being a radiation therapist after being a x ray tech?

954heat · Joined: 29 Sep 2007 Posts: 90 Location: south florida

due to some illnesses with people close to me ive become very interested in this field. well im trying to find some info but im having no luck hopefully someone on here can help. im 6 months away from graduating school to be a radiology tech. then im taking the arrt exam. so my question now, after i pass that how would i go about being a radiation therapist? obviously i would go to school but being a arrt licenced x ray tech already is there any kind of shortend training? like i have my assoc. degree so would i be able to apply that to school and get a bs in radiation therapy? would i be able to bypass some classes? also how long is school to be a radiation therapist? basically, i def want to do this im just trying to figure out what the best path is. is it a natural jump people make for x ray to rad therapy? like for x ray to ct or x ray to mri?

thanks in advance for ANY info you may have!

steve08087 · Joined: 29 Mar 2009 Posts: 2 Location: NJ/PA

Wow - I'm shocked you havent gotten a lot of help with this question. I worked in X-ray for about 10 years before going to Rad Therapy school. I decided to go because of the income potential and because I was getting burned out in X-ray. Rad Therapy is a very rewarding career - especially emotionally. In X-ray a huge percentage of your patients are x-rayed because liability reasons and poor clinical assesment. While in Radiation Therapy - 100% of your patients need the treatment you are giving them. To answer your specific question, after X-ray school you can attend a one year certificate program at a hospital or college and earn a certificate. Some colleges do offer a bachelors degree - and if you are able - I recommend that highly. A bechelors degree will serve you well later on down the road - as you move into positions of greater responsibility; management, etc. You can go to the ARRT.org website and print out the list of educational programs for Rad Therapy by state. You don't say what area you live in, but the BS degree program at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, PA offers the degree. Across the river in Camden, NJ, you can get a certificate for a one-year commitment at a hospital-based program. I would recommend working in X-ray for a year or two 1st, for most applicants - in order to build your patient contact & clinical skills, before pursuing Rad Therapy. This does not apply to all though - many students go straight through both programs and prove to be excellent therapists very quickly. I hope this response helped. Good luck. Steve Smile