Radiography apprenticeships (Guide for 2024)

Ever wondered what the inside of your body looks like? Well, radiographers and radiologists know!

Radiography is a medical technique that uses radiation to create images of the inside of a patient’s body, like their tissues, bones and organs. Getting into this medical field is possible with a radiography degree apprenticeship, and we’ll show you exactly where to find one and what jobs you can do when you qualify. 

So let’s learn a little bit more about careers radiography, shall we?

Jobs in radiography 

Diagnostic radiographer 

The goal of a diagnostic radiographer is to find out what’s causing a patient’s illness or injury. You’ll decide the right radiographic techniques based on what’s wrong with the patient, and then you can provide and supervise examinations using the correct equipment and procedures. 

Therapeutic radiographer 

As a therapeutic radiographer, you’ll develop short- and long-term treatment programmes for patients to support them until they get better. You’ll continuously assess the patient’s treatment results and work closely with other medical team members to make sure the patient gets the right radiotherapy treatment. 

Radiologist 

In case you didn’t know, radiologists and radiographers are not the same job. While radiographers are the people who deliver the procedures and scans, radiologists are the ones who interpret the results of the medical imaging and make a diagnosis.

Another key difference is that radiologists are actually medical doctors, and radiographers are technical specialists who don’t need a medical degree.

Sonographer 

Sonographers specialise in conducting ultrasounds, a cool procedure that turns sound waves into images. You’ll conduct ultrasound examinations and then analyse the images to see problems with internal organs or blood flow patterns. 

You might be most familiar with sonographs as the technology we used to take photos of babies as they are developing, but there are lots of other medical applications too!

Apprenticeships in radiography 

NHS

The NHS is the best place to look for radiography apprenticeships in the UK.

There are loads of openings across the UK, hosted at top universities like Birmingham, Oxford and Sheffield Hallam.

Most NHS radiography courses are degree apprenticeships, meaning you’ll earn a full bachelor’s or master’s degree at the end. NHS radiography degree apprenticeships usually last for three years, and (as of 2024) you will earn a salary between £6.56 and £10.42, depending on your age. 

NHS apprenticeships are extremely popular and competitive, so it’s essential that you do your best in the application process. To prepare, ask your teachers or parents to read and check your application before you submit it. 

Entry requirements

Most radiography apprenticeships will look for four or five GCSEs at grades 9 to 4, including English, maths and science (of course!). 

When you’re on the job, you’ll almost always be working in a bigger team, so great teamwork and communication skills are a must. These communication skills should also extend to patient care – after all, you might have to give bad news to patients or support them during emotional moments. To be a great radiotherapy professional, you’ll need to be compassionate and empathetic towards your patients and colleagues. 

Extra tips

During your radiography apprenticeship, you’ll encounter a lot of technical vocabulary that can be a bit difficult to remember at first. We’ve put together a mini dictionary to help you get to grips with the tricky terminology:

• Computerised tomography (CT): A CT scan is an X-ray controlled by a computer. It takes detailed pictures of the inside of a patient’s body. 
• Magnetic resonance imaging scan (MRI): An MRI is similar to a CT scan. It uses a large magnet and radio waves to take images of the inside of a patient’s body. 
• Ultrasound: An ultrasound uses sound waves to create images of the inside of a patient’s body. 
• X-ray: An X-ray uses electromagnetic waves to create black-and-white images of the inside of a patient’s body. 

A degree apprenticeship takes your career to new heights

A radiology degree apprenticeship helps you kickstart your career in the medical field, and it’s only just the beginning of your learning experience. 

Fancy seeing what else is out there? Take a look at our handy degree apprenticeship guide to see what other courses you could do.