- Which RG This Sheet Covers
- Exam Format at a Glance
- The Eight Content Headings
- Why GENERAL Gets Your First Weeks
- Specialty Areas: What to Know Cold
- Digital Workflow: Preparation Without Invented Weights
- Eligibility, Fee and Remote Testing Logistics
- A Short Schedule Built Around the Domains
- After You Pass: Annual Renewal Basics
- What the Public Data Does and Does Not Say
- Frequently Asked Questions
- RG here means Recognized Graduate, the written exam for dental laboratory technology students from the National Board for Certification (NBC).
- The exam is four-option, one-best-answer multiple choice with a 2 hour 45 minute standard time and no breaks.
- The fee is $275, delivered by FastTest computer with MonitorEDU remote proctoring.
- Dental laboratory materials is the largest area within GENERAL, so start there.
Which RG This Sheet Covers
Several credentials abbreviate to "RG." This page covers only the Recognized Graduate (RG) designation offered by the National Board for Certification in Dental Laboratory Technology (NBC). It is the written examination that dental laboratory technology students take on the way to the designation, and it is distinct from the later CDT specialty and practical certification steps. If you want a plain-language orientation before the details, start with What Is RG? or What Does RG Stand For?.
Everything below is drawn from the NBC's Recognized Graduate Examination Handbook and Application (front matter revised March 1, 2026) and the issuer's linked pages. Where the sources disagree or leave a gap, this sheet says so rather than guessing.
Exam Format at a Glance
| Item | What the NBC states |
|---|---|
| Credential | Recognized Graduate (RG), written examination |
| Fee | $275 |
| Delivery | FastTest computer delivery with MonitorEDU remote proctoring |
| Question type | Four-option, one-best-answer multiple choice |
| Standard testing time | Two hours 45 minutes, no breaks |
| Question count | 160 questions stated, plus ten additional ungraded field-test items embedded in each form |
| Passing standard | Minimum passing number correct appears in your candidate confirmation letter and may change |
| Remote scheduling window | Selected 30-day window (not exam time) |
Because there are no breaks across the 2 hour 45 minute standard session, endurance is part of the preparation. Run at least a few timed sittings of full length on the RG practice test site so the clock and the one-best-answer format feel routine before exam day.
The Eight Content Headings
The eight headings used throughout this site are the seven stable top-level subject headings in the detailed RG examination-content outline (handbook PDF pages 13 to 19), plus the DIGITAL WORKFLOW preparation heading on PDF page 20.
- GENERAL
- CERAMICS
- COMPLETE DENTURES
- CROWN AND BRIDGE
- ORTHODONTICS
- PARTIAL DENTURES
- IMPLANTS
- DIGITAL WORKFLOW
Why GENERAL Gets Your First Weeks
Domain 1: GENERAL
GENERAL is the broad foundation that the specialty areas build on. In both retrieved views of the content outline, dental laboratory materials is the largest General area.
- Prioritize dental laboratory materials: properties, handling and appropriate use across the lab's workflows.
- Expect the specialty questions to assume you already understand these materials.
- Treat General-subdomain percentages as relative to General only, not as shares of the whole exam.
One practical wrinkle: the extracted handbook text is revised March 1, 2026, while some rendered General-content pages retain a June 1, 2024 date and differ in subdomain names and ranges. If you are working from a printed or archived outline, check the live handbook at the NBC site and study to the current version. Cross-reference your notes against the RG Study Guide 2026 to keep your plan anchored to the structure rather than any one outdated page.
Specialty Areas: What to Know Cold
The six specialty headings each carry their own outline in the handbook. The shared description of the exam mixes six- and seven-specialty wording, so rely on the headings in the detailed outline rather than any marketing summary. Specialty-subset percentages have a different denominator than the General subdomains, so never add them together.
Domain 2: CERAMICS
Know the materials and processing steps a ceramics technician handles, and be able to pick the best answer when several options look plausible.
- Study the outline entries under this heading line by line.
- Link ceramics questions back to the materials knowledge from GENERAL.
Domain 3: COMPLETE DENTURES
Master the fabrication sequence and the terminology used at each stage, since one-best-answer items often turn on the correct order or purpose of a step.
- Walk through the procedural sequence from start to finish.
- Be able to explain why each step exists, not just name it.
Domain 4: CROWN AND BRIDGE
Cover restoration design, materials selection and fabrication tasks as laid out in the handbook outline.
- Pair every procedure with the material it typically involves.
- Review how digital tasks can intersect with these workflows.
Domain 5: ORTHODONTICS
Learn the appliance types and laboratory tasks listed under this heading, plus the vocabulary the outline uses.
- Build a short glossary of appliance names and functions.
- Practice distinguishing similar appliances by purpose.
Domain 6: PARTIAL DENTURES
Focus on design components, fabrication stages and the reasoning behind each element of a removable partial.
- Memorize component names alongside their functions.
- Compare partial-denture procedures with complete-denture procedures to avoid mixing them up.
Domain 7: IMPLANTS
Understand implant-related laboratory tasks and components as listed in the outline for this heading.
- Learn the component vocabulary before attempting scenario questions.
- Connect implant work with restorative materials from CERAMICS and CROWN AND BRIDGE.
For a sense of how demanding this material is in practice, see How Hard Is the RG Exam?.
Digital Workflow: Preparation Without Invented Weights
The handbook's DIGITAL WORKFLOW heading (PDF page 20) is explicitly named in the RG introduction and in the issuer's description of the Comprehensive/Recognized Graduate exam. It is best treated as a preparation and reference heading rather than a separately specified formal exam domain. Digital tasks also appear inside other verified headings, so you should not study this area in isolation.
Key Takeaway
Do not import the task list from the CDT Digital Workflow practical examination. That is a different later step. For the RG, learn how digital methods show up inside the headings you are already studying, and use the handbook's own wording as your guide. No complete digital task list or whole-exam percentage is published, so avoid any study resource that claims one.
Eligibility, Fee and Remote Testing Logistics
Eligibility checklist
- Qualifying NBC-recognized dental technology education
- English proficiency
- High-school graduation or equivalent
- Acceptable ethical and legal standing
- Instructor verification
- Three nonrelative references
Eligible students may test during the year before graduation. Passage is required within one year after graduation, and the designation is awarded only after proof of graduation is provided. The full prerequisite walkthrough is in RG Requirements 2026.
Remote testing checklist
- A selected 30-day testing window (scheduling only, not exam time)
- A private workspace
- A compatible internet-connected device
- A smartphone
- Photo ID
- Your printed candidate letter
Confirm live fee and logistics on the NBC application page before you pay, since details can change. For budgeting beyond the $275 fee, see RG Certification Cost 2026, and for scheduling questions see RG Exam Dates 2026.
A Short Schedule Built Around the Domains
This is the only study-method section on this sheet, and it is tied to the content headings rather than generic advice. Adjust the length to your own timeline.
GENERAL, starting with dental laboratory materials
- Work the largest General area first.
- Take a short diagnostic set and note weak subdomains.
CERAMICS and CROWN AND BRIDGE
- Study them together because the materials overlap.
- Fold in the digital tasks that appear within these workflows.
COMPLETE DENTURES and PARTIAL DENTURES
- Study both removable areas side by side to keep procedures distinct.
ORTHODONTICS, IMPLANTS and full-length timed practice
- Finish the remaining headings.
- Sit at least one uninterrupted timed session with no breaks to mirror the real format.
Use the RG practice questions after each block to check retention before moving on.
After You Pass: Annual Renewal Basics
Maintaining RG status requires six CE hours each year: one documented Regulatory Standards hour, plus five eligible hours drawn from Scientific, Professional Development or additional Regulatory Standards. Maintained RG status can continue indefinitely. The four-year CDT Comprehensive examination credit is a separate matter and does not define how long RG remains valid.
What the Public Data Does and Does Not Say
Historical pass data for the RG are limited. In the NBC's 2018 written exam statistics (Table 3), RG Form 11 shows 79.66 percent (94 of 118 candidates). Form 10 has no reported percentage because of its small sample. These figures describe two historical forms, not a current overall RG pass rate, so do not use them to predict your own result. A fuller discussion is in RG Pass Rate 2026: What the Data Shows.
Also note that paid study products from third parties were not reviewed for this sheet, so nothing here describes their contents. When a resource promises exact domain weights or a complete digital task list, compare its claims against the handbook itself.
Frequently Asked Questions
RG means Recognized Graduate, the written examination and designation from the National Board for Certification in Dental Laboratory Technology. It is not any other credential that shares the abbreviation. See What Is RG Certification? for more.
The standard testing time is two hours 45 minutes with no breaks. The remote scheduling window of 30 days is only for choosing your test date and is not exam time.
The publisher states 160 questions and separately notes ten additional ungraded field-test items embedded in each form. The consolidated delivered-versus-scored split is not resolved in the sources, so check your candidate materials rather than relying on a single number.
The current minimum passing number correct is provided in your candidate confirmation letter and may change. No fixed figure is listed here for that reason.
Yes. Eligible students may test during the year before graduation, passage is required within one year after graduation, and the designation is awarded once proof of graduation is submitted.