1. Message from the Program Director Graduate Success Story
I had come to a frustrating point in my career where my limited scope license seemed to be holding me back. A lot of job openings here in Austin Texas were only looking for RT’s and my confidence had become low on ever being able to move forward. This is when a close friend of mine had informed me of Pima and the opportunities that they offered. I immediately researched Pima and all other educational opportunities in my area and Pima sounded like the perfect fit. I wasted no time and called Pima. The first person that I spoke to was a very pleasant person named Donna. From that conversation my new future began.
I enrolled into the advanced radiography program online and it looked like I had a rough year ahead of me. The teachers and all the staff at Pima got me through the year and it was done even before I wanted it to be. I worked a full time job and my wife and I found out two months into the program that we were expecting a child. So I had the ARRT registry and the wonderful birth of our child all due in December of The program ended in November 2011 and I knew that I would take the registry immediately after the program had ended.
The year came and went and I was done with school in mid-November. This is where the nervousness of the registry and the birth of our child kicked in. But Pima never gave up on me. Chalonda who is the program director for my program stuck by me and helped me and other students study. She answered all questions and addressed all fears. My baby boy was born on December 12th and ended up having to stay in NICU for 7 days due to an issue breathing that ended up being minor. So we lived at the hospital for a week and I studied as much as possible.
On December 31st I sat nervously for the ARRT registry. Everything that Pima had taught me just came flowing as I began the exam. Before I knew it I was at the end of the exam. I hesitated as I answered the last question wondering if I had rushed or gone too fast. But I knew that I had put my best foot forward and hit the complete exam button. My results then popped up on the screen that I had passed the exam. This is of course a preliminary score and ARRT still has to go over the exam to make sure that you really passed. About two weeks later I received my certificate from ARRT with my new Registered Radiographer patch. I can’t describe the happiness I felt at that moment.
I am now working for MedSpring Urgent Care which was a start-up urgent care facility, as a center lead here in Austin that has plans for national expansion. I have already helped with the opening of five clinics here in Austin Texas and assisted with the planning and opening of all the radiology suites. I work with a great group of RT’s and our corporate staff is as smart as they come. It’s been very exciting to start something new and watch it grow. We now have 8 clinics total here in Texas with more planned in the very near future. I enjoy the versatility of my job and my education is put to the test on a daily basis. My wife is now a happy stay at home mommy and I get to spend a lot of quality time with our new son and my wife. None of this would be possible without the education I received at Pima and the hard work that I put into the program.
Thank you for everything Pima! I will never forget what you have helped me accomplish.
Volume
APTR Student Newsletter
Message from the Program Director
Greetings Advanced Radiography students! The Advanced Radiography (APTR) Program is steadily graduating successful students and graduates are ing me regularly about their successes. I will be sharing some of these successes periodically in the student newsletters. I really enjoy teaching and getting to know you, and I am often thinking of ways to help students learn. I encourage all of you to keep me informed on how you are growing academically and professionally.
Chalonda Jones-Thomas, M.A.Ed., R.T. (R) (MR)(CT)(ARRT)
Advanced Placement Track Radiography Online Program Director
(520)
Graduate Success Story
ASK YOUR INSTRUCTOR questions about assignments, tests, grades or course content. To see contact info, click Instructor on the left navigation pane of your course.
ASK THE ONLINE HELP DESK questions about technical issues or contact them to report technical problems. the Help Desk by clicking Help Desk in the course or
ASK THE CLINICAL DIRECTOR questions about clinicals. Steve Forshier at
ASK THE PROGRAM DIRECTOR general program questions. Chalonda Jones-Thomas at
Got Questions?
Michael Salas R.T.(R) (ARRT)
MedSpring Urgent Care
A lot of job openings here in Austin Texas were only looking for RTs and my confidence had become low on ever being able to move forward. A close friend of mine informed me of Pima and I immediately researched Pima and other educational opportunities in my area. Pima sounded like the perfect fit, so I enrolled in the Advanced Radiography Program online. I worked a full time job and
two months into the program, my wife and I found out we were expecting a child, so I had the ARRT registry and the wonderful birth of our child all due in December of The program ended in November 2011 and I planned to take the registry immediately after the program ended.
When I was done with school in mid-November, the nervousness of the registry and the birth of our child kicked in but Pima never gave up on me. Chalonda, the program director, stuck by me and
helped me and other students study. She answered all questions and addressed all fears.
My baby boy was born on December 12 and had to stay in NICU for 7 days due to a breathing issue, so we lived at the hospital for a week and I studied as much as possible. On December 31, I sat nervously for the ARRT registry. Everything that Pima had taught me just came flowing as I began the exam. Before I knew it, I was at the end of the exam. I hesitated as I answered the last question wondering if I had rushed or gone too fast, but I knew that I had put my best foot forward. My results on the screen indicated that I had passed the exam! This is, of course, a preliminary score and ARRT still has to go over the exam to make sure that you really passed. About two weeks later, I received my certificate from ARRT with my new Registered Radiographer patch. I can’t describe the happiness I felt at that moment.
I am now working for MedSpring Urgent Care which was a start-up urgent care facility as a center lead
here in Austin that has plans for national expansion. I have already helped with the opening of five clinics here in Austin Texas and assisted with the planning and opening of all the radiology suites. I work with a great group of RTs and our corporate staff is as smart as they come. It’s been very exciting to start something new and watch it grow. We now have 8 clinics total here in Texas with more planned in the very near future.
I enjoy the versatility of my job and my education is put to the test on a daily basis. My wife is now a happy stay-at-home and I get to spend a lot of quality time with our new son and my wife. None of this would be possible without the education I received at Pima and the hard work that I put into the program.
Thank you for everything, Pima! I will never forget what you have helped me accomplish.
APTR Tutoring Program
Do you need help
understanding concepts
or mathematical formulas?
APTR now has a tutoring
program. Contact the APTR
tutor, Lillian Rossadillo.
(520)
This service is not intended to replace communication with your instructors. Always contact your instructors first if you have a question. If you feel that you need more practice in certain areas, this service is for you!
Survival Tips
Honors Requirement
from the graduates of the APTR Program
Be organized!
Schedule enough time for course work. Expect the ups and downs of a normal life and adapt accordingly.
Be aware that computer glitches are always possible, so don’t wait until the last minute to complete assignments.
Have a back-up plan in case your computer fails or you have a power outage.
Make back-up copies of your assignments on your hard drive or other storage device.
Communicate frequently with your instructors and fellow students.
Don’t get behind in your course work. Ask for help as soon as you need it.
Log into your courses daily.
Check for announcements and s often.
On September 12, 2011, PMI raised the student honors distinction to 3.75 for all programs. In addition, students who fail one or more course will no longer be eligible for honors. 
Congrats to the APTR honor graduates from last semester who had a 4.0 GPA!
Yonghong Ding
Jane Harding
The American Society of Radiologic Technologists has a student center full of resources. You will find information and resources that will be valuable in assisting with your education in radiologic technology. This includes interactive modules, study drills, videos, articles and other resources. Check the Student Center often for updates.
Links to Bookmark
Blackboard
MyPMI
MyPMI Portal
PMI Online Student Center
American Society of Radiologic Technologists
ARRT
Pima Medical Institute Online Education