| (a) General. Except as otherwise provided, an individual
applying for licensure must:
(1) submit completed application on forms approved
by the board;
(2) pay the appropriate application fee;
(3) certify that the applicant is mentally and physically
able to function as a medical physicist; and
(4) be of good moral character.
(b) Eligibility. To be eligible for a license, a person
must:
(1) have an earned master's or doctoral degree:
(A) from a program of study in medical physics that
is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Medical Physics
Education Programs (CAMPEP);
(B) from a regionally accredited college or university
in physics, medical physics, biophysics, radiological physics, medical
health physics or equivalent courses; or
(C) from a regionally accredited college or university:
(i) in physical science (including chemistry), applied
mathematics or engineering; and
(ii) have twenty semester hours (30 quarter hours)
of upper division semester hour credit or graduate level physics courses,
if offered:
(I) by the faculty of a Department of Physics and would
be acceptable in meeting undergraduate or graduate degree requirements
in physics of the offering department; or
(II) by the faculty of a program accredited in medical
physics by the CAMPEP; or
(III) by the faculty of another science department
and acceptable to the board.
(2) have demonstrated, to the board's satisfaction,
the completion of at least two years of full-time work experience
in the medical physics specialty for which the application is made.
(3) have work experience in more than one specialty
to include six additional months of full-time equivalent work experience
in each additional medical physics specialty for which the application
is made.
(c) Work experience. Full-time work experience shall
be at least 32 hours per week in the specialty area. Part-time work
experience may be aggregated in order to meet the minimum of 32 work
hours per week. All work experience must have been completed in the
five years preceding the date of application for licensure as a medical
physicist, or training license in the medical physics specialty for
which application is made.
(d) International academic credit. Degrees and course
work received at international universities shall be acceptable only
if such course work could be counted as transfer credit by regionally
accredited universities. An applicant having an international degree(s)
must furnish at the applicant's own expense an International Credential
Evaluation from the Foreign Credential Service of America (FCSA),
a credential evaluation from an American Board of Radiology (ABR)
approved Credentials Evaluation organization, or another similar entity
as approved by the board. The degree evaluation must be sent directly
to the board by the evaluation service. An applicant must submit with
the application complete certified copies of academic transcripts
showing proof of the degree(s) awarded (or equivalent degree) and
the date awarded. Documents written in languages other than English
shall be accompanied by a certified English translation.
(e) Approved specialty examination. An applicant under
this section must successfully pass one of the following examinations
in each specialty for which application is submitted:
(1) for the therapeutic radiological physics specialty,
the examination offered by:
(A) the American Board of Radiology or its successor
organization in therapeutic radiological physics, radiological physics
or therapeutic medical physics;
(B) the American Board of Medical Physics or its successor
organization in radiation oncology physics; or
(C) the Canadian College of Physicists in Medicine
or its successor organization in radiation oncology physics;
(2) for the medical nuclear physics specialty, the
examination offered by:
(A) the American Board of Radiology or its successor
organization in medical nuclear physics radiological physics or nuclear
medical physics;
(B) the American Board of Medical Physics or its successor
organization in nuclear medicine physics;
(C) the American Board of Science in Nuclear Medicine
or its successor organization in physics and instrumentation or in
molecular imaging science; or
(D) the Canadian College of Physicists in Medicine
or its successor organization in nuclear medicine physics;
(3) for the diagnostic radiological physics specialty,
the examination offered by:
(A) the American Board of Radiology or its successor
organization in diagnostic radiological physics, radiological physics
or diagnostic medical physics;
(B) the American Board of Medical Physics or its successor
organization in diagnostic imaging physics or diagnostic radiology
physics; or
(C) the Canadian College of Physicists in Medicine
or its successor organization in diagnostic radiology health physics;
(4) for the medical health physics specialty, the examination
offered by:
(A) the American Board of Radiology or its successor
organization in radiological physics;
(B) the American Board of Health Physics or its successor
organization in health physic or comprehensive health physics;
(C) the American Board of Medical Physics or its successor
organization in medical health physics; or
(D) the American Board of Science in Nuclear Medicine
or its successor organization in radiation protection.
(f) Jurisprudence Examination. Applicants for licensure
must pass a jurisprudence examination ("JP exam"), which shall be
conducted on the licensing requirements and other laws, rules, or
regulations applicable to the medical physicist profession in this
state. The jurisprudence examination shall be developed and administered
as follows:
(1) Questions for the JP Exam may be prepared by board
staff with input from the Advisory Committee and board, or contracted
out to a third party vendor. Board staff shall make arrangements for
a facility by which applicants can take the examination;
(2) Applicants must pass the JP exam with a score of
75 or better within three attempts, unless the Board allows an additional
attempt based upon a showing of good cause. An applicant who is unable
to pass the JP exam within three attempts must appear before the licensure
committee of the board to address the applicant's inability to pass
the examination and to re-evaluate the applicant's eligibility for
licensure. It is at the discretion of the licensure committee to allow
an applicant additional attempts to take the JP exam;
(3) An examinee shall not be permitted to bring books,
compends, notes, journals, calculators or other help into the examination
room, nor be allowed to communicate by word or sign with another examinee
while the examination is in progress without permission of the presiding
examiner, nor be allowed to leave the examination room except when
so permitted by the presiding examiner.
(4) Irregularities during an examination such as giving
or obtaining unauthorized information or aid as evidenced by observation
or subsequent statistical analysis of answer sheets, shall be sufficient
cause to terminate an applicant's participation in an examination,
invalidate the applicant's examination results, or take other appropriate
action;
(5) A person who has passed the JP Exam shall not be
required to retake the Exam for another or similar license, except
as a specific requirement of the board;
(g) Alternative License Procedures for Military Service
Members, Military Veterans, and Military Spouses.
(1) An applicant who is a military service member,
military veteran, or military spouse may be eligible for alternative
demonstrations of competency for certain licensure requirements. Unless
specifically allowed in this subsection, an applicant must meet the
requirements for licensure as specified in this chapter.
(2) To be eligible, an applicant must be a military
service member, military veteran, or military spouse and meet one
of the following requirements:
(A) holds an active unrestricted medical physicist
license issued by another state that has licensing requirements that
are substantially equivalent to the requirements for a Texas medical
physicist license; or
(B) within the five years preceding the application
date held a medical physicist license in this state.
(3) The executive director may waive any prerequisite
to obtaining a license for an applicant described by this subsection,
after reviewing the applicant's credentials.
(4) Applications for licensure from applicants qualifying
under this section shall be expedited by the board's licensure division.
Such applicants shall be notified, in writing or by electronic means,
as soon as practicable, of the requirements and process for renewal
of the license.
(5) Alternative Demonstrations of Competency Allowed.
Applicants qualifying under this section, notwithstanding:
(A) the one year expiration in §160.8(a)(2) of
this title (relating to Application Procedures), are allowed an additional
six months to complete the application prior to it becoming inactive;
and
(B) the 20 day deadline in §160.8(a)(6) of this
title, may be considered for permanent licensure up to five days prior
to the board meeting.
(h) Applicants with Military Experience.
(1) For applications filed on or after March 1, 2014,
the Board shall credit, with respect to an applicant who is a military
service member or military veteran as defined in §160.2 of this
title (relating to Definitions), verified military service, training,
or education toward the licensing requirements, other than an examination
requirement, for a license issued by the Board.
(2) This section does not apply to an applicant who:
(A) has had a medical physicist license suspended or
revoked by another state or a Canadian province;
(B) holds a medical physicist license issued by another
state or a Canadian province that is subject to a restriction, disciplinary
order, or probationary order; or
(C) has an unacceptable criminal history.
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