College (radiography)

Question

I am about to enter my 3rd year at community college

(its never a 2 year school if you are going for allied health)

well anyways i am planning to go for radiography. and i have been searching high and low for schools and i found this one: http://www.clarion.edu/academic/nursing/nursing_radtech.shtml (scroll to bottom) and i don't understand are these are these the Prue i ddon'tsee any radiography classes listed there at all so i am a bit confused. and one more thing this school is in PA and i am from a diff state would this be a problem when i get licensed

Answer 1

I don't see this program on the list of accredited programs for radiographers.  If you do not attend an accredited program, you cannot take your ARRT (American Registry of Radiologic Technologist) licensing exams.  This is the national licensing board, and it is something you need in this field.

There are many schools in many states where you can get trained to be a radiologic technologist (the proper term for a x-ray tech).  Before you can attend a RT program, you will need to attend and complete certain college level prerequisite courses.  I spent 1.5 years at my local community college, then went to a RT program.  You can attend a hospital based program (and earn a certificate), a 2 year college program (AS degree), and even a 4 year college program (BS degree). The hospital based programs are the least expensive, and honestly, I think the education received there is superior. Once you graduate and take your registry exam, no future employer is going to care what type of educational program you went through. All they care about is your license. You can find an accredited RT program at this site. Just search "radiography" and your state...links are provided which will give you additional information on each program (cost, duration of program, contact person):

http://www.jrcert.org/cert/Search.jsp

If you attend a program, which is not on this list, you will find yourself a limited permit tech.  Don't waste your time or money on this one.  Most employers want a fully licensed RT, who can do any procedure, and you won't be that person.  If you can find a job, your salary will be far less than that of a fully licensed RT.

RTs do more than just x-rays of bones. We do fluoroscopy studies (involving the intestinal tract and barium), arthrograms (assisting the radiologist with injecting contrast or dye into joints for evaluation) and myelograms (assisting the radiologist with injecting contrast into the spinal canal). If you work in a hospital setting, you will do portable exams in ICU, CCU, the ER and even surgery.  Some RTs take x-rays in the morgue.  Limited permit techs cannot do most, if any, of these procedures.

Most RTs will also become proficient and licensed in other modalities, such as mammography, CT and/or MRI.  This training does not require any additional formal training, and is usually learned on the job.  The more licenses you have, the more money you can make, as you will be in higher demand. With additional schooling, you can also do ultrasound.  A limited premit tech will not have these opportunities.

I highly recommend you do an observation in both a hospital imaging department and a free standing imaging facility. Until you see what RTs do, you won't know if it is the job for you! It would also give you a wonderful opportunity to talk to RTs in your area. Best wishes.....

Oh, another good resource....check out the student area of the ASRT website:

https://www.asrt.org/

And the ARRT:

http://www.arrt.org/index.html?content=h...

The American Society of Radiologic Technologists just did a large salary survey, in 2007. The salary varies, depending on your experience, specialties and geographical area. To view, the survey, and see the average salary in your state, you can go to this link:

https://www.asrt.org/media/pdf/research/...

In PA, the mean average yearly income of a RT was $48,002 in 2007.  You can divide this by 2080 (40 hours per week X 52 weeks) for an average hourly salary of about $23 per hour.