Earn a Radiation Protection Certificate

Earn While You Learn!

Take two courses in radiation safety with embedded paid hands-on training that prepare you for technician careers in radiation protection, nuclear medicine & nuclear safety.
Opportunity to apply for a $6,500 summer internship at Brookhaven National Laboratory!
Receive a $600 stipend for tuition/books!
Obtain a Radiation Protection Certificate as you earn an Associate in Science degree at Queensborough!

Apply Now

Eligibility

Must be a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident.
Must be at least 18 years old.
Must maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.0.
Must be a fulltime A.S Degree student at QCC.

Roadmap To Earning a Radiation Protection Certificate and A.S. Degree at Queensborough Community College (QCC)

Start: Enroll at QCC

Select Major & Concentration*

Choose a major in Liberal Arts and Science with a Radiation Protection concentration
Register for Radiation Protection I in Fall and Radiation Protection II in Spring
Choose a set course sequence depending on your academic background!

Participate in BNL Experiences

Enroll in a “mini-semester” at BNL in January (Year 1)**

Complete first summer internship at BNL (Year 1)***

Receive your A.S. degree and certificate (Year 2)

Complete second summer internship at BNL (Year 2)***

Apply for work in radiation control and protection at national labs, national agencies, power plants, or hospitals!

Finish: Apply as a Technician!

*Learn and Earn!

Receive a $600 stipend to cover tuition, books, and transportation!

**Learn and Earn!

Travel to BNL, all-expenses-paid!
Meet and learn from scientists and experts in the field!
Apply for an internship (worth $6,500) at BNL!

***Learn and Earn!

Stay at BNL – housing included!
Train on state-of-the-art equipment with BNL Scientists!

Questions?

If you would like to learn more about the program, contact:

Dr. Sharon Lall-Ramnarine at slallramnarine@qcc.cuny.edu, or Dr. Paul Sideris at psideris@qcc.cuny.edu.

Spring 2024 Events

Date	Event
January 8-12, 2024	BNL Mini-Semester: Accepted students will participate in BNL mini-semester program
January 23, 2024	Responsible Conduct of Research Workshop
January 30, 2024 Tues. 4-6 PM, S-412 & S-405	Spring Welcome Back: Research projects, choosing BNL mentors and spring events will be discussed. Review of the types of radiation, interaction of radiation with matter, and radiation detection fundamentals
February 6, 2024,	Radiation Safety II at CUNY Queensborough Community College: Biological Effects of Radiation
February 13, 2024	Radiation Safety II at CUNY Queensborough Community College: Comparison of detectors: design and principles of operation
February 14, 2024 1-2 PM, S-225	Resume Writing Workshop: A representative from the Career Services Office will present a workshop on resume writing, focusing on how to include your research experience and awards on your resume/CV. Bring a copy of your resume if you have one.
February 16, 2024 11 AM –12 PM, L-311	SciFinder Workshop with Chief Librarian Prof. Christine Kim
February 20, 2024	Radiation Safety II at CUNY Queensborough Community College: Counting statistics and uncertainty, error and error propagation
February 27, 2024	Radiation Safety II at CUNY Queensborough Community College: Dosimetry – Exposure and Absorbed Dose
March 5, 2024	Radiation Safety II at CUNY Queensborough Community College: Dosimetric Models, Organ Activities, Specific Absorbed Fraction, Specific Effective Energy, and Committed Quantities
March 12, 2024	Radiation Safety II at CUNY Queensborough Community College: Minimum Significant Measured Activity – Type I Errors, Minimum Detectable True Activity – Type II Errors, Instrument Response and Detection Limits
March 19, 2024	Radiation Safety II at CUNY Queensborough Community College: Shielding Analysis/Design
March 20, 2024 12:30 – 1:30 PM, S-225	Speech Workshop: Dr. Franca Ferrari from the speech department will present a workshop on strategies used to present your research work effectively.
March 26, 2024	Radiation Safety II at CUNY Queensborough Community College: Particle Generators – Nuclear Reactors
March 29, 2024 11 AM, Online*	LinkedIn Workshop: Dr. Regina Sullivan will guide students to create a LinkedIn profile, highlighting academic achievements and external research.
April 2, 2024	Finalize Research Project Abstracts for the Spring Student Symposium
April 9, 2024	Work on Research Presentations for the Spring Student Symposium
April 16, 2024	Spring Student Symposium Presentation Workshop & Practice
May 3, 2024	Spring Student Symposium: Students will present their research to the college community.
May 7, 2024	Radiation Safety II at CUNY Queensborough Community College: Particle Generators – Accelerators, Cyclotrons and Synchrotrons
May 14, 2024	Semester Wrap-up Meeting and Internship Preparation
June – Mid August	Participate in BNL Summer Internships

Fall 2023 Events

Date	Event
September 28, 2023	Brookhaven National Laboratory Team Visit and Career Panel at CUNY Queensborough Community College
September 29, 2023	QCC/BNL MSIPP Kick-Off Meeting at Brookhaven National Laboratory
October 11, 2023, Week 1	Cohort Information Session at CUNY Queensborough Community College
October 15, 2023	National Chemistry Week Celebration and Community Outreach at New York Hall of Science
October 18, 2023, Week 2	Radiation Protection I at CUNY Queensborough Community College: What is radiation? Electromagnetic Spectrum, Isotopic Notation and Natural Abundance, Types of Radiation
October 25, 2023, Week 3	Radiation Protection I at CUNY Queensborough Community College: Sources of radiation. Nuclear Equations and half life, Detecting Radiation in Everyday Items with a Geiger Counter Lab. Discussing Research Projects.
November 1, 2023, Week 4	Radiation Protection I at CUNY Queensborough Community College: The Inverse square law, Radiation versus distance and Shielding experiments. Research abstracts / project descriptions and BNL mini-semester applications.
November 8, 2023, Week 5	Radiation Protection I at CUNY Queensborough Community College: Sources and applications of radioactive isotopes. Radioisotopes used in nuclear medicine. Continue working on research projects.
November 14. 2023, Week 6	Radiation Protection I at CUNY Queensborough Community College: Detecting and Identifying Radiation. Introduction to the use of Indentifinders with Susan Pepper (National Security and Non-Proliferation, BNL).
November 15, 2023, Week 6	Radiation Protection I at CUNY Queensborough Community College: Dosimetry and wearable dosimeters. Sampling protocols. Begin working on posters.
November 29, 2023, Week 7	Radiation Protection I at CUNY Queensborough Community College: Print and practice poster presentations.
December 1, 2023, Week 8	Poster Presentations at Undergraduate Research and Creative Works Day at QCC
December 6, 2023, Week 9	Radiation Protection I at CUNY Queensborough Community College: BNL Community College Internship application essays and documents.
December 8, 2023, Week 9	Radiation Protection I at CUNY Queensborough Community College: Wrap-up Meeting. Plans for BNL Mini-Semester, January 8-12, 2024.

QCC's Radiation Safety Professionals Celebrate National Chemistry Week

National Chemistry Week 2023

QCC’s Faculty and Students Celebrating National Chemistry Week at New York Hall of Science on Sunday, October 15^th. View photos here.

On Sunday October 15^th, QCC’s Chemistry Department faculty and students joined the New York Section of the American Chemical Society to celebrate National Chemistry Week at the New York Hall of Science. The event was a great opportunity to encourage local elementary and high school age kids to become interested in science. The theme of this year’s event was “The Healing Power of Chemistry”. Our tables were themed: “Radiation to the Rescue – Detection and Protection for a Healthier You!” Numerous elementary and high school students as well as their families enjoyed our four stations: Finding the Tumor in the Teddy Bear, where we showed the use of radioactive elements in diagnostic medical imaging of body parts; Radiation in Everyday Items, where we demonstrated that some current and discontinued everyday items emit radiation that could be detected; Finding the Perfect Shield to Protect the Mole, where we demonstrated the use of different shielding materials to block radiation and protect us; and National Security Checkpoint, where we showed how to “scan” a person to determine whether they are carrying radioactive material.

Thirty-one faculty, students and family members participated in this event on a Sunday to show QCC team spirit! This event was co-sponsored by QCC’s Science Research Alliance Club who provided T-Shirts to the student participants. We would especially like to thank the following faculty from the Chemistry Department for their time and effort in designing the experiments and/or volunteering their time:

Drs. Paul Sideris, Sharon Lall-Ramnarine, Tirandai Hemraj-Benny, Zhou Zhou, Sujun Wei and David Sarno. Many thanks also go to our colleagues in the chemistry stockroom for their help with the preparation of the experiments: Mr. Pete Irigoyen, Mr. Bruce Montalbano, and Mr. Andrew Xu. Thanks to Professor Roland Scal in the Biological Sciences and Geology department and our partners at Brookhaven National Laboratory: Susan Pepper, John Aloi, Joseph Carbonaro, and Jasmine Hatcher-Lamarre for lending us supplies and equipment.

Student and family volunteers were also crucial to the success of the event and include:

Aditya Pathak, Anna Liu, Aujeane Gordon, Chloe Zhang, Darli Chit, Dhanesh Benny, Erika Juarez, Javel Bailey, Julian Ramnarine, Kandajah Clarke, Kayla Calle, Ieesha Ansar, Maha Almaflehi, Martina Hove, Matthew Persaud, Nancy Hernandez, Olive Forman-Sarno, Pedrocia De-Sosoo, Sahana Benny, Shoon Thar, Stephanie Galarza, Sumaiya Husain, Thrisha mae Lumor, and Yen Yi Shak.

We will continue to be part of this celebration of National Chemistry Week that occurs yearly near the end of October. If you have young family members, please be sure to join us next year!