How To Become A Staff Sonographer: What It Is and Career Path

What is a staff sonographer and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted Expert

Ted Whitten

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a staff sonographer. For example, did you know that they make an average of $41.26 an hour? That's $85,821 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 10% and produce 14,700 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to a Staff Sonographer?

Ted Whitten

President, Society of Diagnostic Medical Sonography

According to the U.S. Department of Labor and Bureau of Labor Statistics, "employment of diagnostic medical sonographers is projected to grow 17 percent from 2019 to 2029, much faster than the average for all occupations. Employment of cardiovascular technologists and technicians, including vascular technologists, is projected to grow 5 percent from 2019 to 2029, faster than the average for all occupations." https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/diagnostic-medical-sonographers.htm#tab-6

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted sonography like it has many other professions. At the beginning of the pandemic, some sonographers were furloughed due to temporary closures of outpatient imaging centers or offices, as well as cancellation of most non-urgent sonography exams in the hospital setting as hospitals planned for expected inpatient surges. While many sonography departments have returned to near normal workflows and volumes, the impact of the renewed surges of COVID-19 patients across the country remains to be seen. Some sonographers have also reported inadequate access to personal protective equipment (PPE) in some parts of the country.

ScoreStaff SonographerUS Average

Salary

6.7

Avg. Salary $85,821

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level

8.0

Growth Rate 10%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity

5.2

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.26%

Asian 8.77%

Black or African American 4.17%

Hispanic or Latino 10.39%

Unknown 4.43%

White 71.98%

Gender

female 79.59%

male 20.41%

Age - 42

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 - 42

Stress Level

8.0

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity Level

6.9

Complexity Level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance

8.2

Work Life balance is good

6.4 - fair

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Key steps to become a staff sonographer

Explore staff sonographer education requirements

Most common staff sonographer degrees

Associate

56.1 %

Bachelor's

26.0 %

Certificate

11.0 %

Start to develop specific staff sonographer skills

Skills	Percentages
Patients	20.42%
Sonography	17.23%
Patient Care	14.71%
Diagnostic Ultrasound	11.85%
Ultrasound Exams	6.07%

Complete relevant staff sonographer training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-2 years on post-employment, on-the-job training. New staff sonographers 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 staff sonographer based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real staff sonographer resumes.

Research staff sonographer duties and responsibilities

Facilitate physician to help achieve ICAEL accreditation status.
Use PACS to store, send and view scans.
Utilize hospital computer system for ordering and completing ultrasound department necessary functions, PACs image archiving.
Champion of radiology committee working with radiology manager and hospital officers and administration for patient experience and friendliness of staff.

Prepare your staff sonographer resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your staff sonographer 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 staff sonographer resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose From 10+ Customizable Staff Sonographer Resume templates

Build a professional Staff Sonographer 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 Staff Sonographer resume.

Apply for staff sonographer jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a staff sonographer job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

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