ARRT^® Limited Scope Practice Test

Free ARRT Limited Scope Practice Test 2026 | Radiography

The American Registry of Radiologic Technologists (ARRT^®) administers the Limited Scope of Practice in Radiography examination to evaluate the knowledge and cognitive abilities of operators of radiographic equipment used to radiograph specific anatomic regions.

Click “Start Test” above to take a free ARRT Limited Scope practice test!

Exam Eligibility

To be eligible for the exam, you must meet the entity requirements of the state you wish to take the exam in.

ARRT Limited Scope Exam Outline

The Limited Scope of Practice in Radiography exam is split into modules: a core module and one or more procedure modules. Every test-taker must take the full core module, but the procedure module or modules you take depend on your specific license area.

Core Module

The core module contains 115 questions, 15 of which are unscored “pilot” questions used to evaluate questions for future versions of the exam. You will have 1 hour and 55 minutes to answer all of the core module questions, most of which are multiple-choice.

The core module questions are grouped into five content areas:

Procedure Modules

The procedure modules contain 20-25 questions each, and there are five additional unscored “pilot” questions in each module, used to evaluate questions for future versions of the exam. You will have 25-30 minutes to answer the questions in each module, most of which are multiple-choice.

There are five procedure modules:

Registration

To register for the exam, you must apply directly with your state licensing entity. If approved, the state will send you an instruction letter on how to pay exam fees to ARRT.

Once the fee is processed at ARRT, an online Candidate Status Report will be provided.

Once you receive your online Candidate Status Report, you may schedule an appointment online through the affiliated Pearson VUE website and search for testing centers near your location with their available examination schedules.

Test Day

On the day of the exam, you must arrive at the testing center 30 minutes before your scheduled exam time. During check-in, Pearson VUE will collect your digital signature, photo, and palm vein image. Biometric technology ensures that each examinee only has a single record in the system to safeguard the integrity of the exam.

You will be asked to leave your personal belongings in a small locker outside the testing room. During the exam, you are not allowed to use your smartphone, smartwatch, or other prohibited items.

Exam Scores

ARRT provides the exam results to the state licensing entity as the number of correct answers for each completed module. Your state entity will determine your pass/fail status and notify you of the results.

Study Tips

Start with the Modules You Will Actually Take

Before creating a study schedule, confirm which of the procedure modules your state has assigned to you.

Don’t spend time studying every possible procedure module if your state requires only Core, Chest, and Extremities. It’s also important that you don’t prepare only for the Core if you also need to pass several procedure modules individually.

Start with a practice test covering the modules you will actually take and analyze your results separately. Identifying those specific weaknesses will show you where to devote more attention during your study time.

Review Difficult Questions

After each practice session, review every question you answered incorrectly AND every question you guessed on or answered with low confidence.

For each difficult question, determine which of the following caused the problem:

• You didn’t know the underlying anatomy.
• You knew the anatomy but selected the wrong projection.
• You confused patient position with projection.
• You failed to recognize rotation on the resulting image.
• You confused mAs and kVp effects.
• You misunderstood how changing distance affects exposure.
• You confused receptor exposure with displayed image brightness.
• You recognized an image-quality problem but couldn’t identify its cause.
• You confused an equipment problem with a positioning problem.
• You knew the material but took too long to reach the answer.

Then, outline a specific plan for improvement based on what you discovered. In other words, don’t just say, “I need to study positioning.” Note that you need to practice distinguishing rotation from improper centering.

Similarly, replace “study radiation protection” with something specific, such as review beam restriction and its effect on exposure and scatter.

Utilize Answer Explanations

Answer explanations are an underutilized studying resource. To take full advantage of them, read the explanation for every question you found difficult, including questions you answered correctly.

For each one, make sure you can confidently explain:

1. Why the correct answer is correct
2. Why each incorrect answer is wrong
3. Which Core or procedure topic is being tested
4. Which information in the scenario controls the answer
5. How the principle affects image quality, radiation exposure, or patient care
6. How the same principle could appear in another radiographic procedure

If the question involves patient care, ask yourself if the correct patient has been identified, the procedure can be explained effectively, the patient’s condition is changing, and infection-control precautions are required.

Study Exposure Factors as Relationships, Not Isolated Rules

The Core devotes 42 scored questions to Image Production and another 40 to Safety, so technical relationships should be a major part of your preparation.

For example, don’t just blindly memorize disconnected statements like “mAs controls quantity.” Know what follows when mAs changes:

Higher mAs → more x-ray photons → greater receptor exposure → greater patient exposure

Build these relationships until you can predict the result of a change without searching your memory for a separate rule.

FAQs

By Kate Nockunas

Kate has been Mometrix’s Nursing and Medical Editor for over four years. She has a bachelor’s degree in Communications from Vanderbilt University, a bachelor’s degree in Nursing from Marymount University, and a master’s degree in Education from Johns Hopkins. Kate is a critical care registered nurse who still works occasionally in the ICU and PACU.

Edited by Aaron Lanni

Aaron is the content manager and lead editor for Mometrix Academy. He regularly produces, updates, proofreads, and edits content to ensure it meets Mometrix’s quality and accessibility standards.

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