Medical Physics Program Overview

Accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Medical Physics Educational Program (CAMPEP), UMass Lowell's Medical Physics doctoral program collaborates with local and regional teaching hospitals and cancer centers in the Boston area to provide you with cutting-edge education in therapeutic and imaging medical physics. The duration of the Ph.D. program is usually between four and six years.

For program-specific questions or to connect with our current students, please contact: Erno Sajo, Ph.D., 978-934-3288, Erno_Sajo@uml.edu

Curriculum

Our program builds on the M.S. in Radiological Sciences and Protection, Medical Physics Option curriculum and adds further requirements, including graduate courses in physics, biology, or chemistry and a doctoral dissertation. The research results are expected to be published in at least one peer-reviewed journal paper. 

Students in the program qualify for and are expected to take the American Board of Radiology (ABR) Part-1 Exam by the second or third year of study. Historically, most students have concentrated on therapy physics, but because faculty and the cooperating hospitals also have imaging and nuclear medicine research projects, over the last decade, a number of students have focused on other medical physics specialties as well. 

For complete program details and course descriptions, please visit the Academic Catalog.

Medical Physics Career Outlook

Upon graduation, medical physics students are prepared to receive advanced clinical training by entering a medical physics residency program or through working under the direction of a board-certified medical physicist. 

Patient is prepared for image-guided radiation therapy.

Recent graduates have accepted positions as:

  • Clinical residents
  • Postdoctoral fellow/researchers in an academic environment
  • Professional clinical medical physicists
  • Medical physicists in a research laboratory
  • Medical physicists in industry

Funding Opportunities

A limited number of Teaching Assistantships (TA) is available for qualified full-time doctoral students. The Department of Physics and Applied Physics offers TA support for the first two years of study. Thereafter, one of the research groups may offer a Research Assistantship (RA) on a competitive basis. For further details, including the current TA/RA compensation amounts, please visit Graduate Student Assistantships

Learn more about Tuition & Aid for Graduate Programs.

Admissions

Please note:

  • Deadline for fall semester entry: January 15
  • Successful applicants typically have an undergraduate major in physics, engineering, or a similar technical field. Students with other undergraduate degrees may be accepted if the prerequisite coursework, equivalent to a minor in physics, is satisfied. Applicants with minor deficiencies (e.g., one of the required courses is missing) may be admitted with the provision of satisfying the prerequisite during the first year of graduate study. In cases when multiple prerequisite courses are lacking, we recommend that the student satisfactorily complete these courses before embarking on graduate studies in Medical Physics.
  • Review complete Admission Qualifications for the Medical Physics Program in the academic catalog.

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Phone:
800-656-4723 (U.S. Students)
978-934-2390 (International Students)

Email
Graduate_Admissions@uml.edu