Programs I am doing a BME PhD, and hope to transfer to medical physics

[Qiong]

Hi All,

I am currently a third-year Ph.D. student working on PET image processing and tracer kinetic modeling, and about to graduate in two years.

After three years study, I developed a high interest in clinical-related projects and found medical physics path is very suitable for me. I wish to transfer to Medical Physics path after graduation. I was advised to take CAMPEP courses during my Ph.D. so that I could apply for the residency program directly.

The question is, our school does not provide CAMPEP courses, and I am not sure how likely I could match a residency program with a BME Ph.D. degree. I have the opportunity to transfer to another school for one year which provides medical physics courses. I am in a dilemma of whether to take those courses for now or wait until I apply for a postdoc in medical physics in the future. Also, are there any summer internship opportunities to apply as a Ph.D. student? I hope to know this field better and get some hands-on experience before applying for jobs.

I really appreciate any suggestions and thoughts from people who are in this field. Thank you in advance!

 

[berkeman]

Welcome to PF.

After three years study, I developed a high interest in clinical-related projects and found medical physics path is very suitable for me. I wish to transfer to Medical Physics path after graduation.

It's great that you have found your passion in such an important field, especially one that has such a big impact in helping people. Good for you.

Others here will be able to answer your questions much better than I can (we have several Medical Physics experts here), but could you clarify what country you are studying in now and where this other school is located and where you want to work after your graduation and residency in Medical Physics? Thanks.

 

[Qiong]

Welcome to PF. It's great that you have found your passion in such an important field, especially one that has such a big impact in helping people. Good for you.

Others here will be able to answer your questions much better than I can (we have several Medical Physics experts here), but could you clarify what country you are studying in now and where this other school is located and where you want to work after your graduation and residency in Medical Physics? Thanks.

Thank you for your reply! I'm currently studying in the US and hope to pursue my career here too.

 

[Choppy]

Your best bet is an accredited post-doctoral certificate program. These programs are about eight months to a year long and by the end you're generally competitive for residency positions as those who have come through accredited PhD programs. On the down side med phys PhD grads are more likely to have med phys-related research and a larger clinical skill set experience base (i.e. have a few years of clinical QA experience under their belts). But on the up side, you bring a different set of PhD-related skills to the table.

Another option that people sometimes go for is an accredited MSc in medical physics following their PhD. That adds yet another year to the equation, but some programs provide full financial support for their MSc students (this is relatively common in Canada where I'm at), whereas there is less support for certificate students.

Something else to consider is that this advice is specific to radiation oncology physics. Things are different for the other specializations, so if you're interested in a nuclear medicine residency for example, you might be able to apply directly from your PhD.

As far as internships go, you could ask around if you're near a radiation oncology hospital and see if they need any help doing QA work, but I wouldn't take a summer off of your PhD to do an internship. Taking large chunks of time off from a PhD can stall the whole process and drag it out longer than it needs to go.

 

[gleem]

Is your interest more in imaging?

 

[Qiong]

Your best bet is an accredited post-doctoral certificate program. These programs are about eight months to a year long and by the end you're generally competitive for residency positions as those who have come through accredited PhD programs. On the down side med phys PhD grads are more likely to have med phys-related research and a larger clinical skill set experience base (i.e. have a few years of clinical QA experience under their belts). But on the up side, you bring a different set of PhD-related skills to the table.

Another option that people sometimes go for is an accredited MSc in medical physics following their PhD. That adds yet another year to the equation, but some programs provide full financial support for their MSc students (this is relatively common in Canada where I'm at), whereas there is less support for certificate students.

Something else to consider is that this advice is specific to radiation oncology physics. Things are different for the other specializations, so if you're interested in a nuclear medicine residency for example, you might be able to apply directly from your PhD.

As far as internships go, you could ask around if you're near a radiation oncology hospital and see if they need any help doing QA work, but I wouldn't take a summer off of your PhD to do an internship. Taking large chunks of time off from a PhD can stall the whole process and drag it out longer than it needs to go.

Hi Choppy, thank you for your detailed reply! Could you elaborate more on the differences between radiation oncology physics and nuclear medicine residency? I am interested in working in hospitals with my Ph.D. skills in medical image processing and analysis. But I do not have many sources of getting to know the hospital position requirements and clinical services. I really appreciate your time for replying to me.

As for the internships, in my program, we are encouraged to take two summers off to do internships. Right now, we are approaching the internship application season, and the majority of our lab members will go to GPS, but I am wondering if there are also opportunities in the hospitals.

 

[Qiong]

Is your interest more in imaging?

Yeah, I guess right now based on my research experience I am more capable of doing imaging-related work.

 

[gleem]

Yeah, I guess right now based on my research experience I am more capable of doing imaging-related work.

There are far fewer opportunities in medical physics for a clinical imaging specialist. Those would probably be large teaching hospitals or medical centers that can afford a full-time diagnostic (imaging) physics division. Usually, routine clinical responsibilities would include quality assurance procedures with the availability of research. Most community hospitals contract with outside consultant firms for QA which probably do not carry on any research.

Radiation therapy has become deeply involved in image guide treatments but again large centers may depend on the imaging division for their needs. @Choppy might have a better idea about this. To be a radiating oncology staff member you would probably have to contribute to patient-related tasks of a radiation oncology physicist. The way I see it your imaging background would be an asset in the radiation oncology department but most of your activities would be related to patient treatments and acquiring the skills will take time. I really do not know if an internship or two would be of value.

 

[Choppy]

Could you elaborate more on the differences between radiation oncology physics and nuclear medicine residency? I am interested in working in hospitals with my Ph.D. skills in medical image processing and analysis. But I do not have many sources of getting to know the hospital position requirements and clinical services. I really appreciate your time for replying to me.

As Gleem said, radiation oncology physics (ROP) makes up the majority of medical physicists (80 - 90%). In an ROP residency you'll be focused on learning how radiation is used to treat cancer... quality control of linear accelerators, treatment planning, commissioning of new equipment, brachytherapy and other special techniques, image guidance, CT simulations, radiation safety, cancer and radiation biology. I know less about diagnostic imaging and/or nuclear medicine residencies, but they focus more on the quality control and optimization of imaging equipment, developing new protocols/techniques, radiation safety, I would imagine there's a strong component of machine learning and computer-assisted diagnostics support as well. If you google "nuclear medicine residency medical physics" you'll get a lot of links to relevant programs.

 

[Qiong]

As Gleem said, radiation oncology physics (ROP) makes up the majority of medical physicists (80 - 90%). In an ROP residency you'll be focused on learning how radiation is used to treat cancer... quality control of linear accelerators, treatment planning, commissioning of new equipment, brachytherapy and other special techniques, image guidance, CT simulations, radiation safety, cancer and radiation biology. I know less about diagnostic imaging and/or nuclear medicine residencies, but they focus more on the quality control and optimization of imaging equipment, developing new protocols/techniques, radiation safety, I would imagine there's a strong component of machine learning and computer-assisted diagnostics support as well. If you google "nuclear medicine residency medical physics" you'll get a lot of links to relevant programs.

I see, thank you very much!

 

[Qiong]

There are far fewer opportunities in medical physics for a clinical imaging specialist. Those would probably be large teaching hospitals or medical centers that can afford a full-time diagnostic (imaging) physics division. Usually, routine clinical responsibilities would include quality assurance procedures with the availability of research. Most community hospitals contract with outside consultant firms for QA which probably do not carry on any research.

Radiation therapy has become deeply involved in image guide treatments but again large centers may depend on the imaging division for their needs. @Choppy might have a better idea about this. To be a radiating oncology staff member you would probably have to contribute to patient-related tasks of a radiation oncology physicist. The way I see it your imaging background would be an asset in the radiation oncology department but most of your activities would be related to patient treatments and acquiring the skills will take time. I really do not know if an internship or two would be of value.

Thank you for your reply! These are very useful information to me.