NDT Training Courses — UT, RT, MT, PT, VT and MFL, Led by an ASNT Level III

Training, exam and certification: how they fit together

Most enquiries mix up three different things. Knowing which one you need makes the quote accurate and the enrolment quick.

Step 1: Training

Classroom and practical hours in one method (UT, MT, PT, RT, VT, ET, PAUT or TOFD) at Level I or Level II. ASNT SNT-TC-1A recommends minimum hours per method and level; your employer's written practice sets the hours that actually apply to you.

From Atlantis: A course, practical time on specimens and a record of hours for your certification file.

Step 2: Examination

General, specific and practical examinations, set and graded under the employer's written practice by, or under the direction of, an NDT Level III.

From Atlantis: Exams administered and graded, with the papers and results kept for the employer's records.

Step 3: Certification

Under SNT-TC-1A and CP-189 your employer certifies you, on the evidence of training, experience hours, exams and a vision test. A training provider cannot certify you on its own. Under ISO 9712 schemes such as PCN, a third-party body certifies.

From Atlantis: Everything your employer's Level III needs to sign the certification, or a route to an employer-based programme if your company does not have one.

Prerequisites to check before you enrol

• Vision: a near-vision acuity check, normally every year, plus a colour-contrast check set by the written practice.
• Experience hours in the method: certification needs logged on-the-job hours as well as classroom hours. Training alone is not enough.
• Level order: Level I before Level II, unless the written practice allows the combined hours to go straight to Level II.
• The written practice: if your employer has one, it decides hours, exams and who signs. If not, see written-practice support under Level III consulting.

No written practice yet? See written-practice support.

What decides your quote

• Methods and levels
• Number of trainees
• Delivery: online or at your facility
• Whether exams and practical specimens are included
• When you want to start, and any travel

Send those five things and we reply within one business day.

From enquiry to enrolment

1. Enquire. Tell us the methods, levels, number of trainees and when.
2. Pathway call. We confirm whether you need training, exams, certification support or all three, and check the prerequisites.
3. Quote. A written quote for training online or at your facility.
4. Enrol. Complete the short enrolment and requirements form and confirm the trainees.
5. Train and examine. Course and exams delivered; records issued for the certification file.

Start your training enquiry

NDT training near me

Atlantis NDT does not run walk-in training centres. Courses are primarily self-paced online, with enrolment throughout the year and Level III support for clarifications. Access opens the moment you enrol. Company teams can discuss on-site or blended delivery. Hands-on training, equipment and the practical examination must be arranged separately under your employer’s written practice. We support technicians and employers worldwide, from offices in Houston (USA) and Hyderabad (India).

How the training reaches you

• Self-paced theory with Level III support. Join at any time of year and work through the learning material around your schedule. Level III support is available throughout the year for course clarifications; confirm contact arrangements when you enrol.
• On-site at your facility. For company crews: the instructor brings reference specimens and calibration blocks to your site, trains on your own equipment, and runs the practical sessions there.
• Blended. Self-paced online theory first, then a practical block at your facility under an ASNT Level III.
• Instructor-led sessions for teams. Discuss the methods, levels, shift patterns and instructor availability before agreeing an on-site course.
• Practice between sessions. The Practical NDT simulator for hands-on method practice in the browser. It is practice only, not a substitute for the practical examination.

NDT certification near me

Under ASNT SNT-TC-1A your employer certifies you, not a test centre: you complete the classroom hours, the on-the-job experience and the general, specific and practical examinations, and the employer issues the certification under its written practice. Atlantis delivers the training and the Level III-administered examinations wherever your crew works. ASNT's own central certifications, such as ASNT NDT Level III, are booked through ASNT's testing arrangements, not through Atlantis.

Training pages for your area

• NDT training in Houston, TX
• NDT training in Tampa, FL
• NDT training in St. Louis, MO
• NDT training in Pittsburgh, PA
• NDT training in Canada
• NDT training in Jubail
• NDT training in Abu Dhabi
• NDT training in the Middle East
• NDT training in Hyderabad
• NDT training in India
• NDT training in Manila

Every US and Canadian city, state and province page is listed under Nationwide on this page. Tell us where your team is: methods, levels, number of trainees and preferred format. We reply within one business day.

Comparing schools rather than courses? Read NDT schools: what they teach.

ASNT exam prep by method

Atlantis NDT runs self-paced online preparation, with Level III support, for the ASNT NDT Level III Basic and method exams, with enrollment open all year. Each page covers the exam structure, what it tests, a week-by-week study plan and the key references.

• Level III Basic exam prep
• Level III UT (ultrasonic) exam prep
• Level III RT (radiographic) exam prep
• Level III MT (magnetic particle) exam prep
• Level III PT (liquid penetrant) exam prep
• Level III VT (visual) exam prep
• Level III ET (electromagnetic) exam prep

Working toward Level II instead? See ASNT NDT Level II exam prep, and read can you get NDT certified online? for what an online course can and cannot give you.

A short tour of Atlantis NDT

A short tour of Atlantis NDT: the ERP workflow configurator, a sample digital twin inspection report, the browser-based ultrasonic A-scan demo, NDT training pathways, Level III consulting and the inspection quotation form. Digital twin data shown is labelled sample data.

NDT training and certification courses: how to choose the right route

Most people searching for NDT training, nondestructive testing training, an NDT school or an NDT certification program are really choosing between three things: a full-time school programme, short method courses, or training arranged through an employer. Under SNT-TC-1A, none of them certifies you on its own. The employer certifies, once training, documented experience and the general, specific and practical examinations are complete. Atlantis NDT training is built for that route to employer certification, led by an ASNT Level III. We do not run a walk-in NDT training center and there are no fixed course dates: courses run year-round and start when you or your crew are ready. Theory is online, and practicals are done in the Practical NDT simulator and in person at your employer's facility.

Choose the route by what you need to walk out with. A career changer usually needs Level I and Level II theory plus supervised practical time. A working technician adding a method needs that method's course and the experience log to go with it. An employer needs a crew trained to its own written practice, often on-site, without sending people away for weeks.

• Online NDT courses and blended training. Theory is self-paced online, with an ASNT NDT Level III answering questions, and the hands-on block is supervised in person at the employer's facility, on its own equipment and parts. This blended NDT training route keeps people working while they train.
• NDT practical training. Practical time on real specimens is where most candidates struggle. Between sessions, the Practical NDT simulator gives structured practice, counted as training only where the written practice allows and never as experience hours.
• On-site NDT training for employers. Corporate NDT training runs as a private group at your site, to your written practice and your procedures, so the training record matches what your auditors will check.
• Advanced methods. Phased array (PAUT) training up to Phased Array Level II, TOFD training, radiographic film interpretation and eddy current training sit on top of the core courses, from UT Level 1 through Level II in UT, RT, MT, PT and VT.
• ASNT Level III exam preparation. Preparation for the ASNT NDT Level III Basic examination and method examinations, for candidates who already hold Level II and the required experience.
• Limited certification. Some employers certify technicians for one technique only, such as UT thickness measurement or RT film interpretation. The written practice defines the limited scope and the training that goes with it.

How long does it take to get NDT certified?

It depends on the method and level. Under SNT-TC-1A you need the recommended classroom hours and documented on-the-job experience for each method, then the employer's examinations. The surface methods take least time; UT, RT and eddy current take longest. The SNT-TC-1A hours planner on this site shows what is left for your method and level.

Can you get NDT certified online?

You can complete the theory online, and the practical examination can be administered by an ASNT Level III over a video call where the written practice allows it. Experience hours cannot be earned online: they are logged on the job. Certification itself is issued under the employer's written practice, not by a website or a training provider.

What is the difference between an NDT school and employer-based training?

A school runs a long programme for people entering the trade, usually before they have an employer. Employer-based training fits around a job: the employer sponsors the courses, logs the experience and certifies the technician under its own written practice.

Test yourself before the exam

Free practice tests for Level II candidates, with answers and explanations for every question. Use them to find weak topics before your employer's examinations or an ASNT examination; the real examinations differ in wording and format.

• NDT practice tests and exam prep
• UT Level II practice test
• ASNT NDT Level II exam preparation

Start NDT training any time of year

Enrolment is open throughout the year. Courses are primarily self-paced, so you can join at any time and work through the learning material around your schedule.

Monthly starts

Portal access opens the moment you enrol, at any time of year.

Level III support

Level III support is available throughout the year for course clarifications. Confirm the contact method and arrangements when you enrol.

Practical arrangements

Practicals are done in the Practical NDT simulator and in person at your employer’s facility, on its equipment and parts. Simulator practice supports training; it does not replace supervised experience, the practical examination or employer certification.

Ask about enrolment and practical arrangements

Training and certification: who does what

A course gives you training. It does not certify you. Under ASNT SNT-TC-1A (2024 edition) your employer certifies you under its written practice, and ASNT also runs central certification. Each part is separate:

What the Atlantis course gives you

• Documented training hours for the method and level, recorded per person
• Theory: self-paced online material, with an ASNT NDT Level III answering your questions
• Practice in the Practical NDT simulator
• Supervised hands-on practical at your employer's facility, on its own equipment and parts
• A training record that you and your employer can keep on file for audits

What your employer does under SNT-TC-1A

• Keeps a written practice that sets the training, experience and examination requirements
• Gives the general, specific and practical examinations
• Carries out the vision examination (near-vision acuity and color contrast)
• Logs and verifies your experience in the method
• Certifies you. That certification belongs to the employer and does not move with you to a new job

The ASNT central route

• ASNT NDT Level II: ASNT administers a computer-based general exam and specific exams, in MT, PT, RT, UT and VT
• ASNT states that employers are responsible for carrying out the visual acuity, practical and any job-specific exams
• ASNT NDT Level III: the Basic exam plus at least one method exam, with documented NDT experience
• ASNT certifications are renewed every five years

ASNT NDT Level II requirements on certification.asnt.org

Completing a course finishes the training part only. Experience, examinations and certification still have to be completed and documented.

How the practical works

There are no fixed course dates. Enrollment is open all year.

1. Start in any month. Portal access opens the moment you enroll, at any time of year. There are no dated cohorts to wait for.
2. Learn the theory. Work through the self-paced material online and ask the Level III when something is unclear.
3. Practice in the simulator. Use the Practical NDT simulator to rehearse the method before you touch real parts.
4. Hands-on at your facility. An ASNT Level III supervises practical training at your employer's facility, on its own equipment and parts. Atlantis has no classroom, partner site or public venue for practicals.
5. Your employer's practical exam. Your employer gives the practical examination under its written practice. An outside Level III, including Atlantis, can administer it for the employer.

What the simulator trains

• Instrument set-up
• Calibration
• Scanning discipline
• Coverage of the area to be examined
• Following procedure steps in order

What it cannot train

• The feel of couplant and probe pressure
• Real signal noise
• Real surface condition, access and geometry on actual parts

Simulator time counts as training. It does not count as industrial experience hours unless a certification body or your employer's written practice explicitly allows it.

Practical NDT simulator · Try the browser A-scan demo

Who leads the training

Led by Anoop Rayavarapu, ASNT NDT Level III (UT, RT, MT, PT, VT), 11+ years of international NDT field experience. About Anoop Rayavarapu.

Any ASNT certificate can be checked in ASNT's online certificant directory, which you can reach from certification.asnt.org.

Speak to an ASNT NDT Level III

Atlantis NDT provides ASNT Level III consulting, NDT training to ASNT SNT-TC-1A, inspection management software and independent report validation. Request a free consultation and we will return a tailored quote — affordable, accessible and fully customizable to your programme.