Design and evaluation of an educational MRI simulator (eduMRIsim)

Motivation: MRI education would benefit from practical experiments at a scanner but scanner availability is scarce. Existing MRI simulators are generally targeted towards research applications and have steep learning curves. Goal(s): Develop a user-friendly, open-source educational MRI simulator, eduMRIsim, that enables students to experimentally explore the impact of scan parameters on image appearance in a realistic scanning environment. Approach: User requirements were defined together with MRI educators. eduMRIsim was developed in Python to mimic a clinical scanner and evaluated by 20 educators. Results: Evaluators rated eduMRIsim positively for user-friendliness (μ=4.3/5), educational value (μ=4.5/5), and clinical workflow resemblance (μ=3.6/5), supporting its effectiveness for MRI education. Impact: The new open-source MRI simulator, eduMRIsim, mimics a clinical scanner allowing students to experimentally explore scan parameter effects on image appearance. Positive feedback from educators affirms its potential as a valuable education tool for the next generation of MRI researchers.