The degree program prepares students to use advanced medical technology for diagnostic and treatment purposes.
*Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, Radiologic and MRI Technologists, on the Internet at https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/radiologic-technologists.htm (visited March 24, 2022).
The time required for online completion of a degree and on-campus in Bachelor in Radiologic Technology should be about equal at most schools for most students. The standard for a four-year degree is eight semesters whether online or on-campus. Some online schools appeal to students by offering accelerated course curricula. Accelerated curricula condenses the requirements into fewer courses to speed up graduation. Many students can accelerate graduation by attending online, but this requires a much heavier than usual credit-load. Most colleges and universities require 120 credit hours to graduate with a Bachelor of Science in Radiologic Technology.
Online attendance can avoid scheduling bottlenecks. Students may find on-campus classes unavailable, and that can cause additional semesters of attendance. Online classes in the summer months can help online and/or traditional students accelerate graduation. Online students can take a full course load of 15 semester hours when they have time and resources available. The lower typical costs of semester hours online, as opposed to on-campus rates, can help students take more courses.
Before choosing a major there are some important facts you should know about.
Bachelor’s Degree in Radiologic Technology is a wide-ranging field with many different specialties. If you have a specific career you are hoping to enter, make sure the school either offers a major in that field or a variety of classes pertaining to your field of interest. You may be able to find employment information for graduating students, which can show you how many students were able to enter the Radiologic Technology you're looking at upon graduation.
This is a very important question to ask yourself. Your major should play a big part in the schools you are considering. Not every college may offer the major of your choice, so doing your homework is the first step of the selection process.
A Radiologic Technology degree will certainly require to consist of some really particular training courses. Generally, a bachelor's degree in Radiologic Technology looks like an associate level doubled, but associates courses (the first two years) focus more on general studies. While the 3rd-5th years focus more on specific studies related to Radiologic Technology. Below is a sample of online bachelor's degree courses so you can see the kind of curriculum that will be typically found. Universities will differ in their specific studies needs. Compare colleges very carefully on the courses they will require you to take to gain your bachelor's degree in Radiologic Technology. Sample courses you may need:
These days fewer and fewer students graduate in four years. In fact, the government now sets the bar at a six-year term from starting a degree to graduation. Accredited programs in Bachelor’s of Radiologic Technology, on the other hand, are more likely to graduate in 4-5 years. That is because those programs are more competitive, and studies have shown that students in highly competitive programs have more success with graduating in four years (or less.) Keep it mind there are also other determining factors that play a role in how long it takes to graduate like full time vs part time, funding for college, working at the same time (can potentially decrease how many credit hours you can take) etc. A good goal to shoot for is to graduate within 4 to 6 years.
Accreditation is an important part of selecting a school for Radiologic Technology education. Much depends on accreditation and the type of accreditation. There are two main types of accreditation; regional and national. Regional accreditation agencies work with research-based schools, private schools, public schools, and some for-profit schools. National accreditation works primarily with for-profit and career-related education.
Regional Accreditation
There are two types of regional accreditation; they are Radiologic Technology program accreditation and institutional accreditation. Institutional accreditation uses a group of states as the base to compare the school with other colleges and universities; the group of states comprises the region assigned by the Department of Education.
Programmatic Accreditation looks at specific programs or parts of a college or university. This type of accreditation has the same type of respect and acceptance as regional accreditation for institutions. Regional employers and other educational institutions regard regional accreditation as proof of high-quality education.
National Accreditation
National accreditation has a Faith-based branch and a career- related education branch. Faith-based institutions have a different set of standards that recognize the role of faith in instruction. The for-profit branch of national accreditation covers the special purpose and non-traditional schools such as vocational schools. The career-related education requires standards that place appropriate weight on general knowledge and education. Some regionally accredited schools do not accept credits from career-related schools.
Did you know that your salary is not always just based on what level of degree you received, but it also could be based on what school you attended? Many employers actually have their own rankings and rating systems of schools. That is to say, if you received your degree from a college that was accredited by a low rated agency, your salary may actually be decreased by a certain percentage where a high-ranked, well-known, accredited school, can raise that mark significantly.
A four-year degree in Radiologic Technology is an investment into your future. The cost of tuition can vary widely depending on the academic excellence of the university and the specific field of study chosen. You can expect tuition for a bachelor's degree in Radiologic Technology to cost anywhere from $8,000-$72,000 per year. The cost of tuition for online degrees is typically the same cost as on-campus. When talking about costs, it is important to factor in textbooks, technology, as well as room and board, as those costs are separate from tuition. These are average college tuition costs and does not include financial aid. It is important for each and every student to seek out financial aid options to help pay for their college tuition.
The cost of your education is worth every penny, because it is an investment in your future. You may feel that you are investing too much money in a degree but remember that it will all come back to you. Once you get the career that you've been aiming for, you will be to pay off your student loans and live a better life.
You can't afford to take time to redraft your resume, write attention-grabbing cover letters, schedule job interviews, practice your interview skills, or parry salary offers. Not when you're student-teaching and getting ready to graduate.
That is why most universities and colleges have offices where career and placement service professionals can help you with all of the above. If your resume needs to be updated or even totally rewritten, they will help you. If you need to brush up on your interview skills, they can assist you.
Some campuses even hold professional development workshops. These may include networking skills, resume writing, and interviewing skills.
