Certified Pulmonary Function Technologist (CPFT)

The Pulmonary Function Technology (PFT) Examination objectively measures essential tasks required of pulmonary function technologists. Wearing the CPFT badge of distinction signals to employers, colleagues and patients that your skills are specialized, and you are committed to excellence in respiratory care.

The PFT Examination has two cut scores. If you achieve the low cut score, you earn the Certified Pulmonary Function Technologist (CPFT) credential. If you earn the high cut score, you earn the Registered Pulmonary Function Technologist (RPFT) credential.

For more information, click or tap on a topic below, or visit our PFT Exam FAQs.

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Certified Pulmonary Function Technologist
ScoringADMISSION REQUIREMENTSFree Practice ExamSELF-ASSESSMENTGeneral Exam InfoExam FAQSVOUCHERS
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Scoring

The PFT Examination contains 115 multiple-choice items (100 scored and 15 pretest). You will be given two hours to complete the PFT Examination.

PFT Detailed Content Outline – Effective October 2022

Admission Requirements

To qualify for the PFT Examination, you must be 18 years of age or older and meet one of the following requirements:

  • Be a graduate of and have a minimum of an associate degree from an entry into practice respiratory therapy education program supported or accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Respiratory Care (CoARC); or
  • Be a Certified Respiratory Therapist (CRT) or Registered Respiratory Therapist (RRT) credentialed by the NBRC; or
  • Complete 62 semester hours of college credit from a college or university accredited by its regional association or its equivalent, including college credit level courses in biology and mathematics; or
  • Be a CPFT if seeking the RPFT credential.

Free Practice Exam

A free PFT practice examination is available so you may familiarize yourself with the content and types of questions that will be included on the credentialing exam.

ATTENTION – By accessing this examination, you agree not to reproduce, distribute, disclose, offer for sale, or sell any portion of these copyrighted National Board for Respiratory Care, Inc. materials in any format. Failure to comply with these terms may result in disciplinary action by the National Board for Respiratory Care, Inc. including loss of your credential, losing your ability to retake an examination, and/or legal action related to copyright infringement.

PFT Free Practice Exam

Self-Assessment

Anyone planning to take the PFT Examination can assess how they will perform before actually attempting the examination by taking the official NBRC Self-Assessment Examination (SAE). The feedback from the SAE provides an opportunity to evaluate and remedy less-than-desirable examination performance before taking the credentialing examination. The official SAEs are the only products that provide the respective examination committees’ rationale for the best response to each question.

Official SAEs are only available in web-based format for purchase online through the NBRC’s testing agency, PSI. PSI’s e-store offers all currently available NBRC web-based SAEs for purchase online.

To take an online SAE, you must have:

• A compatible internet browser such as the current version of Internet Explorer, Chrome, Firefox or Safari. Other browsers may not work.
• Cookies and scripting must be enabled.
• Pop-up blocking must be disabled.

After your order is placed, you will receive a confirmation e-mail with specific instructions guiding you through the examination process. The e-mail contains your private password that allows you to receive individualized feedback on your performance. You will have 90 days from the time you receive your confirmation e-mail to complete the examination.

Please note: If you purchase an NBRC SAE, your credit card statement will reflect a purchase from LXR.

ATTENTION – By accessing this examination, you agree not to reproduce, distribute, disclose, offer for sale, or sell any portion of these copyrighted National Board for Respiratory Care, Inc. materials in any format. Failure to comply with these terms may result in disciplinary action by the National Board for Respiratory Care, Inc. including loss of your credential, losing your ability to retake an examination, and/or legal action related to copyright infringement.

Go to Self-Assessment Examinations

General Exam Info: Tools for Candidates

These additional tools are available at no cost to help you prepare for the examination:

  • Candidate Handbook: Information, applications and other forms for all NBRC credentialing examinations
  • PFT Detailed Content Outline – Effective October 2022
  • ATS and ERS Update Standards Critical for Exam Preparation
  • Practice Examination: An online simulation of the real examination experience using identical software. ATTENTION – By accessing this examination, you agree not to reproduce, distribute, disclose, offer for sale, or sell any portion of these copyrighted National Board for Respiratory Care, Inc. materials in any format. Failure to comply with these terms may result in disciplinary action by the National Board for Respiratory Care, Inc. including loss of your credential, losing your ability to retake an examination, and/or legal action related to copyright infringement. To access the practice exam and your results:
    • Log in with your email address – this is the email address where your results will be sent.
    • Use the mouse to select your responses and to proceed through the examination.
    • To obtain your results, you must take the entire examination in one sitting. Your results will not be saved if you exit the examination.
    • When you have completed the examination, click Finish and Display. Your results will be displayed on screen and emailed to the address you provided at login.
    • If you need assistance using the examination software, click on the Help button in the lower portion of the screen once you begin the examination
    • To take the online practice exam, you will need a compatible internet browser such as the current version of Internet Explorer, Chrome, Firefox or Safari. Other browsers may or may not work. Cookies and scripting must be enabled and pop-up blocking must be disabled.
  • Assessment Centers: A listing of assessment centers where exams are offered nationwide, searchable by state or zip code
  • General FAQs: Information on credentials, fees, credential maintenance and other NBRC information
  • Credential Maintenance Program (CMP) Brochure: Detailed information on the NBRC’s Credential Maintenance Program
  • Submit an Online Application
  • Printable PFT Examination Application

PFT Exam FAQs

You must be 18 years of age or older and have one of the following:

  • Have a minimum of an associate degree from a respiratory care education program that is supported or accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Respiratory Care (CoARC); or
  • Be a CRT or RRT credentialed by the NBRC; or
  • Complete 62 semester hours of college credit from a college or university accredited by its regional association or its equivalent, including college credit level courses in biology and mathematics; or
  • Be a CPFT if seeking the RPFT credential.

You may apply online or submit a paper application and fee once you have met the admission requirements.

If applying and paying by credit card online, your application is processed immediately. If mailing your application and fee, your application will be processed within approximately five to seven business days. An email confirmation notice of eligibility will be sent to you, which includes a website and toll-free telephone number for you to contact to schedule an examination appointment.

If your eligibility cannot be confirmed, you will be notified by email of the additional information required to complete your application.

The PFT Examination costs $200 for new applicants and $170 for repeat applicants.

Yes, AARC MEMBERS are eligible for a one-time, $40 discount when applying for the first time for the following NBRC examinations:

– CSE
– PFT
– NPS
– SDS
– ACCS

You must register for the AARC Member Discount through the AARC website at https://www.aarc.org/membership/get-a-discount-on-nbrc-exam/. AARC will send an email after registering for the discount containing instructions about accessing the NBRC’s online examination application. You must begin the application process from the link in the instructions you receive from the AARC by email. The discount must be used at the time you submit your application and payment and will not be retroactively applied.

There are no application deadlines. If you meet the admissions requirements for an examination you may submit your application and fee at any time.

If you don’t receive an email confirmation of eligibility or an incomplete notice within two weeks after submitting your application, contact the NBRC. If your application is not on file, you will be asked to send a replacement application form and fee.

NBRC examinations are administered Monday through Saturday at more than 300 assessment centers across the country (except on nationally recognized holidays). Search for an assessment center near you.

Yes. If you are approved to take an examination and paid the appropriate fee, you may schedule online.

A free PFT practice examination is available so you may familiarize yourself with the content and types of questions that will be included on the credentialing exam.

ATTENTION – By accessing this examination, you agree not to reproduce, distribute, disclose, offer for sale, or sell any portion of these copyrighted National Board for Respiratory Care, Inc. materials in any format. Failure to comply with these terms may result in disciplinary action by the National Board for Respiratory Care, Inc. including loss of your credential, losing your ability to retake an examination, and/or legal action related to copyright infringement.

If you are assessing your preparedness for the PFT Examination and feel you need more guidance than the free practice exam, there is a Self-Assessment Examination (SAE) available for purchase. The PFT SAE has the same number of questions as the credentialing examination.

ATTENTION – By accessing this examination, you agree not to reproduce, distribute, disclose, offer for sale, or sell any portion of these copyrighted National Board for Respiratory Care, Inc. materials in any format. Failure to comply with these terms may result in disciplinary action by the National Board for Respiratory Care, Inc. including loss of your credential, losing your ability to retake an examination, and/or legal action related to copyright infringement.

The testing time for the PFT Examination is two hours.

To begin your preparation in an informed and organized manner, you should know what to expect from the actual examination in terms of content areas tested. The detailed content outlines present the specific patient care settings and each of the content areas. The outlines can be used to get a general impression of the examination, and with closer inspection, can give you specific study direction. For example, you can determine the relative importance of each content area on the examination by reviewing the number of questions in each section.

PFT Detailed Content Outline – Effective October 2022

You will receive information about your score at the test center after completing the examination.

As indicated in the table below, candidates may attempt the Therapist Multiple-Choice and Clinical Simulation Examinations three times, after which the candidate will be required to wait a minimum of 120 days between any subsequent attempt. For the specialty credentialing examinations, including Pulmonary Function Technology, Neonatal/Pediatric Specialty, Sleep Disorders Specialty, and Adult Critical Care Specialty Examinations, candidates may attempt the exam two times, after which the candidate will be required to wait at least 180 days before sitting for the exam again.

Examination

Initial Attempts Without Waiting

Days Between Each Subsequent Attempt

Therapist Multiple-Choice

3

120

Clinical Simulation

3

120

Pulmonary Function Technology

2

180

Neonatal/Pediatric Specialty

2

180

Sleep Disorders Specialty

2

180

Adult Critical Care Specialty

2

180

As the respiratory profession continues to grow and flourish, we feel this is an important and necessary policy to implement in order to ensure caregiver competency and patient safety for years to come.

When you apply for an examination, your eligibility records are maintained for one year following application regardless of whether or not you schedule an exam. If you don’t actively pursue credentialing, your eligibility records are inactivated after one year. If you are a candidate whose records are inactivated, you must reapply as a new candidate and meet the most current admissions requirements to be eligible for the exam. Please note: if you have passed one of the examinations to earn the RRT Credential (TMC or CSE) and allow your application records to become inactivated, your passing performance will be nullified, so we encourage you to pursue credentialing in a timely manner after applying and receiving a confirmation of eligibility notice.

To support you through the entire process, we are committed to providing appropriate notices to candidates before their application records are inactivated, so we also encourage you to keep your contact information current with the NBRC.

There are two established cut scores for the PFT Examination. If you achieve the low cut score, you will earn the CPFT credential. If you achieve the high cut score, you will earn the RPFT credential.

If you would like to earn the RPFT credential, you will have to take the PFT exam and pass at the high cut score.

No. You can retake the exam as many times as necessary to earn the RPFT credential without impacting the status of your current CPFT credential.

Purchase a Voucher

If you are an employer or educator who plans to cover the cost of the NBRC credentialing examinations for candidates, an online prepay option is available for your convenience. Simply follow the link below to purchase a prepaid voucher. Once your payment is made, you will receive an email with voucher codes to distribute to candidates to use as payment when applying for the exam.

Purchase a Payment Voucher Now