Practice Due Diligence
Its disturbing to read about students having a bad experience that could be avoided. Another diagnostic medical sonography program is the focus of a class-action complaint because it allegedly misrepresented its accreditation status.
As reported in the Huntington Beach Independent, three graduates of the Diagnostic Medical Ultrasound program at Modern Technology School in Fountain Valley, CA claimed they were told the program was accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) and that they would be able to take nationally recognized credentialing exams after graduating. The school has not responded to the complaint, but
according to the school's website ,
"Students completing the program will be able to sit for the national registry examinations in General Ultrasound and/or Vascular Technology given by the American Registry of Diagnostic Medical Sonographers."
Although these may seem like technicalities and would likely be overlooked by anyone not familiar with the field, there are a few concerning issues about this school based on the information it provides on its website. First, the term "Diagnostic Medical Ultrasound" is not commonly used to describe a Diagnostic Medical Sonography educational program, and secondly, the "ARDMS" stands for American Registry FOR Diagnostic Medical Sonography (not "of" Medical Sonography). If a school can't even get those facts correct how reliable can it be to provide accurate information regarding the qualifications of its graduates?
I have written about this situation before (see "Students Beware"). In that post I described a few suggestions for students when selecting an educational program and I think they are worth repeating:
- Get job placement records from the school but don't rely on this information alone. Ask for the names of former students and talk to them about their experiences in landing a job after school. Reputable schools will be happy to provide you with the names of former students. If the school is reluctant to offer this information they may be trying to hide something.
- Check the prerequisites of the sonography certifying bodies (American Registry for Diagnostic Medical Sonography or Cardiovascular Credentialing International) and make sure that the school's curriculum and accreditation standing meet those prerequisites.
In my previous post I neglected to mention that CAAHEP provides an up-to-date list of accredited schools and it is very easy to check a program's status by simply checking the CAAHEP website (In case you are wondering, when I checked the Modern Technology School in Fountain Valley was not listed as CAAHEP accredited).
The take home message from this and similar stories of students not getting what they expected from a DMS program is that prospective students must do their own research when considering which school to attend and not rely solely on the information provided to them by representatives of the school. The choice of a career and the educational program to enter is extremely important. As in all important choices in life, its your responsibility to practice due diligence or risk the consequences. Although this may not be relevant to you if you are already a sonography professional please consider sharing this information with anyone who may ask you about DMS educational options.