Becoming a Radiation Therapist, Dosimetry, Education Abroad & Cooking w/ Carolyn Wong | #6

Our guest was Carolyn Wong, who started us off by sharing her journey living across multiple cities in the world. This included Vancouver, a pit stop in Houston, Singapore, and Beijing. There are prevalent themes of academic struggle in this episode, with a couple of harsh lessons learned abroad. Please be mindful that this may not be reflective of the general culture, but it does offer us a peek into it. Carolyn works as a Dosimetrist in the field of Radiation Therapy, but we focus much of the conversation discussing her previous role as a Treatment Radiation Therapist. This career escapes the mainstream spotlight, but plays a pivotal role in our healthcare for controlling diseases such as cancer. I’ve always been curious about this field, and found myself wanting to know more about it as the interview went on – some of the challenges seem pretty cool. And as of recording, in October 2023, a challenging time for employment, there seems to be a shortage of this position. Something to keep in mind, if you’re exploring career options. Timestamps: (0:02:02) - Cooking as a therapeutic hobby, and reminiscing on childhood memories (0:10:49) - Time strategies for food: Passive Cooking vs unhealthy meals & meal delivery temptation (0:16:58) - What would you cook to impress someone you don’t know? (0:19:46) - Food-related career if money wasn’t a problem? (0:21:48) - The contrast of living in Vancouver, Houston, Singapore & Beijing (0:30:22) - A perspective on Canada’s education compared to Asia’s (0:36:03) - Singapore’s work culture & why Carolyn turned down a job there (0:38:09) - The Five ‘C’s of Singapore (0:39:23) - Further contrast and clarification of Asia vs Canada (Vancouver) cultures (0:46:19) - 1st Academic Struggle: Working against toxic teachers in Beijing high school (0:48:36) - 2nd Academic Struggle: Beating the odds in high school, but then struggling in Uni (UBC) (0:51:21) - A toxic Beijing teacher betting on Carolyn’s failure – clarification, stories, and some advice (1:02:02) - Carolyn’s rocky path to radiation therapist – continued (1:05:42) - How did you decide on radiation therapy as a career? (1:07:17) - How competitive is it to get into the radiation therapist program? (1:10:15) - Why do you think there’s a shortage of radiation therapists now? (1:12:03) - A typical work day as a (Treatment) Radiation Therapist (1:15:32) - Other branches and types of Radiation Therapy (1:17:51) - The preparation stages of Radiation Therapy. (1:19:43) - Dosimetry detailed: How to get in? How much social interaction? (1:21:10) - What other roles are available in this field? (1:22:46) - What personalities would embrace this kind of work vs burn out from it? (1:26:13) - Being a social chameleon and interacting with others at work (1:29:15) - Definition of fulfillment