Answered by Lissacal
Most ultrasound technologist work in the imaging department of a hospital or in free-standing imaging centers. If you want to do only OB/GYN scans, you would need to find employment in a OB/GYN doctor's office. There aren't as many opportunities in offices. Usually, it is not a full time position, the pay is less and benefits are not as good as working in an imaging department. Many OB/GYNs do not employ registed sonographers, but the doctor themselves or a nurse do the ultrasounds. If you want to go to school to be a sonographer, you will learn much more than just OB/GYN scanning. In an imaging department, we do ultrasounds on the thyroid gland, salivary glands, great vessels of the neck, aorta and vena cava, pancreas, liver, gallbladder, spleen, kidneys, urinary bladder, heart, breasts, testicles, prostate, uterus, ovaries, large vessels in the arms and legs...what am I forgetting? Ultrasound is also used to investigate any palpable lump (a lump you can feel) anywhere on the body. We also assist the radiologist with procedures such as amniocentesis, paracentesis, hysterosonograms and ultrasound guided biospies, usually of the breast, liver or thyroid. You can read about these procedures here (scroll down to ultrasound procedures): www.radiologyinfo.org/en/sitemap/category.cfm?category=diag&bhjs=0 When thinking about entering an ultrasound program, you need not be concerned so much about certificate vs. degree. What is important is that you go to an ACCREDITED program, whether it is college or hospital based. An accredited program allows you to take your registry (licensing) exams upon graduation. Once you get licensed, you will never be asked about your schooling again. An employer does not care what route you take to get licensed, they just want you to have that license. Don't waste your time or money on a NON-accredited program. Upon completion and graduation from a NON-accredited program, you must work in the field of sonography for a full year prior to taking your licensing examinations. But, you will have a hard time finding an employer to hire you, unless you are licensed. I would suggest you observe an imaging department to get an idea of what ultrasonographers do daily. There is much more to it than scanning pregnant women. Most people have no idea how much is involved in this career! You can find a list of accredited schools in your area, by searching "diagnostic medical sonography" and your state at the following site. There are links provided for each program, which will give you additional information (including course duration and prerequisite courses): www.caahep.org/Find_An_Accredited_Program.aspx Many people, myself included, go to school to become a radiologic technologist, before continuing to ultrasound school. In fact, it can be difficult to get into u/s school without the RT license. There are many more choices for schools for x-ray in most states. You can find them here, by searching “radiography“ and your state: www.jrcert.org/cert/Search.jsp The pay for ultrasound technologists will vary, depending on experience and geographical location. The American Society of Radiologic Technologists just did a large salary survey, in 2007. You can see how much a RT and/or ultrasound technologist averaged, per year, in your state here: https://www.asrt.org/media/pdf/research/wss2007/wss07annualcompensation.pdf