Contemplating a rewarding career in the diagnostic medical sonography healthcare sector? If you are, there are some really superb sonography schools in Illinois which you should include in your search.
Illinois is a really exciting and dynamic place to both live and work. In terms of population size, the state has slightly under 13 million inhabitants – making Illinois the fifth biggest state in the United States of America. The state’s principal city is Chicago, the third largest city in the entire US with over 2.7 million residents. With a growing and increasingly elderly population in demand of advanced healthcare treatments, Illinois delivers some great employment possibilities for ultrasound technicians – particularly within the densely populated city areas of Chicago, Rockford, Aurora, Naperville and Joliet. Even better, there are some top performing ultrasound technician schools and sonography schools in Illinois which provide excellent training programs.
Focusing in on earnings, Illinois ultrasound technicians enjoy a sonographer salary which averages $63,000 (depending on actual sonography experience)
Within the state of Illinois, there isn’t any actual requirement for ultrasound technicians and sonographers to be formally registered when working in the diagnostic medical sonography field. In practice, however, if you don’t have appropriate sonography certificates it’s doubtful that you’ll be able to gain ultrasound tech employment anywhere. In the current climate, medical institutions require that all their staff have an approved qualification in ultrasound technology from one of the sonography schools in Illinois (or similar ultrasound technician schools)
This means that if you are serious about working in sonography and earning the best possible salary, it’s crucial that you get suitable sonography training, education and experience.
Let’s now take a look at the range of training programs offered by ultrasound technician schools and sonography schools in Illinois.
Sonography Classes Provided By Sonography Schools In Illinois
In sonography and ultrasound technology, there are three separate training programs which you can take from campus based sonography schools in Illinois – certificates in diagnostic medical sonography, an associate of science degree and a bachelor of science degree.
If you are really keen to get a job and want the fastest qualification route, the certificate in diagnostic medical sonography could be the sort of education you are searching for. The certificate program will take you just 12 months to complete, and you’ll study both the theory and practical skills sides of ultrasound technology. Nearly all sonography schools in Illinois deliver sonography training at certificate level.
If you’d prefer to spend a little longer studying for your ultrasound technicians qualification, you may be more interested in an associate’s degree. An associate of science degree is delivered over two years, and is probably the most popular method of training for high-school college students and also people who don’t have any prior healthcare skills. Most sonography schools in Illinois offer ultrasound technician training to associate’s degree level.
The final diagnostic medical sonography qualification is a bachelor’s degree. Bachelor of science degree courses from sonography schools in Illinois are delivered over a four year period. Due to the relatively long length of bachelor’s degree training programs, many ultrasound technicians and sonographers generally opt for a 2 year associate’s degrees instead. Very few sonography schools in Illinois provide bachelor’s level sonography tuition.
Which Sonography Schools In Illinois Are Accredited?
On the face of things, there are plenty of sonography schools in Illinois to choose from. But, you do need to plan your search for ultrasound technician schools extremely carefully.
For a qualification in sonography to be of any real value, it needs to come from one of the sonography schools in Illinois which has been formally accredited by a healthcare industry body.
The organization that oversees ultrasound technician schools is CAAHEP (which is the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs) If during your search you find sonography schools in Illinois which are not CAAHEP accredited, give some serious thought to using them. After all, if your sonography study course is not accredited, then likely future bosses might not recognize it – and therefore your hard earned qualifications and skills may have gone to waste!
There are 7 CAAHEP accredited sonography schools in Illinois which have been approved to provide ultrasound technician training and diagnostic medical sonography programs in Illinois:
- College of DuPage – Glen Ellyn, Illinois. 425 Fawell Blvd, Glen Ellyn, IL 60137.
- Harper College – Palatine, Illinois. 1200 W Algonquin Road, Palentine, IL 60067.
- John A. Logan College – Carterville, Illinois. 700 Logan College Rd, Carterville, IL 62918.
- Northwestern Memorial Hospital – Chicago, Illinois. 541 North Fairbanks Court, Chicago, IL 60611.
- Rush University – Chicago, Illinois. 600 S. Paulina, Chicago, IL 60612.
- Southern Illinois University – Carbondale, Illinois. Room 0014, Carbondale, IL 62901.
- Triton College – River Grove, Illinois. 2000 Fifth Avenue, River Grove, IL 60171.
These seven campus based ultrasound technician schools and colleges are the only accredited sonography schools in Illinois to provide CAAHEP authorized sonography training programs.
Given that there are a range of different sonography schools in Illinois, it’s well worth making contact with a selection of the above colleges so you can compare the courses they can offer you.
Tags: find sonography schools in illinois, find ultrasound technician schools in illinois