Xray tech~ more $$$ than RN???

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Specializes in Peds ER.
are you going for your BSN? RT programs are 2 years long, not including the pre-reqs. Are you going to be insulted that you are making the same amount of $$ as ADN nurses because they don't have as much education? I'm not trying to be catty, I really want to know. I just don't understand why someone would get insulted that another medical specialty gets paid more than you do. Diagnostic imaging and nursing are 2 very different fields and require different types of people to do them. And yes, RT school is very difficult! We have physics, radiation protection, radiation biology, patient care, and on and on. I can't compare it to a nursing program because I've never been there, but it is hard none the less.

A

I am personally...2 years compared to 4 and the liability and accountability we assume without the authority...yes.

Specializes in MICU, neuro, orthotrauma.
are you going for your BSN? RT programs are 2 years long, not including the pre-reqs. Are you going to be insulted that you are making the same amount of $$ as ADN nurses because they don't have as much education? I'm not trying to be catty, I really want to know. I just don't understand why someone would get insulted that another medical specialty gets paid more than you do. Diagnostic imaging and nursing are 2 very different fields and require different types of people to do them. And yes, RT school is very difficult! We have physics, radiation protection, radiation biology, patient care, and on and on. I can't compare it to a nursing program because I've never been there, but it is hard none the less.

A

do you know how much nuclear medicine techs make? husband is considering going to school for that. and i agree that RT's learn much and work hard. they deserve the pay they make.

angelac1978

438 Posts

do you know how much nuclear medicine techs make? husband is considering going to school for that. and i agree that RT's learn much and work hard. they deserve the pay they make.

not off the top of my head. they do have it listed on http://www.salary.com

nuc med techs make way more than RT's do, but they handle radioactive material daily and have advanced training. Sorry this is such a short answer but I gotta go to work!

A

pie123

480 Posts

Hi everyone. I'm a little confused about something. I know this girl, let's call her Miss Braggart. Anyhow, she's a friend of a friend of a friend and after speaking to her a few times i've come to the conclusion that I don't like her and I like just about everybody and anybody. She and her husband are those obnoxious type people who brag about EVERYTHING. Example- My son wears this brand, what does your kid wear? We have a boat, do you? Etc... Anyway, to my point...she is an x-ray tech (for 3 years, oh and don't let me forget to mention she has a best-friend relationship with all the doc's at the hospital, they all love her and say she's the best ...EVER! ) and when I told her I was going to school to be an RN (I'm taking my pre-req's now) she laughed in my face and said "I'm in x-ray and I make more money then most nurses that work there, besides nurses get no respect" Of course I just smiled because I was so shocked by her blunt comment I didn't know what else to say. This can't be true can it? A big part of me thought she is one of those "try too hards" , you know those people who try so hard to impress they leave the opposite impression? If I remember correctly she said she made $18 an hr. Well, of course I'm not following my dreams for money....BUT...I do have 4 children and a husband who is the breadwinner and I want to know that if something ever happened where I'd have to support my boys I could. I'm sure most of you can relate. My question is....will I go to school and bust my rump for 3 and a half years in nursing school to make less income than someone who finishes school in a lot less time? (Not that an x-ray tech is a bad thing, please don't get me wrong, but money does come into play when you're poor and eating beans and cornbread so you can pay for college.) I live in KY and I'm not sure what the starting salary is for new nurses here. Can anyone shed some light on the average pay for new nurses in your state/area please? :confused:

Thanks,

Christy

I sent you a private message.

SoulShine75

801 Posts

are you going for your BSN? RT programs are 2 years long, not including the pre-reqs. Are you going to be insulted that you are making the same amount of $$ as ADN nurses because they don't have as much education? I'm not trying to be catty, I really want to know. I just don't understand why someone would get insulted that another medical specialty gets paid more than you do. Diagnostic imaging and nursing are 2 very different fields and require different types of people to do them. And yes, RT school is very difficult! We have physics, radiation protection, radiation biology, patient care, and on and on. I can't compare it to a nursing program because I've never been there, but it is hard none the less.

A

First of all let me say that this wasn't suppose to be an x-ray vs. RN debate. They're different fields all together. I understand that RT's go to school and work their orifices off and I respect that. I wasn't speaking of an MRI specialist or a CT specialist, I was speaking of a radiologic technologist in particular. It was me venting about this particular person and her comments on pay and education and how she reigned "superior". I did find it highly insulting that the previous poster has been a nurse for 18 years yet the techs made as much as she did. I'm sorry but that is insulting to me. That is why there is this national crisis right now for nurses but they still aren't being compensated.

To answer your questions...I am going for my ADN and no... I absuloutly would not be insulted if someone who has a bachelor's degree made more money than I did. What made me step back and wonder about this subject in the first place was I don't understand how she (an x-ray tech) made more money than other nurses when she went to school for 2 years (where I live) for her degree yet nurses are making less (going to school for min 3 years to max 4-6) considering they have more course work and due to the fact that from the moment nurses walk in the door to go to work they are putting their self in danger everday. Blood, guts, feces, vomit, infectious diseases...you name it. I just don't undersand this logic, or her (my "friends"), attitude.

SoulShine75

801 Posts

I sent you a private message.
Sorry, but I didn't recieve a private message.

fergus51

6,620 Posts

Why do you hang out with someone like that anyways? I've known a few like that in my time and find the best response to bragging is something like "Wow, it must be nice to always have the very best in life"...

hypnotic_nurse

627 Posts

I've known people like this woman as well. She is lacking something or she wouldn't be trying so hard to convince you that she has everything.

Tune her out, ignore her or actively avoid her -- she is not worth your time.

I don't care what anyone else makes. I like my job and feel I am well paid for what I do. If I want to do something else I'll go back to school. I am convinced there is no "easy money" job; you've got to do SOMETHING to earn what you get, and if you don't like it or you're bored, then it's not easy money. If you work hard or love the challenge, that still doesn't make it easy money.

Now, if Bill Gates wants to adopt me and give me a sinecure, now THAT'S easy money. Maybe. Depends on what he expects from an adopted child who's actually older than he is. :)

SoulShine75

801 Posts

Why do you hang out with someone like that anyways? I've known a few like that in my time and find the best response to bragging is something like "Wow, it must be nice to always have the very best in life"...
It isn't that we "hang out" together. Our husbands coach 2 different ball teams together that our kids play on, so it's kind of an unavoidable thing but i've been doing my best to avoid her lately lol. She's also a friend of a friend of a friend as well. I do have one thing to say about her though, she has 2 great sons but I've noticed that they've gotten in the habit of talking over people too. Guess it runs in the family. He he he.

MandyInMS

652 Posts

Ughhhhh @ those 'type' people...know it alls/done it alls/done it better...blech...I have a family member (in-law..lol) who is like that..I avoid her like the plague!..about 5 minutes a few times a year is all I can handle..any longer than that and I'd have to go 'off' on her...I always seem to find something I need to do or somewhere I need to go when she's around...lmaoooo ;)

pcc nurse

3 Posts

You don't go into nursing just for the money. You develop a relationship with your patients because you spend more time with them. You need to pick a career that YOU like, that makes you happy, and at the end of the day- makes you feel good that you made a difference!

Specializes in Med-Surg, Psych.

In my area, RTs start around $18 and RNs $23. Every few years the RT field gets "saturated" and new grads have a hard time finding work. Schooling is even more demanding than Nursing (but keep in mind I am just freshman!)

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