Diagnostic Medical Sonography

Diagnostic Medical Sonography (DMS) is the non-invasive use of high frequency sound waves to image anatomic structures within the body. Sonographers are specially trained individuals who work under the close supervision of radiologists, cardiologists, and vascular surgeons in order to assist them in determining a medical diagnosis and treatment plan for patients. The sonographer is responsible for acquiring diagnostic images of normal and abnormal structures and reporting findings to the appropriate supervising physician. Upon graduation, sonographers may be employed by hospitals, private physician practices, diagnostic imaging centers, research departments, and ultrasound machine manufacturers.

The Diagnostic Medical Sonography program combines didactic and clinical learning experiences that are within the legal scope of responsibility of sonographers.

The Diagnostic Medical Sonography Program at Clark State accepts a limited number of students per year with technical classes beginning each fall.

The DMS program at Clark State College is a competitive, space limited program. If there are more applicants than available spots, students will be offered a seat based on the qualifying criteria (aggregate of calculated GPA in the required curriculum, the number of general education courses completed at Clark State College, and points for successfully submitting the required documents found below). If the qualifying criteria aggregate score of two applicants is equal, the calculated GPA in the required courses will be used to rank those applicants.

The application deadline for any given year is the first Friday in February. All application materials must be received on or before the deadline. Any application materials received after this date will not be considered. In addition, the Admissions Committee must be able to verify that the applicant has made application to Clark State and that official transcripts from other institutions have been received by the deadline when possible. Transfer students should submit their Clark State applications and official transcripts early  to avoid this problem. Notification of acceptance into the program will  occur after spring semester has ended. Once accepted, the student must maintain the required GPA.

A checklist for required documents for the DMS program can be found here.

Program Mission

In accordance with the mission of Clark State College, the mission of the Diagnostic Medical Sonography program is to educate students in the technical and procedural abilities in diagnostic medical sonography in order to serve a diverse patient population as competent, safe and professional entry-level general and vascular sonographers.

Program Goal
The primary goal of the Diagnostic Medical Sonography (DMS) Program is to prepare competent entry-level general and vascular sonographers in the cognitive (knowledge), psychomotor (skills), and affective (behavior) learning domains.

Technical Standards

All applicants accepted into the Diagnostic Medical Sonography program must be able to meet the essential functions, skills, and abilities required to provide safe patient practice with or without reasonable accommodations. The essential functions, skills, and abilities may be found through following this link Technical Standards.   Applicants are required to sign a form, found here indicating they have reviewed these essential functions, skills, and abilities and submit that form as part of the program application process. The required form must be completed and returned to the Diagnostic Medical Sonography program at DMSprogram@clarkstate.edu.  

In addition to completing the standard procedures for admission to the College, students must apply to the DMS program separately. Students must be 18 years or older for admission into the DMS program.

Students must have completed or be enrolled in courses in spring semester of the application year to complete the following academic requirements and be eligible to apply to the Diagnostic Medical Sonography Program:

In order to be accepted into the Diagnostic Medical Sonography courses, students must maintain the required cumulative grade point average in the required courses in the curriculum.

At Clark State, progression in healthcare programs requires course grades of C or higher.

In addition to the academic requirements above, students are required to choose one of the following to be completed prior to application submission:

Option 1:

Observation hours

Complete between 4-6 hours of observation in a hospital-based sonography department. Observation must be documented on the student observation form, found here. The completed form must be scanned and emailed to DMSprogram@clarkstate.edu prior to admission into the program.

Option 2:

Interview with a healthcare worker

Students are required to interview a healthcare worker using the student interview form, found here.  The healthcare worker does not need to be a sonographer, but interviewing a sonographer is recommended. The completed form must be emailed to DMSprogram@clarkstate.edu prior to admission into the program.

Student Achievement Data

Liability Insurance
Students will be billed for liability insurance for the academic year of clinical coursework.