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Passing the AAPC Certified General Surgery Coder (CGSC) exam means scoring 70% on a paper of 100 questions that runs for 240 minutes. A single attempt was priced at $325 in October 2026, and a bundle of two was $399. What it tests is whether you can turn operative documentation for abdominal, breast, endocrine, soft tissue and trauma surgery into correct codes and modifiers.

This guide explains how the paper is built, what each of its four syllabus areas asks of you, where capable coders lose marks and how to prepare without wasting weeks. To find your starting point, take the CGSC practice test early and treat your first result as a starting point.

How is the CGSC exam structured, scored and priced?

Divide 240 minutes by 100 questions and you get 144 seconds a question. The cut-off is 70%, which equals 70 right answers from 100. Where you sit is your choice: AAPC offers a remote-proctored session from your own room, or an appointment at a testing center. Dates and times become visible once an exam voucher has been bought.

The fee AAPC advertised in October 2026 started at $325, and our records add a $399 option covering two exam attempts. Nothing we hold splits the 100 questions into scored and unscored items, so assume every one counts and answer all of them. Four hours is generous for most working coders. Pacing is seldom the problem; reading a report too fast is.

The NNCC Certified Dialysis Nurse (CDN) exam has 150 questions, a three-hour limit and a passing score of 70%. About 25 of the questions are unscored pilot items. More than half of the paper, 52%, comes from one area, chronic hemodialysis care for patients with end-stage renal disease. Here is how it is put together.

Curious how ready you are today? Try the CDN practice test first. The sections below show what your result should be measured against and how NNCC's blueprint becomes a plan.

What does the CDN certification prove, and who is eligible?

A dialysis nurse carries a very particular set of responsibilities. In one shift that can mean preparing and starting treatments, watching the machine and the patient at the same time, teaching a person with kidney failure how to manage fluid and diet, and keeping the water treatment system and the unit safe for everyone in the room. The Certified Dialysis Nurse credential is built around that work. It tells an employer and a patient that the nurse passed a standard examination written for registered nurses who practise in dialysis facilities.

Sitting the AAPC Certified Orthopaedic Surgery Coder (COSC) exam asks 100 questions across 240 minutes, and you need 70% to pass. The questions draw on diagnosis, E/M, procedure and supply coding for bone, joint and spine care. Below you will find the structure, the four areas AAPC lists and a plan for getting ready.

Curious how ready you are today? Take the COSC practice test first and keep the result as a starting point to measure progress against.

What is the COSC credential, and who is it written for?

Orthopaedic coding rewards precision more than most specialties. A single operative report can describe a fracture reduction, a screw fixation, a cast and a follow-up plan, and each of those pieces is reported differently. The COSC credential from AAPC is meant to show an employer that you can read that kind of record and turn it into correct, defensible codes.

AAPC describes the credential as validating a medical coder's advanced expertise in orthopaedic surgery coding, with skill in applying diagnosis, procedure and supply code sets to musculoskeletal conditions and surgical procedures. It says the certification suits coders working in orthopaedic practices, ambulatory surgical centers, multispecialty groups and hospitals where musculoskeletal surgery is performed.

The AMT Registered Medical Assistant (RMA) exam has 210 questions, a 120-minute time limit and a passing score of 70 on a scale of 0-100. Its content falls into four areas, and clinical patient interaction is the heaviest at 33.8%. This guide shows how the exam is built and how to plan your study around it.

If you want to see where you stand before you read further, start the RMA practice test and treat your first score as a baseline. The rest of this article explains what that score should be compared against.

What does the RMA credential show, and who can sit the exam?

A medical assistant works in two worlds at once. In the morning that may mean checking a patient in, verifying insurance and keeping the schedule moving. An hour later it may mean taking vital signs, preparing a room or setting up an instrument tray. The Registered Medical Assistant credential from American Medical Technologists (AMT) is built around that mix. It tells an employer that you passed a standard exam covering both the front office and the clinical side of an outpatient practice.

AMT is the certifying body, and its own page for the credential is the place to confirm anything that can change. At the time of writing, AMT's Medical Assistant (RMA) page says that all applicants must pass the AMT examination for RMA to become certified. It also says that applicants must meet one of its eligibility routes before they can apply.

The AAPC Certified Gastroenterology Coder (CGIC) exam asks you to answer 100 questions in four hours (240 minutes) and to score at least 70%. In October 2026 a first attempt cost $325, and $399 bought two. The questions turn diagnoses, endoscopies, operations and tests from the gastrointestinal tract into correct codes.

Below you will find how the paper is put together, what the four syllabus areas demand and where marks usually slip, followed by a six-week plan. To measure where you stand before you start, take the CGIC practice test and keep the first score as your baseline.

How is the CGIC exam structured, scored and priced?

Four hours for 100 questions leaves 144 seconds for each one, and the cut-off is 70%. AAPC offers two ways to sit the paper, online under a live proctor who watches remotely, or inside a testing center, and the open dates and times become visible once you have bought an exam voucher. The fee AAPC listed in October 2026 started at $325 for one attempt, with $399 covering two exam attempts.

Because the Master data for this exam does not show a split between scored and unscored items, treat all 100 as counting and plan to answer every one. Four hours is generous for most coders, so pacing is rarely the problem. The real risk is reading a scenario too quickly and coding the procedure you expected rather than the one the report describes.