Respiratory Therapy vs. Nursing Prerequisites: How They Differ- Respiratory therapy and nursing draw from the same applicant pool, and their prerequisite lists overlap heavily. If you are weighing respiratory therapy vs nursing prerequisites, the practical upside is that most of your preparation counts toward either path. This guide lays out what the two share, where they diverge, and how to prepare so you keep both doors open. For the full picture on the RT side, start with the complete respiratory therapy prerequisites guide.
Both fields expect a foundation in the human body and the academic skills to communicate and calculate. Courses common to the vast majority of respiratory therapy and nursing programs include:
Both also tend to require a grade of C or better in each prerequisite, a competitive GPA (often around 3.0), and recent science coursework — commonly within five years.
| Area | Nursing | Respiratory Therapy |
|---|---|---|
| Nutrition | Often required | Rarely required |
| Developmental / lifespan psychology | Commonly required | Sometimes accepted for general psych |
| Physics | Not typically required | Required by some bachelor’s (BSRC) programs |
| Entrance exam | TEAS or HESI very common | Used by some programs, not universal |
| Program accreditor | ACEN or CCNE | CoARC |
| Licensing exam | NCLEX-RN | NBRC (CRT / RRT) |
In short, nursing leans toward nutrition and lifespan development plus a near-universal entrance exam, while respiratory therapy emphasizes cardiopulmonary science and adds physics at the bachelor’s level. The core science stack, though, is essentially the same.
The prerequisite overlap reflects a real overlap in foundational knowledge, but the day-to-day work diverges sharply. Respiratory therapists specialize in the cardiopulmonary system: they manage ventilators, deliver oxygen and aerosol therapies, draw and interpret arterial blood gases, respond to codes, and work heavily in intensive care units, emergency departments, and pulmonary diagnostics. The scope is deep rather than broad.
Registered nurses carry a broad scope across the whole patient: they assess and monitor, administer a wide range of medications, coordinate care, educate patients and families, and follow a patient through an entire episode of care. If you are drawn to a specialized, physiology-and-equipment-intensive role, RT tends to fit; if you prefer broad, relationship-centered care across many settings, nursing often appeals more.
Both fields can be entered at the associate level. Respiratory therapy’s entry-into-practice credential typically follows a two-year associate degree from a CoARC-accredited program, though bachelor’s (BSRC) options are growing. Nursing offers an associate-degree (ADN) route to RN licensure and a four-year BSN that many employers increasingly favor. In both cases the prerequisite stage comes first. Because the prerequisite science is shared, the time you invest now is not wasted no matter which way you lean.
Nursing graduates sit for the NCLEX-RN after an ACEN- or CCNE-accredited program; respiratory therapy graduates earn the CRT and RRT from the National Board for Respiratory Care after a CoARC-accredited program. Both then license at the state level. Because the prerequisite science is shared, you don’t have to commit before finishing the basics — the smart way to decide.
Strategy. Complete the shared core — A&P I and II, microbiology, chemistry, math, and English — before you commit. You will be a competitive applicant for either path and can specialize later (physics for a BSRC program, nutrition for nursing) once you have chosen.
Self-paced, online, accredited prerequisites let you build the common foundation on your own schedule: Anatomy & Physiology I (BIO 270), Anatomy & Physiology II (BIO 275), Microbiology (BIO 210), General Chemistry (CHEM 151), College Algebra (MATH 107), and Statistics (MATH 220).
Largely yes. The shared science core transfers to either path; you will only need a few field-specific additions once you choose.
They are comparable. Nursing adds nutrition and lifespan psychology; bachelor’s-level RT adds physics. Confirm each target program’s exact list.
Nursing programs nearly always use the TEAS or HESI. RT programs vary — some use an entrance exam, many do not.
Usually. Both commonly require science prerequisites completed within about five years, so check your dates before applying.
Compare more paths with RT vs. sonography vs. rad tech prerequisites, or dig into the complete respiratory therapy prerequisites guide and the RT prerequisite checklist. External references: the BLS outlook for respiratory therapists and the BLS outlook for registered nurses.
