r/NuclearMedicine

F(25)- Anyone that changed their career and went into nuclear medicine? I have no experience in health care but I love everything the job offers and the most enjoyable classes for me were all science-related too.

I have a bachelors in business and worked in HR but I’m looking to switch to nuclear medicine and thankfully I’m local to the Bachelor of Applied Science (BAS) in Nuclear Medicine Technology and Computed Tomography offered at Gateway in Arizona but to think that I would have to go back to school all over again for 4 whole years (with a 1-3 year gap in addition due to the waitlist at gateway) is a quite daunting. Thoughts?

Good evening everyone,

I have questions/concerns that I've been digging through the subreddit to find answers for and have unfortunately not found what I'm looking for. For context: I am a dental hygiene drop-out, it was a childhood dream of mine but during schooI I realized I absolutely hated it and there was no chance of me ever wanting to continue. But while I lost my passion for the career, I also began to self sabotage last semester. I finished off with an F in clinic and all B's with one C+ for my academic classes. So my GPA dramatically dropped (it's now at 3.3) and now I have an F on my transcript.

When looking at the required courses for the local college in my area that offers a Nuclear Medicine (3+1) B.S, I would need to complete approximately 49 more credits. So my GPA isn't my biggest concern, I feel confident that I could at least improve it with a commitment to hard work. I'm just terrified that my F from clinic would ruin my chances of ever being considered for a Nuc. Med. program. Would it ever be possible to be accepted into a program?

Thank you to whoever may respond to my post!!

I’m applying for the Nuc med tech program in March 2027 and will be obtaining an Associate of Science in Nuclear Medicine Technology.

For those of you in this field, what made you want to join this specific career?

Were you passionate about nuclear medicine, disease detection, technology, the financial benefit, or something else?

For me, I’m genuinely interested in science and understanding systems. I’m very much someone who follows protocol and feels passionate about not cutting corners when it comes to patient care (I currently work in dental). I feel like this job is mainly science + strict protocol. That with the added combination of patient care (which I love), and ability to work almost independently seems appealing to me…. And obviously the pay!

I’d love to hear your reasons for choosing this.
After being in the field for a bit, do you still feel the same way about it or has anything changed? Do you regret anything about choosing this field?

Thinking about moving to CA for work, is 70$/hr fair pay you think?

I would like to know what it's like at your job. What do you do? What do you like/not like about it? How long have you been doing this? Did you start out as a radiology nurse? How long have you been doing this? How did you become one? And lastly, do you recommend it?

Would love to hear anything on the subject :) Thank you!

Hello! I have recently been thinking about making the switch the nuclear medicine technologist. I am currently a Pathologists' Assistant. I've only been at it for about 4 years, but I hate it. It's too hard on my mind and my body.

I used to assist with FNAs and bone marrows, and that's how I became interested in possibly pivoting into a career in imaging. I'm particularly interested in nuclear medicine because there are one year programs available for people that have no background in imaging.

The downsides are that I'd need to move for the program and take out more loans. I'm also concerned about having to move once again after I've completed the program to find a job. Also, my current salary is 105k and it seems like starting salary is around 70-80k for NMT.

But I feel like I would be a lot happier. Does anyone have any advice? I don't want to make another mistake. I've already been through 3 jobs and now I know it's not the place I'm working, I just don't like my job.

What is this? I keep seeing jobs in relation to this company for PET. Sounds to good to be true- 4 tens and good pay. Is this a truck? If so. How does working on a truck work?

On my job search, I’ve seen jobs open and available for over a year (and some many years).
What is the reasoning behind this? Does that automatically mean or indicate it’s not the greatest environment ? I’m in a very populated area.

I posted in this community a couple months ago. Here to update that i got accepted!! I am so grateful and happy.

Only downside is my current job won’t accommodate my school schedule. I knew this was a possibility so I’ve been searching but it’s sucks.

If anyone has any suggestions on jobs that they had while in The program. I would appreciate it!!

Has anyone done this program without any help? I have no family to fall back on for finances. Living alone, no kids, and paying rent, bills, food, etc all on my own.
Currently thinking of pursuing this field after being a surgical tech for 8 years (OB, plastics, and urology). This would require me to either:

1. Do a program that is local. find a weekend only night job where I’m at if the clinical hours are “flexible”. The program I’m looking at has 6:00am listed as a start date for clinical but I get off at 7:30am.

2. Do a distance learning program that would require me to move out of state and try to find the same job for the same pay in order to do clinicals at one of their affiliate sites. This program would be more “flexible” in that all the classes are online, so I wouldn’t have to worry about falling asleep in a classroom at 12p. I just need to see what their schedule is for the clinical sites if it would work for me getting off at 7:30am

If anyone has done this program by themselves, please give me tips! I want to make the leap. The time is going to pass either way, and I would rather work towards something that I find more interesting and comfortable. I cannot keep scrubbing into “retirement” but not even being able to retire.

Hello, I just got accepted into a NMT program that starts this fall, and would love to get a jump on things. Are there any topics in particular that I could be reviewing or learning about that would help me with the material covered in the first semester? Any other advice for a new student? Thanks!

Hello everyone! I need some advice!

Background: Since September, I've been studying in Germany to become a medical assistant in radiology. The point of studying in Germany is to get practical experience as early as possible, learning directly on patients. After just one month, I started placing intravenous catheters (IV lines) for patients undergoing CT scans with contrast media—the first few times under the supervision of colleagues, and then on my own. At first, I constantly needed help, made a lot of mistakes, and couldn't find veins. Now, 10 months later, I am doing much better. It's still far from perfect, but a certain routine has set in, and my hands no longer shake.

Since February, I've also been training in the nuclear medicine department, where I have to inject technetium for skeletal scintigraphy (bone scans). And I just can't seem to get the intravenous injections right. My colleagues are surprised at how I can manage with a catheter but not with a regular injection. I suspect it has to do with the contents of the syringe; I am terrified of injecting a radioactive substance subcutaneously or spilling it on the skin or surrounding area.

Interestingly, if I place an IV catheter (some patients also have a CT scan on the same day), everything goes much smoother. I'm actually starting to think about always injecting through a catheter, even for patients who won't need one later. Of course, sometimes I manage with a regular syringe, but it is incredibly nerve-wracking.

How can I overcome this fear? What should I do if I pull back the plunger and there is no blood return? When this happened with a seemingly good vein, I was completely at a loss. I needed to change the needle and expel the air, but I was afraid of altering the amount of the substance in the syringe; I simply didn't understand how I should proceed.

I would be incredibly grateful for any practical recommendations and words of support!

I’ve been doing a lot of research on a career change and nuc med came out of nowhere.

I’m 33 and currently have 14 years of dental assisting experience with 0 college credits. My current career field does not pay well enough to live off of, even after 14 years.

I would need to obtain all of my prerequisites and then apply for the program. I was interested in the Gurnick program here in SoCal which states it’s about a 2 year degree after my prereqs.

My plan is to continue working full time while completing my prereqs (maybe 2 classes a semester) and then quit my job for the nuc med program and get something part-time for weekends to pay my bills.

I just have a couple of questions for those who are currently completing/have completed the program:

1. Do you find that the end goal was worth it? I’ve been seeing many mixed reviews on the curriculum.

2. I enjoy patient care but I do not enjoy the fast-paced burnout that comes with dental assisting (constantly moving fast, setting up, no time for restroom, moving on the fly, the unpredictable procedures, the micromanaging, etc), however, I see parallels with nuc med in that way.
   *even if there are parallels, I feel that nuc med could be worth it over assisting due to the pay.

3. Is it realistic to think I can find a decent nuc med job with an associates degree from a nuc med tech program after my prereqs? Or do many places require bachelors in science?

4. Can you tell me what you like most about your schooling/career and what you like the least?

5. Any advice for me?

I’m still reviewing all my options but this career seems to be the best bridge with my healthcare background in dental/being around xray equipment. I believe from start to finish it would take possibly 4-5 years to achieve my prereqs and certifications. Does that timeline seem relatively realistic?

Thank you so much!!!

I recently found out I can take medical assistant program.

I'm currently on track to enroll in a CNA program. I believe I can switch to MA.

I wanted to know if any of the two will better prepare me for Nuclear Med school in the future?

My plan is to get one of them and just work for a bit to pay off my student loans before going back to school for nuc med.

Thank you

I got a job out of college which I was excited for. But I’m not sure I like it. I have constant anxiety due it’s fast paced environment I feel like I’m bad at what I do.
I’ve been in so many hospitals in clinics but this place is very very fast paced. What do I do? I feel horrible leaving after a month. But I don’t think it’s for me.
The position has been open for four years, and I also was told they just had a travel tech who quit after a week ?
Everyone is so nice. But i feel like it’s not for me. What do I do?

sorry for the panicked tangent i'm about to go on. I'm aiming to go into radiology tech currently, but i'm fearing i won't get into my program because I can't get hands on volunteering experience. I have all A's and one A- in my prereqs currently, but I don't think my grades will be enough.

I am also looking at nuclear medicine tech (and honestly it's catching my interest more and more) and my college's site says 30 students apply each year and 8-10 are admitted. I'm nervous about the idea of taking physics and chemistry classes, but I finished the first half of my a&p class with an A so i'm trying to be hopeful.

I want so desperately to do practical schooling with hands on experience and to just truly feel like i'm doing something, instead of just taking classes for a bachelor's that don't directly give me a way into an industry. I think I'm in such a rush because I spent a year thinking i was going to be a vet tech. I realized I loved working in a hospital setting, learning to run labs and administering vaccines to pet patients and even just taking medical notes, but being a vet tech just wasn't going to be livable.

What was getting into your program like? Do you have other job recommendations for me?

Has anyone ever worked with a cardiac rb pet scanner? If so, is it easy to get the hang of? I’ve never worked on one. But Pet is pretty easy due to it being so repetitive.

Hello everyone, I'm from Kerala and by 2028 im preparing for NEET, the thing is I'm not very keen or intrested in NEET or MBBS . I'm thinking to score good marks in boards and get to a good college that deals with Nuclear medicine. I'm interested to hear responsibles about work environments, how long u must study for it, what's the salary like? , is it worth it? Basically everything I need to know about nuclear medicine, what hobbies or books i should learn anything like that... Please advice me. Thank you.