The School of Radiation Therapy: Curriculum
Students are in didactic courses an average of two days per week and in clinical training three days per week during the first two semesters, and an average on one day per week in didactic courses during the summer semester. Some mandatory conferences and seminars occur on Saturdays. These include: a TCRT Fall Conference (October) and a TCRT Spring Conference/RTT Review (April).
Didactic credit hours: One credit hour equal to 50 classroom minutes time number of weeks per course.
Clinical training credit hours: One credit hour equal to four CT hours times number of weeks per course.
Clinical sites
Semester Course Sequence & Credits
Fall Semester (September– December):
- Introduction to Radiation Therapy (3)
- Radiation Oncology Physics I (3)
- Principles & Practices of Oncology I (3)
- Methods of Patient Care (2)
- Pathology (1)
- Clinical Practicum I (6)
Spring Semester (January-May):
- Principles & Practices of Oncology II (3)
- Dosimetry and Treatment Planning (2)
- Radiation Oncology Physics II (3)
- Sectional Anatomy (2)
- Topics in Radiation Therapy (1)
- Clinical Practicum II with Project (6)
Summer Semester (May-August):
- Radiobiology/Radiation Protection (3)
- Clinical Practicum III with Service Project (8)
- Review/Project (2)
Portfolio Project: During enrollment in the radiation therapy program, students will complete a portfolio project—a collection of organized artifacts that showcase their learning, experiences, qualifications and capture evidence of growth and professional development over time. This project will be due in the student’s final semester.
Classes/Clinical Training:
- Orientation and classes begin in September each year.
- Generally, classes are held two days/week and clinical rotations are three days/week.
Academic Breaks
- Thanksgiving and Friday immediately following
- Christmas/New Year holiday: (2 weeks)
- Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
- Spring Break: (March, 1 week)
- Semester break (spring to summer, approximately 3-5 days)
- Memorial Day
- July 4th holiday
Clinical Education
Students rotate every four to eight weeks to a variety of clinical sites and/or areas of radiation oncology including*:
- University of Minnesota Medical Center, Fairview Department of Radiation Oncology, 500 Harvard St. SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455
- Maplewood Cancer Center, 1580 Beam Ave., Maplewood, MN 5509
- Hennepin County Medical Center, 701 Park Ave., Minneapolis, MN 55415
- North Radiation Therapy Center, 3435 West Broadway, Robbinsdale, MN 55422
- Regions Cancer Center, 640 Jackson St., St. Paul, MN 55101
- University of Minnesota Physicians, Fairview Lakes Medical Center, 5200 Fairview Blvd., Wyoming, MN 55092
- Minneapolis Veterans Medical Center, One Veterans Drive, Minneapolis, MN 55417
- Abbott Northwestern Hospital, Virginia Piper Radiation Therapy, 800 E. 28th St., Minneapolis, MN 55407
- St. Paul Cancer Care Center, 345 Sherman St., St. Paul, MN 55102
- Fairview Maple Grove Medical Center, 14500 99th Ave. N., Maple Grove 55369
*These clinical sites may change as needed to support the learning objectives of this program.
Clinical Assignments
Students complete approximately 1,100 hours of clinical training. They observe and participate in a wide variety of experiences and technologies including:
- Linear Accelerators (3D-CRT, IMRT, IGRT, Respiratory Gaiting, Rapid Arc and Record & Verify)
- Tomotherapy
- Stereotactic Body Radiosurgery
- Cone Beam CT
- Conventional & CT-Simulation
- Chemotherapy
- Physics/ Dosimetry and Treatment Planning
- Nursing/Consultation
- Brachytherapy Procedures
- Gamma Knife Radiosurgery
- Several low volume, highly technical treatments
- Geriatric, Adult and Pediatric treatments
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