Health Sciences (Diagnostic Medical Ultrasound) (BHSc)
Visualize health with cutting-edge ultrasound technology.
Why choose this program?
A Health Sciences degree specializing in Diagnostic Medical Ultrasound will lead to a career as a sonographer. Sonographers are highly skilled health care professionals who use ultrasound to look inside a patient's body, evaluate the condition of various organs and record digital pictures.
Sonographers evaluate organs and structures such as the liver, kidneys, heart, thyroid, blood vessels, muscles, ovaries and developing babies. Sonographers provide a summary of what they've discovered and discuss their findings with specialized doctors, who use this information to make a diagnosis.
Our program is fully accredited, making students and graduates eligible for membership with Sonography Canada. We also offer a 2-year post-diploma option designed to meet the needs of practicing sonographers that want to enhance their knowledge and expand career opportunities.
Admission requirements
Minimum admission requirements
To be considered for admission to this program, you must meet minimum academic criteria:
- Completion of secondary school (Grade 12)
- Achievement of the minimum average for your program of choice.
- Completion of Grade 12 English (or equivalent course).
Admission to many Dalhousie programs is competitive. This means that meeting minimum requirements does not guarantee admission.
Program-specific admission requirements
Bachelor of Health Sciences (Diagnostic Medical Ultrasound) Admissions requirements:
Minimum overall average: 75%
Academic English 12: Minimum 70%
Academic Math 12: Minimum 70%
Academic Physics 12: Minimum 70%
Academic Biology 12: Minimum 70%
One additional academic subject
This program may employ a competitive average for admission purposes; meeting minimum posted requirements does not guarantee admission.
Priority consideration for admission to the BHSc program in the School of Health Sciences will be given to permanent residents of the Maritime provinces. Due to residency restrictions and limited capacity, international students are not eligible for admission to this program.
The School of Health Sciences (SHS) Admissions Committee gives special consideration to applicants who are permanent residents of the Maritime provinces from the following historically under-represented and underserved groups: Indigenous peoples (e.g., Mi’kmaq) and members of racialized minority groups (e.g., African Nova Scotians). Accordingly, students who belong to one of these groups are invited to self-declare at the time of their application. Candidates who do so will be considered individually according to SHS's requirements.
In addition to completing the Dalhousie application process, you will need to submit the following supplementary documents to be considered for admission to this program. Assessment of your non-academic performance will account for 20% of your overall total application score.
All supplementary information should be attached to the Application Portal.
Letter of intent
Your letter must address each of the following questions:
Why did you choose this professional discipline as your area of study?
What qualities, skills, and assets make you a good candidate for this profession?
What is your understanding of the duties and responsibilities of a person working in this profession?
How did you research this field before making your choice?
Please use the following instructions when drafting your letter:
Answer questions in paragraph form.
Organize your letter clearly and concisely, and demonstrate proper grammar, spelling, and punctuation.
Limit your answers to 250 words per question.
Applicants will be assessed on the following non-academic criteria:
Demonstrated knowledge of the selected health profession
Leadership
Community involvement
Teamwork
If you're applying to more than one professional discipline within the Bachelor of Health Science program, please write a separate letter for each discipline.
Resume and References
Submit a copy of your resume outlining your education, work, and volunteer experiences. Please include the names, addresses, and phone numbers of two references.
Requirements of the profession
Before applying to this program, it’s important to understand the intellectual, physical and mental demands of a career in diagnostic medical ultrasound. These include:
Manual dexterity and eye-hand coordination.
Strength in wrists, arms, shoulders and back to apply pressure with a transducer for substantial periods of time.
Standing or sitting for extended periods of time to acquire images.
Strength and ability to lift, move and position patients into the appropriate positions for examinations.
Use of fine motor skills to manipulate controls on the imaging/medical equipment.
Acute vision to discern minute variations of an ultrasound scan.
Ability to assess nuances of colour for colour Doppler image evaluation.
Good hearing is required to listen for the auditory Doppler signals of blood flowing through an arteries or veins.
Ability to understand and apply spatial relationships.
- Exposure to Latex gloves, cleaning chemicals and film processing chemicals.
Capacity to work in high pressure and emergency situations.
For more infomation please visit our Health Sciences non-academic requirements page.
If you have any questions or concerns about these requirements, please contact the School of Health Sciences (health.sciences@dal.ca).
Bachelor of Health Sciences (Post-Diploma) Admissions requirements:
Visit the Bachelor of Health Sciences program page to learn about the requirements for the post-diploma option.
Financial information
A university education is a significant financial investment. Every student is unique, and so are their financial circumstances. We offer competitive tuition, a robust scholarship and bursary program, and resources and support to help you explore financial options and develop a plan that works for you.
Program options
As a Diagnostic Medical Ultrasound student, you will have many opportunities to do hands-on clinical work. During the eight-week summer clinical practicum after years 1, 2 and 3, you’ll put the knowledge learned in the classroom to real-life use in the hospital setting. Students may be placed in Halifax to complete the practicums but may also have to travel to locations elsewhere in the Maritimes.
In your 4th year, you have the option to earn a certificate in Cardiac Ultrasound, Vascular Ultrasound or Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) to customize your degree and enhance your future career options.
The post-diploma program option is equivalent to 2 years of full-time university study (60 credit hours). To accommodate working professionals, the post-diploma program is available on a full time or part-time basis and most of the courses are delivered online.
The following Health Sciences program options are offered by Dalhousie University’s Faculty of Health. Connect with an academic advisor after you start your studies to explore options such as:
Bachelor of Health Sciences with Discipline
Bachelor of Health Sciences (Post-Diploma)
Certificates in Cardiac Ultrasound, Vascular Ultrasound or Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)
What you will learn
As a Diagnostic Medical Ultrasound student, you will take core professional development courses with a concentration on ultrasound specific knowledge and skills. The program curriculum will prepare you to write the Sonography Canada professional examinations.
At Dalhousie, interprofessional collaboration starts in the classroom. Throughout your degree, you will work with students in other health programs to learn from each other, enable effective collaboration and improve patient outcomes.
Sample courses may include:
Fundamentals of Sonography
Principles and Instrumentation of Diagnostic Medical Ultrasound
Human Anatomy and Physiology I
Cross Sectional Anatomy for Multimodality Imaging
Sonography of the Abdomen/Superficial Structures
Sonography in Obstetrics I
Sonography of the Reproductive System
Pathophysiology for Health Sciences
Abdominal Imaging
Gynecological Imaging
Application of Ultrasound Instrumentation
Vascular Ultrasound
Foundations in Clinical & Professional Education
Critical Research Appraisal and Practices
Health Law for Non-Lawyers
Interprofessional Education
Careers
Sonographers usually work in hospitals or clinics; however, some sonographers work in related careers including managers, educators, or medical information technology (IT) specialists. You can also choose to focus your career on a specialized area such as cardiac or vascular sonography.
Future studies could include specialization in another area of sonography or programs at the graduate level in science or health.
