Caitlin Rodriguez, a 2013 graduate of Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College’s Radiological Technology program, is the winner of the Mississippi Radiological Society’s Outstanding Student Scholarship. She plans to attend a university in the fall to begin studies for her bachelor’s and master’s degrees. She hopes to specialize in computed tomography (CT) scan or ultrasound.
“I could walk out the door right now and get a job, which I am planning on doing while I attend the university,” she says. “The advantages to continuing my education are greater career opportunities and chances for advancement.”
The 21-year-old from Gautier, Miss., is a registered radiographer with the American Registry of Radiologic Technology. She first decided to enter the program because she knew from a very young age she wanted to do something like her mother, who is a nurse. When she saw her first X-ray as a teenager, she knew that was what she wanted to do.
Because of the outstanding reputation of the program at MGCCC and the hands-on clinicals they are required to complete, she says her employment opportunities are bright.
Caitlin Rodriguez studying an x-ray in the Radiological Technology Lab at the Jackson County Campus.