Know any ultrasound/sonographers personally?

neuroms · Apr 3, 2011

I dated a sonographer for a while, and she loved her job. She had a great schedule, worked with one patient at a time, was treated with respect and made good money doing it. I don't know about the school. I think you can get a 2 or 4-year degree, and it's probably only as difficult as other types of diagnostic technician schooling.

MoriahRoseRN · Apr 3, 2011

Neurom,

thanks for your reply. The program I applied to is only one year in length, and I will receive a certificate upon graduation. I am not that fantastic at math, so this is part of my worries.

Devie06 · Apr 3, 2011

Neurom,
thanks for your reply. The program I applied to is only one year in length, and I will receive a certificate upon graduation. I am not that fantastic at math, so this is part of my worries.

Why do you worry about Math? In my city ultrasound techs make more money than RNs

MoriahRoseRN · Apr 3, 2011

Devie06,

I worry about math because I am not that great at it, and there is math and physics involved.

anzean_rn · Apr 3, 2011

I can't imagine that the math for sonography school would be THAT much harder than the math for nursing school

Devie06 · Apr 3, 2011

What kind of an RN are you? Maybe you are in wrong specialty :) At my school, the pre reqs for sonographer Math-wise are basic college Algebra, whereas Statistics for Nursing. Also just an intro physics class..but I hear market is saturated with sonagram techs, so it is just as hard to get a job as a new grad as it is for new nurses.

sweetnurse63, BSN, RN · Apr 3, 2011

I personally know a sonographer and she makes good money and only works 24 hrs a week, she often says to me "she is suprised that nurses don't get paid as much as she thought they did providing all the responsibility and accountability they have. I said that it depends on the experience or the specialty, however, nurses are underpaid at times, esp as a new grad. One of the best things about being a RN opposed to sonographer is that there are more opportunities, One of the things i dislike is the fact that i believe that RNs with ADNs are being almost forced to recieve a BSN in order to qualify for more jobs. The ADN program was immensely challenging with a lot of time dedication and mountains of information that you have to learn in a short time and now adminstrators and hiring managers are trying to say that its not enough, at least the sonographers do not have to deal with this situation as of yet. :nurse: Go with your heart and intuition, best wishes.

MoriahRoseRN · Apr 3, 2011

I graduated from an ADN program and thought it was very challenging at the end. If I had to rate the program towards the end, it would be a 9/10 or 10/10 in difficulty. It wasn't too hard to learn the material; however, there was so much going on at one time.

I almost have my BSN, and thought it will help with providing more opportunities; however, I have a nagging suspiction it won't change much. This is why I am seeking to attend the ultrasound program. If someone has gone through an ultrasound program, and can rate the level of difficulty compared to the nursing program, it would be most appreciated.

ckh23, BSN, RN · Apr 4, 2011

My wife is an ultrasonographer and she loves it. There are some aspects that she likes better than others, but for the most part she enjoys it. As far as hectic schedules it depends where you work. She works in a hospital and her days can be pretty hectic between scanning outpatients and in patients. She rotates with other techs to go to the ICU to do portables.

Every program is different, but it usually goes the shorter the program the harder it is because there is so much information crammed into the little bit of time you have. She did a program where she received her certificate at the ends.She got a job and a year later became ARDMS certified. She says a big problem right now is the job market and it is saturated with techs. The other problem is that most places want you to have your ARDMS and not all schools will allow you to be eligible after completion and you need to get work experience before you can sit for it. Many new grads are having to pickup call and waiting until a spot opens up. Then there is the call itself so you need to be prepared for that.

If you have anymore specific questions, let me know and I can ask her.

MoriahRoseRN · Apr 4, 2011

Ckh23,

thanks for taking the time to reply. The program I applied to is one year in length. It will probably be pretty intense. Was your wife an RN before going to US school? How would she rate the intensity on a scale of 1-10; keep in mind that I know this is subjective.

I don't mind working hard; however, I am getting older and if I won't be able to find a job after working so hard, I am not sure it will be worth attending the program should I get in. Thanks for any additional information you can provide.

ckh23, BSN, RN · Apr 5, 2011

She rated it at 9/10 and she was not an RN prior to going to school. The first part of her program wasn't too bad because it was basic stuff. However it did get harder when they started learning about ultrasonography, especially the physics part. She also had externship at the end, 4 days a week for 5 months.