State Licensing

Limited Scope of Practice in Radiography

The state is the authority that administers the license and grants an individual permission to practice radiologic technology within that state.

Many of the states in the U.S. require at least a limited scope x-ray license in order to work as an x-ray operator. A limited license allows a professional to image just a certain area of the body. X-ray operators working in the offices of medical doctors, chiropractors, podiatrists, and osteopathic physicians are regulated by state laws, rules, and regulations, which establish minimum educational standards and criteria for using x-ray equipment in each state.

While limited certification isn’t required to practice radiography in all states, the ARRT issues exams for 37 states requiring passage of the test for licensing. This licensing exam, designed and administered by ARRT but offered by states for state licensing purposes, is built around a core of 100 test questions that cover radiation protection, image production and evaluation, patient care and education, and equipment operation and quality control. Additional optional modules are offered for specific categories of licensing: chest, extremities, skull/sinuses, spine, bone densitometry, and podiatric.

Detailed content specifications are available online and in the exam handbook that ARRT sends to all applicants whose names are submitted by their state. The handbook also outlines exam procedures and is accompanied by a Candidate Status Report (CSR) that indicates the modules that the licensing agency has assigned to the applicant. All other applicant communications go through the state licensing agency, including name or address changes.

Each state determines the score pass/fail point for their applicants. Applicants apply to the state licensing agency for licensing and examination and receive results from the same agency. The agency may designate an exam processing center to handle fee payment and score report distribution. Applicant fees are non-transferable and non-refundable. ARRT scores the exams and reports the number of questions each applicant answered correctly to the state licensing agency. The agency then notifies applicants of their examination and/or licensing results.

Some states require specific formal classroom training, while other states have no specific training requirements. Regardless of whether your state requires training prior to taking the licensing exam, most applicants will find it very difficult to pass the exam without some form of schooling. The courses discussed on this website are designed to help applicants prepare to pass the ARRT limited scope examination.