Kassidy Clark (’21) recalls the Mitchell Tech Radiologic Technology program as being intense.
“It was tough, but the staff and instructors and the clinical steps that were provided at MTC thoroughly prepared me for my career,” she said. “I had such a great experience.”
Clark said the program prepared her for a more-intense career in the Sanford USD Medical Center operating room, where she assists physicians in diagnosing patients in serious conditions.
“I see a lot of trauma in my position, and sometimes we have to move fast,” she said. “I didn’t necessarily have training for specifically that during my clinicals, but the expectations that our instructors had for the classes and the competencies made me a better tech in my job. They were very strict about positioning and our knowledge. If we didn’t do 100 percent, we didn’t earn 100 percent. That helped us to be studious and spend a lot of time in the lab.”
Clark said working with clinical students from other radiologic technology programs has increased her appreciation for Mitchell Tech’s program format.
“In Mitchell, we do the first two semesters of straight” classroom experience before jumping into clinicals, she said. “We went into clinicals knowing just about everything we needed to know.”
Clark also noted that Mitchell Tech kept up with the latest technology and techniques.
“The equipment that we worked with on campus, I work with on a daily basis now, so it was an easy transition from school to my job,” she said.
In her second year, Clark was able to get extra practice as a tutor for first-year students.
“That was very helpful in preparing us for our second year as a refresher, review exams and our boards,” she said, encouraging first-year students to take advantage of the older students’ wisdom and experience. “You don’t have to commit to coming every week or anything. If you needed help for just one exam or one unit, that was okay. It was super flexible.”
With just 24 students accepted into the program at a time, sharing information with peers and instructors is easy, too, according to Clark.
“It was very similar to my high school class – everyone gets to know everyone else in the class. You also get super close to (the instructors). They always had their door open and were willing to listen. Whether it was school- or class-related or a personal situation, they always just had a listening ear,” she said, as did staff in other campus departments. “I would go into the Campus Store two or three times a week, and we would chat about our day, our week, our weekend.”
To this day, Clark said, she stays in touch with her instructors and those who supervised her clinical experience. Now, she encourages everyone considering a rad tech career to get their start at Mitchell Tech.
“I recommend it so much that my sister is about to start her second year in the program!” she said.
