For Part 2 training you must again produce and submit a portfolio of your work and sit a viva exam. This time IPEM does not assess you, the Association of Clinical Scientists (ACS) do, although IPEM set the competencies. This is because Clinical Scientist is an umbrella term which covers many areas of science in health care, including biomedical engineering and microbiology. The ACS therefore rely on IPEM to specify the suitable training requirements for Medical Physicists and Engineers.

My Part 2 viva was much less stressful than the Part 1 vivas. I personally found it enjoyable to be able to talk in depth about all the work I had been doing over the past few years. I was relaxed and confident, which is how it should be. You are, after all, just being assessed on the work you have given them in the portfolio. I passed the viva and was awarded the ACS certificate of attainment. I then sent this to the Health Professions Council (HPC) who added me to the register of Clinical Scientists. The ACS also informed IPEM, who then invited me to become a member. This means I am now recognised as a fully qualified medical physicist in my chosen field of radiotherapy.

At first sight the training may appear long, however it gives you the chance to study within the clinical setting without having the pressure of clinical responsibilities from the outset. As the training progresses you gain experience and confidence. You also meet many people in the same situation as yourself, and maintain these professional contacts for the rest of your career. It is a very rewarding path and at the end of it you feel you have really achieved something.

Medical Physics is a very rewarding career. It has its down sides, like any job. But on a day-to-day basis you will problem solve, do research and practical measurements, and work with some very advanced and technical pieces of equipment. Much of the work you do has a direct influence on the quality of patient care, and it can be very satisfying. As a physicist you are always striving to improve the outcomes of treatments or imaging, which means implementing and developing new techniques and technologies and keeping abreast of the latest developments in the field. Medical Physicists also earn a very reasonable salary, especially when compared to other areas of physics. You can currently expect to be earning at least 40K by the time you are 35. You also work alongside other professions, such as doctors and therapists, who make the job varied and interesting and you can learn a lot from them. I would recommend the job to anyone who likes to work alongside a mixture of people, likes to tackle problems on the go, likes to continue to grow and develop their learning and who wants to know that they are making a difference to people’s lives.

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