How to hire a radiation safety officer

How to hire a radiation safety officer, step by step

Here's a step-by-step radiation safety officer hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a radiation safety officer job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new radiation safety officer
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the radiation safety officer you need to hire. Certain radiation safety officer roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A radiation safety officer's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, radiation safety officers from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   Here's a comparison of radiation safety officer salaries for various roles:

   Type of Radiation Safety Officer	Description	Hourly rate
   Radiation Safety Officer	Occupational health and safety specialists analyze many types of work environments and work procedures. Specialists inspect workplaces for adherence to regulations on safety, health, and the environment... Show more	$23-61
   Public Health Internship	A public health internship provides students with a great learning opportunity to put into practice those educational principles and skills learned in the classroom. They will gain a better understanding and appreciation for the duties and responsibilities of full-time professionals in public health... Show more	$12-26
   Safety And Training Coordinator	A safety and training coordinator helps ensure that all employees, subcontractors, and vendors adhere to the safety protocols and safety behaviors. They oversee safety instructor's safety teachings, procedures, and implementation.	$14-29

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Safety Procedures
   • Radiation Safety
   • Health Physics
   • RSO
   • NRC
   • Radiology
   • Oversight
   • Regulatory Compliance
   • Radioactive Materials License
   • Internal Audit
   • ALARA
   • Federal Regulations
   • OSHA
   • Nuclear Medicine

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage and facilitate extensive Safety/Security and HAZMAT training for all personnel.
   • Perform regulatory reviews in accordance with 10 CFR 50.59.
   • Distribute, collect, and return for analysis, employee quarterly and monthly dosimeters.
   • Craft and execute upgrade to hoisting & rigging practices in response to changing OSHA requirements.
   • Ensure several facilities are compliant with the federal requirements of 10 CFR 70 and their license.
   • Establish & oversee operating, emergency & ALARA procedures, & review them at least annually to ensure compliance.

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your radiation safety officer job description is one of the best ways to attract top talent. A radiation safety officer can vary based on:

   • Location. For example, radiation safety officers' average salary in hawaii is 48% less than in new jersey.
   • Seniority. Entry-level radiation safety officers 62% less than senior-level radiation safety officers.
   • Certifications. A radiation safety officer with certifications usually earns a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for an established firm or a new start-up company can make a big difference in a radiation safety officer's salary.

   Average radiation safety officer salary

   $78,825yearly

   $37.90 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level radiation safety officer salary

   $48,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 16, 2025

4. Writing a radiation safety officer job description

   A radiation safety officer job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. Below, you can find an example of a radiation safety officer job description:

   Radiation safety officer job description example

   Manages the provision of medical physics services to ensure the provision of high-quality diagnostic imaging in an environment that meets recognized standards and in a manner that meets the service expectations of administration, staff, physicians, and patients.
   Essential Responsibilities:
   
   + Acts as the principal technical resource on regulatory, accreditation, image quality and radiation safety matters and advises leadership on strategies and tactics relating to the technical and regulatory direction of the regional imaging physics and radiation safety program.
   
   + Serves as the Regional Radiation Safety Officer and is specifically named as the RSO on all radioactive materials licenses within Southern California. Has been delegated necessary authority by executive management to meet the responsibilities outlined in appendices 6.2 and 7 of the Regional Radiation Safety Manual, including prohibiting the use of radioactive material or radiation producing equipment by physicians/employees who do not meet the necessary requirements.
   
   + Represents the region during regulatory agency inspections and coordinates the response to those agencies and others.
   
   + Responsible for consulting with appropriate regulatory agencies at the federal, state, and county level including but not limited to the Food and Drug Administration, California Department of Health Services, and Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Orange, and San Diego counties.
   
   + Establishes and maintains region-wide policies, practices and procedures related to the safe and compliant use of radiation and radioactive materials such that the program is designed to assure a safe environment for patients, employees, physicians and visitors.
   
   + Develops and implements monitoring and reporting processes to ensure timely provision of information and adherence to established policies and procedures.
   
   + Specific services to be managed include tracking of authorized users, use locations, radioactive sources, radioactive waste and equipment; monitoring exposures to the public and occupational workers; tracking and maintaining exposure to radiation and releases to the environment, providing training; monitoring compliance with all applicable regulations and license conditions; reviewing and commenting on proposed regulations; implementing a security program for category 1 and category 2 quantities of radioactive material; coordinating the activities of the Regional Radiation Safety Committee.
   
   + Develops, implements and maintains a radiation safety education program to ensure the compliant use of machine and material sources of radiation throughout the region.
   
   + Manages a personnel exposure monitoring program to ensure that radiation exposure to physicians and staff are maintained at levels as low as reasonably achievable (ALARA).
   
   + Maintains a program of timely registration of machine sources of radiation and oversees the process of renewing MQSA and State mammography certifications to ensure uninterrupted delivery of clinical services.
   
   + Participates on Regional, Divisional and National committees and task forces to provide technical support to product selection and technology direction efforts. Assesses new and developing medical imaging technologies to support clinical and administrative decision makers.
   
   + Provides the functions of a senior diagnostic physicist.
   
   + Manages an effective program of medical radiation physics instruction for physicians and staff as needed, such as to prepare diagnostic radiology residents sufficient to pass the physics portion of the American Board of Radiology (ABR) certification exam.
   
   + Manages residents, associate diagnostic physicists, diagnostic physicist and senior diagnostic physicists within the department in a manner that produces a responsive, motivated and highly competent team-oriented staff, while adhering to an established budget. This includes hiring, coaching, counseling, conducting performance reviews, firing, etc. Provides direction to other department technical staff members who are employed primarily to provide support for the radiation safety program.
   
   + Allocates and assigns medical physics subject matter experts for internal committees, projects, and activities.
   
   + Manages the development and implementation of quality assurance and evaluation programs that ensure the acquisition, processing and display of medical images are of high quality and meet or exceed the requirements, regulations and recommendations of regulatory, accreditation and professional bodies.
   
   + Collaborates with physicians and other stakeholders on matters related to Radiation and MRI Safety
   
   + Serves on internal and external committees.
   
   + Participates in processes to develop and update regulations.
   
   + Calculates patient specific dosimetry for prolonged or unusual imaging cases, including fetal dose assessments.
   
   + Ensures compliance with radiation shielding design for medical imaging use areas.
   
   + Establishes and maintains diagnostic reference levels for quality control purposes.
   
   + Oversight of and coordination with service engineers with respect to regulatory and accreditation matters.
   
   Basic Qualifications:
   
   Experience
   
   + Minimum ten (10) years of postgraduate degree experience in medical physics as it applies to diagnostic imaging and radiation safety.
   
   Education
   
   + Master's degree or Ph.D. in medical physics, health physics or related field.
   
   License, Certification, Registration
   
   + Certified in Diagnostic and Nuclear Medicine Medical Physics by the American Board of Radiology (ABR)
   
   Additional Requirements:
   
   + Must meet NRC and state requirements to serve as Radiation Safety Officer for all uses on the radioactive materials licenses.
   
   + General knowledge of medical radiation physics, medical radiation safety and pertinent regulations.
   
   + General knowledge of computers and their applications in diagnostic imaging.
   
   + Experience in designing, implementing and monitoring quality assurance programs and equipment evaluation methods for diagnostic imaging devices.
   
   + Experience evaluating radiation safety status of machine and radioactive materials sources of ionizing radiation.
   
   + Effective communication skills, demonstrated customer service skills and willingness to be part of a team.
   
   + Must be able to work in a Labor/Management Partnership environment.
   
   Preferred Qualifications:
   
   + Experience supervising a professional technical staff preferred.
   
   COMPANY: KAISER
   
   TITLE: Chief Physicist & Regional Radiation Safety Officer
   
   LOCATION: Pasadena, California
   
   REQNUMBER: 1093298
   
   External hires must pass a background check/drug screen. Qualified applicants with arrest and/or conviction records will be considered for employment in a manner consistent with Federal, state and local laws, including but not limited to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, protected veteran, or disability status.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right radiation safety officer for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your radiation safety officer job on Zippia to find and attract quality radiation safety officer candidates.
   • Use niche websites such as healthcarejobsite, health jobs nationwide, hospitalcareers, medreps.com.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Your first interview with radiation safety officer candidates should focus on their interest in the role and background experience. As the hiring process goes on, you can learn more about how they'd fit into the company culture in later rounds of interviews.

   You should also ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match the ideal candidate profile you developed earlier. Candidates good enough for the next step can complete the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new radiation safety officer

   Once you have selected a candidate for the radiation safety officer position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   You should also follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that you've filled the position.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new radiation safety officer. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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