1. Be a veterinary technician/nurse who has graduated from an American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) or Canadian Veterinary Medical Association (CVMA) accredited education program in Veterinary Technology or is credentialed to practice (if available in applicant’s state) as a veterinary technician/nurse by a recognized credentialing body in the United States, Canada, or other country.
2. Show evidence of a passing score on the Veterinary Technician National Exam (VTNE) or State licensing exam.
3. Be subject to the voting on of specific candidates for unrecognized programs or foreign credentialing by the Board of Regents.

After graduating from a recognized school of Veterinary Technology or becoming credentialed to practice (if available in applicant’s state) as a veterinary technician/nurse (or its equivalent), the candidate must meet the following education and experience requirements:

A minimum of forty (40) continuing education (CE) hours related to veterinary diagnostic imaging and advanced imaging modalities.

• The continuing education must be completed within the last seven (7) years immediately prior to submitting the application. At least ten (10) hours of the CE must be completed within the year of submission.
• The continuing education must be RACE approved or its equivalent, and/or received from an accredited veterinary technician school, school of veterinary medicine, or national/ state/ local conferences with approved CE in diagnostic imaging methods and/or use of advanced imaging modalities.
  • No more than ten (10) hours (25%) may come from electronic and/or printed sources with accompanying certificates of completion.
  • No more than five (5) hours may come from non-veterinary based Diagnostic Imaging Continuing Education.
• Applicants must provide scanned copies provided by the organization to show the name of lecturer, content, relevance and proof of attendance.

It is highly recommended that applicants attend the annual American College of Veterinary Radiology Scientific Conference and/or the annual European College of Veterinary Diagnostic Imaging meeting for one of the attended CE venues listed.

Continuing education should documented in the Continuing Education Log for review by the Credentials Approval Committee.

Completion of the Veterinary Diagnostic Imaging skills section:

• Skills must be completed within the last five (5) years immediately prior to application submission.
• Section A General Radiography and General Supplemental Skills may not be duplicated.
• Section B Advanced Imaging Modality/ Modalities (Fluoroscopy, Ultrasonography, Computed Tomography, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Nuclear Scintigraphy, Positron Emission Tomography-Computed Tomography) and Contrast Studies Skills (radiography, fluoroscopy, or any other appropriate advanced imaging modality) may not be duplicated

The skills form documents those skills that have been not simply performed but mastered by the candidate and are necessary to practice as a veterinary technician at an advanced level in the field of diagnostic imaging. Mastery of a skill is defined in the AVTDI Articles and Bylaws.

The skills form is subject to change based upon the current state of the art technology in veterinary diagnostic imaging.

To help you prepare for the Final Application, we’ve created Google Sheets Worksheet that is based on the actual Final Application form.  This worksheet includes all of the skill codes that can be documented as part of the Final Application and instructions on how to complete the requirements of each skills section.

This worksheet is for reference only and is NOT the official Final Application.  It will NOT be accepted by AVTDI for credit of any kind.  To create your own personal copy of the skill worksheet, click below.  You’ll need a Gmail or Google Workspace account to save your copy of the worksheet.

For complete Diagnostic Imaging Skills guidelines, refer to our bylaws, click More Skills Details below, or visit our Final Application live demo.

A case log is to be maintained for one (1) year immediately preceding the submission of the final application. The cases shall reflect the mastery of general radiology knowledge and advanced imaging skills required to be applied for imaging of multiple species of veterinary patients.

A minimum of forty-five (45) case logs must be recorded, not to exceed sixty (60).

A minimum of ten (10) case logs must represent skills from Section A and a minimum of twenty (20) case logs must represent skills from Section B.

For complete guidelines, refer to our bylaws, click more details below, or visit our Final Application Live demo.

Six (6) detailed case reports should be maintained for one (1) year immediately preceding the submission of the final-application.

Case reports submitted by the candidate must demonstrate expertise in management of imaging clinical cases.

Recorded cases should have a minimum of two (2) species.

• Two (2) to five (5) anonymized digital images representative of the imaging study in each case report will be submitted with the final application and written case reports.

For complete Case Reports guidelines, refer to our bylaws, click More Case Report Details below, or visit our Final Application live demo.

The Examination Committee may include multiple-choice, written and practical items; computer simulations and use of audiovisual aids may be used as part of the testing process.

Topics to be covered on the examination will be those that are crucial to veterinary diagnostic imaging.

Exam items will be referenced using current scientific sources.

Topics covered may include:

• General radiology knowledge
• Radiation safety
• Radiographic positioning techniques required for multiple species
• Radiographic/fluoroscopic special procedure imaging
• General radiology knowledge
• Special procedures
• Radiographic positioning
• Image quality control
• Pharmacology
• Medical record

Applicants will also be tested on basic knowledge of advanced imaging modalities used for veterinary imaging including:

• CT
• MRI
• Ultrasound
• Nuclear Medicine imaging

Topics to be covered may include but are not limited to:

• Routine use and common studies performed
• Modality specific safety
• Imaging protocols required for specific disease processes
• General Physics
• Common artifacts and signs of equipment failure

The examination may be postponed once, for up to one application cycle, at the request of the candidate.

Candidates must submit the Exam Postponement Request form to indicate their desire to postpone their examination date.

Requests must be received no later than thirty (30) days prior to the examination date.

A postponement fee of $25 is required if the examination is postponed.

All candidates sitting for an examination will be notified of the results of the examination by mail within sixty (60) days of the date of the examination.

Candidates who have failed the examination will, upon written request within thirty (30) days of notification, be given written clarification as to the areas of deficiencies. The letter of clarification will be provided by mail within sixty (60) days of receipt of the candidate’s request.

Candidates who have failed the examination may:

Sit for the examination up to two (2) additional times.

Following three failed attempts, applicants must complete the application process again, in its entirety.

Submit five (5) examination questions with corresponding answers for potential use on future exams.

Fees for certification:

• $50 non-refundable Pre-Application Fee (paid upon Pre-Application submission)
• $50 non-refundable Final Application Fee (paid upon Final Application submission)
• $150 non-refundable Examination Fee