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Refrigerating Engineers & Technicians Association

Instruction for self-registering for a RETA Practice Examination Created 06-03-2010 Revision 1 of 18 Approved: 06-04-2010

June 3, 2010 Subject: Guidance for the self-registration process for the RETA practice examinations. This tutorial has been created to acquaint you to the process of registering and paying for the RETA practice examinations. You may access the examination registration page from any computer that is connected to the internet and is using Microsoft® Internet Explorer® as the browser. The test pages may load satisfactorily when a different browser is utilized, but we do not guarantee that all images and screens will display properly when alternative browsers are used to view the test. These practice tests (CARO / CIRO) are presented in the very same manner as the actual tests that are provided at secure testing centers. The questions in the practice tests are “retired” from that active test pool or, are questions from the pool that were to be used in the live test forms. The practice exam questions have been developed under the same standards and requirements of the formal RETA Certification Exam tests. You may take both exams if you would like to – each has a fee of $59 US dollars until further notice. There is no pre-requisite to apply for and take either of these practice exams. The CIRO examination does have a minimum time-in-service requirement, see the RETA Certification Application Handbook that is available for download from the RETA website (www.reta.com/certification/). If you follow these instructions carefully your registration and testing experience will go better for you:

• Download from the RETA website the supplement package for the level of exam you are going to take before you go to the registration page on the Kryterion website.

• Print the CARO or CIRO supplement so you have it available when you take the exam. You will need information that is in the supplement to respond to some of the questions in each test.

• Download the Certification Handbook and Application manual. Read the RETA Code of Conduct found in the handbook. All applicants for certification must agree to and abide by the requirements of the Code of Conduct. You should read it for yourself so you are fully informed in what you are agreeing to.

• You absolutely must have a valid email address that is uniquely yours. The Kryterion system does not allow duplicate email addresses for test candidates – even for those who are applying to take the practice exam. If you “share” the boss’ email address and try to use it for more than one person the registration process will not complete successfully. There are many free email provider companies such as hotmail™ or qmail® that you can establish your email account with. IF you put in an imaginary email address the system will accept it – however after you have paid the fee you will be emailed the instructions for logging in and starting your test. If the email from the system goes to nowhere because you gave a bogus address – you lose. Use a valid and active email address in order to access your practice exam.

• Practice Exam payment is by credit card only. Most major credit cards are accepted (VISA, Master Card, American Express).



IMPORTANT INFORMATION:

1. The purpose of these practice exams is to provide candidates who are preparing to take a RETA certification exam an opportunity to preview the testing process and to experience the style and content of actual test questions.

2. All questions on these practice tests have been retired from the live exam pool of questions, but they were validated and reviewed in the same manner as the questions that appear in the CARO and CIRO examinations.

3. Each practice test includes 50 questions, including questions from each major content area that appears in the content outlines that are documented in the Certification Handbook and Application.

4. The format of the question and the responses is the same as the live exam taken at secure testing centers.

5. The practice exam is a timed test – 90 minutes. This is the same pace as the live tests.

6. You may write on your supplement package sheets or other scratch paper as you wish.

7. Like the live test, you may use a calculator to perform the math functions when determining power, cost, volumes, etc.

8. The questions presented in the practice exams are protected by US copyright regulations and unauthorized reproduction / distribution of questions or images of the questions is prohibited. RETA will enforce their rights through the RETA Code of Conduct and other means as necessary if copyright is violated.

The following pages contain illustrations of the screens that you may experience as you create a registration identification for yourself in the Kryterion system. Once you create your account in this system, you may use the log-in and password when you sit for CARO or CIRO exams sometime in the future. These illustrations are for information purposes only – they are intended to make it easier for you when you self-register. The appearance of the screens may be changed periodically by Kryterion, so the screen images you access may be slightly different than these that follow. Thank you for investing in yourself through this program. IMPORTANT: YOU MUST PASS THE FULL CARO OR CIRO EXAM BEFORE YOU CAN REFER TO YOURSELF AS “CERTIFIED” BY RETA. It is a violation of the RETA Code of Conduct to claim to be certified by RETA without passing the required examination. Disciplinary action could result from any violation of the RETA Code of Conduct. RETA will follow up on reports of operators who claim to be certified by passing a practice exam.



This is the first screen you will come to when you click on the Practice Test link on the RETA website or type in the URL for RETA exams on the Kryterion website. Note the link circled in RED – if you have not taken a RETA exam since September 1, 2009, you must create an account in the Kryterion system before you can take any RETA practice test. Keep your log in information and password for this site available because you will be using it again when you apply for and schedule an examination through RETA headquarters.



The account detail page is presented next – it looks similar to this. The fields with asterisks(*) are mandatory information fields. Do not put false information in these fields – we will require an explanation from you for providing misleading information. If you leave a mandatory field blank the registration engine will stall on this page until valid information is provided. Note: The password field requires at least one capitalized letter, one non-capitalized letter, one “special character” as shown in the prompt line by the field, and a minimum of 8 characters in the password string.



The illustration below shows the registration form partially completed.

Remember what was stated about the character sets required in the password?



A successful account creation page will come up when you complete the registration page. Note the message that says an email is coming to your email address – again, if you make up an imaginary address your log in and password information will go nowhere. There is a log in button on the screen that you can click on to take you to the secure section for signing up for a CIRO or CARO practice test.



Note the circled link – “Register to take a practice exam”

Here is where you select the practice test you wish to take. Either level is available for practice even if you have not yet met the prerequisite for CIRO.



You may take the practice test as many times as you would like to – you will pay the full fee every time you do though.



This is how the order page looks after you’ve selected the test you want to take.

The Ecommerce page will check the billing address of the credit card you use against the information you put here. If it does not match an error message will come up. If the billing address is other than your home (such as company credit card), you will need that address information in order for the Ecommerce transaction to be successful.



Using the link found in the email that is sent to your valid email address, you will log in to start the examination.



It is important to read all of the information presented on the screen before clicking buttons.



The practice exam has some of the supplement figures embedded with the questions to be presented on your display. This improvement allows for better time and resource management of your supplement paperwork while testing. Note that there is a count-down clock visible on each test question page. This helps you manage your time resources while testing.



There is a “review all” link at the bottom of each test question page. When invoked the link brings up a page like this that shows what questions you have replied to, and which you tagged for review. The tagged questions have an asterisk(*) next to the question number. Click on any of the question numbers to jump to that question for reviewing, etc. NOTE: This test taker failed miserably and used less than half the time allowed for the practice test – the responses shown below may or may not be the correct response for the question posed. This is merely a sample of the review screen. It is NOT an answer key.



Click on the “Submit Exam” link when you are ready to have the test graded. There is no turning back once you click the submit button.



This is what the score report might look like. It reports your percentage score in each of the categories shown below. 70% is the minimum passing score in any category. An overall score of 70% is required to pass a RETA Certification Exam at this time.

The score report also displays this more detailed information directing you where to look for information to reinforce your understanding of the information being tested.



The system sends you an email that reports your results to you.

If you log in again you will see new information on your transcript record page.



It is important to correctly exit the testing environment by clicking on the “Log Out” button on the previous screen.



In review: If you follow these instructions carefully your registration and testing experience will go better for you:

• Download from the RETA website the supplement package for the level of test you are going to take before you go to the registration page on the Kryterion website.

• Print the supplement so you have it available when you take the exam. You will need information that is in the supplement to respond to the analytical questions in the test(s).

• Download the Certification Handbook and Application manual. Read the RETA Code of Conduct found in the handbook. All applicants for certification must agree to and abide by the requirements of the Code of Conduct. You should read it for yourself so you are fully informed in what you are agreeing to.

• You absolutely must have a valid email address that is uniquely yours. The Kryterion system does not allow duplicate email addresses for test candidates – even for those who are applying to take the practice exam. If you “share” the boss’ email address and try to use it for more than one person the registration process will not complete successfully. There are many free email provider companies such as hotmail™ or qmail® that you can establish your email account with. IF you put in an imaginary email address the system will accept it – however after you have paid the fee you will be emailed the instructions for logging in and invoking your test. If the email from the system goes to nowhere because you gave a bogus address – you lose. Use a valid and active email address in order to access your practice exam.

• Practice Exam payment is by credit card only. Most major credit cards are accepted (VISA, Master Card, American Express).

Thank you for investing in yourself through study and certification in the craft of industrial refrigeration system operation. Good luck in your practice exam – use this experience to prepare yourself for success when you take the live test in the future.

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