Medical Radition Science, Radition Therapy Degree

[leigh87]

Hi,

I am Leigh, a 28 year old mature aged, soon to be student. I got 92.5 on my ATAR in chemistry/life sciences/ English.

I am seriously considering a Bachelors in Medical Radiation (therapy) degree, because the nuclear medicine branch of the degree on offer sounds like career prospects are too limited and there seems to be less employment opportunities.

However, Medical Radiation science, Radiation Therapy - this degree sounds to be oversaturated.

I am thinking of just doing podiatry since it is also an area of interest and the job prospects sound better.

Are there any hopes for a radiation therapist of getting work in Australia? I am willing to move rural in order to get work.



Thanks in advance for any advice...




and I am have not really studied physics or maths, but my strong points are chemistry and biology/anatomy physiology.

I am mature aged and therefore I know what I want and am 100% dedicated to getting the math and physics tutoring I need to excel in any prospective degree. Mature aged = willing to do what it takes to pass the degree.

 

[Choppy]

Well I don't know what the market is currently like in Australia, but I know that the RTs are generally finding that positions are fairly competative right now. Recent graduates in Canada generally find work on a casual basis until something full time comes up, or they move to the smaller cities to begin their careers.

The degree of physics and mathematics in an RT degree really depends on the program. Day-to-day, the mathematical skills involved in the job are fairly straight forward - calculating patient shifts or plugging numbers into a formlua to verify the number of monitor units you plan to deliver to a patient. From an educational standpoint thought you'll be expected to have a reasonably grasp of the physics behind radiation therapy, so at minimum you'll need a conceptual understanding of how ionizing radiation interacts with matter and how medical images are generated. On the higher end of the spectrum you could end up in a program that's just a little shy of a physics undergraduate degree.