Medical Physicist jobs, with UK certification.

[daniel white]

Hi,

I have dual citizenship, UK and US, and I have done my degree (Bsc and Msc) at UK universities. As well as 3 years of working as a radiotherapy physicist at a UK hospital. I am looking at moving back to the US so long as I can get a job in my field.

Does anybody know what training/further studying etc I would have to go through before hand to land a job?

Thanks

 

[EricVT]

I think this will essentially come down to whether or not you can find an employer who is willing to recognize certification in the UK as sufficient for clinical practice and as an alternative to certification by the American Board of Radiology (ABR).

I don't believe that the ABR has any alternative pathways for foreign-trained and certified medical physicists at the M.S. level. The only alternative pathways that I am aware of are for aspiring medical physicists with a Ph.D. NOT in medical physics that are willing to complete a certificate program.

If you find that ABR certification is something you need then I believe you would be required to enroll in a CAMPEP-accredited graduate program to sit for Part 1 and then complete a CAMPEP-accredited residency to sit for Part 2.

 

[Choppy]

Just to add to what EricVT said, it may really depend on which state you're looking at. Some of them have a licensing procedure for medical physicists, which, to my understanding requires ABR certification. Many won't have any legal requirement for certification, but will require it for the position anyway. And of those that are left you face the issue of a flooded market right now, so even if the position doesn't "require" certification in any way, you're likely competing against a pool of others who have it.

On the other hand, many US positions require ABR certification "or equivalent." The Canadian certification - membership with the CCPM, is generally accepted at par, with the exception of those places that have specific licensure requirements. Did you have to go through any certification process in the UK?