Job Features

• Nuclear medicine allows technologists and physicians to view both the function and structure of organs, unlike other types of imaging that only show structure, explains the American Society of Radiologic Technologists. After explaining procedures to the patient, a technologist prepares a dosage of the radiopharmaceutical agent and has the patient take it by mouth or inhalation, or he administers an injection. He positions the patient and begins scanning to create images for a physician to interpret.
  
  

Requirements

• Nuclear medicine technology training programs last one, two or four years, leading to a certificate, associate degree or a bachelor's degree. The one-year programs typically are intended for individuals working in health care who already have a minimum of an associate degree, such as x-ray technicians and diagnostic medical sonographers. Most employers prefer or require professional certification from the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists or the Nuclear Medicine Technology Certification Board, reports the BLS. The median starting salary range for nuclear medicine technologists as of January 2011 was $41,000 to $54,000 per year, according to the PayScale salary survey website.
  
  

Salary Range

• The average salary of medical nuclear technologists as of May 2009 was about $33 per hour, or $68,500 per year, finds the BLS. Those on the middle 50 percent of the earnings scale were making $57,600 to $79,600, and the top 10 percent had salaries over $90,600 per year. Technologists with one to four years of experience had a median annual salary range of $44,000 to $59,000 in January 2011, and those with five to 19 years of experience $55,700 to $72,000.
  
  

Types of Employment

• Nuclear medicine technologists generally earn similar average salaries in all places of employment. About 66 percent of these workers are employed in hospitals, where they earn $67,700 per year on average. Others find employment at outpatient care centers, with an average annual income of $65,200; medical and diagnostic laboratories at an average of $68,100, and doctors offices at an average salary of $71,100.