The Central Washington University Paramedicine program is regaining momentum after several challenging years, with a significant increase in applicants and retention rates for the fall 2026 cohort, according to Program Director Emily Gonzalez on June 1.
Gonzalez said that the program has experienced a 113% rise in applications and a 95% retention rate since implementing faculty changes and cultural shifts beginning in 2024. “Three years ago, we were at 79% retention, but now we’re at 95%. And our applications are also way up — even more than we expected. That’s pretty amazing when you think about where we were when I got here,” she said.
She attributed the renewed interest to new objective performance criteria for admissions and an increased commitment to ethical conduct. “The previous faculty would just do interviews, which can be subjective,” Gonzalez explained. “But now, we use objective, equitable performance criteria to base our acceptance decisions on, and people are starting to take notice.” The program hosted its first-ever workshop for potential candidates earlier this year; every accepted student attended the event, with 95% of survey respondents describing it as “extremely helpful.”
Recent upgrades include launching the only critical care paramedicine program in Washington state this spring and preparing to introduce an on-campus cadaver lab into the curriculum. Virtual reality training is scheduled for rollout this fall. CWU is also among a few programs statewide offering ultrasound training for paramedics; faculty received instruction from a local emergency room physician who specializes in ultrasound technology.
Gonzalez reported that growing demand led to late application surges and required hiring additional instructors. She cited a 100% job placement rate and first-pass success rate on the national exam as further evidence of improvement following recent accreditation renewal.
National industry experts have taken note of these developments: Gonzalez and Tishra Beeson—former Health Sciences Department Chair and current Dean of Undergraduate Studies—were invited last week to present their experience at the National EMS Accreditation Conference in New Orleans. “We presented CWU as a case study for how to save an endangered program,” Gonzalez said. “We were able to rehabilitate a program that was in crisis, and we have made it successful again in just a short time.”
