This is the place to ask questions about graduate school, training programs, or general basic career topics. If you are just learning about the field and want to know if it is something you should explore, this thread is probably the correct place for those first few questions on your mind.
Do clinics take international students going through the residency match? Does The limitations of a visa get in the way of choosing an international student over a citizen? I understand that ideally it would all be fair and square but I would like to hear if anyone has any insight they could share. I honestly dont see how a clinic would choose someone who they need to get a visa and sponsor over someone who is hassle free recruiting. Thanks
Response 1: This is almost certainly going to vary from institution to institution. Some places will have the resources and manpower to do visas etc, these are more likely large academic centers. Others may not. Probably best to ask ahead of time.
Do you guys think that its a good idea to take medical physics as a career advancement for a radiographer. Medical dosimetrist is not available in our country. Graduate courses related to radiology is also very limited. Designation to special imaging modalities is hard due to favoritism culture.
Response 1: I am not sure what is the situation in your country, but radiographers in the US are definitely not expected to take medical physics courses, which are taught at a graduate level. A decent number of people move on from radiography into careers such as medical physics for various reasons such as higher pay, but that involves going back to school (CAMPEP programs in the US) and then doing a 2-3 year residency. Are you trying to change careers or advance in the rad tech pathway?
I don't have much to add, but I got accepted into Georgia Tech for the MS track and I'm really excited :)
Response 1: Awesome! Hope you'll enjoy the program!
What is the difference between Machine QA and IMRT QA?
Response 1: Machine QA is meant to make sure your machine (such as your linac) is operating correctly and to make sure it is in compliance with regulations.
Response 2: IMRT QA tests the delivery of a specific plan to make sure it matches the calculated plan (with some wiggle room).
Curious if any MPs have tried intermittent fasting during their 2 years?
I tend to eat very slowly (not much changing that for medical reasons) but I'd like to optimize my eating schedule. Just not sure if that's realistic with the demands of residency.
Response 1: I've done it during my masters and one of our residents did it too. Negative is a lot of hospitals offer employees discounts at the cafeterias. I would sip on iced black coffee and a lot of water most the day so I used the bathroom a lot.
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Response 1: I think that doing any research with substance will help with PhD applications, especially if you get a paper and a good LoR from a supervisor. The fact that it isn't 100% medical physics focused right now (especially at 2nd year) isn't a red flag or anything. Just keep your grades up and keep doing good research.
As a medical physicist we have to get a local license in my country. My issue is this license is labeled as Medical Physicist Technologist, I’m objecting the label as I think it should just say Medical Physicist (this license applies to all M.Ps regardless of qualifications and experience). So I was asked to expand/argue why M.Ps are different or shouldn’t be labeled technologists, can any one give me pointers/sources to form the argument?
Response 1: https://www-pub.iaea.org/MTCD/Publications/PDF/TCS-71web.pdf
I'm an international student (New Zealand) graduating midway through next year with a BSc in Physics and Computer Science and I'm really keen on doing an MS at a CAMPEP school with the intention of doing mainly clinical after residency. I already know my GPA will transfer favourably (hopefully about 3.7/3.8) and I've already done research in Condensed Matter Physics and I'm about to do a research paper in Medical Physics (Synchrotron Data Analysis stuff). Is there anything else I should do to make my application stronger? Is there any major differences between applying as an international student vs a domestic?
Response 1: Sounds like you have all the main checkboxes filled out, probably just get good LoRs secure and polish up your statement of purpose (I always hate writing those so give yourself a lot of time).
Response 2: What do you think they look for in the statement of purpose? I've never written one before so I don't know what information/sentiment they look for
Response 3: I think for an MS program it's about why you want to do medical physics AND why you think their specific program is a good fit for you. There's a lot of websites that give tips. If you've ever spent time working with a medical physicist or been in a clinic shadowing hopefully that experience will help you write about that stuff more meaningfully (vs "I want to do MP because it sounds cool").
Response 4: Amazing, thank you so much for your advice! There's a huge bottleneck to train as a medical physicist so there's not many people to ask questions, so I really appreciate your help.
I am currently a third-year undergrad with non-relevant research in medical physics. I have recently become interested in the field and considering it as a potential career. What are the best resources for a beginner, and how should I best prepare for grad school?
Response 1: I second what Medicalphysicsphd said! I would like to add that, if your programs require the GRE, save room to retake it for a better score. It is a wacky test (as all standardized tests are) and knowing the immense vocab list and the structure to the questions helps a ton.
Program wise, make a long list of every school you would consider going to and start writing essays now. I'm talking at least 5 schools, but ideally 10 or more. I did 13 applications and got into 3, it's not easy, even if you graduated top of your class with relevant research. Make sure you're in contact with recommenders for letters now as some love it when you give lots of notice. Make sure you choose good recommenders that will make your application memorable. If there is a professor/some other qualified person that has some sort of personal connection with you, they'd be an ideal candidate. If you can relate through music, maybe you both play a musical instrument, or even if they just know something interesting about you, they are bound to write about that.
Be sure to look into research you want to do if you're looking at PhD programs. Mention the research you're interested in and why it made you choose that program in your essays and interview. Be prepared to ask detailed questions in your interview about the research too. Be prepared to talk about your research and find some sort of way to relate it to your interest and the path you want to take. Maybe you did research on the language of differential forms in general relativity, you can talk about how you are highly mathematics oriented, or maybe even about applying differential geometry to image processing.
Outside of that, if you aren't a physics major, take this last year to make sure you have all the prerequisites you need for each program. Take upper level physics courses (in Fall term) if you haven't already as that will look great. Otherwise taking an introductory Anatomy and Physiology course will help. It is a "requirement" for admission to some schools, but is often waived and not looked unfavorably upon if you don't have it (this comment is speculative based on interviews). I also heard that a graduate level A&P might become a CAMPEP requirement soon, so this will help prepare you for that.
I am starting my MS program this Fall. My program already provides me with enough opportunities to work in the clinic and gain experience, but I am wondering about what I can do above and beyond that to boost my chances for residency and become a better medical physicist.
Response 1: You didn't mention it explicitly but if you have the option of doing a thesis or non-thesis: do the thesis. Be able to speak intelligently about your research.
Response 2: Outside of academics, soft skills are also important. Anything you can do to speak to those abilities will help too. Leadership roles, local community involvement, etc. I actually think it these skills that got my a residency position (after maintaining a good graduate GPA of course)
Response 3: Doing research usually helps. You'll get more mileage out of that if applying to academic centers though for sure.
Response 4: Volunteer in the community in non-medical physics area. For example, volunteer for a STEM youth outreach program. Develop your communication, leadership, and other soft skills.
Original URL: https://www.reddit.com/r/MedicalPhysics/comments/umg1tu/training_tuesday_weekly_thread_for_questions/