Department of Radiation Oncology

Division of Medical Physics

POSITION:  RADIATION ONCOLOGY Physics ResidentS (3)

LOCATION:  Washington University School of Medicine, Radiation Oncology Department, St. Louis, Missouri

The Washington University Radiation Oncology Physics Residency Program has one position available with a start date of January 1, 2025 and two positions available with a start date of July 1, 2025.  The program provides two years of clinical training in radiation oncology physics to individuals with an M.S. or Ph.D. degree in physics or a closely related field.  Candidates must have fulfilled CAMPEP requirements at the time of starting the training program. The program’s objectives are to provide intensive clinical training in radiation oncology physics that will prepare graduates for board certification and a professional career in radiation oncology physics as well as provide real-world opportunities for leadership in a variety of clinically relevant settings.

About the Residency Program:

In 1997, our physics residency program (established in 1992) became the first CAMPEP-accredited program.  More than 61 individuals have thus far completed the program.  Our graduates have an exceptional record in obtaining board certification and entering into highly successful medical physics careers, with many in leadership positions in academia, clinical settings and industry.

The training involves full participation by the physics residents in the routine clinical activities under the supervision of approximately 35 physics faculty, in addition to didactic lectures on radiation physics, biology, therapy, dosimetry, imaging and ethics.  In the first year, comprehensive training and experience are provided in the areas of quality assurance, clinical dosimetry, treatment planning (including IMRT and VMAT approaches), multi-modality imaging for simulation and planning, IGRT, SBRT, SRT, SRS, brachytherapy (HDR, LDR, and radiopharmaceuticals) and radiation safety.  The first year also includes quality assurance responsibilities (primarily monthly and annual linac and CT QA, but no routine IMRT patient-specific QA as there is a dedicated team for this).

The second year is intended to give residents experience (with appropriate supervision) in independent clinical coverage with responsibilities and opportunities similar to those of our faculty.  Focused advanced rotations in proton therapy, MRI- and CT-guided online adaptive therapy, and stereotactic radiosurgery and radiotherapy procedures give residents experience in advanced treatment modalities.  Second year residents in good standing are provided an elective rotation to deepen their experience in a specialized area of radiation therapy of their choosing.

Our residents are encouraged to participate in innovative projects and research, and have a long-standing record of successful peer-reviewed publications and presentations at national meetings during the residency.  A full month free of clinical duties is dedicated to this pursuit in the second year.  The Washington University environment is dedicated to cutting edge research and development making opportunities and faculty support plentiful for supporting such endeavors.

About the Radiation Oncology Department at Siteman Cancer Center:

External beam delivery and treatment planning equipment include:

• 16 Varian accelerators (incl. Ethos, Halcyon, Trilogy, TrueBeam, Edge)
• 2 systems performing online adaptation (MRI-based (ViewRay) and CT-based (Ethos))
• 2 Mevion Proton systems
• Gamma Knife ICON
• Philips and Siemens CT-simulators
• Philips 1.5-T MRI simulator
• Varian Eclipse treatment planning systems with Aria Record & Verify
• Two Bravos HDR remote afterloader units

Specialized techniques include:

• Cardiac ablation for ventricular tachycardia
• MRI-based brachytherapy
• MRI-guided online adaptive RT with real-anatomy, real-time gating
• CT-guided online adaptive RT
• DMLC/SMLC-IMRT/VMAT delivery
• Linac- and Gamma Knife-based stereotactic radiosurgery
• Total body irradiation
• Total skin electron therapy
• Advanced image guidance (gating, surface-tracking)
• Low dose rate brachytherapy (prostate, eye plaques)
• High dose rate brachytherapy (intracavitary and interstitial gynecological treatments, prostate, breast, sarcoma, esophagus)
• Radiopharmaceuticals (I-131 sodium iodide, Xofigo, Lutathera, MIBG, PSMA)
• Hyperthermia

Upcoming projects give residents multiple opportunities for commissioning new equipment and novel technologies.  All training is conducted within our APEx-accredited NCI Comprehensive Cancer Center Facility.

We encourage you to learn more about our program including our Core Values at http://medphys.wustl.edu.

How to Apply:

Please note: we are currently not participating in the medical physics match program.  Instead, please send an email indicating your interest to our program coordinator Julie Follman (medphysresidency@wustl.edu) and include the following:

• Which starting date you are applying for: January 1, 2025; July 1, 2025; or both. If you do not specify, we will assume your application is for the July 1, 2025 cycle.
• Your CV
• Undergraduate and graduate transcripts
• A personal statement that answers one of the following questions:
  1. How will your specific skills or experience help us further one or more of our Core Values?
  2. What is your understanding of the role of a medical physicist in the context of a radiation oncology department?
• Three reference letters (please have the referees send these directly to medphysresidency@wustl.edu)

Applications must be submitted by October 1, 2024.  All final selections will be completed by December 1, 2024.

NOTE: Our program also has one available position for a start date of January 1, 2025. If you are interested in applying for this position, please follow the above instructions and explicitly state your intention to apply for this January 1, 2025 position when submitting your application. Otherwise, we will assume your application is for the July 1, 2025 cycle.

Our residency program endeavors to provide a welcoming and supportive environment for individuals of all backgrounds and lifestyles, in accordance with Washington University School of Medicine’s focus on fostering a diverse and inclusive environment.  To support these values, our residency program encourages and gives full consideration to all applicants for admission regardless of race, color, ethnicity, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, ability, gender identity or expression, national origin, veteran status, socio-economic status and/or genetic information.  We implement policies and practices that support the inclusion of all such potential trainees and employees, and are committed to being an institution that is accessible to everyone who learns, conducts research, works and seeks care on our campus.  We also provide reasonable accommodations to those seeking that assistance.

About Washington University School of Medicine

Washington University School of Medicine's Department of Radiation Oncology - Division of Medical Physics offers a two-year residency program to individuals with an M.S. or Ph.D. degree in physics or a closely related field. We currently have 7 residents in the program. For more information: https://radonc.wustl.edu/education/campep-accredited-medical-physics-residency/

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