The current NHA Certified EKG Technician exam has 100 scored questions and 20 pretest questions, with a two-hour time limit. Prepare across patient care and safety, EKG acquisition, and analysis and interpretation. Start with the current NHA test plan and check your eligibility before booking.
Which CET test plan should you use?
Use NHA’s current CET test plan for an exam taken before the new version launches. The current plan is based on the 2017 job analysis.
NHA’s September 2026 update announces new study materials for fall 2027 and a new exam for winter 2027/28. It says more specific dates will follow. Those are future changes, not the exam format currently in force.
The update links separate current and future plans. Match your materials to the version you will actually take, especially if your exam or retake will be close to the transition.
Official sources: NHA CET official test plan: current before announced 2027/28 update — https://info.nhanow.com/hubfs/Test%20Plans/nha_2017-cet-test-plan.pdf; Updated CET Certification Exam & Study Materials Coming in 2027/28 — https://info.nhanow.com/mediacenter/updated-cet-certification-exam-study-materials-coming
Check your eligibility route
NHA lists a training route and a supervised-work-experience route. Both require evidence that you successfully performed at least ten EKGs on live individuals.
For the training route, complete an EKG technician training or education program within the previous five years. You also need a high school diploma or equivalent, or must be scheduled to earn one within the next 12 months under the student pathway. Check the handbook’s conditions if that student pathway applies.
For the work-experience route, NHA lists a high school diploma or equivalent plus one year of supervised EKG work within the previous three years, or two years within the previous five years. The ten-live-EKG requirement also applies.
Paper exercises and online quizzes do not replace documented live-EKG experience. Use the Candidate Handbook linked by NHA to confirm your documents and any student-pathway conditions.
Official sources: EKG Certification | Earn your CET to become an EKG tech — nhanow.com/certification/nha-certifications/certified-ekg-technician-(cet)
What should you expect on exam day?
The current plan lists 120 questions in total: 100 scored items and 20 pretest items. The exam lasts two hours.
NHA describes delivery through schools, PSI testing centers and live remote proctoring. Follow the booking instructions for your selected method and verify identification and technical requirements in advance.
An exam fee is paid when you select the date and location. A study-guide or practice-package price is a separate purchase and should not be treated as the exam fee. For online exams, NHA says results are posted to your account within two days of scoring.
Official sources: EKG Certification | Earn your CET to become an EKG tech — nhanow.com/certification/nha-certifications/certified-ekg-technician-(cet); NHA CET official test plan: current before announced 2027/28 update — https://info.nhanow.com/hubfs/Test%20Plans/nha_2017-cet-test-plan.pdf
Use the three domains as your study map
EKG Acquisition accounts for 44 of the 100 scored items, Safety and Patient Care for 32, and Analysis and Interpretation for 24.
The official plan contains task and supporting-knowledge statements beneath each domain. Use those detailed statements to check your coverage, not just a list of rhythm names.
The plan also lists cardiac anatomy and physiology, emergencies, and CPR/basic life support as knowledge used across domains. They are not additional standalone domains.
| Domain | Scored items | Examples of topics to review |
|---|---|---|
| Safety, Compliance, and Coordinated Patient Care | 32 | Privacy, infection control, role boundaries, communication, vital signs across the lifespan, stress-test and ambulatory-monitoring preparation |
| EKG Acquisition | 44 | Equipment and settings, patient preparation and positioning, electrodes and leads, artifact troubleshooting, special patient considerations |
| EKG Analysis and Interpretation | 24 | Heart rate and regularity, intervals and waveforms, arrhythmias, pacemaker spikes, ischemia/injury/infarction, appropriate response to dangerous rhythms |
Official sources: NHA CET official test plan: current before announced 2027/28 update — https://info.nhanow.com/hubfs/Test%20Plans/nha_2017-cet-test-plan.pdf
Measurement practice: keep the units explicit
The test plan includes measuring intervals and understanding graph-paper units. This original exercise practises the arithmetic of a specified paper speed.
This is a hypothetical printed example. It does not show a patient tracing or ask you to diagnose a rhythm. Use supervised training and appropriate clinical references for actual acquisition and interpretation.
Original practice exercise
A hypothetical tracing was printed at 25 millimeters per second. Two marked points are 6 millimeters apart horizontally. Using the stated speed, how much time separates the points? A) 0.04 second B) 0.24 second C) 1.2 seconds D) 150 seconds
Show answer
B) 0.24 second.
Elapsed time = distance ÷ speed = 6 mm ÷ 25 mm/s = 0.24 s. The millimeter units cancel. A is the time for only 1 mm at the stated speed. C does not follow from the given values, and multiplying instead of dividing produces D’s incorrect result. A different paper speed would produce a different time for the same printed distance; this result does not establish a diagnosis.
Official sources: NHA CET official test plan: current before announced 2027/28 update — https://info.nhanow.com/hubfs/Test%20Plans/nha_2017-cet-test-plan.pdf
Choose useful preparation materials
Start with the free test plan, then use study materials that explain both the answer and the reason behind it.
NHA offers a study guide and practice tests, but says buying its preparation materials is not required to sit for the exam and does not guarantee a pass. Check whether your school or employer has already provided access before buying a package.
After a practice set, record the domain, the specific misunderstanding and the reference you used to correct it. Revisit the question after studying the underlying point. Practise all three domains, including patient care and acquisition.
For technical questions, review the complete tracing, stated paper settings and clinical context provided in your learning materials. Avoid relying on a single visual cue or an unverified rule taken from a forum reply.
- Use the detailed task statements to identify gaps.
- Separate a knowledge gap from a reading or arithmetic error.
- Practise with explanations and reliable supporting references.
- Rehearse the time limit once you are comfortable with the content.
Official sources: EKG Certification | Earn your CET to become an EKG tech — nhanow.com/certification/nha-certifications/certified-ekg-technician-(cet); NHA CET official test plan: current before announced 2027/28 update — https://info.nhanow.com/hubfs/Test%20Plans/nha_2017-cet-test-plan.pdf
Before you book
Confirm that your application, selected version and exam arrangements are ready.
- Check the education or work-experience route and required documentation.
- Confirm evidence of ten successful EKGs on live individuals.
- Use the test plan that applies to your expected exam date.
- Check the exam fee separately from optional preparation purchases.
- Review identification, accommodations and delivery instructions.
Official sources: EKG Certification | Earn your CET to become an EKG tech — nhanow.com/certification/nha-certifications/certified-ekg-technician-(cet); NHA CET official test plan: current before announced 2027/28 update — https://info.nhanow.com/hubfs/Test%20Plans/nha_2017-cet-test-plan.pdf; Updated CET Certification Exam & Study Materials Coming in 2027/28 — https://info.nhanow.com/mediacenter/updated-cet-certification-exam-study-materials-coming
Official sources
Checked:
- EKG Certification | Earn your CET to become an EKG tech
- Certified EKG Technician (CET) Study Guide
- Certified EKG Technician (CET) - Practice Tests + Study Guide
- Patient Care Technician Certification | CPCT/A
- Pharmacy Technician Certification | CPhT
- NHA CET official test plan: current before announced 2027/28 update
- Updated CET Certification Exam & Study Materials Coming in 2027/28