- The Short Answer: ABRET Has Not Published a Numeric Pass Mark
- How the Minimum-Competence Standard Works
- Where Your Score Comes From: The Four Domains
- Exam Format and What Remains Unpublished
- What the Pass-Rate Data Does and Does Not Tell You
- How to Prepare When There Is No Target Number
- Results Timing, Fees, and Retake Rules
- Qualify Before You Worry About Scoring
- Frequently Asked Questions
- ABRET sets a minimum-competence passing standard for NeuroAnalyst-CLTM, but a numeric pass mark was not verified in the 2025 handbook.
- Domain 3 (EEG/video analysis and semiology) carries 70% of the exam; Domain 4 (report writing) carries 20%.
- The 2024 ABRET statistics show a 60% pass rate across only ten NA-CLTM candidates, too small to predict your result.
- Unofficial results arrive within 72 hours; official results take roughly 2-4 weeks (the handbook says 3-4).
The Short Answer: ABRET Has Not Published a Numeric Pass Mark
Candidates searching for the NA-CLTM passing score usually want a single number: 70%, 75%, a scaled 400 out of 500. Here is the honest answer for NeuroAnalyst-CLTM (NA-CLTM), the advanced-level credential administered by ABRET Neurodiagnostic Credentialing & Accreditation: the Board sets a minimum-competence passing standard and matches exam forms for difficulty and content, but a numeric pass mark was not verified in the 2025 Handbook for Candidates or on ABRET's live examination and FAQ pages.
That matters because many third-party sites confidently state a cut score for this exam. Treat any such figure with suspicion unless it traces back to ABRET itself. Importing a number from a different credential that happens to share a similar acronym, or from the prerequisite CLTM examination, would give you a false target. This article sticks to what ABRET has actually published and explains how to prepare intelligently despite the gap.
For a broader look at how the exam is structured, see our guide to the NA-CLTM exam domains, and for the candidate-facing difficulty picture, read How Hard Is the NA-CLTM Exam?
How the Minimum-Competence Standard Works
A minimum-competence standard asks a simple question: would a just-qualified NeuroAnalyst, someone who meets the bar to perform advanced EEG review and preliminary reporting, answer this question or interpret this clip correctly? The passing standard is tied to that imagined minimally competent candidate, not to how well other test-takers performed that day.
Two practical consequences follow for you:
- You are not competing against the cohort. A strong group does not raise the bar, and a weak group does not lower it.
- Form difficulty is balanced. ABRET matches forms for difficulty and content, so a version that feels harder to you should not penalize you relative to a version a colleague took.
What the standard does not tell you is how much margin you have. Without a published numeric cut, the safest assumption is that you need consistent, defensible competence across the blueprint, with particular strength where the weight sits.
Where Your Score Comes From: The Four Domains
Even without a published cut score, the exam's formal objectives and weights are public. These four domains reproduce the examination's published objectives, not optional training modules.
| Domain | Focus | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Domain 1 | Validate patient identification and recording period, review the patient history and clinical data and information | 5% |
| Domain 2 | Review the technical description and recording parameters | 5% |
| Domain 3 | Analyze, classify, annotate, and delineate the EEG and video data, and evaluate seizure semiology based upon clinical and electrographic findings | 70% |
| Domain 4 | Write the NeuroAnalyst Report | 20% |
Domain 3: EEG/Video Analysis and Semiology (70%)
This is where the exam is won or lost. Seven of every ten points ride on how well you read, classify, and annotate recordings and interpret seizure semiology.
- Recognizing and classifying urgent EEG changes, and distinguishing artifact from cerebral activity, including artifact recognition and removal.
- Waveform localization, activation procedures, and cardiac/EEG associations.
- Behavioral and consciousness changes correlated with the recording, using standardized electroclinical semiology.
- Applying ACNS 2021 terminology as the exam-specific rule, since ABRET's FAQ requires it from January 2023.
Domain 4: Writing the NeuroAnalyst Report (20%)
Reporting is its own scored domain, not an afterthought. It draws on EEG-pattern and ILAE seizure/epilepsy classification, ACNS critical-care terminology and the continuous-monitoring consensus, pattern-associated syndromes in patients at least one year old, and reporting guidance.
- Candidate reports require history, technical description, and EEG description.
- The impression and clinical correlation are optional only where facility protocol permits.
- The handbook names the 2015 ACNS continuous-EEG consensus and 2017 ILAE classifications as retrieved exam references.
Domains 1 and 2: Small Weight, Real Questions (5% each)
Together these cover 10% of the exam. Domain 1 spans monitoring indications, clinical history and examination, imaging, age, comorbidities, medications, implanted or external devices, and patient safety. Domain 2 covers 10-10/10-20 electrodes, montage changes, filters, gain, epoch, amplifier settings, polarity, common-mode rejection, trends and automated detection, post-acquisition review, networks and audio-video, and ACNS guidance.
The weighting has a strategic implication. A candidate who is excellent at Domains 1, 2, and 4 but shaky on Domain 3 is exposed, because 70% of the content sits there. For a deeper breakdown of every subtopic, see the complete domain guide.
Exam Format and What Remains Unpublished
ABRET administers and proctors the NA-CLTM examination in person on its announced dates. It is not delivered through an assumed commercial testing-center booking channel and not remotely. The format combines computer-based questions with live, reviewable EEG/video clips in Persyst, with adjustable sensitivity and montages and two platforms used simultaneously. ABRET standardizes the laptop, second monitor, and mouse.
Public sample questions are four-option multiple-choice examples, but a complete item-type distribution was not published. Personal electronic devices, books, notes, reference materials, and calculators are prohibited, though supplied scratch material or a whiteboard is allowed. You may not leave the examination room while the test is in session.
Because live EEG/video clips are part of the format, practice that mimics the Persyst environment is more valuable than reading alone. ABRET's public preparation materials include sample questions and a Persyst Mobile Guide on its NA-CLTM practice page.
What the Pass-Rate Data Does and Does Not Tell You
ABRET Examination Statistics 2024 reports a 60% pass rate for ten NA-CLTM candidates, with repeat examinees excluded from the overall rate. That is the verified figure, and it comes with serious caveats.
- Tiny sample. Ten candidates is a very small cohort. One or two outcomes shift the percentage dramatically.
- Not your probability. A cohort figure is not a prediction of your individual result; preparation quality, case volume, and reporting experience vary widely.
- Not a 2026 result. Do not read the 2024 value as a 2026 outcome. ABRET's statistics index also lists 2025 statistics, but that download repeatedly failed to retrieve, so a newer numeric rate was not verified.
| Question | What is verified |
|---|---|
| Numeric passing score | Not verified; Board sets a minimum-competence standard |
| Most recent verified pass rate | 60% for ten candidates (2024), repeat examinees excluded |
| Total question count / timer | Not stated in handbook or live pages |
| Form difficulty | Matched for difficulty and content |
For more context on what the statistics can and cannot support, see NA-CLTM Pass Rate: What the Data Shows.
How to Prepare When There Is No Target Number
When you cannot aim at a percentage, aim at the blueprint. Your study time should mirror where the points are, with one deliberate adjustment: Domain 4's 20% is a skill you can only build by writing, so it needs its own practice stream.
Foundations: Domains 1 and 2
- Refresh montage logic, filters, gain, polarity, and common-mode rejection.
- Review history elements, medications, devices, and safety considerations that change interpretation.
The Heavy Lift: Domain 3
- Work through live, reviewable EEG/video cases with changing montages and sensitivity.
- Drill artifact recognition, urgent changes, localization, and electroclinical semiology using ACNS 2021 terminology.
Reporting and Integration: Domain 4
- Write full reports from complete recordings, then compare against ABRET's public sample reports.
- Reconcile any older terminology habits with the exam-specific 2021 rule.
That single scheduling structure is the only generic study framing this article offers; the substance is NA-CLTM-specific. For a fuller plan, use the NA-CLTM study guide, and when you want a rapid recall aid close to exam day, the one-page cheat sheet covers must-know facts.
Key Takeaway
Use original or authorized practice only. ABRET's October 2025 examination-security statement reinforces that alleged or recalled exam content is not a legitimate preparation path. Practice with original NA-CLTM practice questions and ABRET's own public samples instead.
Results Timing, Fees, and Retake Rules
Because the score threshold is not numerically published, understanding the consequences of a miss is part of planning.
- Results: The FAQ states unofficial results within 72 hours and official results in approximately 2-4 weeks; the handbook instead says 3-4 weeks for official results.
- Exam fee: USD 700, with no member or nonmember tier.
- Rescheduling: USD 225 at least 30 days before the appointment and USD 300 within 30 days, with no refunds, extensions, or transfer of fees.
- Attempts: Each application provides one attempt. After three unsuccessful attempts, the current NA-CLTM page requires a six-month wait and ten advanced-practice CEUs.
The 2026 sitting listed on ABRET's exam page was October 3 in Irving, Texas, with a September 1 application deadline; both dates have already passed. A subsequent 2027 date was not verified, so check ABRET's live page and see NA-CLTM exam dates for the maintained scheduling picture. For the complete money picture, see NA-CLTM certification cost.
Qualify Before You Worry About Scoring
You cannot sit the exam without meeting one of two eligibility pathways, and the application work is substantial. Pathway I requires at least a bachelor's degree, two years as a CLTM technologist, 30 advanced-practice LTM CEUs, and 50 documented technical reports. Pathway II has no degree requirement under the practice track, requiring three years as a CLTM technologist, 50 advanced-practice LTM CEUs, and 50 reports. Current CPR/BLS is also required by the linked handbook.
Full details live in NA-CLTM requirements. Once certified, the credential is valid for five years, and NA-CLTM replaces CLTM in your signature rather than being appended alongside it. It also describes an advanced EEG-review and preliminary-report role; the credential alone is not authorization for independent medical diagnosis. Whether that investment pays off for you is explored in Is the NA-CLTM Certification Worth It?, and pay questions are addressed in the salary guide, which avoids inventing credential-specific figures.
Frequently Asked Questions
A numeric pass mark was not verified. ABRET sets a minimum-competence passing standard and matches forms for difficulty and content, but the 2025 handbook and live pages do not publish a percentage or scaled score.
ABRET's retrieved handbook and live exam and FAQ pages do not state the total question count, the scored versus pretest split, or the timer. Unverified vendor claims should not be treated as official.
ABRET Examination Statistics 2024 reports 60% for ten NA-CLTM candidates, excluding repeat examinees. That small cohort is not a reliable estimate of your individual chances, and a newer numeric rate was not verified.
Domain 3, analyzing, classifying, annotating, and delineating EEG and video data and evaluating seizure semiology, carries 70%. Domain 4, writing the NeuroAnalyst Report, adds another 20%, so those two domains account for 90% of the exam.
Unofficial results are expected within 72 hours and official results in about 2-4 weeks (the handbook says 3-4). Each application provides one attempt; after three unsuccessful attempts, a six-month wait and ten advanced-practice CEUs are required.
While you wait for clarity on exact scoring, the most productive step is building real competence across the blueprint. Sharpen your reading and reporting with our NA-CLTM practice tests, and confirm your path with the overview in What Is NA-CLTM Certification?