Health physics technician vs radiation protection technician

The differences between health physics technicians and radiation protection technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a health physics technician and a radiation protection technician. Additionally, a health physics technician has an average salary of $46,170, which is higher than the $44,670 average annual salary of a radiation protection technician.

The top three skills for a health physics technician include radiation safety, radioactive materials and air samples. The most important skills for a radiation protection technician are cathodic protection, chemistry, and radioactive materials.

Health physics technician vs radiation protection technician overview

	Health Physics Technician	Radiation Protection Technician
Yearly salary	$46,170	$44,670
Hourly rate	$22.20	$21.48
Growth rate	-17%	-17%
Number of jobs	55,571	15,289
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 48%	Associate Degree, 40%
Average age	38	38
Years of experience	2	2

Health physics technician vs radiation protection technician salary

Health physics technicians and radiation protection technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Health Physics Technician	Radiation Protection Technician
Average salary	$46,170	$44,670
Salary range	Between $26,000 And $81,000	Between $26,000 And $76,000
Highest paying City	-	-
Highest paying state	-	-
Best paying company	-	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between health physics technician and radiation protection technician education

There are a few differences between a health physics technician and a radiation protection technician in terms of educational background:

	Health Physics Technician	Radiation Protection Technician
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 48%	Associate Degree, 40%
Most common major	Biology	Medical Technician
Most common college	-	Duke University

Health physics technician vs radiation protection technician demographics

Here are the differences between health physics technicians' and radiation protection technicians' demographics:

	Health Physics Technician	Radiation Protection Technician
Average age	38	38
Gender ratio	Male, 72.4% Female, 27.6%	Male, 74.5% Female, 25.5%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.8% Unknown, 6.0% Hispanic or Latino, 15.1% Asian, 6.6% White, 61.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%	Black or African American, 9.7% Unknown, 5.7% Hispanic or Latino, 17.2% Asian, 10.4% White, 56.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%
LGBT Percentage	8%	8%

Differences between health physics technician and radiation protection technician duties and responsibilities

Health physics technician example responsibilities.

Perform TEDE ALARA reviews to determine if respiratory protection would save dose on specific jobs.
Perform air, rod and contamination surveys, RWP surveys and RHR hoop valve cut and drain.
Alloy 600 lead technician responsibilities include reviewing daily surveys, performing ALARA briefs, designating tasks and developing shift schedule.
Develop a comprehensive written respiratory protection program for the NDT to align newly acquire SCBA capability with 29 CFR 1910 requirements.
Provide support for RCP removal and replacement
Follow specific RWP procedures and determine if results fall within prescribe guidelines.

Radiation protection technician example responsibilities.

Utilize sandblaster, mig welding and various hand and power tools
Assist in giving ALARA briefs for routine and high risk activities.
Practice radiation protection techniques to minimize radiation to patient and staff (ALARA).
Survey plant areas, personnel and equipment for radiation and contamination levels during plant outage.
Perform installation and maintenance of GPS systems on excavators, dredging units, and cappers.
Instrument source check and issuance to qualify workers for use inside and out of the RCA.

Health physics technician vs radiation protection technician skills

Common health physics technician skills

Radiation Safety, 13%
Radioactive Materials, 10%
Air Samples, 8%
DOE, 5%
Radiation Surveys, 4%
ALARA, 4%

Common radiation protection technician skills

Cathodic Protection, 17%
Chemistry, 14%
Radioactive Materials, 14%
Respiratory Protection, 8%
ANSI, 7%
CPS, 6%

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Health Physics Technician
Health Physics Technician vs Radiation Protection Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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