Salary of a Cardiovascular Technologist
Cardiovascular technologists, also called cardiovascular technicians, perform ultrasound and other diagnostic procedures on cardiovascular and pulmonary systems. They explain these procedures to patients, watch for problem areas to highlight for the doctor and maintain testing equipment. Cardiovascular technologists can specialize in echocardiography, invasive cardiology or vascular technology. Salaries generally are much higher with experience.
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Initial Salary
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The American Medical Association (AMA) shows starting salary for cardiovascular technologists in 2006 between $36,000 to $45,000. Median salaries in 2009 for cardiovascular technologists with one to five years' experience ranged from about $41,000 to $61,000 annually, as noted by the PayScale salary survey website. Technologists with five to nine years of experience could expect to make between $61,000 and $79,000.
General Range
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According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the middle range of pay for cardiovascular technologists and technicians in 2008 was about $23.40 per hour or $48,600 annually. The bottom 10 percent were earning below $25,500 and the top 10 percent more than $74,700. The middle 50 percent were making between about $32,800 and $61,600 annually.
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Location
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Most cardiovascular technologists work in general medical and surgical hospitals, where they make about $23 per hour or $47,700 per year, according to the BLS. Higher pay can be found at medical and diagnostic laboratories, which pay an average of about $28 per hour or $58,000 annually, and at physicians' offices, which pay about $25 per hour or $52,200 annually.
Actual Job Listings
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SalaryList.com, which gathers data from actual job listings, shows a wide range of salaries offered to cardiovascular technologists in September 2009, from about $28,400 to $65,000 per year. Most salaries are between $41,000 and $55,000.
Employment Outlook
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The BLS predicts employment outlook for cardiovascular technologists to increase much faster than average through at least 2016. An aging population has a higher incidence of heart disease and cardiovascular complications, and ultrasound is an increasingly favored diagnostic procedure choice. Additionally, people in these positions sometimes leave the field after several years because of carpal tunnel syndrome and neck, back and eye strain. This creates the need for replacement workers.
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