anyone work in Sonography?

CantWait2Be · August 2010

Do you work in cardiac, general or vascular and how did you decide which avenue to take? Is one easier to find a job in than the others? Did you do job shadowing and if so how did you find somewhere to do it? Is it something that is generally available to do in the evenings and weekends, how long do you do it for (a few weeks, months etc)? Was it easy to find a job after you finished your degree? And if you don't mind sharing, how much did you start out making (I know this will vary depending on area)? tia

HollyChubb · August 2010

I work in Cardiology right now. I went to a community college. Its an associates degree and you need to take a test either from CCI or ARDMS. SHADOW SHADOW SHADOW!! Also ask if you can use people you meet as references. I recommend doing mock interviews with people who hire in whichever department you chose to go into. Don't be afraid to take a lesser position to get your foot in the door. I started out making about $16 an hour. I am (salary) now around $51,000 a year with a year and a half experience and a better employer.

CantWait2Be · August 2010

Thanks for the reply. Did you specialize in cardiac or just end up there? How do I find somewhere to shadow and what do I ask to get started with it, what does it involve, can it be done eves and weekends etc?

HollyChubb · August 2010

Specialize. I believe when you purse a degree you will have to choose. I called local hospitals and asked to shadow and talked to my college advisor who helped me find some as well. It can be done on weekends and evenings. Usually it takes a while to get day shift anyways. You will likely be on call. It depends on your state what you will need to get into the field. I would check if you need an associates degree. You also need to be registered with either CCI or ARDMS. It takes hours of clinical while you are going to school as well. They usually tell you were to go. I would look at sites like echoweb.com or others to check out your level of intrest. You might also want to try starting out as an EKG tech. Its a great jumping point.

CantWait2Be · August 2010

Thanks again for your reply. I have found an accredited school and have started taking some pre-reqs I only have 2 classes until I'm in the core stuff and have to chose my specialty (cardiac, vascular or general). It is an associates degree and prepares me to get registered with ARDMS. I asked my advisor about shadowing and she said she's not allowed to advise me on that (must be some rules). She also wasn't able to tell me if any of the 3 options were easier to get a job in, told me to ask around. How does job shadowing work, do you just follow someone around and observe and ask questions or do they actually want you to be able to help with things already? Do you just do this for a few weeks or just once or how long does this typically last? What made you chose to specialize in cardiac?

HollyChubb · August 2010

I shadowed for 8 hour shifts. It can be 1 day or you could ask to shadow a 40 hour work week. Usually due to liability issues you can only follow and ask questions. I choose my field because cardiology just came very naturally to me. Nothing will be super hard to get a job in as the health field is just constantly growing. However you may have to take a lower position to get your foot in the door at a hospital you want to work at.

CantWait2Be · August 2010

Thanks for your reply. One more question for now: what kind of questions do you recommend asking while shadowing?

I hope you don't mind me asking you a bunch of them as I don't know anyone personally in the field and my advisor wasn't able to advise me on some of them for some reason.

HollyChubb · August 2010

Um I'm not really sure how to answer that one. I would just ask anything that comes to mind. Remember it will be your career so its going to be the time to ask questions.

howare · July 2011

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anyone work in Sonography?

Re: anyone work in Sonography?

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