Early exposure program aims to strengthen radiology workforce pipeline
A new program at UC Davis Health is giving community college and undergraduate students an early look at careers in medical imaging.
Researchers say the approach could help strengthen radiology's future workforce pipeline by putting the field in the spotlight early in students’ educational journey, often in community college or during undergrad years. The Radiology and Imaging Science Scholars (RaISS) program was developed by the UC Davis Department of Radiology to introduce students to such careers before they reach medical school or advanced healthcare training. The program's emphasis on early exposure is intended to address the longstanding challenge of students having little awareness about career opportunities in the specialty, experts write Oct. 1 in Academic Radiology.
“As medical imaging continues to evolve, the need for a well-trained workforce in radiology and imaging sciences has become increasingly important,” Felipe Godinez, PhD, with the department of radiology at UC Davis, and colleagues noted. “However, the number of diagnostic radiology graduates has not been sufficient to meet the demand. Over 10 years, a cumulative deficit of 68% has been reported in the USA alone.”
The six-month program combines clinical shadowing, research participation, mentorship and professional development, with participants treated as junior members of the radiology department. Participants are recruited from the surrounding region and selected based on their interest in healthcare or biomedical sciences and limited previous exposure to academic medicine.
To get a better idea of how the program impacted participants’ opinions, the team distributed post-program surveys to the first two cohorts, which participated in 2024 and 2025. Applications increased from six in the first go-around to nine in the second, while 31 students applied for the 2026 cohort.
Among the seven participants who completed the survey, all strongly agreed that the program increased their awareness of radiology, and 100% said the program influenced their consideration of a career in the field. One participant from the 2024 cohort has since been admitted into medical school.
The program also received positive feedback from participating mentors; 8 of 12 completed the survey, and all mentors from the 2024 cohort indicated they were interested in returning.
The team believes similar programs could help motivate students to pursue further education and contribute to efforts to build the future radiology workforce.
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In addition to her background in journalism, Hannah also has patient-facing experience in clinical settings, having spent more than 12 years working as a registered rad tech. She began covering the medical imaging industry for Innovate Healthcare in 2021.