Top Medical Physics Programs in Texas and Florida

[AryaKimiaghalam]

Hi all,
Hope you are all safe and doing well.

I recently made a decision to potentially move to the states permanently. I am currently in my fourth year of undergraduate degree in physics at a Canadian university (3.82 cGPA, 3.96 in major) and interested in a career in medical physics. For this matter, I thought it could be a good idea to get my PhD in medical physics from an American university in Texas/Florida to establish my connections early.

What are some top accredited programs in these states that offer reasonable clinical experience?

What is the residency situation in the United States compared to Canada and what is your experience regarding a career in medical physics in United States.

I would appreciate your help.

 

[Choppy]

Generally I don't like promoting specific programs over others because they all have their strengths and weaknesses and as a potential student you really should be doing that research yourself. Start by going to the CAMPEP website and looking for the programs in the states you're interested in.

One general thing to consider though is to read the fine print about cost and financial support. Canadian programs tend to support their medical physics graduate students financially. I'm not sure the same is true as often in the US - where sometimes from a financial perspective the programs are treated more like professional schools than graduate schools so tuition is high and financial support is not guaranteed.

 

[Choppy]

As for residencies, whether your do your graduate program in the US or Canada, you can do a residency in either country, and lots of people cross over. The AAPM hosts a matching process, to help new residents find the residency that's the best match for both parties. I'm not sure how many Canadian programs are a part of the match these days, but lots of Canadian graduates apply through the match.

 

[Choppy]

Working in medical physics in the US... well in general you can expect to earn more money in the US compared to Canada. But on the other hand, it's a lot more common to work in a smaller center and there tends to be less emphasis on research and more directly on clinical productivity. There's also a lot of emphasis on billing codes in the US that Canadians don't have to worry about. Those are all very broad statements though.