ARDMS

Im hearing from alot of people how hard it is for folks coming from unaccredited schools to get their first job.

Let me set the record traight. There are PLENTY of jobs available in California (southern and Northern) for folks who have a Bachelors degree and have graduated from EITHER an ARDMS accredited or non-acredited school. Bottom line net/net of it all is that with a bachelors degree you can sit and take the exam right after graduation and once you have your ARDMS certification what difference does it make about the school you went to. Its Mute! ARDMS has endorced you, and thats ALL the employers are looking for.

I am at a vocational school now for the certification for the DMS program. They said we have to work for a whole year and have a bachelors degree to sit for the ARDMS test and students are worried they will not find a job.

Any advice?

They should be. Employers want to see you endorsed by the ardms, its a status b/c some labs are ACR accredited or want to be, and that means they have to have certified techs to keep their status. If you dont have a bachelors degree, then you have to wait a year to sit for your boads provided you have been scanning for that year, and you have a sponsor to verify that. if you do have a bachelors degree, you can take the test straight away.

i will have my Bachelors degree by the time i am done with my one year of clinical experience that is stated by ardms as a pre-req. There are a few people starting to drop from my class. What would you suggest i do??

cool your in good shape then. good for you! I would tell them to just deal with it. School the the easy part believe it or not, if they can hack it in school they will never survie once their done, and thats a lot of $$ they wasted. When i was in school a long time ago half the class dropped out by the end of the first course A&P. crazy huh?

ckimpton0206 in Orange County, California said: They should be. Employers want to see you endorsed by the ardms, its a status b/c some labs are ACR accredited or want to be, and that means they have to have certified techs to keep their status. If you dont have a bachelors degree, then you have to wait a year to sit for your boads provided you have been scanning for that year, and you have a sponsor to verify that. if you do have a bachelors degree, you can take the test straight away.

I also have a bachelors in biology, I wanted to verify with ARDMS that I would be eligible to sit for the board exam after attending a non accredited program. The person I talked to at ARDMS would not comment on my specific program.
The notes referenced with in the ARDMS prerequisites were unclear to me. I cannot determine weather or not you need the 12 mo. clinical experience after completing a non accredited program. In particular, the reference within note #3 for prerequisite 3A "Clinical experience earned to document the education requirement cannot also be used to support the clinical requirement." After reading your post, it sounds like you have researched this issue as well. Did you or, do you know of anyone who went this rout and was succesfully able to sit for ARDMS after completing an ultrasound program? Also, I recently read a post from someone here who said that starting in Jan. 08 ARDMS will not accept anyone from non accredited schools. Have you heard anything about that?

this sux, im going to a non accredited school and dont have a BA. :(

If a school gets accredited after you graduate from it when it was not, can you still get accredidation?

Mol in Minnesota said: If a school gets accredited after you graduate from it when it was not, can you still get accredidation?

No, sorry, you have to be a student at the time

ugh this is BS!!!

for Latoure in Castro Valley, California
I do have Bachelors degree and I graduated from not accredit program, and in this situation you are eligible just for physics exam and you have to have minimum 1 year experience to get a next one. Plus - nobody even want to speak with you without ARDMS. I do have few classmates why is in the same situation, no one even got an interview. I passed my physics couple months ago and studying for OB/GYN now. Could you please give me some advises Where I have to look for a job or better to wait when I gonna pass my ObGyn?

I went to a vocational school and was hired during my clinicals. I applied at a hospital and was rejected 3 times because I didn't have my ARDMS lic. I am not one to give up so I made a call directly to the imaging supervisor and asked if she would at least allow me to come in and speak to her. She finally agreed and I came in a week later. I went in and sold myself, I explained that I needed to work for another 9 months before I would be able to sit for my boards. She explained to me that she didn't even realize we a had a period of time we had wait. Anyway, she did end up offering me a position with a stipulation in my contract that I have to sit for and pass my boards by DEC. I am scheaduled to sit for OB/GYN nov 25 and Physics dec 17. It is a long road but I love what I do and it has all been worth it. Stay focused and be persistant. I must have sent out 50 resumes and made dozens of calls. But I did find someone to give me a chance. :-D good luck to you all!

stefani in Bakersfield, California said: I went to a vocational school and was hired during my clinicals. I applied at a hospital and was rejected 3 times because I didn't have my ARDMS lic. I am not one to give up so I made a call directly to the imaging supervisor and asked if she would at least allow me to come in and speak to her. She finally agreed and I came in a week later. I went in and sold myself, I explained that I needed to work for another 9 months before I would be able to sit for my boards. She explained to me that she didn't even realize we a had a period of time we had wait. Anyway, she did end up offering me a position with a stipulation in my contract that I have to sit for and pass my boards by DEC. I am scheaduled to sit for OB/GYN nov 25 and Physics dec 17. It is a long road but I love what I do and it has all been worth it. Stay focused and be persistant. I must have sent out 50 resumes and made dozens of calls. But I did find someone to give me a chance. :-D good luck to you all!

Hi Stefani, I gonna have my OB/Gyn in next month, could you please give me some tips after your exam, some books recommendations, if there is much Doppler questions, on what topics I have to be more focused??
I will really apretiate that.
Good luck with exam

well I took my ob/gyn test yesterday and PASSED! YAY! i'm so happy. I was a lil suprised to see a few physics question on it and yes there are some doppler questions on it as well. The doppler questions are about umbilical artery and middle cerebal artery. Just remember the UA should always be low resistance and the MCA should always be high resistance. If not, It suggestive of IUGR. there are a whole bunch of questions are about normal and abnormal pelvic anat n physio. I looked at the ardms web site before I took the test and actually got a break down of the test. It said normal A&P is 21-25%, abnormal A&P 24-28%, 1st tri 11-14%, 2nd n 3rd tri 8-12%, OB complications is 12-16%, thats all I remember but you can look it up on the web. The books I used are Davies ob/gyn an illustrated review ( also bought the study disk which was great), the other thing I got was ob/gyn review quiz cards by eddelman. If anyone wants to buy this stuff from me, Im willing to sell it all for $120.00. I paid over 300.00 for all of it. email me if ur interested stefluminarias@yahoo.com. Goooood luck to you! let me know if you pass ;-D

Good for you Stefani!!! Thanks for those tips about the arteries. When I need then Ill remember them here!! I just started studying for the OB exam, hopefully I'll be ready to take it within the first 6 months of 2009.

Good luck with the physics, are you taking the old physics or new physics with more hemo on it?

Hey LYS, thanks so much for tips on physics. I'm taking the old physics. I want to take the new one but when I was hired I had to agree to take the ARDMS test by the end of the year :-C oh well! Good luck with your studying. I used the davies mock CD exam and it was really cool. it grades you and my score on the real test was very similar to the scores I was getting on the mock. Gave me a good idea where I was with my studying

Youre welcome! I took the old physics, so that stuff should be on there. I ordered the Davies OB book, I didnt get it yet because of the holidays. As for the physics, get it done as soon as possible, I understand you wanting to take the new physics, but get this one out of the way and over with, before the new year!! :)

Thanks! I just brought the Physics quiz cards with CD for review. I hope the material won't change greatly since next year will have new ARDMS Physics exam. For the new physics exam, I wonder if we could take the ARDMS Physics right after completing the Physics course or we have to wait until all the prerequisites are fulfilled. Anyone has any ideas?

That depends what type of school you went to I would think

I graduated from school back in August (yet another unaccredited school), I have a job but its just doing 3D/4D ultrasounds...boring...which isnt counting towards my hours to sit for the boards. Does anyone know of any place that will accept interns or any kind of "student" even though I'm not a student anymore, it seems the only way to get a job is to prove yourself but my stupid school gave me ALL OB sites throughtout my whole externship with them so I'm a pro at OB but I suck at abdomen and all the other areas...Thank you!!!

Why isnt it counting towards the boards?

Maybe you can find a job at an OB site if that doesnt count?

I really dont understand youre question though, why do you want a place that accepts interns or students? To learn abdomen? I would worry about passing the boards first, even if you have to take the OB boards, honestly. Good luck!!

3D/4D is not a diagnostic, but you don't have to wright it down on your experience letter....if your superwiser is a doctor, that means it's up to him to sign your letter..or not

Oh ok thanks :)

3D/4D isnt considered diagnostic which doesnt count towards my hours. I have to have so much PAID ultrasound hours before I am even ALLOWED to take the ARDMS otherwise I would take the boards now!! Even OB sites want you to be board ELIGIBLE, which I'm not. I have to have that full year of paid experience. And if I interned somewhere, I could prove myself along with they could train me for FREE...its a win win for myself cuz I'm learning and I could work my way into a position.

Unfortunetly....Hes not a doctor!!! Just a business man...:(

Oh Daneille, Im sorry. I didnt realize the job you have now wasnt paid. Just hang on, I was in your shoes, it took me over one year to get my job. And then I had to wait a year after that to be ELIGIBLE to take the boards.
Send your resume out to whoever doesnt say Registry Eligible, hopefully someone will take a chance on you.

No, I'm getting paid...but I might as well just have any ol job out there because I'm not getting any credit for it. I still have to accumulate all those hours before I can sit for the boards. But thank you for the advice...Its good to know I'm not the only one who got taken for a ride!!

No you werent. In the meantime, I would also suggest you study for the boards while you look for a job that will give you the credit. So when you are eligible you're ready to take them. Dont do what I did which was wait until I was eligible THEN start studying. Youre wasting time that way.
At least you are making money now :)

While I was looking into redoing my resume, I found a site that had all these job sites. I have not looked through these, so I do not know how good they are. Happy hunting!!!

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YAY! I passed physics! Just FYI, lots on temporal resolution and doppler. All I have heard is that there is tons of transducer questions so I was shocked by how few were on my exam. Doesn't mean that's how all the tests are, but mine had a very small amount. I think I had about a dozen questions on temporal res and there were also several on phantoms. Make sure you study AXIAL, LATERAL AND TEMPORAL RESOLUTION. Pulsed echo and doppler made up a good chunk of the test too. Good luck to all who are going to be taking the Physics exam. Just my opinion but I think OB/GYN was much harder. HAPPY HOLIDAYS EVERYONE!

CONGRATS STEFANI!!! Thats fantastic!!! I was thinking of you I remembered you were taking it on Dec 17th I didnt want to ask in case it didnt go well. There are several different tests, some may have more transducer questions on it then others. What did your boss say?

Oh please I dont want to hear OB is HARDER than physics..I'll die!!! ;)

Hi Stefani,
I have a offer for you, I am interested in buying CD Mock exam, if it's new version Feb, 07.I failed OB/Gyn today, was short in 13 points..please let me know if you are want to sell it

i need eddlman book and flash card i buy

i go to SBC (sanford brown college) in middleburg heights,oh. they are caahep accredited and we are qualified to sit for the registry as soon as we graduate.

from the info that our teacher has told us, it is hard to find a job without being registered because insurance companies do not reimburse the hospitals/clinics if the tech is not registered. some places DO hire some without their registry but expect you to get registed within 6 months or so.

for the physics, we will be able to take that in april this year. it will be perfect because we will be right out of our ultrasound physics class, so all the info will still be fresh in our minds :-)
our teacher also set up the physics class to prepare us for the exam. he said anybody that passed his physics class, can pass the physics registry exam (even if you barely pass his class!).

hope that helped a little! good luck to everyone!

can anybody suggest good physics book for registry.i am planning to take them

Latoure in Castro Valley, California said: Im hearing from alot of people how hard it is for folks coming from unaccredited schools to get their first job.

Let me set the record traight. There are PLENTY of jobs available in California (southern and Northern) for folks who have a Bachelors degree and have graduated from EITHER an ARDMS accredited or non-acredited school. Bottom line net/net of it all is that with a bachelors degree you can sit and take the exam right after graduation and once you have your ARDMS certification what difference does it make about the school you went to. Its Mute! ARDMS has endorced you, and thats ALL the employers are looking for.

I don't believe this is true in 2009 and ARDMS does not do the accrediting its CAAHEP. You still must have a year of paid experience in U/S even if you have a BA degree if your school is unaccredited.

OH MY GOD!!!! OBVIOUSLY 99% of these people DONT have a bachelors degree which is why they went to a vocational school so they dont have to spend all those years getting a degree!!! So your whole bachelor degree crap is mute cuz I'm sure 99% of these people do not have a bachelors degree which is how we get back to the start where NO ONE (without a bachelors degree) can get their first job!!!!!!!!!!!

nanika in Santa Rosa Beach, Florida said: I don't believe this is true in 2009 and ARDMS does not do the accrediting its CAAHEP. You still must have a year of paid experience in U/S even if you have a BA degree if your school is unaccredited.

It depends on the course you took. If the course is 1 year full time (over 1600hours long -either in theory or clinicals and you have a BA you can sit for your boards straight away

How about the 10 billion other people who DONT have a bachelors degree!!! This is what I'm talking about!!!! All these people that went to an UNACCREDITED school can NOT find a job!!! So going back to all those people who say they cant find a job becuz they have no bachelors degree and cannot sit for the boards and NO ONE will give them a job becuz they cannot sit for the boards until they DO have a job are CORRECT!!!! We're not talking about people who have bachelors degrees. No one here is complaining who hold a bachelors degree, its all the people who DONT, i repeat, DONT have one!!! Is anyone understanding or just stupid?

This can all be very confusing....I was talking about a non-sonography BA because nyself and all my classmates at an unaccredited program in Jacksonville were unaware of any accreditation early on and later led to believe if you have any BA you can sit for the boards which I believe is untrue.

For anyone interested in sonography you must find a PROGRAM accredited by CAAHEP or it may be difficult especially in this economy to find a job. Many schools such as Sanford-Brown deliberately mislead potential students by stating that the school is accredited but fail to mention that the ultrasound program is not.....DO THE RESEARCH and don't sign up until you get all the facts.

Hi to everyone..I am currently a licensed Esthetician (out of work) who is looking to start a career in Sonography. I am curious as to everyone's opinion about the Ultrasound Technician program at Sanford Brown in NYC or Iselin NJ? If anyone is familiar I would really appreciate feedback about which career is most in demand or will have the most job growth in the future(Medical Assisting, Sonography, Radiology Technicians) I do not possess a Bachelor's Degree but have some college credits. When looking into schools, what accreditations should they have? I know they should be CAAHEP Accredited, but I am seeing posts about ARDMS and not letting people take the boards? Any feedback would be appreciated. I am in the NJ/NY Area looking to get the best training possible. Thank you!

Sarah in Freehold, New Jersey said: Hi to everyone..I am currently a licensed Esthetician (out of work) who is looking to start a career in Sonography. I am curious as to everyone's opinion about the Ultrasound Technician program at Sanford Brown in NYC or Iselin NJ? If anyone is familiar I would really appreciate feedback about which career is most in demand or will have the most job growth in the future(Medical Assisting, Sonography, Radiology Technicians) I do not possess a Bachelor's Degree but have some college credits. When looking into schools, what accreditations should they have? I know they should be CAAHEP Accredited, but I am seeing posts about ARDMS and not letting people take the boards? Any feedback would be appreciated. I am in the NJ/NY Area looking to get the best training possible. Thank you!

Here is the ranking of the schools from what I observed at my clinical sites:

1. UMDNJ
2 and 3 are tied with NYU and Bergen Community College

UMDNJ students are top notch. If you want to go to Echo than I would do BCC since it is accredited in that as well. To my knowledge, NYU and UMDMJ don't have echo incorporated in the program. UMDNJ is very competitive, NYU is pricey, and BCC takes two years. I would apply to all, and then choose from what you get back.

All 3 are accredited with CAAHEP.

Has anyone written the new SPI exams?

Natalia in Concord, California said: for Latoure in Castro Valley, California
I do have Bachelors degree and I graduated from not accredit program, and in this situation you are eligible just for physics exam and you have to have minimum 1 year experience to get a next one. Plus - nobody even want to speak with you without ARDMS. I do have few classmates why is in the same situation, no one even got an interview. I passed my physics couple months ago and studying for OB/GYN now. Could you please give me some advises Where I have to look for a job or better to wait when I gonna pass my ObGyn?

Can you tell me what school you attended and where it is stated that you can take the physics exam only if you have a BA and an unaccredited DMS degree?
Thanks

Latoure in Castro Valley, California said: Im hearing from alot of people how hard it is for folks coming from unaccredited schools to get their first job.

Let me set the record traight. There are PLENTY of jobs available in California (southern and Northern) for folks who have a Bachelors degree and have graduated from EITHER an ARDMS accredited or non-acredited school. Bottom line net/net of it all is that with a bachelors degree you can sit and take the exam right after graduation and once you have your ARDMS certification what difference does it make about the school you went to. Its Mute! ARDMS has endorced you, and thats ALL the employers are looking for.

WELL I AM GLAD YOU SAID THAT BECAUSE I AM IN FLORIDA I HAVE MY ARDMS AND PEOPLE ARE STILL ASKING WHAT SCHOLL I WENT TO AS IF THAT MAKES A BIG DIFFERENCE

Where on the umdnj website did you find the Doppler questions? thanks.

Sorry, it's not clear but the first paragraph of the previous posting is someone's question that I am responding to.

You are talking about a BA in DMS....correct?????

No, I have a BS in Early Child Development. It doesn't matter what it's in. Can be a bachelor of arts degree as well.