Trainees do not require a college degree or prior radiation training to take these radiation safety courses. All of our radiation safety courses are only available in the English language so all participants must be conversant in this language. Most successful trainees have a high school or better education.

As the field of radiation physics, dosimetry, etc., is a very complicated subject, many worry that these courses may be too overly complicated for them. Regulators understood correctly that use of pre-engineered nuclear gauges and irradiators only required a basic understanding and respect for the basic radiation principles and how to safely use these devices. Regulations are therefore written around this fundamental understanding in order to maximize their beneficial use. All complex math equations and subject matter that would require college or advanced degrees are completely avoided. Radiation Solutions has successfully constructed its courses so everyone can easily grasp the subject matter. We are especially proud of the fact that we have a very high percentage of students passing our courses.

A popular question is whether or not a test is given. The answer is yes; to receive a certificate from Radiation Solutions, the trainee must pass a final written exam with an 80% or better grade. The exam is open book, so all materials are available to students who need to quickly check their answers, look up a specific regulation, or review their notes, etc. All exams are retrieved and scored immediately following the conclusion of the course. Those passing, receive a signed certificate. Radiation Solutions keeps copies of the certificates on its cloud-backed company server so it can be retrieved later if needed.

There is no specific time frame specified for refresher radiation safety training training; however, the shipping authorization of radioactive materials does have time limits. As radioactive shipper training is included in the base Radiation Safety Officer (RSO) and Authorized User (AU) training and certification provided by Radiation Solutions, they require updating periodically. Refresher training is required every three years for US DOT ground type shipping and every two years for IATA air shipments. Radiation Solutions offers HazMat Shipper Refresher courses to re-certify shipper requirements.

Many believe that there is a 40 hour long course requirement.  This is simply not true for RSO certification for Fixed and Portable Nuclear Gauges.  These courses meet all the training criteria of NUREG 1556 Vol 1 Appendix C (portable gauges) and  NUREG 1556 Vol 4, Appendix D (fixed gauges).  Neither of these guides nor the regulations upon which they are based require 40 hours of training for these two specific gauge types. 

The 40 hour requirement is; however, very true for other types of nuclear devices, products, or services that are higher risk such as in medicine, research, and food/medical supply irradiation etc.  These are identified in the other volumes of NUREG 1556.

Never-the-less, Radiation Solutions recognizes there are those who do wish to receive more thorough training so that when they take on the RSO role they are very well prepared and confident when working around radioactive devices.  We have therefore created a 40 hour Comprehensive RSO training course that covers all the same material given in our two day courses plus many extra practicals designed to familiarize students with real radioactive sources, radiation meters, and several types of gauges.  See our Comprehensive RSO Training Course for more info.  

None of the courses at the present time are accredited for CEU.

There are at least 15 different RSO classifications, each with unique training criteria to address the type of nuclear devices and processes.  It is therefore necessary for you to know beforehand which License Type you fall under before enrolling in a training program to ensure it qualifies.

The training offered by Radiation Solutions is for Fixed Gauges & Well Logging Industries.  To better understand this RSO classification or if you are uncertain which classification you fall under, you can view a complete table with all 15 types here.