Deciding on a career that’s right for your talents and interests takes digging into the details of a possible career, examining life goals, and choosing the right school. Take on this strategy, and career experts say a fulfilling career path will become clear. When looking for a personally rewarding career with a fantastic future, investigate a 2-year radiologic technology school and become a radiologic technologist – a rad tech.
Even if you’ve not heard of a radiologic technologist’s healthcare support role, odds are you know someone who’s benefited because of what rad techs do on a healthcare team.
That’s because imaging of the body externally is almost always preferred over invasive surgical procedures or exploratory surgeries. In a typical year, radiologic technologists perform nearly 300 million imaging scans and radiation treatments.
The diagnostic medical images radiologic technologists produce can help physicians determine the cause of pain and injury and may even provide the first indication of cancer or other life-threatening diseases.
And being a rad tech is not all about operating imaging equipment – they are on the front line of patient care.
As students learn in radiologic technology school, a rad tech can be one of the first healthcare professionals a patient interacts with. Showing compassion, offering encouragement, and explaining the imaging procedure go a long way in today’s goal of delivering excellent patient care.
Here’s something else most people don’t realize. The majority of rad techs enter the workforce in two years by earning an Associate of Applied Science (A.A.S.) degree in Radiologic Technology.
Typically, students take a variety of preliminary courses – about 24 hours – and then spend the rest of the time in radiologic technology school learning the principles and theories of diagnostic imaging and acquiring the specific skills they’ll use.
Rad tech students learn to set up, operate, and monitor X-ray equipment and C-Arm technology that physicians depend on in surgery. The best radiologic technology schools also train students in particular procedures, such as fluoroscopy – medical imaging that shows a continuous X-ray image on a monitor. At the same time, these radiologic technology schools will integrate patient care best practices throughout the program.
The A.A.S. in radiologic technology is fast-paced, but it’s also comprehensive. After demonstrating the skills necessary to begin clinical education, radiologic technology schools place students in their network of worksite settings to complete specific competencies.
Nationally, the demand for rad techs is high – the profession is set to expand by 6% from 2021 to 2031, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Many radiologic technology school grads work in hospitals and ERs. Other options include physician offices, medical or diagnostic labs, outpatient centers, and federal or state agencies.
The rad tech profession is proving to be an excellent fit for those who wish to be in the medical field, want to help others, and like taking responsibility.
Some rad tech students, like Brenda B., have those skills and talents but first found themselves in a career area that didn’t give them what they wanted out of life.
“I researched the radiologic tech field while working as a pharmaceutical sales rep,” Rad tech student Brenda B. says. “I graduated from college 30 years ago, so my decision to go back to school was carefully thought out. I wanted to pursue a new career in the medical field that is people-oriented, and patient care-focused.”
A wise move for any career is to take on a job shadowing experience in a specific field of interest. After researching the profession and which radiologic technology school to attend, Brenda talked with working radiologic technologists and did a job shadowing to understand their healthcare role. That experience let her know a two-year rad tech school was the right move for her.
“I use everything I learned in the classroom, and the clinical rotations are excellent,” Brenda says. “The program has been very fulfilling, and I am ready to start my new career as a radiologic technologist.”
Cleveland University-Kansas City (CUKC) is a nonprofit, private, healthcare-focused university located in Overland Park, Kansas, offering an accelerated Associate of Applied Science (A.A.S. degree) in Radiologic Technology.
Most students complete the degree in as little as two years and are eligible to become registered radiologic technologists by taking the national certifying exam by the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists (ARRT).
The CUKC radiologic technology program combines classwork and lab time with clinical experiences in various area healthcare facilities. Imaging center professionals guided the program design, and instructors have real-life experience doing the imaging work they’re teaching.
Other advantages of the radiologic technology program at CUKC:
Request more details here about our A.A.S. degree program and download this free eBook: Your Complete Guide to a Career as a Radiologic Technologist!
