How To Become A Director Of Radiology: What It Is and Career Path

What is a director of radiology and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

The director of radiology is the spearhead of the radiology department, chiefly responsible for coordinating the department's activities and ensuring that all of its goals are met. Their primary job duties involve delegating tasks, managing work schedules, streamlining work processes, and evaluates the accuracy of radiologic results.

Furthermore, a director of radiology may also be in charge of demonstrating the use of new equipment to department staff, developing new strategies or policies for increased efficiency and better service, as well as purchasing new equipment for the radiology department. They work closely with lower managers to ensure that operational processes are being done correctly and efficiently.

Directors of radiology attain their role through a high level of education and extensive experience in their field. Many directors of radiology have a master's degree and have at least three years of experience in a managerial role, not including the experience in entry-level positions in the radiology department. Moreover, directors of radiology display exemplary skills in leadership, people management, organization, and expertise in the field of radiology.

On average, a director of radiology earns around $96,000 per year. Some top earners even take home as much as $172,000, which is usually the case for directors with a higher level of expertise and experience.

ScoreDirector Of RadiologyUS Average

Salary

8.2

Avg. Salary $122,211

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

7.1

Growth rate 28%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

3.6

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.72%

Asian 7.76%

Black or African American 12.04%

Hispanic or Latino 13.90%

Unknown 4.25%

White 61.33%

Gender

female 38.29%

male 61.71%

Age - 47

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 47

Stress level

7.1

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.8

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.9

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a director of radiology

Explore director of radiology education requirements

Most common director of radiology degrees

Bachelor's

42.0 %

Associate

36.1 %

Master's

13.9 %

Start to develop specific director of radiology skills

Skills	Percentages
Patients	15.12%
Healthcare	9.84%
Patient Care	9.75%
MRI	6.91%
Ultrasound	5.90%

Complete relevant director of radiology training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New directors of radiology learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a director of radiology based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real director of radiology resumes.

Research director of radiology duties and responsibilities

Achieve JCAHO audit with no recommendations, supplying complete processes and procedures.
Evaluate and select a PACS vendor and manage implementation, training, and maintenance.
Manage PPS details efficiently to ensure high quality clinical care while maximizing reimbursement for the facility.
Ensure that all areas comply with TJC, CMS, ACR, and TDH, guidelines as required.

Get director of radiology experience

Generally, it takes 4-6 years to become a director of radiology. The most common roles before becoming a director of radiology include radiologic technician, staff technologist team lead and radiology manager.

Prepare your director of radiology resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your director of radiology resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a director of radiology resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable director of radiology resume templates

Build a professional director of radiology resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your director of radiology resume.