Radiology Technologist Job Description: Duties, Requirements, Template & Pay (2026)
A radiologic technologist positions patients, operates the imaging equipment and produces the images a radiologist reads — under state licensure, with real radiation-safety responsibility, on a schedule that in most hospitals includes nights and call. This page has a radiology technologist job description template you can copy, the credential lines that belong in it, what technologists are paid by setting, and why the modality is the most important word in the job title.
Say the modality, or the posting reaches the wrong people
"Radiology technologist" is a category, not a job. A rad tech shooting chest films in an emergency department, a CT tech running trauma scans overnight, an MRI tech screening for implants and managing claustrophobic patients, an interventional tech scrubbing in a cath lab and a mammography tech doing screening work are five different jobs with five different credential paths and five different pay bands.
BLS reports the split clearly. Radiologic technologists and technicians: 234,200 people, a median of $80,110, 5% projected growth. MRI technologists: 43,900 people, a median of $95,480 — about $15,000 more — and 8% growth.
The practical rule for a posting is to name the modality in the job title and the primary modality in the first line of the summary. "Radiologic Technologist — CT, Nights" reaches the people who can do the job and want that shift. "Radiology Tech" reaches everyone and converts none of them.
What a radiologic technologist does
The patient. Verifying the order and the patient, explaining the procedure, screening for contraindications — pregnancy, implants, contrast allergy, renal function — positioning safely, and managing people who are in pain, frightened, confused or immobile. Positioning is the technical craft of the job and it is what separates a diagnostic image from a repeat.
The equipment. Operating and calibrating the machine, selecting technique and exposure factors, using the minimum dose that produces a diagnostic image, quality-checking images before release, and knowing when the equipment is the problem.
Radiation safety. Shielding, collimation, ALARA, dosimetry and protecting the patient, themselves and everyone else in the room. This is the part of the job with the highest consequence and the least visibility.
The record. Accurate entry into the RIS and PACS, correct labeling and markers, and the documentation that makes an image usable.
The department. Room turnover, stocking, contrast preparation where permitted, transport coordination, and the flow that determines whether the department runs on time.
Radiology technologist job description template
Copy this into your ATS or job board, replace the bracketed fields, and delete what does not apply. It is written for a hospital diagnostic radiology role; the customization section covers CT, MRI, interventional, mammography, outpatient imaging and mobile or traveling work.
Job title
Radiologic Technologist ([Modality: X-ray / CT / MRI / IR / Mammography]) — [Shift], [Facility name], [City, ST]
Summary
[Facility name] is hiring a radiologic technologist for our [department] at a [00]-bed [community / teaching / critical access] hospital. The role is primarily [modality], with [cross-coverage of [modality]]. Shifts are [3x12s / 4x10s / 5x8s], [days / nights / rotating], with [call: [0] shifts a month, paid at [$00] an hour standby plus time-and-a-half when called in / no call]. Typical volume is [00] exams a shift. Pay is [$00.00–$00.00] an hour depending on experience and registries, plus [evening, night and weekend differentials] and [a sign-on bonus of [$0,000]]. [State] license and ARRT registration required; [we pay for additional registries].
Responsibilities
- Verify orders and patient identity; screen for contraindications before every exam
- Explain the procedure and position patients accurately, safely and comfortably
- Select technique and exposure factors to produce a diagnostic image at the lowest reasonable dose
- Operate, quality-check and troubleshoot [equipment]; report faults promptly
- Apply radiation safety practice: shielding, collimation, ALARA and dosimetry
- Review images for quality and completeness before releasing them to PACS
- Document accurately in [RIS/PACS/EHR], including markers, annotations and exam detail
- [Prepare and administer contrast within your scope and state regulations]
- Support patient transport, room turnover, stocking and department flow
- Respond to [trauma, code, portable and OR] requests as required
Requirements
- Graduate of a [JRCERT-accredited] radiologic technology program
- ARRT registration in [R] [and [CT / MR / M / VI] for this role]
- Current [state] license or permit [— we support licensure by endorsement for out-of-state candidates]
- Current BLS; [ACLS for IR/CT roles]
- Able to work [shift pattern, weekends, holidays and the call rotation]
- Able to lift and assist with patient transfers and to stand for a full shift
Preferred
- [00] years of [modality] experience in an acute-care setting
- Additional ARRT registries [CT, MR, mammography, vascular-interventional]
- Experience with [vendor: GE, Siemens, Philips, Canon] equipment
- Trauma, OR or pediatric imaging experience
- [Spanish and English]
Pay and benefits
- [$00.00–$00.00] an hour with [shift, weekend and call differentials stated as numbers]
- [Registry pay: [$0.00] an hour per additional ARRT registry]
- [Sign-on bonus of [$0,000] with a [00]-month commitment], [relocation support]
- [We pay for cross-training into [CT/MRI], including the clinical hours and the exam]
- [Health, dental and vision from day [00]], [retirement with match], [PTO], [paid CE days]
How to apply
[Apply here / text RADTECH to 00000 / call [name] at [number]]. We reply to every application within [24] hours and can arrange a department walk-through before you decide.
Requirements: what is required, what is preferred, and what costs you applicants
This is a licensed, registered occupation with about 15,300 openings a year nationally, most of them replacement. Nearly every candidate is working at another imaging department, usually within driving distance, and the requirements block is where you either reach them or do not.
| Requirement | What to know |
|---|---|
| State license | BLS notes that most states require radiologic technologists to be licensed or certified — and that few states require licensure for MRI technologists specifically. Check your own state rather than inheriting another posting's line. The lever is the process: an out-of-state technologist is a live candidate if you handle endorsement and pay the fee, and almost nobody says so. |
| ARRT registration | Effectively universal for diagnostic roles — BLS notes employers typically require or prefer certified technologists. State it once, plainly, and name which registries the role needs rather than listing every one that exists. |
| Additional registries (CT, MR, M, VI) | This is the line that most narrows the pool. Requiring CT or MR registration at hire limits you to technologists who already hold it; funding the cross-training instead opens the role to every registered rad tech in the market and buys you retention. Cross-training is the strongest recruiting offer available in imaging and it is rarely advertised. |
| Experience | New graduates arrive registered each spring and are a real part of the pool. A department with a structured orientation can take them; a single-tech night shift cannot. Say which you are. |
| ACLS and modality certifications | Assignment-specific. Ask for what the assignment needs and pay for the rest. |
| Call rotation | Not a requirement so much as the fact candidates decide on. Imaging call is common, variable and financially material. State the number of shifts, the standby rate, the callback rate and roughly how often people actually get called in. |
| Physical requirements | Concrete and real: patient transfers, lifting, lead aprons for a full shift, standing. |
Radiology technologist duties, written for a posting
Describe the department. Bed count, exam volume per shift, which modalities are on site, how many technologists are on at once, whether the role floats, whether there is a dedicated transporter, and what the overnight coverage looks like. Those facts let a technologist work out whether the shift is survivable, which is the question they are actually asking.
Say what is in scope. Contrast administration, IV starts, portables, OR cases, trauma activation, pediatrics — each varies by state, by facility and by modality, and each changes the job materially. A posting that lists generic imaging duties and omits "you will take the trauma pager" is setting up a short tenure.
Keep the list to eight or ten lines, ordered by how much of the shift each one takes, and give radiation safety its own line rather than folding it into a closing sentence. Technologists notice which departments treat it as an afterthought.
How to customize it by modality and setting
Diagnostic X-ray, hospital
Lead with volume, shift pattern and call. Say whether the role covers portables, OR and the emergency department, because those three determine the pace. If you cross-train into CT, put it in the title.
CT
Name the scanner, the case mix and whether the role covers trauma overnight. CT is where most rad techs go next, so a posting that funds the registry reaches a much larger audience than one that requires it.
MRI
The best-paid modality at a $95,480 median. Safety screening is the defining responsibility — zone control, implant screening, ferromagnetic risk — and a posting that takes it seriously signals a well-run unit. Say the magnet strength, the case mix and whether sedation cases are part of the work.
Interventional and cath lab
Scrubbing, sterile technique, haemodynamics, longer cases and a heavier call burden. This is a specialist market; name the lab, the case types and the call structure honestly, and pay for it.
Mammography
Screening versus diagnostic, MQSA requirements, patient-comfort skill and often a clinic schedule with no nights. That schedule is the recruiting advantage — lead with it.
Outpatient imaging, urgent care and mobile
Usually predictable hours, less acuity and little or no call, at a median of $84,720 in outpatient care centers — above the hospital median of $80,650. That combination is a stronger offer than most outpatient centers realize, and saying both numbers out loud is the whole advertisement.
What it costs to reach radiologic technologists on social
Allied health and imaging is the second-most expensive role family in our 2026 Social Job Advertising Benchmark, and imaging is a large part of why: across 23 campaigns the median cost per applicant was $54.37, with a middle half spanning $10.27 to $106.51, a blended figure of $25.49, a 10% apply rate and a 1.01% click-through rate. The wider healthcare and senior living sector — 553 campaigns — ran a $15.42 median at 16%, with the highest CPM of any sector at $25.18.
Those numbers describe a small, licensed, fully employed audience, and they change how the budget should be spent. Across all 891 campaigns the apply rate moves cost per applicant from $53.77 under 10% to $4.41 over 20% — a far bigger swing than any bid change. Allied health sits at the wrong end of that, and the usual causes are a form that asks for license and registry numbers before a conversation, and an offer that is indistinguishable from the hospital across town. Ask four questions — registries held, state license status, shift preference, start date — and put the specificity into the offer instead: modality, ratio, call with its pay, and funded cross-training. Our guide to recruiting radiology technicians covers where to find them and what the ad should say.
Hiring across imaging and the floors? See healthcare recruiting strategies for the hiring side and healthcare staffing costs for what agency coverage is costing you against a permanent hire. For the interview itself, use our radiology technologist interview questions.
Writing the ad version
The description is the document. The advertisement is read on a phone by a technologist between exams. It needs the modality, the shift, the call commitment and the rate — in that order — and it should say in the first two lines whether you will cross-train. Our campaign data puts the best-converting length at 201–400 words.
At a median of $54 an applicant, every additional form field is expensive in a way it is not for a general hourly role. Four questions, then a phone call the same day.
What radiologic technologists earn, by setting
The combined median for radiologic and MRI technologists was $39.13 an hour, $81,390 a year in May 2025. Split out, radiologic technologists and technicians earn a median of $80,110 and MRI technologists $95,480.
| Industry (radiologic technologists) | Median annual pay (May 2025) | Share employed |
|---|---|---|
| Federal government | $97,490 | 3% |
| Outpatient care centers | $84,720 | 7% |
| Hospitals (state, local and private) | $80,650 | 60% |
| Medical and diagnostic laboratories | $78,400 | 7% |
| Offices of physicians | $74,540 | 17% |
Two things in that table are worth acting on. Outpatient care centers pay above hospitals — $84,720 against $80,650 — usually with no nights and little call, which makes outpatient imaging a stronger competitor for hospital technologists than hospitals tend to assume. And the federal government pays the most of any employer type, which is worth knowing when a VA or military treatment facility opens nearby.
Employment across both occupations is projected to grow 5% from 2025 to 2035, with about 15,300 openings a year — and the MRI side growing faster at 8%. That is steady demand on a small base, with the highest-paid modality also the fastest-growing. The departments that stay staffed are the ones building their own MRI and CT technologists out of the rad techs they already employ.
CT technologist job description
A CT technologist is a registered technologist who has added computed tomography to a primary credential, which is why the CT posting is really a recruiting decision about who you will let in. ARRT awards CT certification only through its postprimary eligibility pathway: the candidate must already hold ARRT credentials in an approved supporting discipline, usually radiography, and a nuclear medicine technologist can use an NMTCB credential instead. On top of that, ARRT’s requirements effective September 1, 2026 ask for at least 16 hours of structured education in the 24 months before applying, and a documented clinical log of at least 125 repetitions across at least 25 different CT procedures, with at least 30 done with iodinated IV contrast. Remote scanning does not count.
That log is the reason “CT (ARRT) required” shrinks the pool so sharply. A rad tech cannot earn the credential without scanning time, and scanning time comes from a department willing to train. If you can offer it, write the posting two ways: require the registry for the night trauma seat, and open a trainee version to registered radiographers for day shift. BLS does not publish a separate pay figure for CT technologists, so price the role from the radiologic technologist figures above and your own registry pay.
Job title
CT Technologist — [Shift], [Facility name], [City, ST]
Summary
[Facility name] is hiring a CT technologist for [our [00]-bed hospital / our outpatient imaging center]. You will run [scanner, e.g. [vendor] [00]-slice] for a case mix of [trauma, stroke, oncology follow-up, outpatient], about [00] exams a shift. Shifts are [pattern], with [call: [0] shifts a month at [$00] an hour standby / no call]. Pay is [$00.00–$00.00] an hour plus [$0.00] an hour for the CT registry. [We train registered radiographers into CT and pay for the structured education and exam.]
Responsibilities
- Verify orders and screen every patient for contrast allergy, renal function, pregnancy and prior reactions
- Start IVs and administer contrast by power injector within your scope and state rules
- Select protocols and scan parameters that produce a diagnostic study at the lowest reasonable dose
- Perform head, chest, abdomen and pelvis, spine, angiography and [stroke / trauma] protocols
- Produce reformats and 3D post-processing as the radiologist requires
- Monitor patients during and after contrast and respond to reactions per protocol
- Run daily quality checks and document dose, contrast and exam detail in [RIS/PACS/EHR]
Requirements
- ARRT (R) registration and a current [state] license where required
- ARRT (CT) registration [required / or eligible within [00] months of hire with our training program]
- Current BLS; [ACLS]
- Able to work [shift, weekends, holidays and call rotation]
Preferred
- [00] years of CT in an acute-care or trauma setting
- Experience with [vendor] scanners and cardiac or CTA protocols
X-ray technician job description
“X-ray technician” is how many candidates and most clinics say it, and it covers two different hires. Decide which one you mean before you write the posting, because the credential line is different and the wrong one filters out the people you want.
X-ray technician as a radiologic technologist
In a hospital, imaging center or orthopedic practice, an x-ray tech is a radiologic technologist working in diagnostic radiography: ARRT registered in radiography, licensed where your state requires it, and doing the full range of plain-film work including portables, OR and emergency cases. The template above fits this job as written. Put “X-Ray Technologist” or “Radiologic Technologist (X-Ray)” in the title, name the shift and the call, and say whether you will cross-train into CT, because that is the next step most of these candidates are thinking about.
X-ray technician as a limited-scope operator
In urgent care, occupational health, primary care and chiropractic offices, the x-ray tech is often a limited-scope operator: someone licensed or permitted by the state to take a defined set of exams (commonly chest, extremities and spine) without full radiography registration. Many of these roles are combined with medical assistant duties. States set the rules and the permit names, and several use an exam that ARRT administers on their behalf. ARRT is explicit that taking a state licensing exam “is not the same as taking an exam for ARRT certification and registration,” so a limited-scope permit holder is not an ARRT-registered technologist. Check your state radiation control or licensing agency for the permit title and the exams it allows.
For a limited-scope posting, the x-ray technician job description should list: taking the permitted exams to protocol; positioning and immobilizing patients; applying shielding and collimation; checking image quality before release; logging exams and dose information as your state requires; rooming patients, taking vitals and assisting providers if the role is combined with MA work; and keeping the room stocked and the equipment checked. The requirement line should name the state permit exactly, and whether you will sponsor a current medical assistant through it.
| Question | Radiologic technologist (X-ray) | Limited-scope x-ray tech |
|---|---|---|
| Credential to ask for | ARRT (R) and state license where required | State limited-scope permit or license, by its exact name |
| Typical settings | Hospitals, imaging centers, orthopedics | Urgent care, occupational health, primary care, chiropractic |
| Scope | Full diagnostic radiography, portables, OR, trauma | The exams the state permit allows |
| What to lead the ad with | Shift, call and cross-training | Daytime clinic hours and any combined MA pay |
For pay, BLS does not publish a separate figure for limited-scope operators. The May 2025 median for radiologic technologists and technicians in offices of physicians, the setting where many clinic x-ray roles sit, was $74,540 (see the table above); use your own market data for combined MA and x-ray roles. If the role is mostly medical assisting with some x-ray, start from the medical assistant job description and add the permit line.
If the role is ultrasound rather than X-ray or CT, use the ultrasound technician job description.
Frequently asked questions
What does a radiology technologist do?
A radiologic technologist verifies the order and the patient, screens for contraindications, explains and positions the exam, operates the imaging equipment, selects technique to produce a diagnostic image at the lowest reasonable dose, applies radiation safety practice including shielding and collimation, reviews images for quality before releasing them to PACS, documents the exam accurately, and supports patient transport and department flow.
What qualifications does a radiologic technologist need?
An associate degree from an accredited radiologic technology program is the typical entry-level education. BLS notes that most states require radiologic technologists to be licensed or certified, and that employers typically require or prefer ARRT-registered technologists. Additional registries such as CT, MR, mammography and vascular-interventional are needed for those modalities.
How much do radiology technologists make?
The combined median for radiologic and MRI technologists was $39.13 an hour, or $81,390 a year, in May 2025. Radiologic technologists and technicians specifically earn a median of $80,110 and MRI technologists $95,480. By setting, federal government pays $97,490, outpatient care centers $84,720, hospitals $80,650, diagnostic laboratories $78,400 and physicians' offices $74,540.
What is the difference between a radiologic technologist and an MRI technologist?
Modality, credential and pay. A radiologic technologist performs X-ray-based imaging and may hold additional registries; an MRI technologist works with magnetic resonance and carries a specific safety burden around implants, ferromagnetic screening and zone control. BLS reports them separately: 234,200 radiologic technologists at a $80,110 median against 43,900 MRI technologists at $95,480, with MRI growing faster at 8%.
Do radiologic technologists need to be licensed?
In most states, yes. BLS notes that most states require radiologic technologists to be licensed or certified, while few states require licensure specifically for MRI technologists. Requirements vary, so check your own state board rather than copying another posting's line — and consider supporting licensure by endorsement for out-of-state candidates, which is one of the few genuine ways to widen this pool.
What should a radiology technologist job description include?
The modality in the job title, the department's bed count and exam volume per shift, which modalities are on site, how many technologists are on at once, the shift pattern, the call rotation with standby and callback pay stated as numbers, the license and registry requirement stated precisely, whether you fund cross-training, and the scope items that vary by facility such as contrast, portables, OR and trauma.
Should you require CT or MRI registration at hire?
Only if you genuinely cannot train. Requiring an additional registry limits you to technologists who already hold it, in a market where almost all of them are employed. Funding the cross-training instead opens the role to every registered rad tech in the area and gives them a reason to stay — it is the strongest recruiting offer available in imaging and it is rarely advertised.
Why are radiology technologists hard to hire?
Because demand is steady on a small base — about 15,300 openings a year across 278,100 technologists — and pay between settings varies by only a few thousand dollars, so there is little room to out-bid. In our campaign data allied health and imaging roles cost a median $54.37 per applicant at a 10% apply rate. The way out is a more specific offer: modality, shift, call stated with its pay, and funded cross-training.
What should you ask in an x-ray tech interview?
Ask how they position a patient who cannot stand or straighten a limb, what they check before releasing an image, how they apply shielding and collimation, what they do when a patient may be pregnant, and how they handle a repeat exposure. For clinic roles, ask which exams their state permit covers. Good radiology technician interview answers are specific about protocol, dose and when to call for help.
What does a CT technologist need to be certified?
ARRT certifies CT technologists through its postprimary pathway: the candidate must already hold ARRT credentials in a supporting discipline, usually radiography, or an NMTCB nuclear medicine credential. Under the requirements effective September 1, 2026, they also document at least 16 hours of structured education and at least 125 repetitions across at least 25 different CT procedures, including at least 30 with iodinated IV contrast, before sitting the exam.
Other job description templates
Hiring radiologic technologists?
The description is the document. Giving one registered technologist at another department a concrete reason to move is the job. That is what we run.
Pay, employment, outlook and licensure figures: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook, Radiologic and MRI Technologists (May 2025 wage data, 2025–35 projections). Cost-per-applicant and apply-rate figures: Boostpoint 2026 Social Job Advertising Benchmark, 891 campaigns and 1,334 campaign-months.