shows
At the program-family level, College Scorecard reports median debt of $23,791 for bachelor's completers and median earnings near $70,786, a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.39. Those figures describe national program cohorts in this CIP family—not every individual Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist graduate.
Women earned 72.4% of 6,686 Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist completions in the IPEDS file used here.
Mapped BLS occupations show employment-weighted mean pay of about $64,987. The largest mapped role by headcount is Teachers, Postsecondary (1,500,000 U.S. jobs in OEWS).
Published tuition medians in College Scorecard land at $5,060 in-state at public colleges and $33,745 at private institutions for programs in this field.
Data Sources
This page uses data from the following sources:
- College Scorecard - U.S. Department of Education
- Institutional characteristics, costs, completion rates, and earnings data
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: collegescorecard.ed.gov
- Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)
- Employment and wage data by occupation
- Latest data: May 2024
- Source: bls.gov/oes
- O*NET Online - U.S. Department of Labor
- Occupational skills, knowledge, abilities, and work activities
- Database version: 28.0 (August 2023)
- Source: onetcenter.org
- IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) - National Center for Education Statistics
- Institutional data, completions, enrollment, and financial aid
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: nces.ed.gov/ipeds
- Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS)
- Demographic and workforce data
- Latest data: 2023 ACS 5-Year Estimates
- Source: census.gov/acs
Data Processing: All data has been processed, cleaned, and aggregated for presentation. Where specific data points are unavailable, estimates are based on available data and clearly marked.
Last Updated: Data reflects the most recent available information as of January 2025.
Methodology
Data for this profile is sourced from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard dataset, IPEDS completion data, and Bureau of Labor Statistics employment data.
All financial figures are adjusted for inflation and represent the most recent available data. Employment and wage data are from the most recent Census Bureau ACS PUMS estimates.