Polk State Cardiovascular Tech students benefit from clinical affiliates, mentors
For the Polk State Cardiovascular Technology (CVT) Program, ensuring the success of students is a collaborative effort.
CVT staff, classmates and clinical affiliates play integral roles. Brooke Wolfe is a 2025 graduate. Now employed at Tampa General Hospital, Wolfe noted that there are many options in the field.
“The Polk State CVT Program sets students up for success in the workforce by exposing them to different clinical settings – from procedures that are…just diagnostic to more intense procedures,” Wolfe asserted. “This is a very intense, very challenging career, but it’s also very rewarding. This program pushed me to my limits and pushed me to a place I didn’t necessarily know I could be, but it instilled a knowledge and a confidence in me more than what I could have ever asked for.”
Clinical affiliates
The program has more than 20 clinical affiliates, including Lakeland Regional Health and multiple BayCare, AdventHealth, Orlando Health and University of Florida Health facilities. Having multiple partners provides easier access to career opportunities upon graduation and better allows students in the program to know the options available to them.
“It’s very important for Polk State to have affiliations with different hospitals,” Camila Castro explained. “As a first-year student, I really don’t know how it’s going to be after I graduate. As a student, it gives me a better idea of what my options are for when I graduate.”
On Oct. 3, several BayCare representatives came to speak to students in the CVT Program on several topics, including the scope of career options. Among those was Brian Frazier, Interventional Services Manager for BayCare St. Joseph’s Hospital-South in Riverview.
“These students are the future of our business,” Frazier said. “These partnerships allow me to see and curate brand-new talent from all over and allow them to be brought into BayCare. The relationship is priceless. It allows us to grow and get quality technologists.”
Remie Kristoff is a second-year student in the program. During BayCare’s visit, Kristoff took notice of the nonprofit’s employee-centric approach. When speaking to the students, Frazier explained that BayCare looks for employees who are not only skilled in their duties but a good cultural fit as well.
“They support and care about their employees,” Kristoff said of BayCare. “They put a lot of emphasis on that, and I think that’s what draws employees to them.”
“My biggest takeaway from BayCare was how friendly they were,” Castro added. “They brought a lot of information, so that stood out a lot.”
In addition to BayCare and the aforementioned hospital systems, the Polk State CVT Program also has partnerships with Lakeland Regional Health, HCA Florida Osceola Hospital, Cleveland Clinic Indian River Hospital, Manatee Memorial Health and Tampa General Hospital. With affiliates in Polk, Highlands, Hillsborough, Indian River, Lake, Manatee, Marion, Orange, Osceola, Pasco, Pinellas and Sumter counties, graduates have options across Central Florida.
“When considering a career in the health sciences, understand that the hours might be long, the learning might be difficult at times, and the technology is always changing,” Frazier added. “In the long run, this gives you a feeling of accomplishment. This is a career; this is a life choice. If you take it seriously and you put everything into it, the benefits you get on the back end as far as your fulfillment is insurmountable. The sky is the limit.”
Student mentor program
To ensure student success, the CVT Program implemented a student mentor strategy. For this program, first-year students are assigned a second-year student to serve as their mentor. Those in the program refer to the first-year students as junior students and the second-year students as senior students.
“It’s a way for the junior student to have someone be there for them and for the senior student to think through things and to pass on their education to someone younger or in a different position in the program,” Wolfe explained.
The second-year students help the first-year students with labs, studying and understanding the subject matter. While the benefits to the newer students are obvious, Kristoff noted that the program is beneficial to the second-year students as well.
“I had the luxury of experiencing both roles,” she explained. “From a mentee perspective, it was great to have somebody to look up to and have somebody to believe in you. From the mentor perspective, it’s really nice to be able to guide somebody and help them. Overall, it helps my leadership skills.”
A quality program
Students in the two-year program graduate with an Associate in Science degree. The CVT Program prepares students for careers as cardiovascular technologists who assist physicians during angioplasty and stenting, monitor a patient’s hemodynamic status during procedures and provide professional and compassionate pre- and post-procedural patient care.
“My advice to those considering or are currently enrolled in the CVT Program is to use your resources,” Wolfe concluded. “Use your classmates; use those around you. If you’re interested in joining the program, talk to the instructors. They’re amazing; they’re excited to help and very knowledgeable.”
“(If you’re) thinking about entering the CVT Program, just do it,” Castro added. “I was hesitant because it is two years. It seemed like a long time, but it really is flying by. You’re going to learn so much.”
Graduates find employment opportunities in cardiac catheterization labs in hospitals and freestanding clinics as professionally licensed healthcare associates. Polk State’s CVT Program boasts a 100% job-placement rate (2021-2023), as well as a 92% credentialing exam pass rate on first attempts (2021-2023) – higher than both the state and national averages.
“What has really stood out to me about the CVT Program is the willingness of the professors and educators to help,” Kristoff exclaimed. “They go the extra mile to make sure that we understand the content and truly thrive in this field.”
The program’s application period runs from April 15 through May 30. More information is available at www.polk.edu/cardiovascular-technology/.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, cardiovascular technologists earn an annual median salary of more than $67,000.
Employers have taken notice of the quality of Polk State graduates.
“Polk State has great culture, quality and attention to detail,” Frazier explained. “The facility simulates real-world activity and makes the students viable candidates for the industry. It’s very detailed work, critical work with a lot of nuances to it but if they take the time to invest in it, the dividends will be exponential.”