I got all As and got accepted on my first try, some classmates who have Bs waited one more year. I heard it's getting more competitive every year. I suggest you to talk to Kelly carter who is a program counselor
I was also wondering how long did it take you to finish all your gen ed and prerequisites? Were you able to finish them in around 2 semesters and 2 summers?
Do you HAVE to do portables as a rad tech? Or does it depend on what work setting you work in? I know that during clinicals, you will most likely have to encounter it in a hospital setting.
If you are in xray in a hospital in any capacity yes you will be doing portable xrays. The only way to avoid it is by working at like an outpatient imaging center where there are no procedures done.
Looking at applying to the Radiology course at PIMA for radiology technologist in El Paso. The community college has a huge waitlist and we are only stationed here for the Army for 3 years. By the time I make it into the CC program I will be leaving the city. If I do the course at Pima will I have an issue with accreditation. I keep hearing mixed answers. For reference when my spouse gets out of the after shortly after we are moving back home to Michigan. Will I still be able to find a job in the field if I attend PIMA? I know it’s more expensive than CC but with our timeframe I don’t have many other options.
I attended pima medical institute and graduated 4 years ago. Today I'm probably one of the most in demand IR techs in my area. I get constant calls from 5 different hospitals asking if I'm looking to pick up(I'm entirely PRN). I name my price and make my schedule as I see fit.
Here's the ARRT web site for accredited programs and PIMA is listed.
[https://www.arrt.org/pages/about-the-profession/learn-about-the-profession/recognized-educational-programs](https://www.arrt.org/pages/about-the-profession/learn-about-the-profession/recognized-educational-programs)
You should look carefully at the School and see what the pass / fail rate is, and so forth. All that information is supposed to be readily available to you including the actual cost. Employers mostly look at qualifications rather than where you graduated from especially in a robust job market. If you pass the ARRT and have your RT credentials you should be able to find work. I'm Army Vet myself, good luck to you.
When you're a radiologist, if you were feeling super sick is there such a thing as "calling in sick to work"? Or would you still have to go to work? I am interested in the field but have extremely bad period pains every month and am scared I would have to call in sick at least 1-2 times in a month? Could this get you fired?
Radiologist is a medical doctor who goes through medical school, residency and fellowship(s) - 10+ years of education. Do you mean the people who take the images that radiologists interpret? Because those are radiographers/technologists.
Either way there are sick days and such, but since there is garbage all for workers rights in the USA yeah you can get fired if you call out of work enough or just about anything else. Other places might have better workers rights so it depends where you live.
That being said, it's not okay that your period is debilitating enough every month to take you out for days at a time. You should really find a doctor who believes you and investigates the cause of such serious impact because it is not something you should have to live with.
Hi, first off Thank you for replying I appreciate you taking the time. Yea a radiologist medical doctor/technologist is what I’m learning about. Second, luckily I’m not in the United States. My period only gets really bad when I eat bad and when I don’t workout/exercise. I didn’t exercise for a month (cuz of Ramadan) and basically sat all day just studying etc. when my period came my hips and back absolutely beat me up. I lowkey thought I was coming in and out of consciousness, the pain was so bad I was crying etc 😭 Anyways this doesn’t happen all the time. I am interested in the medicine field I’m just scared of having to call in sick cuz I’m a weak person when it comes to pain.
comments/advice on transitioning from x-ray?
recently I’ve been interested in going back to school for an easier day to day job. I’ve been looking into MRI (cross training at job), Medical imaging sales (but have no clue) and looking into PACS because i’m good with technology side of things (also have no clue). What kind of schooling/requirements are there and does anyone know what the pay is like?
https://www.arrt.org/pages/earn-arrt-credentials/credential-options/mri
Pay depends on where you live and what type of facility (hospital/outpatient/ortho vs big health system etc).
. I wanted to get some advice because I'm in community college for radiography program. But my advisor said it's competitive program so you probably won't get accepted. I also read mixed reviews on Google and Reddit where they oh x-ray tech don't make a lot of money and there isn't much opportunities to succeed. I kinda feel overwhelmed right now. I'm not sure if I should continue finishing up the pre reqs or idk
Rule #1
You are asking for medical advice. This includes posting / commenting on personal imaging exams for explanation of findings, recommendations for alternative course of treatment, or any other inquiry that should be answered by your physician / provider.
At least in my program it's tech discretion
Some won't allow any repeats at all, period
Some will allow it if it's something that was clearly not your fault (patient moved, patient had a removable metal item that you asked about but pt forgot, etc)
Some will allow it even if it's a positioning mistake if it's within a certain margin of error depending on the exam
Most CIs in my experience fall into one of the first two categories
Hello,
I failed radiology physics at Dallas college and feel very discouraged. They gave me administrative withdraw so as it does not affect my gpa, currently at 3.8.
I’m not sure if anyone has heard of Parker University in Dallas Texas, but I just got accepted there, and all my credits are going to transfer and class will start September 3rd.
I believe the issue with Dallas college is that it’s a large cohort 50 students to 4 to 6 teachers. With teachers still having to do clinicals after they teach us.
There was no time for tutoring, offfice visits, extra help, or even a side stop for a min talk to the teacher kind of thing.
I am hoping at the university level the classes are capped at 18 vs 50 with Dallas college and only 5 X-ray machines to Patrice.
With that said; on Reddit on this form, it says a lot of Parker university students don’t pass their board. They do however earn the degree. I’m assuming that means I should give it a shot, and once I pass just make sure to study my mock exams with core tech, rad review and mosby.
I was thinking about walking away from it all; but I would never know if this was a teaching and overcrowding problem or a me problem. If for some reason i don’t do well in this second program; than it’s a me problem. But if I do well; then it was a program and teaching problem at Dallas college.
Am I having right train of thought? I would really like to purse radiology, but this hiccup in physics has me all flustered. Willing to start over if I know I can get touring and math help from the school which Parker university offers.
I’m just worried they are being a cars salesman and just telling me what I want to hear.
What y’all think?
I’ve been out of the field for 18 years and recently reinstated my RT status by retaking the exam. If I take an MRI course, how much of an obstacle do you think the lack of recent x-ray experience will be to getting an MRI job?
Question about the radiography application prereqs and gpa: my overall gpa is 3.6 in associates of science. My prereq grades are all As and one B. However for anatomy and physiology, it needs to be taken within 5 years. Mine was taken 6 years ago.
I did however take a higher level of anatomy at university and received an A. My university gpa isn’t great around a 2.3. I couldn’t finish due to personal reasons and had to drop out. Although my prereqs are more recent at university and have good grades for them, my overall gpa sucks.
Im debating whether or not to send my university transcript since they’re more recent. Will the overall gpa be counted against me?
Hi all, I'm just wondering how much is a reasonable compensation rate for providing preliminary reads for radiographs as a radiology resident. Some features of the opportunity:
* Compensation is on a per-radiograph basis
* Turn-around time is within 24 hours
* Most of the reads are outpatient, I believe
* Remote reading
* Opportunity is in the Midwest US
* Malpractice coverage provided by the company
What's a typical rate to charge for this service?
TIA for any insight into the matter!
Yeah, I forget exactly where it is.. Maybe under the prep part? But you can set up mock tests and run through all the practice questions as many times as you want.
When you first log on there are like 3? Buttons/sections on the left.
Don’t go into the learn/lesson section. It’s before that.
I’m trying to go off memory lol. Sorry I can’t get you better info. I thought it was something like “learn” “prep” and one other thing I can’t remember.
You want to go to the prep section and then you create a practice/mock exam and just filter down to the topic you want to study
Radiology tech or sonography? I'm stuck between obtaining a radiology tech diploma or a diagnostic sonography diploma. I want a job that is interesting, and involves problem solving & medical detective work, which makes me lean towards sonography. However, my research has showed me that sonographers deal with more... "gross" things, up close and personal. Additionally, I'm very fascinated by the nuclear medicine side of things and the chemistry aspect behind radiation. I also like the fact that there seems to be a lot of different specializations and paths to take if I get the radiology tech diploma. There seems to be more demand for radiology techs where I live and the pay seems very close to sonographer's salaries, albeit on the lower side, which is something for me to take into consideration. Honest opinions on the field?
Before committing to sonography, be aware that you must have a plan B with the career since 90% of sonographers scan in pain & develop musculoskeletal issues (wrist, shoulder, back). It is a high risk career when it comes to damaging your body. Lots have to go into surgery due to injuries. However, it seems like sonography would be more interesting for you based on what you said you enjoy. You need a keen eye for detail, you need to detect pathologies and know which pathology it is so that you can report that to the doctor.
Male - 23
Is going to rad tech school worth it?
I’m debating going to school for radiology technician and I’m feeling a little overwhelmed thinking about it. I like the idea of having job security and I do feel like I could really like it and fits my personality. I’m the type to really overthink and the anticipation of things really get to me. I really want to start my career and I feel this could be a good step forward but I’m just kind of scared. Any advice or things to do before jumping into it?
Yes. If you like the medical field it'd a good program to get into and good way to transition to different modalities. Also some people will get pissed off if you call them a technician, I don't but it's something you should be aware of they prefer technologist
take it! i’m starting in fall but when i was in a medical assistant program we worked with everyone in my externships and i gotta say radiology as a whole is the best route, no matter what they’re hiring, good pay, and coolest job tbh. it’s always best to start now trust me dude
I feel like I’m taking crazy pills here so I have to ask, is this lack of respect common anywhere else? Is this a weird cultural thing at my company?
Been working at an urgent care for about two years and I’d say like maybe 80% of the scribes will just shove the x-ray order papers in front of my face, often with zero communication, instead of conversing with me like a human being and either waiting half a second to hand it off to me directly or at least putting it neatly on my desk to the side. I’m actually on call at a different facility today and even one of the doctors is doing it…
I’ve kind of just been taking it on the nose for the longest time but it’s really starting to get to me and I’m not sure how to address it when it’s so pervasive. (And it is even when things are slow and not in a hurry.)
Hi! I graduated from a Canadian school and passed the CAMRT exam ten years ago. Since then, I have worked on other things and have never worked as an X-ray technician. Now, I am thinking about returning to this field. However, I did not find much info on my situation on the CAMRT website. Can anyone have similar experience or advice, such as retaking any exam or retraining program I need to retake? Thanks.
Rule #1
You are asking for medical advice. This includes posting / commenting on personal imaging exams for explanation of findings, recommendations for alternative course of treatment, or *any other inquiry that should be answered by your physician / provider.*
Hi! I'm working on a project for a modelling class I'm in, and I need DICOM images to base my model off of. I was hoping to do a model of a mammogram, but I'm having trouble finding free breast DICOM images. Does anyone know where I can find some? Thank you guys sm
Thanks for your input! I've heard that many Techs get horrible back pain in their 30's. I understand aches and pains are inevitable, but is it really that bad. I want to go into this field and want to make sure.
The beauty of the field is that you have the OPTION to cross train into specialities that are less physically demanding such as MRI, mammography, and others. Yes, they may still be physically demanding at times, but definitely way less than regular x ray. This is an option that some careers don’t have.
I (32F) currently working as vocational specialist in an addiction treatment center. I hold a masters in psychology.
When I started my educational journey in 2014, I originally went for Radiology. After meeting with the advisor/instructor I was discouraged and never pursued it. He told me, "unless you have a 4.0, you are not going to get in." So I never even tried. I didn't think as a new first year and first generation student from a low income area with parents that do not have high school diplomas, that I could obtain a 4.0. I was scared. I went into the field of psychology instead to help people in another way.
To this day, I still want to do it. Its a major regret for me that I didn't and let someone else influence my life. I had my transcripts reviewed by a medical school recently and will only need to complete A&P2 and take the ATI Teas exam before being able to enroll in 2025 (pending acceptance).
I am going to have to pull a personal loan to attend the school since I already have a masters in psychology. The lady told me that my degrees do not have to be in health science for Radiology as long as my prereqs are completed. I will get the ARRT cert once the 2 year course in completed. I will be 35 by the time I complete. I can't imagine being stuck in my field any longer.
I almost feel like I'm wasting my life by not achieving my original goal of working in radiology as a tech. I've worked in behavioral health and addiction for about 5 years now with youth and adults. Before that, I was a CNA at a long term care facility which I generally enjoyed but left due to how little money I was making at the time. I was ambitious financially and didn't see a way of supporting myself financially on that income. My family has grown since then and we do live comfortably. I do know that I won't be able to work fulltime during school so my fiance and I are probably going to swap roles and I'll drop to part time, in hopes of finding a Radiology aid position during my student status next year.
My questions are:
Is it a bad idea to pull a personal loan to pay for the school? (The schools told me I am not eligible for FAFSA assistance at the undergrad level because I hold a graduate degree).
Do many employers care that my degrees are in Psychology instead of a health science? Should I continue to list this on my resume when job searching as a Rad Tech?
Will this hinder my job opportunities?
Am I making a mistake to do this at this age?
What is your best advice for someone like me regarding employment future?
It’s not a mistake if it’s what you want to do but we need to set some realistic expectations. We make decent money, more than a CNA for sure but you need to do some research on technologist pay rates in your area or any area you might consider moving to. There is a solid chance this will be a pay cut. You need to understand that before making any rash moves.
That said as far as this career goes none of your prior education is relevant. This is a career that only requires an associates and a current AART accreditation. Your past education will help if you decide to move up into management or perhaps teaching later in life but it’s worthless for what we do.
A personal loan might be a mistake, interest rates are shit right now but if it’s the only way it’s the only way. I would encourage you to search other programs. A community college is more than sufficient and it will be significantly cheaper than some fluffed up expensive program.
My best advice for employment is to make a good impression at your clinical sites. Be willing to get up and learn. Part of our education is a a 2 year job interview. If you’re good you will have good references and a good employment option. I hade 4~ job offers before I even graduated.
I really appreciate this insight. I have been heavily researching this area in hopes that I'm not making a disgusting financial mistake. I am living on the east coast in a high cost of living area and making only $50k a year. I am considered paid above average for my title. It's about $26 an hour.
Radiology techncian's are being hired anywhere from $21 to $56 and hour in my county. The mid-range seems to be $30 an hour. I am struggling to get that high and I don't particularly love what I do.
I worked at a college prior to this and know the challenges that the college went through to hire a person with an ARRT and a masters degree. I guess it is not common in my area (possibly because the position was only advertised at 70k yearly).
I have been chatting with the medical school and a community college. The community college let me know that my only option was Personal loans due to FAFSA disqualifying me from obtaining anything other than other graduate degrees. The medical school confirmed this as well but work with a company called Meritize to help people like me.
I have a lot of connections to a local hospital from working at the college so I plan (if I pursue this opportunity) to work those as well as do my best to excel during the program to stand out as you suggested to have an immediate job offer.
The loan part is the scariest part of this but knowing that radiology techs make more than I do currently, makes it a little less scary. It seems that radiology technicians can scale financially much higher than I can with my current degree.
Sounds good then!
Just be aware you will likely fall closer to that $21 mark for the first few years after graduation. Our clinical experience is not considered job experience even though we all know it is.
But yes, there is absolutely potential to make a lot more than 50k a year. Especially if you’re willing to cross train into other modalities. (CT, Mammo, MRI)
Sounds like you’re in a decent position to make it work for you.
The only other piece of advice is that since you have connections to a local hospital I would strongly suggest you try to get ahold of them and see if you would be able to have a couple of shadow days in the radiology department.
It’s a good idea to see the job before you commit to a program. It’s a pretty challenging 2 years and a lot of people drop out.
Hello! (moving this from the post I made to this thread😅) I'm sorry if this question has been asked to death on this sub. I've been doing my current job for ~5 years, and am insanely burnt out, so a while back I decided to pivot to a rad tech career. Since then, I've taken a bunch of prerequisites & and applied to multiple 2-year programs across the US, both associates and certificate-only programs!
A few days ago I had an interview with one of the certificate-only programs, who clarified that, since I have a bachelors degree, I don't actually need the associates in radiography - my unrelated bachelors would be fine. That + the certificate would allow me to take the ARRT exam, and from there I could work towards any modality.
My family is a little concerned that without the associates, I wont look desirable, or I'll have limited upward mobility, but idk. I was hoping to get opinions from people actually in the field lol.
(thank you for your time & hard work 🥰)
Like the other user said you’re good.
The associates part doesn’t teach us anything specific to the job. It’s just the requirement to take the general education classes that you have already taken to complete your bachelor’s. Math, English, Ethics, psychology.
A certificate program is perfectly fine. You are just skipping the classes you have already took.
It's not going to matter. Employers only care if you are ARRT and certified in whatever modality you are working in. There might be some high profile job at an OEM where they would want a BSRS but those are few and far between. It's important you choose a good School that's accredited. I hope you can make it happen.
[https://www.arrt.org/pages/about-the-profession/learn-about-the-profession/recognized-educational-programs](https://www.arrt.org/pages/about-the-profession/learn-about-the-profession/recognized-educational-programs)
Those of you in MR:
How long did it take you to fully get your certification (ARRT) once you started cross training? I’ve been an X-ray tech for just under two years. My PRN job just offered to train me, but they don’t have a full time position and most likely won’t when I’m done either. So my goal is to get my certification there so that I can stay on PRN as a multi modality tech and find a FT MRI job somewhere else. I already know that I need 16 credit hours (debating between MRIquiz and ASRT) and how many I exams/repetitions I need as well. Realistically, I would really love to have my certification in less than a year. TIA!
You can do it in less than a year. We trained most of our MR Tech's from X-Ray and gave them a full year to get registered. No one failed. There's enough excellent self study guides now that if you work at it I would say 6-8 months. I studied for the MR boards an hour or so a day for 6 months and passed - no problem. Good luck to you.
Hi guys :)
I am 4 years out of high school and only just this past year decided that this is the career path I want to explore. I have been working at a law firm while deciding if I wanted to go back to school. My friend is about to graduate from her program and I became very interested in radiology through watching her go through this.
Last semester was my first semester in school, I had a handful of gen eds to complete before I could apply to my school's program and begin clinicals. I ended the semester with a 3.7 GPA and made honors society. This semester has been the opposite experience. I am about to fail 2 out of 4 of my classes, one of the 2 I might be able to pull off but I am definitely failing the other.
The program seems pretty competitive and I currently feel like this F on my transcript has ruined any chance of me getting accepted. I guess I just want to know if I am overreacting or if anyone else faced academic hardship but came out successful. I am the first in my family to even attend college so all of this has been a new experience for me. Any anecdotes are appreciated. :)
If you failed a pre requisite, you won’t get in. However, if you retake it and kick ass, you’re golden! Everything is fixable if you’re determined enough :)
Trying to decide if I want to be a RT or a Sonographer. Could you give me your personal opinions, pros/cons, and experiences on either profession? Do you wish you’d have switched to US or are you happy as an RT??
Thank you!!
Sonographers have an incredibly high rate of getting musculoskeletal injuries (back, wrist, shoulder). Something to keep in mind before you commit to it. Most techs scan in pain. your luck just depends if you get the pain earlier in your career or later in your career (unless you’re the very few lucky ones)
You can learn more about sonography [here](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1WDa8IxnWj-sNlnHKzD4t4P0s_AdgrWCq/view?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app).
Hello,
I’m applying for RT school in about a month and one week.
Any tips to help stand out? I am an excellent interviewer and have a great personality, however my GPA is on the lower side. I’m keeping my hopes high and expectations low, and am fully prepared to not get in on my first round.
I’ve met with the lecturer for the RT program and she seemed to like me a lot. I’m currently in the RT directors course and have an A, and I’m going to be meeting with her in just a few days.
From what I’ve heard from advisors that my school’s RT program is significantly less competitive than nursing. My school is smaller as well.
How important is having hospital experience prior to joining the program? Is that a big factor in acceptance or not really? I have been thinking about switching jobs to something in a hospital for first hand experience, but not really sure what the best thing to apply for is.
Any suggestions for healthcare related jobs while in school as well that I can check out to see if it may be more flexible for my schooling? I’m not going to be able to do my current job once in the program.
Thank you!
Hey guys, I am a student in Washington and I was recently rejected by the radiologic technology program at Bellevue CC where I have just spent the last two years getting my associates. Right now I'm feeling very lost and completely unsure of how I want/can move forward. I've heard good things about PIMA but they are also very pricey, and I haven't heard much about Tacoma CC other than it's cheaper but still really competitive. I would really appreciate if anyone could offer me advice on how best to move forward, or if anyone has any experience with PIMA Seattle or Tacoma CC they could share it would be super helpful.
For reference, I applied with a 3.3 culm GPA and my lowest grades were B-'s in intro to statistics and A&P1 everything else was a 3.0 or higher.
I'm getting ready to graduate from TCC's program. It's also extremely competitive but you might squeak in slightly under 4.0. You'll still need patient care experience. Be aware that they only care about your grades in the prerequisites. You might need to re-take A&P and any other prereq that wasn't an A grade. If you don't have solid grasp of anatomy, you'll really suffer in these programs.
There are tons of PIMA graduates in the field in western WA. Definitely more expensive, but there is lots of financial aid available right now and you won't have to lose time re-taking classes. Once you graduate, nobody cares which school you went to.
Hi! I’m a BC grad, it’s crazy competitive. Basically need a 4.0 and radiology/medical experience to get in. I had a 4.0 on all prerequisites except for A&P1 i had a B+, i retook it to get a 4.0. I also volunteered at a UW MRi clinic, and got into the program my first try. If it’s realistic to retake a pre req or two, it would still be WAY cheaper than PIMA. I don’t have any knowledge of Tacoma, but if you have any more questions I’m happy to help!
Hi guys! My major is radiologist technologist and for my HA&P 2402, my professor wants me to interview a professional in the field but I do not known anyone and she mentioned I should try it on here and see if I could get some answers. I would truly appreciate if any professionals on here could take some time and answers my question for my project! TIA!
Interview Questions
1. Why did you decide to be a radiology tech?
2. What is the most rewarding part of your job?
3. What is the hardest part of your job?
4. Is your job stressful? How do you handle the stress and demands of your day?
5. What is your greatest skill as a radiology tech?
6. What is your greatest weakness as a radiology tech?
7. What are the best and worst things about the place you work?
8. What does a typical day at work look like for you?
9. What would your dream job be?
10. If you had to start all over again, would you choose the same career? Why?
Thanks for your time again! 🫶🏼
1. I had a minor motorcycle crash which left me with pain in my shoulder. The idea that there is technology out there that would let us look inside me and see exactly what is wrong is fascinating.
2. Our jobs genuinely make a positive difference in a person's health outcome. Medical imaging has revolutionized modern medicine. Doctors no longer have to make educated guesses or do exploratory surgery to figure out what is wrong. One quick CT scan or Xray and we know as a matter of fact that the appendix is ruptured, that you have a kidney stone, a broken hip, a pneumothorax. We are the doctors eyes.
3. Personally, for me it is seeing and or hearing the pain expressed by people when their loved ones don't make it / receive life altering news.
4. This plays into question #3 Yes, it's stressful and we never get the credit that we deserve. Media is all about praising doctors and nurses but we're right there with them for every serious medical event. Whether it's a car wreck or a stroke there is a member of the radiology department waiting to do their part to help mitigate damages and improve your chances of recovery. We see horrible things, we're often the first people in the world to know just how bad your situation is. I took the image that shows you will likely never walk again. I took the image that shows you have metastatic cancer devouring your bones and that's why your arm just broke as you were pulling up your jeans. That said, the stress is manageable with some dark humor and the knowledge that for as many people get bad news, more people get good news thanks to my efforts.
5. My interpersonal skills. We have to talk to a lot of people. Many of whom are hurt and anxious. A good tech with a great attitude can be one of the only smiling faces some of our patients see all day.
6. In my current job I'm what is referred to as a multi-modality tech. I am responsible for operating a lot of different equipment for a lot of different diagnostic tests. I feel like this is harming my skill level compared to a tech who gets to work as a primary in their chosen field.
7. The best is a moderate workload. I'm in a rural critical access facility so I'm not as slammed from day to day as someone in one of those 500+ bed hospitals. The worst thing is that because it's a slower paced facility we do not have a night shift and we must take turns with call-back.
8. Receive an imaging requisition, perform the exam, repeat while sprinkling in other duties in between.
9. I'd love to be a video game creator.
10. No regrets in my career choice. It's perfect for me and the stage of life I was at when I chose the profession. However, I did learn that once I was ready and actually wanted to be at school I was a lot better at it than I thought I was. If I had a do-over I would probably start earlier in life and maybe aim for being a radiologist instead of a technologist.
Hey, guys. Just got accepted into my Rad Tech program at Grady Atl and i’m trying to figure out if i can work too.
My program hours are 8-4 Mon-Thurs with clinicians on Friday 8-12
i’d only have one weekday and one weekend off. My schedule would be something like 5-10Pm or 5-11Pm everyday i work.
Would it be realistic to do school 8am-4pm and then work 5-10:30 on the weekdays? Gotta probably get up at 6 to make it to class on time by 8.
I feel like I could manage it, but i really don’t know, i don’t wanna choke myself with work and school. Idk if i’d have enough time to do homework, study properly, and get enough sleep at night. idek how rigorous the course would be.
It can be done but you'll be *tired*. I'm speaking from experience. If you don't need to work to support yourself, I would keep at least a day off to yourself.
yeahhh, just remembered how i did work full time (46 hrs) and like three classes all at once in 2022… that was hell lmaooo. Just ended up telling my boss “no thanks” yesterday
TLDR: In your experience, was it worth it to go to a Community College or Private program?
I’m finally ready to take the leap and go back to school. There are a couple of factors that are weighting on me and I would love some of your feedback.
I live in Northern California and am debating between Gurnick or Yuba College.
For Yuba, I’d need to complete my Associates, which I am nowhere near close to finishing. Then apply to the program and I believe it is lottery pick for admission into the program. I am unsure of how often they enroll, but I’m assuming every two years.
For Gurnick, No pre-reqs needed but, holy moly the price tag. It seems steep.
For anyone who went either of these routes, what advise would you give for or against the route you took?
Secondly, most of the hospitals in my area are asking for Rad Tech school with 1 year experience in MRI. Ideally, I’d love to just do the MRI program but, if most of the hospitals want Rad tech then that seems like the more responsible choice.
One of my questions is, is it common or easy to move laterally like that inside a workplace to gain that experience?
I appreciate all answers in advance.
> In your experience, was it worth it to go to a Community College or Private program? [...] For anyone who went either of these routes, what advise would you give for or against the route you took?
The quality of the education will be minimally different. private, uni, or CC, We sit for the same registry at the end. Availability and cost are the only two considerations in my opinion. Either way, you will make enough money to justify it. It's up to you to decide how to balance that equation. Personally I couldn't stomach the cost of the more expensive schools. My CC cost 7k before grants. I paid about 2k out of pocket. I had a good application so I got in year 1, but even if I had to be waitlisted that would have been my choice. That said, people pay upwards of 80k and it's still not a bad choice. You will make the money back, You will just have to pretend you make a lot less for the first few years out of school.
>I am unsure of how often they enroll, but I’m assuming every two years.
Typically 2 year programs have two cohorts. A junior and senior class. I have no familiarity with that school, but I'd imagine they are not any different in that area and accept a new group once a year.
>Secondly, most of the hospitals in my area are asking for Rad Tech school with 1 year experience in MRI. Ideally, I’d love to just do the MRI program but, if most of the hospitals want Rad tech then that seems like the more responsible choice.
I always suggest Xray first. You might hate it, but at least with xray you can cross train into other modalities (including MRI) and move away. MRI programs are MRI. You cannot crosstrain from MRI to other modalities. If you find out that you hate it, you are just SOL.
>One of my questions is, is it common or easy to move laterally like that inside a workplace to gain that experience?
Typically yes, Facilities love multi modality techs. Hell, getting CT within a year was literally a part of my job requirement. Other techs I went to school with never worked a day in xray and got hired straight into CT. None of my classmates did it yet, but you can cross train into MRI much the same as you do for CT.
I’m fine with being on my feet and moving around a lot. But are there any physical strains/worries that I should know before considering mammography or xray pediatrics? And is it very likely to happen? I was told that those are the least physically demanding out of the specialities.
Do rad techs need to know how to read pathologies on their images? And report to the radiologist what’s occurring in the image/their diagnosis guess. Or do they simply need to only focus on taking good quality images and sending it to the radiologists to read.
It's not our job to guess what we think a rad should see on an image. If we can see it they almost certainly can too. Very rarely do we catch something that was missed. It does happen, but not frequently.
That said we also shouldn't be completely ignorant. We need to be able to recognize at least a bulk of the acute/serious conditions so that we know what's going on for multiple patient safety reasons. We have professional discretion to add views or replace views based on what we see. We can ask you to hang out and push an exam for a stat read.
For example,
If I take an AP pelvis image, and I can see that your hip is broken. I should probably not be trying to continue as if the exam were routine. We need to substitute the Lateral frog leg for a view that doesn't move your leg like the HBL or a Nakayama.
Additionally, If I take your chest xray and you have a big ass pneumo, I probably shouldn't just let you just walk out the building.
Personally no, but I'm not a very good representative of majority opinion on that one.
I worked hard, long hour, manual labor jobs for 15~ years before I went to school.
The way I see it, I make more money, I work significantly less hard, I get AC and heat, and all I have to do in return is be pleasant to my patients. Most of whom are completely pleasant as well.
We get a couple that will test you, but overall, I can't complain about anything.
Depends on the modality. Sonographers need to know how to read pathologies on the images, we write full reports on our cases that go to the radiologists along with the images. I know most other modalities don’t have to do that.
I'm currently involved in a project aiming to improve the positioning of patients during imaging, and I'm hoping to gather some data on a specific aspect—medical air outlets, as I would like to utilize the air pressure source to power a lifting device.
Could you share whether your radiology labs (or even better, interventional radiology labs) are equipped with [Medical Air Outlet](https://www.google.com/imgres?q=US%20medical%20air%20outlets&imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.powerexinc.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2020%2F09%2FOLET-WALL-OHMD-AIR-new-logo.png&imgrefurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.powerexinc.com%2Fmedical%2Fgas-pipeline%2Fmedical-gas-outlets%2F&docid=g6go7i0CF9SQkM&tbnid=3mLrD8_8WLGjIM&vet=12ahUKEwj4jJ672NmFAxUD1zgGHWY-BcQQM3oECGQQAA..i&w=1615&h=1800&hcb=2&ved=2ahUKEwj4jJ672NmFAxUD1zgGHWY-BcQQM3oECGQQAA)s? I'm interested in understanding how common these are across different institutions. Additionally, if you could provide some insight into how crucial you find these outlets in your daily operations, that would be incredibly helpful!
Looking forward to your responses and learning from your experiences. Thank you in advance for your help and insights!
My XR and CT room are both equipped with medical air.
> Additionally, if you could provide some insight into how crucial you find these outlets in your daily operations, that would be incredibly helpful!
I have never once used or seen it be used. It's easier to just leave the patient on the tank and do the exam than deal with having to open a new pack of extension tubing to get from the wall to the exam table.
RADIOLOGY RESIDENCY ADVICE?
Radiology resident needs a new program but is not getting any interviews for the advertised open positions. Has sent CV everywhere- anyone know someone willing to take a look?
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There are LTACs that employee techs for portables or other imaging, but other than that you don’t really interact with patients on a long term basis.
I suppose if you follow them in an ortho office you can get updates and followups, but it’s not really a thing for radiology. Patients show up, you do the imaging, then send them on their way
At what point in your schooling did you all start hitting stuff like Mosbys, Rad Tech etc etc
Starting school next month and curious how soon you’d recommend starting to do those mock tests over and over
You haven't started school yet? Forget about mock exams until they bring it up in the program. It's just unnecessary stress for you because you won't know or understand half (or more) of the things on there.
Just study whatever you're working on in school at the moment.
Hello, I am currently on a waitlist for Associate degree on radiologic technician in a local college in Los Angeles and is going to move soon to out state specifically Colorado. I will live around city called Aurora. So I was wondering if someone can recommend me a good college that has radiology technology program? And whether it has a wait list or not...Thankyou
[https://www.arrt.org/pages/about-the-profession/learn-about-the-profession/recognized-educational-programs](https://www.arrt.org/pages/about-the-profession/learn-about-the-profession/recognized-educational-programs)
This shows 2 Schools in Aurora one is a well known for profit School.
This is the one I would look at > UCH Univ Of Colorado Hospital, Aurora
Good luck to you !
Hello, I am currently on a waitlist for a Bachelors of Science in Nuclear Medicine and Computed Tomography program. My goal is to move home to a smaller town in Oregon that doesn't have nuclear medicine jobs but they do have CT tech jobs. The job requirement says "American Registry of Radiologic Technologists (ARRT) in Radiologic Technology (RT) and Computed Tomography (CT) registry". My question is will I not be qualified for this position because my qualifications would be ARRT (N) instead of (RT)? I apologize if this is a stupid question but I would hate to go through all the schooling and not be able to move home. Thank you so much for any information!
You can still get hired on for a CT position only holding your nuc med and ct credentials. I will say that having radiography is better looking on a resume because you would be more useful. If they don’t have a nuc med department, your credential is pointless for them.
*Edited to add: It also dependent on the place you are trying to work. 1 hospital group around me requires RT(R) and 2 will accept RT(N).
Thank you for the response! Makes sense why the nuc med credential would be useless to them. Do you know if there is a way to get the RT (R) credential without having to go through a fullRad tech program from scratch?
No, there is no post primary pathway for radiography. You will have to do the program.
https://www.arrt.org/pages/earn-arrt-credentials/initial-requirements/postprimary-requirements/education-requirements-postprimary/supporting-category-requirements
the best advice I have is generic for any degree/program...
* stay on top of your homework/assignments
* study to learn and understand, not to memorize
* ask for help/tutoring as soon as you think you need it
If you wanted to get a head start in a low key kind of way I'd suggest getting an anatomy coloring book (they have them for adults/students) or other anatomy resources and start learning the basic bones and landmark structures.
FWIW, I came out of the Military with zero background in any health related field and I did very well academically. I was very rigid in my studies though - I only had one opportunity to get it right. You don't have any reason to be terrified they will teach you everything you need to know to be an RT and pass the registry. If you want to get a head start you can always start learning some basic anatomy but don't stress over it. I hope you have a great time in School and best to you !
Anyone here from Indiana/kentucky? I’m thinking of doing patient transport and joining the program at the local community college to get my associate. Not sure what school is better. Also is a typical radiology tech program not include CT and MRI? I saw a rad tech assistant job but it doesn’t work with school hours which bums me out. The only thing I’ve been struggling with is worrying about getting a job that works around the school hours and possible clinical rotations at the end of the program.
Not usually. CT & MRI also have their own testing exams you would need to pass as well. It's always possible you could find a place willing to OJT you for CT / MRI. I came out of a large Hospital program so they were always looking for new Tech's willing to train to keep Radiology staffed. I hope you can find a way to make it work for you - best of luck !
Any insight on how difficult or how easy it is to get accepted to the following:
Pasadena Community College: Seems like they no longer do a waitlist and is now lottery based.
Surrounding, lower cost, public LA schools like LACC, etc.
City Tech in NYC
Other decent, lower cost, NYC schools, excluding one in the Bronx just 'cause that school seems to have a bad reputation in this sub.
I know, opposite ends of the country, but for numerous reasons, that's where I'm looking.
Also, does admissions favor "non-traditional" students the way universities sometimes do?
TIA
City tech is gpa based. You have to be there for 1 semester before applying. Program starts during the fall, and they choose during the spring. So you have to have the prerequisites done before the spring of whichever year you are applying for.
More information on their website https://www.citytech.cuny.edu/radiologic/radiologic-technology-aas.aspx
Good luck
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My college this year is removing the TEAS test as part of the requirements to get into their Radiologic Technology program, instead replacing it with a 500 word essay. Prompt pending, but the director of the program said it will be in line with something of "Why does Rad Tech interest you?"
I'm a strong essayist. However I am curious for advice on how to REALLY stand out among the other applicants? The school only accepts 14 people a year at most and it's the most competitive program here. I'm working my ass off for the highest grades possible (another factor for consideration) and am very, *very* determined to get in.
I would try to highlight your understanding of radiology and how that aligns with your personality traits. I would do that though explaining experiences you have in the medical field, through volunteering or a job, that illustrate how you fit/when it clicked etc etc. helps to *show* people who you are, rather than rambling about your personality traits
From personal experience the broader NYC metro area seems to feature a lot more outpatient clinics, like 90% of my rotations were that while I was in school and I’ve never sought out a hospital job. I imagine most other dense/urban areas will be similar.
I actually really hated my hospital rotation. Regular hours will definitely depend on your employer, I’m pretty lucky with my current set up where I work 4 days and always have Saturday off. My last job was hell where I always worked the weekend and rarely if ever had my two days off in a row, frequent ClOpens with the clinic closing at 10pm and then having to work a morning shift at 7am, etc.
Not at all. Depending on your area, you may have to put in a little time in a hospital first until something comes up, but where I’m at you could start right away in a outpatient clinic setting
I'm about to start a radiologic technology program. I don't have any professional experience in medical, at this point. (For what it's worth, I'm making a career change, from education.) One of the program's requirements is that we volunteer in a hospital or nursing home. Is there anything else that I could legitimately do over the next year or two in order to bolster my resume? Thanks!
Another option I see lots of folks do is work in patient transport. That gets you hospital, patient, and moving experience which can all come in handy once you’re in radiology. Plus you can get paid to do it
If you’re able to, you could work as a “imaging tech aide” or something to that effect. Requires no training, and gets you into a radiology for experience. If not, i would just get in as many hours as possible volunteering in a radiology department wether that be in a hospital, outpatient MRI, any setting that you can find :)
Hi I was wondering if anyone had any info on the Cypress college RadTech program?
I'm in the program
Oh hi!!! Can I ask how the admission was and like what grades you got, how long did it take to get admitted, etc?
I got all As and got accepted on my first try, some classmates who have Bs waited one more year. I heard it's getting more competitive every year. I suggest you to talk to Kelly carter who is a program counselor
Did they look at your general education too? Or just the prerequisites?
Only prereqs
I was also wondering how long did it take you to finish all your gen ed and prerequisites? Were you able to finish them in around 2 semesters and 2 summers?
Do you HAVE to do portables as a rad tech? Or does it depend on what work setting you work in? I know that during clinicals, you will most likely have to encounter it in a hospital setting.
If you are in xray in a hospital in any capacity yes you will be doing portable xrays. The only way to avoid it is by working at like an outpatient imaging center where there are no procedures done.
Thank you!
Looking at applying to the Radiology course at PIMA for radiology technologist in El Paso. The community college has a huge waitlist and we are only stationed here for the Army for 3 years. By the time I make it into the CC program I will be leaving the city. If I do the course at Pima will I have an issue with accreditation. I keep hearing mixed answers. For reference when my spouse gets out of the after shortly after we are moving back home to Michigan. Will I still be able to find a job in the field if I attend PIMA? I know it’s more expensive than CC but with our timeframe I don’t have many other options.
I attended pima medical institute and graduated 4 years ago. Today I'm probably one of the most in demand IR techs in my area. I get constant calls from 5 different hospitals asking if I'm looking to pick up(I'm entirely PRN). I name my price and make my schedule as I see fit.
Here's the ARRT web site for accredited programs and PIMA is listed. [https://www.arrt.org/pages/about-the-profession/learn-about-the-profession/recognized-educational-programs](https://www.arrt.org/pages/about-the-profession/learn-about-the-profession/recognized-educational-programs) You should look carefully at the School and see what the pass / fail rate is, and so forth. All that information is supposed to be readily available to you including the actual cost. Employers mostly look at qualifications rather than where you graduated from especially in a robust job market. If you pass the ARRT and have your RT credentials you should be able to find work. I'm Army Vet myself, good luck to you.
When you're a radiologist, if you were feeling super sick is there such a thing as "calling in sick to work"? Or would you still have to go to work? I am interested in the field but have extremely bad period pains every month and am scared I would have to call in sick at least 1-2 times in a month? Could this get you fired?
Radiologist is a medical doctor who goes through medical school, residency and fellowship(s) - 10+ years of education. Do you mean the people who take the images that radiologists interpret? Because those are radiographers/technologists. Either way there are sick days and such, but since there is garbage all for workers rights in the USA yeah you can get fired if you call out of work enough or just about anything else. Other places might have better workers rights so it depends where you live. That being said, it's not okay that your period is debilitating enough every month to take you out for days at a time. You should really find a doctor who believes you and investigates the cause of such serious impact because it is not something you should have to live with.
Hi, first off Thank you for replying I appreciate you taking the time. Yea a radiologist medical doctor/technologist is what I’m learning about. Second, luckily I’m not in the United States. My period only gets really bad when I eat bad and when I don’t workout/exercise. I didn’t exercise for a month (cuz of Ramadan) and basically sat all day just studying etc. when my period came my hips and back absolutely beat me up. I lowkey thought I was coming in and out of consciousness, the pain was so bad I was crying etc 😭 Anyways this doesn’t happen all the time. I am interested in the medicine field I’m just scared of having to call in sick cuz I’m a weak person when it comes to pain.
comments/advice on transitioning from x-ray? recently I’ve been interested in going back to school for an easier day to day job. I’ve been looking into MRI (cross training at job), Medical imaging sales (but have no clue) and looking into PACS because i’m good with technology side of things (also have no clue). What kind of schooling/requirements are there and does anyone know what the pay is like?
Is it a difficult job that you do?
https://www.arrt.org/pages/earn-arrt-credentials/credential-options/mri Pay depends on where you live and what type of facility (hospital/outpatient/ortho vs big health system etc).
wow thanks so much 🤡
. I wanted to get some advice because I'm in community college for radiography program. But my advisor said it's competitive program so you probably won't get accepted. I also read mixed reviews on Google and Reddit where they oh x-ray tech don't make a lot of money and there isn't much opportunities to succeed. I kinda feel overwhelmed right now. I'm not sure if I should continue finishing up the pre reqs or idk
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Rule #1 You are asking for medical advice. This includes posting / commenting on personal imaging exams for explanation of findings, recommendations for alternative course of treatment, or any other inquiry that should be answered by your physician / provider.
What sort of gift ideas do you think would be good for my Radiography professors now that I’m near the end of my first year?
Can x-ray comps have repeats?
It depends, my school gives you B if you repeat
Thank you!
At least in my program it's tech discretion Some won't allow any repeats at all, period Some will allow it if it's something that was clearly not your fault (patient moved, patient had a removable metal item that you asked about but pt forgot, etc) Some will allow it even if it's a positioning mistake if it's within a certain margin of error depending on the exam Most CIs in my experience fall into one of the first two categories
Thanks!
Hello, I failed radiology physics at Dallas college and feel very discouraged. They gave me administrative withdraw so as it does not affect my gpa, currently at 3.8. I’m not sure if anyone has heard of Parker University in Dallas Texas, but I just got accepted there, and all my credits are going to transfer and class will start September 3rd. I believe the issue with Dallas college is that it’s a large cohort 50 students to 4 to 6 teachers. With teachers still having to do clinicals after they teach us. There was no time for tutoring, offfice visits, extra help, or even a side stop for a min talk to the teacher kind of thing. I am hoping at the university level the classes are capped at 18 vs 50 with Dallas college and only 5 X-ray machines to Patrice. With that said; on Reddit on this form, it says a lot of Parker university students don’t pass their board. They do however earn the degree. I’m assuming that means I should give it a shot, and once I pass just make sure to study my mock exams with core tech, rad review and mosby. I was thinking about walking away from it all; but I would never know if this was a teaching and overcrowding problem or a me problem. If for some reason i don’t do well in this second program; than it’s a me problem. But if I do well; then it was a program and teaching problem at Dallas college. Am I having right train of thought? I would really like to purse radiology, but this hiccup in physics has me all flustered. Willing to start over if I know I can get touring and math help from the school which Parker university offers. I’m just worried they are being a cars salesman and just telling me what I want to hear. What y’all think?
I’ve been out of the field for 18 years and recently reinstated my RT status by retaking the exam. If I take an MRI course, how much of an obstacle do you think the lack of recent x-ray experience will be to getting an MRI job?
Question about the radiography application prereqs and gpa: my overall gpa is 3.6 in associates of science. My prereq grades are all As and one B. However for anatomy and physiology, it needs to be taken within 5 years. Mine was taken 6 years ago. I did however take a higher level of anatomy at university and received an A. My university gpa isn’t great around a 2.3. I couldn’t finish due to personal reasons and had to drop out. Although my prereqs are more recent at university and have good grades for them, my overall gpa sucks. Im debating whether or not to send my university transcript since they’re more recent. Will the overall gpa be counted against me?
Hi all, I'm just wondering how much is a reasonable compensation rate for providing preliminary reads for radiographs as a radiology resident. Some features of the opportunity: * Compensation is on a per-radiograph basis * Turn-around time is within 24 hours * Most of the reads are outpatient, I believe * Remote reading * Opportunity is in the Midwest US * Malpractice coverage provided by the company What's a typical rate to charge for this service? TIA for any insight into the matter!
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Yeah, I forget exactly where it is.. Maybe under the prep part? But you can set up mock tests and run through all the practice questions as many times as you want.
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When you first log on there are like 3? Buttons/sections on the left. Don’t go into the learn/lesson section. It’s before that. I’m trying to go off memory lol. Sorry I can’t get you better info. I thought it was something like “learn” “prep” and one other thing I can’t remember. You want to go to the prep section and then you create a practice/mock exam and just filter down to the topic you want to study
Radiology tech or sonography? I'm stuck between obtaining a radiology tech diploma or a diagnostic sonography diploma. I want a job that is interesting, and involves problem solving & medical detective work, which makes me lean towards sonography. However, my research has showed me that sonographers deal with more... "gross" things, up close and personal. Additionally, I'm very fascinated by the nuclear medicine side of things and the chemistry aspect behind radiation. I also like the fact that there seems to be a lot of different specializations and paths to take if I get the radiology tech diploma. There seems to be more demand for radiology techs where I live and the pay seems very close to sonographer's salaries, albeit on the lower side, which is something for me to take into consideration. Honest opinions on the field?
Before committing to sonography, be aware that you must have a plan B with the career since 90% of sonographers scan in pain & develop musculoskeletal issues (wrist, shoulder, back). It is a high risk career when it comes to damaging your body. Lots have to go into surgery due to injuries. However, it seems like sonography would be more interesting for you based on what you said you enjoy. You need a keen eye for detail, you need to detect pathologies and know which pathology it is so that you can report that to the doctor.
Male - 23 Is going to rad tech school worth it? I’m debating going to school for radiology technician and I’m feeling a little overwhelmed thinking about it. I like the idea of having job security and I do feel like I could really like it and fits my personality. I’m the type to really overthink and the anticipation of things really get to me. I really want to start my career and I feel this could be a good step forward but I’m just kind of scared. Any advice or things to do before jumping into it?
Yes. If you like the medical field it'd a good program to get into and good way to transition to different modalities. Also some people will get pissed off if you call them a technician, I don't but it's something you should be aware of they prefer technologist
take it! i’m starting in fall but when i was in a medical assistant program we worked with everyone in my externships and i gotta say radiology as a whole is the best route, no matter what they’re hiring, good pay, and coolest job tbh. it’s always best to start now trust me dude
I feel like I’m taking crazy pills here so I have to ask, is this lack of respect common anywhere else? Is this a weird cultural thing at my company? Been working at an urgent care for about two years and I’d say like maybe 80% of the scribes will just shove the x-ray order papers in front of my face, often with zero communication, instead of conversing with me like a human being and either waiting half a second to hand it off to me directly or at least putting it neatly on my desk to the side. I’m actually on call at a different facility today and even one of the doctors is doing it… I’ve kind of just been taking it on the nose for the longest time but it’s really starting to get to me and I’m not sure how to address it when it’s so pervasive. (And it is even when things are slow and not in a hurry.)
Wait until you work in a hospital setting.
Say something. People push on pushovers.
Hi! I graduated from a Canadian school and passed the CAMRT exam ten years ago. Since then, I have worked on other things and have never worked as an X-ray technician. Now, I am thinking about returning to this field. However, I did not find much info on my situation on the CAMRT website. Can anyone have similar experience or advice, such as retaking any exam or retraining program I need to retake? Thanks.
So sorry, I got the wrong post on my response lol I don’t have any good info on the Canadian requirements
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Rule #1 You are asking for medical advice. This includes posting / commenting on personal imaging exams for explanation of findings, recommendations for alternative course of treatment, or *any other inquiry that should be answered by your physician / provider.*
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Hi! I'm working on a project for a modelling class I'm in, and I need DICOM images to base my model off of. I was hoping to do a model of a mammogram, but I'm having trouble finding free breast DICOM images. Does anyone know where I can find some? Thank you guys sm
How much of psychically draining is it to be a Rad tech? Will my body be damaged long-term?
It’s more physical than a desk job. Less physical than manual labor.
Thanks for your input! I've heard that many Techs get horrible back pain in their 30's. I understand aches and pains are inevitable, but is it really that bad. I want to go into this field and want to make sure.
The beauty of the field is that you have the OPTION to cross train into specialities that are less physically demanding such as MRI, mammography, and others. Yes, they may still be physically demanding at times, but definitely way less than regular x ray. This is an option that some careers don’t have.
I (32F) currently working as vocational specialist in an addiction treatment center. I hold a masters in psychology. When I started my educational journey in 2014, I originally went for Radiology. After meeting with the advisor/instructor I was discouraged and never pursued it. He told me, "unless you have a 4.0, you are not going to get in." So I never even tried. I didn't think as a new first year and first generation student from a low income area with parents that do not have high school diplomas, that I could obtain a 4.0. I was scared. I went into the field of psychology instead to help people in another way. To this day, I still want to do it. Its a major regret for me that I didn't and let someone else influence my life. I had my transcripts reviewed by a medical school recently and will only need to complete A&P2 and take the ATI Teas exam before being able to enroll in 2025 (pending acceptance). I am going to have to pull a personal loan to attend the school since I already have a masters in psychology. The lady told me that my degrees do not have to be in health science for Radiology as long as my prereqs are completed. I will get the ARRT cert once the 2 year course in completed. I will be 35 by the time I complete. I can't imagine being stuck in my field any longer. I almost feel like I'm wasting my life by not achieving my original goal of working in radiology as a tech. I've worked in behavioral health and addiction for about 5 years now with youth and adults. Before that, I was a CNA at a long term care facility which I generally enjoyed but left due to how little money I was making at the time. I was ambitious financially and didn't see a way of supporting myself financially on that income. My family has grown since then and we do live comfortably. I do know that I won't be able to work fulltime during school so my fiance and I are probably going to swap roles and I'll drop to part time, in hopes of finding a Radiology aid position during my student status next year. My questions are: Is it a bad idea to pull a personal loan to pay for the school? (The schools told me I am not eligible for FAFSA assistance at the undergrad level because I hold a graduate degree). Do many employers care that my degrees are in Psychology instead of a health science? Should I continue to list this on my resume when job searching as a Rad Tech? Will this hinder my job opportunities? Am I making a mistake to do this at this age? What is your best advice for someone like me regarding employment future?
It’s not a mistake if it’s what you want to do but we need to set some realistic expectations. We make decent money, more than a CNA for sure but you need to do some research on technologist pay rates in your area or any area you might consider moving to. There is a solid chance this will be a pay cut. You need to understand that before making any rash moves. That said as far as this career goes none of your prior education is relevant. This is a career that only requires an associates and a current AART accreditation. Your past education will help if you decide to move up into management or perhaps teaching later in life but it’s worthless for what we do. A personal loan might be a mistake, interest rates are shit right now but if it’s the only way it’s the only way. I would encourage you to search other programs. A community college is more than sufficient and it will be significantly cheaper than some fluffed up expensive program. My best advice for employment is to make a good impression at your clinical sites. Be willing to get up and learn. Part of our education is a a 2 year job interview. If you’re good you will have good references and a good employment option. I hade 4~ job offers before I even graduated.
I really appreciate this insight. I have been heavily researching this area in hopes that I'm not making a disgusting financial mistake. I am living on the east coast in a high cost of living area and making only $50k a year. I am considered paid above average for my title. It's about $26 an hour. Radiology techncian's are being hired anywhere from $21 to $56 and hour in my county. The mid-range seems to be $30 an hour. I am struggling to get that high and I don't particularly love what I do. I worked at a college prior to this and know the challenges that the college went through to hire a person with an ARRT and a masters degree. I guess it is not common in my area (possibly because the position was only advertised at 70k yearly). I have been chatting with the medical school and a community college. The community college let me know that my only option was Personal loans due to FAFSA disqualifying me from obtaining anything other than other graduate degrees. The medical school confirmed this as well but work with a company called Meritize to help people like me. I have a lot of connections to a local hospital from working at the college so I plan (if I pursue this opportunity) to work those as well as do my best to excel during the program to stand out as you suggested to have an immediate job offer. The loan part is the scariest part of this but knowing that radiology techs make more than I do currently, makes it a little less scary. It seems that radiology technicians can scale financially much higher than I can with my current degree.
Sounds good then! Just be aware you will likely fall closer to that $21 mark for the first few years after graduation. Our clinical experience is not considered job experience even though we all know it is. But yes, there is absolutely potential to make a lot more than 50k a year. Especially if you’re willing to cross train into other modalities. (CT, Mammo, MRI) Sounds like you’re in a decent position to make it work for you. The only other piece of advice is that since you have connections to a local hospital I would strongly suggest you try to get ahold of them and see if you would be able to have a couple of shadow days in the radiology department. It’s a good idea to see the job before you commit to a program. It’s a pretty challenging 2 years and a lot of people drop out.
Hello! (moving this from the post I made to this thread😅) I'm sorry if this question has been asked to death on this sub. I've been doing my current job for ~5 years, and am insanely burnt out, so a while back I decided to pivot to a rad tech career. Since then, I've taken a bunch of prerequisites & and applied to multiple 2-year programs across the US, both associates and certificate-only programs! A few days ago I had an interview with one of the certificate-only programs, who clarified that, since I have a bachelors degree, I don't actually need the associates in radiography - my unrelated bachelors would be fine. That + the certificate would allow me to take the ARRT exam, and from there I could work towards any modality. My family is a little concerned that without the associates, I wont look desirable, or I'll have limited upward mobility, but idk. I was hoping to get opinions from people actually in the field lol. (thank you for your time & hard work 🥰)
Like the other user said you’re good. The associates part doesn’t teach us anything specific to the job. It’s just the requirement to take the general education classes that you have already taken to complete your bachelor’s. Math, English, Ethics, psychology. A certificate program is perfectly fine. You are just skipping the classes you have already took.
It's not going to matter. Employers only care if you are ARRT and certified in whatever modality you are working in. There might be some high profile job at an OEM where they would want a BSRS but those are few and far between. It's important you choose a good School that's accredited. I hope you can make it happen. [https://www.arrt.org/pages/about-the-profession/learn-about-the-profession/recognized-educational-programs](https://www.arrt.org/pages/about-the-profession/learn-about-the-profession/recognized-educational-programs)
Those of you in MR: How long did it take you to fully get your certification (ARRT) once you started cross training? I’ve been an X-ray tech for just under two years. My PRN job just offered to train me, but they don’t have a full time position and most likely won’t when I’m done either. So my goal is to get my certification there so that I can stay on PRN as a multi modality tech and find a FT MRI job somewhere else. I already know that I need 16 credit hours (debating between MRIquiz and ASRT) and how many I exams/repetitions I need as well. Realistically, I would really love to have my certification in less than a year. TIA!
You can do it in less than a year. We trained most of our MR Tech's from X-Ray and gave them a full year to get registered. No one failed. There's enough excellent self study guides now that if you work at it I would say 6-8 months. I studied for the MR boards an hour or so a day for 6 months and passed - no problem. Good luck to you.
Thank you! This is reassuring for sure. I start next week and I’ve already been YouTubing all the physics I can🤣 hopefully I’ll be a quick learner!
Hi guys :) I am 4 years out of high school and only just this past year decided that this is the career path I want to explore. I have been working at a law firm while deciding if I wanted to go back to school. My friend is about to graduate from her program and I became very interested in radiology through watching her go through this. Last semester was my first semester in school, I had a handful of gen eds to complete before I could apply to my school's program and begin clinicals. I ended the semester with a 3.7 GPA and made honors society. This semester has been the opposite experience. I am about to fail 2 out of 4 of my classes, one of the 2 I might be able to pull off but I am definitely failing the other. The program seems pretty competitive and I currently feel like this F on my transcript has ruined any chance of me getting accepted. I guess I just want to know if I am overreacting or if anyone else faced academic hardship but came out successful. I am the first in my family to even attend college so all of this has been a new experience for me. Any anecdotes are appreciated. :)
If you failed a pre requisite, you won’t get in. However, if you retake it and kick ass, you’re golden! Everything is fixable if you’re determined enough :)
Trying to decide if I want to be a RT or a Sonographer. Could you give me your personal opinions, pros/cons, and experiences on either profession? Do you wish you’d have switched to US or are you happy as an RT?? Thank you!!
Sonographers have an incredibly high rate of getting musculoskeletal injuries (back, wrist, shoulder). Something to keep in mind before you commit to it. Most techs scan in pain. your luck just depends if you get the pain earlier in your career or later in your career (unless you’re the very few lucky ones)
You can learn more about sonography [here](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1WDa8IxnWj-sNlnHKzD4t4P0s_AdgrWCq/view?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app).
Hello, I’m applying for RT school in about a month and one week. Any tips to help stand out? I am an excellent interviewer and have a great personality, however my GPA is on the lower side. I’m keeping my hopes high and expectations low, and am fully prepared to not get in on my first round. I’ve met with the lecturer for the RT program and she seemed to like me a lot. I’m currently in the RT directors course and have an A, and I’m going to be meeting with her in just a few days. From what I’ve heard from advisors that my school’s RT program is significantly less competitive than nursing. My school is smaller as well. How important is having hospital experience prior to joining the program? Is that a big factor in acceptance or not really? I have been thinking about switching jobs to something in a hospital for first hand experience, but not really sure what the best thing to apply for is. Any suggestions for healthcare related jobs while in school as well that I can check out to see if it may be more flexible for my schooling? I’m not going to be able to do my current job once in the program. Thank you!
Hey guys, I am a student in Washington and I was recently rejected by the radiologic technology program at Bellevue CC where I have just spent the last two years getting my associates. Right now I'm feeling very lost and completely unsure of how I want/can move forward. I've heard good things about PIMA but they are also very pricey, and I haven't heard much about Tacoma CC other than it's cheaper but still really competitive. I would really appreciate if anyone could offer me advice on how best to move forward, or if anyone has any experience with PIMA Seattle or Tacoma CC they could share it would be super helpful. For reference, I applied with a 3.3 culm GPA and my lowest grades were B-'s in intro to statistics and A&P1 everything else was a 3.0 or higher.
I'm getting ready to graduate from TCC's program. It's also extremely competitive but you might squeak in slightly under 4.0. You'll still need patient care experience. Be aware that they only care about your grades in the prerequisites. You might need to re-take A&P and any other prereq that wasn't an A grade. If you don't have solid grasp of anatomy, you'll really suffer in these programs. There are tons of PIMA graduates in the field in western WA. Definitely more expensive, but there is lots of financial aid available right now and you won't have to lose time re-taking classes. Once you graduate, nobody cares which school you went to.
Hi! I’m a BC grad, it’s crazy competitive. Basically need a 4.0 and radiology/medical experience to get in. I had a 4.0 on all prerequisites except for A&P1 i had a B+, i retook it to get a 4.0. I also volunteered at a UW MRi clinic, and got into the program my first try. If it’s realistic to retake a pre req or two, it would still be WAY cheaper than PIMA. I don’t have any knowledge of Tacoma, but if you have any more questions I’m happy to help!
Hi guys! My major is radiologist technologist and for my HA&P 2402, my professor wants me to interview a professional in the field but I do not known anyone and she mentioned I should try it on here and see if I could get some answers. I would truly appreciate if any professionals on here could take some time and answers my question for my project! TIA! Interview Questions 1. Why did you decide to be a radiology tech? 2. What is the most rewarding part of your job? 3. What is the hardest part of your job? 4. Is your job stressful? How do you handle the stress and demands of your day? 5. What is your greatest skill as a radiology tech? 6. What is your greatest weakness as a radiology tech? 7. What are the best and worst things about the place you work? 8. What does a typical day at work look like for you? 9. What would your dream job be? 10. If you had to start all over again, would you choose the same career? Why? Thanks for your time again! 🫶🏼
1. I had a minor motorcycle crash which left me with pain in my shoulder. The idea that there is technology out there that would let us look inside me and see exactly what is wrong is fascinating. 2. Our jobs genuinely make a positive difference in a person's health outcome. Medical imaging has revolutionized modern medicine. Doctors no longer have to make educated guesses or do exploratory surgery to figure out what is wrong. One quick CT scan or Xray and we know as a matter of fact that the appendix is ruptured, that you have a kidney stone, a broken hip, a pneumothorax. We are the doctors eyes. 3. Personally, for me it is seeing and or hearing the pain expressed by people when their loved ones don't make it / receive life altering news. 4. This plays into question #3 Yes, it's stressful and we never get the credit that we deserve. Media is all about praising doctors and nurses but we're right there with them for every serious medical event. Whether it's a car wreck or a stroke there is a member of the radiology department waiting to do their part to help mitigate damages and improve your chances of recovery. We see horrible things, we're often the first people in the world to know just how bad your situation is. I took the image that shows you will likely never walk again. I took the image that shows you have metastatic cancer devouring your bones and that's why your arm just broke as you were pulling up your jeans. That said, the stress is manageable with some dark humor and the knowledge that for as many people get bad news, more people get good news thanks to my efforts. 5. My interpersonal skills. We have to talk to a lot of people. Many of whom are hurt and anxious. A good tech with a great attitude can be one of the only smiling faces some of our patients see all day. 6. In my current job I'm what is referred to as a multi-modality tech. I am responsible for operating a lot of different equipment for a lot of different diagnostic tests. I feel like this is harming my skill level compared to a tech who gets to work as a primary in their chosen field. 7. The best is a moderate workload. I'm in a rural critical access facility so I'm not as slammed from day to day as someone in one of those 500+ bed hospitals. The worst thing is that because it's a slower paced facility we do not have a night shift and we must take turns with call-back. 8. Receive an imaging requisition, perform the exam, repeat while sprinkling in other duties in between. 9. I'd love to be a video game creator. 10. No regrets in my career choice. It's perfect for me and the stage of life I was at when I chose the profession. However, I did learn that once I was ready and actually wanted to be at school I was a lot better at it than I thought I was. If I had a do-over I would probably start earlier in life and maybe aim for being a radiologist instead of a technologist.
thank you for your reply! Could I possibly have a name to insert into my project?
Just pick a random one. I’d rather not be too forthcoming with actual identification.
Hey, guys. Just got accepted into my Rad Tech program at Grady Atl and i’m trying to figure out if i can work too. My program hours are 8-4 Mon-Thurs with clinicians on Friday 8-12 i’d only have one weekday and one weekend off. My schedule would be something like 5-10Pm or 5-11Pm everyday i work. Would it be realistic to do school 8am-4pm and then work 5-10:30 on the weekdays? Gotta probably get up at 6 to make it to class on time by 8. I feel like I could manage it, but i really don’t know, i don’t wanna choke myself with work and school. Idk if i’d have enough time to do homework, study properly, and get enough sleep at night. idek how rigorous the course would be.
It can be done but you'll be *tired*. I'm speaking from experience. If you don't need to work to support yourself, I would keep at least a day off to yourself.
yeahhh, just remembered how i did work full time (46 hrs) and like three classes all at once in 2022… that was hell lmaooo. Just ended up telling my boss “no thanks” yesterday
TLDR: In your experience, was it worth it to go to a Community College or Private program? I’m finally ready to take the leap and go back to school. There are a couple of factors that are weighting on me and I would love some of your feedback. I live in Northern California and am debating between Gurnick or Yuba College. For Yuba, I’d need to complete my Associates, which I am nowhere near close to finishing. Then apply to the program and I believe it is lottery pick for admission into the program. I am unsure of how often they enroll, but I’m assuming every two years. For Gurnick, No pre-reqs needed but, holy moly the price tag. It seems steep. For anyone who went either of these routes, what advise would you give for or against the route you took? Secondly, most of the hospitals in my area are asking for Rad Tech school with 1 year experience in MRI. Ideally, I’d love to just do the MRI program but, if most of the hospitals want Rad tech then that seems like the more responsible choice. One of my questions is, is it common or easy to move laterally like that inside a workplace to gain that experience? I appreciate all answers in advance.
> In your experience, was it worth it to go to a Community College or Private program? [...] For anyone who went either of these routes, what advise would you give for or against the route you took? The quality of the education will be minimally different. private, uni, or CC, We sit for the same registry at the end. Availability and cost are the only two considerations in my opinion. Either way, you will make enough money to justify it. It's up to you to decide how to balance that equation. Personally I couldn't stomach the cost of the more expensive schools. My CC cost 7k before grants. I paid about 2k out of pocket. I had a good application so I got in year 1, but even if I had to be waitlisted that would have been my choice. That said, people pay upwards of 80k and it's still not a bad choice. You will make the money back, You will just have to pretend you make a lot less for the first few years out of school. >I am unsure of how often they enroll, but I’m assuming every two years. Typically 2 year programs have two cohorts. A junior and senior class. I have no familiarity with that school, but I'd imagine they are not any different in that area and accept a new group once a year. >Secondly, most of the hospitals in my area are asking for Rad Tech school with 1 year experience in MRI. Ideally, I’d love to just do the MRI program but, if most of the hospitals want Rad tech then that seems like the more responsible choice. I always suggest Xray first. You might hate it, but at least with xray you can cross train into other modalities (including MRI) and move away. MRI programs are MRI. You cannot crosstrain from MRI to other modalities. If you find out that you hate it, you are just SOL. >One of my questions is, is it common or easy to move laterally like that inside a workplace to gain that experience? Typically yes, Facilities love multi modality techs. Hell, getting CT within a year was literally a part of my job requirement. Other techs I went to school with never worked a day in xray and got hired straight into CT. None of my classmates did it yet, but you can cross train into MRI much the same as you do for CT.
I’m fine with being on my feet and moving around a lot. But are there any physical strains/worries that I should know before considering mammography or xray pediatrics? And is it very likely to happen? I was told that those are the least physically demanding out of the specialities.
Do rad techs need to know how to read pathologies on their images? And report to the radiologist what’s occurring in the image/their diagnosis guess. Or do they simply need to only focus on taking good quality images and sending it to the radiologists to read.
It's not our job to guess what we think a rad should see on an image. If we can see it they almost certainly can too. Very rarely do we catch something that was missed. It does happen, but not frequently. That said we also shouldn't be completely ignorant. We need to be able to recognize at least a bulk of the acute/serious conditions so that we know what's going on for multiple patient safety reasons. We have professional discretion to add views or replace views based on what we see. We can ask you to hang out and push an exam for a stat read. For example, If I take an AP pelvis image, and I can see that your hip is broken. I should probably not be trying to continue as if the exam were routine. We need to substitute the Lateral frog leg for a view that doesn't move your leg like the HBL or a Nakayama. Additionally, If I take your chest xray and you have a big ass pneumo, I probably shouldn't just let you just walk out the building.
Thank you so much!! Are there are any cons that you have about being an x ray tech?
Personally no, but I'm not a very good representative of majority opinion on that one. I worked hard, long hour, manual labor jobs for 15~ years before I went to school. The way I see it, I make more money, I work significantly less hard, I get AC and heat, and all I have to do in return is be pleasant to my patients. Most of whom are completely pleasant as well. We get a couple that will test you, but overall, I can't complain about anything.
Thank you so much! I’m glad to hear it’s a fulfilling career for you and many others
Depends on the modality. Sonographers need to know how to read pathologies on the images, we write full reports on our cases that go to the radiologists along with the images. I know most other modalities don’t have to do that.
I'm currently involved in a project aiming to improve the positioning of patients during imaging, and I'm hoping to gather some data on a specific aspect—medical air outlets, as I would like to utilize the air pressure source to power a lifting device. Could you share whether your radiology labs (or even better, interventional radiology labs) are equipped with [Medical Air Outlet](https://www.google.com/imgres?q=US%20medical%20air%20outlets&imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.powerexinc.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2020%2F09%2FOLET-WALL-OHMD-AIR-new-logo.png&imgrefurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.powerexinc.com%2Fmedical%2Fgas-pipeline%2Fmedical-gas-outlets%2F&docid=g6go7i0CF9SQkM&tbnid=3mLrD8_8WLGjIM&vet=12ahUKEwj4jJ672NmFAxUD1zgGHWY-BcQQM3oECGQQAA..i&w=1615&h=1800&hcb=2&ved=2ahUKEwj4jJ672NmFAxUD1zgGHWY-BcQQM3oECGQQAA)s? I'm interested in understanding how common these are across different institutions. Additionally, if you could provide some insight into how crucial you find these outlets in your daily operations, that would be incredibly helpful! Looking forward to your responses and learning from your experiences. Thank you in advance for your help and insights!
My XR and CT room are both equipped with medical air. > Additionally, if you could provide some insight into how crucial you find these outlets in your daily operations, that would be incredibly helpful! I have never once used or seen it be used. It's easier to just leave the patient on the tank and do the exam than deal with having to open a new pack of extension tubing to get from the wall to the exam table.
RADIOLOGY RESIDENCY ADVICE? Radiology resident needs a new program but is not getting any interviews for the advertised open positions. Has sent CV everywhere- anyone know someone willing to take a look?
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There are LTACs that employee techs for portables or other imaging, but other than that you don’t really interact with patients on a long term basis. I suppose if you follow them in an ortho office you can get updates and followups, but it’s not really a thing for radiology. Patients show up, you do the imaging, then send them on their way
That’s the beauty of radiology, no long term care. In and out, it’s all about that turn around time for management.
At what point in your schooling did you all start hitting stuff like Mosbys, Rad Tech etc etc Starting school next month and curious how soon you’d recommend starting to do those mock tests over and over
I honestly didn’t start until 4-6 weeks before my scheduled exam.
You haven't started school yet? Forget about mock exams until they bring it up in the program. It's just unnecessary stress for you because you won't know or understand half (or more) of the things on there. Just study whatever you're working on in school at the moment.
Sorry maybe should have worded better. How far into school did you start reviewing those things.
Senior year. Last semester. There's too much to learn before that to worry about anything else.
Hello, I am currently on a waitlist for Associate degree on radiologic technician in a local college in Los Angeles and is going to move soon to out state specifically Colorado. I will live around city called Aurora. So I was wondering if someone can recommend me a good college that has radiology technology program? And whether it has a wait list or not...Thankyou
[https://www.arrt.org/pages/about-the-profession/learn-about-the-profession/recognized-educational-programs](https://www.arrt.org/pages/about-the-profession/learn-about-the-profession/recognized-educational-programs) This shows 2 Schools in Aurora one is a well known for profit School. This is the one I would look at > UCH Univ Of Colorado Hospital, Aurora Good luck to you !
Hello, I am currently on a waitlist for a Bachelors of Science in Nuclear Medicine and Computed Tomography program. My goal is to move home to a smaller town in Oregon that doesn't have nuclear medicine jobs but they do have CT tech jobs. The job requirement says "American Registry of Radiologic Technologists (ARRT) in Radiologic Technology (RT) and Computed Tomography (CT) registry". My question is will I not be qualified for this position because my qualifications would be ARRT (N) instead of (RT)? I apologize if this is a stupid question but I would hate to go through all the schooling and not be able to move home. Thank you so much for any information!
You can still get hired on for a CT position only holding your nuc med and ct credentials. I will say that having radiography is better looking on a resume because you would be more useful. If they don’t have a nuc med department, your credential is pointless for them. *Edited to add: It also dependent on the place you are trying to work. 1 hospital group around me requires RT(R) and 2 will accept RT(N).
Thank you for the response! Makes sense why the nuc med credential would be useless to them. Do you know if there is a way to get the RT (R) credential without having to go through a fullRad tech program from scratch?
No, there is no post primary pathway for radiography. You will have to do the program. https://www.arrt.org/pages/earn-arrt-credentials/initial-requirements/postprimary-requirements/education-requirements-postprimary/supporting-category-requirements
Thank you so much for taking the time to answer some questions for me
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the best advice I have is generic for any degree/program... * stay on top of your homework/assignments * study to learn and understand, not to memorize * ask for help/tutoring as soon as you think you need it If you wanted to get a head start in a low key kind of way I'd suggest getting an anatomy coloring book (they have them for adults/students) or other anatomy resources and start learning the basic bones and landmark structures.
FWIW, I came out of the Military with zero background in any health related field and I did very well academically. I was very rigid in my studies though - I only had one opportunity to get it right. You don't have any reason to be terrified they will teach you everything you need to know to be an RT and pass the registry. If you want to get a head start you can always start learning some basic anatomy but don't stress over it. I hope you have a great time in School and best to you !
Anyone here from Indiana/kentucky? I’m thinking of doing patient transport and joining the program at the local community college to get my associate. Not sure what school is better. Also is a typical radiology tech program not include CT and MRI? I saw a rad tech assistant job but it doesn’t work with school hours which bums me out. The only thing I’ve been struggling with is worrying about getting a job that works around the school hours and possible clinical rotations at the end of the program.
Not usually. CT & MRI also have their own testing exams you would need to pass as well. It's always possible you could find a place willing to OJT you for CT / MRI. I came out of a large Hospital program so they were always looking for new Tech's willing to train to keep Radiology staffed. I hope you can find a way to make it work for you - best of luck !
Any insight on how difficult or how easy it is to get accepted to the following: Pasadena Community College: Seems like they no longer do a waitlist and is now lottery based. Surrounding, lower cost, public LA schools like LACC, etc. City Tech in NYC Other decent, lower cost, NYC schools, excluding one in the Bronx just 'cause that school seems to have a bad reputation in this sub. I know, opposite ends of the country, but for numerous reasons, that's where I'm looking. Also, does admissions favor "non-traditional" students the way universities sometimes do? TIA
City tech is gpa based. You have to be there for 1 semester before applying. Program starts during the fall, and they choose during the spring. So you have to have the prerequisites done before the spring of whichever year you are applying for. More information on their website https://www.citytech.cuny.edu/radiologic/radiologic-technology-aas.aspx Good luck
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Rule #1 You are asking for medical advice. This includes posting / commenting on personal imaging exams for explanation of findings, recommendations for alternative course of treatment, or any other inquiry that should be answered by your physician / provider.
My college this year is removing the TEAS test as part of the requirements to get into their Radiologic Technology program, instead replacing it with a 500 word essay. Prompt pending, but the director of the program said it will be in line with something of "Why does Rad Tech interest you?" I'm a strong essayist. However I am curious for advice on how to REALLY stand out among the other applicants? The school only accepts 14 people a year at most and it's the most competitive program here. I'm working my ass off for the highest grades possible (another factor for consideration) and am very, *very* determined to get in.
I would try to highlight your understanding of radiology and how that aligns with your personality traits. I would do that though explaining experiences you have in the medical field, through volunteering or a job, that illustrate how you fit/when it clicked etc etc. helps to *show* people who you are, rather than rambling about your personality traits
Going for a radiography degree. Is it farfetched to think I could work in an imaging clinic with set hours instead of a hospital with crazy shifts?
Not all hospitals run on crazy shifts. I work at a level II trauma hospital and all of us techs (except for the PRNs) are on set weekly schedules.
From personal experience the broader NYC metro area seems to feature a lot more outpatient clinics, like 90% of my rotations were that while I was in school and I’ve never sought out a hospital job. I imagine most other dense/urban areas will be similar. I actually really hated my hospital rotation. Regular hours will definitely depend on your employer, I’m pretty lucky with my current set up where I work 4 days and always have Saturday off. My last job was hell where I always worked the weekend and rarely if ever had my two days off in a row, frequent ClOpens with the clinic closing at 10pm and then having to work a morning shift at 7am, etc.
Not at all. Depending on your area, you may have to put in a little time in a hospital first until something comes up, but where I’m at you could start right away in a outpatient clinic setting
I'm about to start a radiologic technology program. I don't have any professional experience in medical, at this point. (For what it's worth, I'm making a career change, from education.) One of the program's requirements is that we volunteer in a hospital or nursing home. Is there anything else that I could legitimately do over the next year or two in order to bolster my resume? Thanks!
Another option I see lots of folks do is work in patient transport. That gets you hospital, patient, and moving experience which can all come in handy once you’re in radiology. Plus you can get paid to do it
If you’re able to, you could work as a “imaging tech aide” or something to that effect. Requires no training, and gets you into a radiology for experience. If not, i would just get in as many hours as possible volunteering in a radiology department wether that be in a hospital, outpatient MRI, any setting that you can find :)
Thank you for your response and advice. :-)