Computed Tomography

Thearrtcomputedtomography(Ct)Examination

The Computed Tomography examination is a postprimary certification exam of the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists (ARRT). It measures the knowledge and cognitive skills that entry-level CT technologists need to perform CT examinations safely and accurately, and its content comes from ARRT's practice analysis of working CT technologists. Candidates who pass earn the R.T.(CT)(ARRT) credential, which many employers and several states require or prefer for CT practice.

Exam Pattern

The exam contains 195 questions: 165 scored items and 30 unscored pilot items being tried out for future forms. Pilot items are mixed in and not identified, so every question deserves your best effort. You have 195 minutes of test time within a 215-minute (3 hour 35 minute) appointment that also covers a tutorial and an optional survey; the clock keeps running during any break. Most questions are multiple choice with one best answer, and some ask you to select more than one answer, sort items into order, or work from an image. There is no penalty for a wrong answer, so answer every question.

Category	Subcategory	ScoredItems	Emphasis
PatientCare	1 PatientInteractionsand .	21	Assessment labs consent time-out , , , ,
	Management		monitoring contrastagentsand ,
			medications injection timing reactions , , ,
Safety	2 RadiationSafetyandDose .	21	X -ray physics interactions dose , ,
			metrics dosereduction shielding , , ,
			personnelprotection
ImageProduction	3 ImageFormation .	30	CTcomponents parameters acquisition , ,
			methods reconstruction postprocessing , ,
ImageProduction	4 ImageEvaluationandArchiving .	22	Display imagequality QC artifacts , , , ,
			informatics
Procedures	5 Head Spine andMusculoskeletal . , ,	25	Brain perfusion temporalbones face , , , ,
			spine postmyelogram extremities , , ,
			postarthrogram
Procedures	6 NeckandChest .	22	Neck airway lungs lungscreening PE , , , ,
			andaorta cardiacCT TAVR , ,
Procedures	7 AbdomenandPelvis .	24	Multiphaseliver pancreas adrenals , , ,
			kidneys urography stones GItract , , , ,
			bladder colonography ,
Total		165

The current content specifications place 71 of the 165 scored items (about 43%) in Procedures and 52 in Image Production, while Patient Care and Safety carry 21 each. The procedures categories now include cardiac CT with TAVR planning, CT esophagram, urography, renal stone protocols, retrograde cystography, and CT colonography; biliary imaging is covered within the abdominal studies.

Eligibility

CT is earned through ARRT's postprimary eligibility pathway, which has four parts:

Requirement	Details
Supportingcredential	AcurrentcredentialinasupportingdisciplinerecognizedbyARRTforCT suchasARRT ,
	radiography radiationtherapy ornuclearmedicinetechnology(nuclearmedicinemayalsobean , ,
	NMTCBcredential);checkthecurrentPostprimaryEligibilityPathwayHandbookforthefulllist
Structurededucation	Atleast16creditsofstructurededucationreflectingtheCTcontentoutline withatleastonecredit ,
	ineachmajorcontentcategory completedwithinthe24monthsbeforeapplying ,
Clinicalexperience	DocumentedcompletionofARRT'sCTclinicalexperiencerequirements(therequiredprocedures) ,
	verifiedbyaregisteredtechnologistorlicensedphysicianandcompletedwithinthe24months
	beforeapplying
Ethics	MeetARRT'sethicsrequirementsandreportanyconvictionsorotherethicsmatters

Scoring

ARRT reports a scaled score from 1 to 99, and a total scaled score of 75 or higher passes. The scaled score is not a percentage; because different forms of the exam can differ slightly in difficulty, the number of correct answers needed to reach 75 can vary from one form to another. Only the 165 scored items count. The score report also shows performance in each content category, which is useful for planning further study if a retake is needed.

Exam at a Glance

ExamAspect	Details
Credential	RT(CT)(ARRT) apostprimarycredentialoftheAmericanRegistryofRadiologicTechnologists . . ,
Questions	195items:165scoredand30unscoredpilotitems
Time	195 minutes of test time; 215 -minute appointment including the tutorial and survey
Questiontypes	Mostly multiple choice with one best answer; some select-multiple sorting and image-based , ,
	items
Testing	Computer-based at Pearson VUE test centers ,
Scoring	Scaledscore1–99;75orhigherpasses
Applicationfee	$225withanARRTsupportingcredential;$450whenanNMTCBcredentialisthesupporting
	credential
Examwindow	365daysfromthedatetheapplicationisprocessed
Attempts	Threeattemptswithinthreeyearsofthedatethefirstexamwindowopens
Keepingthecredential	Annual renewal with ARRT continuing education every two-year biennium and Continuing , ,
	QualificationsRequirementsforcredentialsthatrequirethem