Hi everyone,
I recently moved to LA from South Korea and could use some realistic career advice.
In Korea, I worked as a Radiologic Technologist for about 8 years, rotating through X-ray, CT, and MRI in a university hospital setting. Since I need to go back to school here to get my US certification/license anyway, I’m debating between three paths: Rad Tech, Sonography, and Nursing.
Here are my thoughts on each:
• Rad Tech: To be honest, I’m a bit burnt out on X-rays. In Korea, I was often shooting 500–600 images a day, which was physically exhausting and repetitive. While I have the background, the idea of starting the schooling over for a job I'm tired of is making me hesitate.
• Sonography: I’ve seen many colleagues in Korea transition to ultrasound. If I’m going to study something new, I’m genuinely interested in diving deep into sonography. However, I’ve heard rumors that it can be very difficult for male sonographers to find jobs in certain specialties. I’m wondering how true this is in the current US market.
• Nursing: This is the most recommended path by people around me because of the pay and job stability. However, it would be a completely fresh start in a different field, which feels a bit daunting given my previous medical imaging background.
I would love to hear your honest, "real-world" perspectives on job satisfaction, physical demand, and long-term career outlook for these three in the US.