The ASNT PT Level II exam: topics, format and choosing a PT method

The published topic outline

The ASNT NDT Level II examinations page lists the PT General exam as 50 items in 2 hours, with four topics:

1. Review PT Principles
2. Selection of the Appropriate PT Method
3. Inspection and Evaluation of Indications
4. Inspection Procedures and Standards

ASNT gives no percentage weight, item count or sub-topic for any of the four, so any split you see elsewhere, including in our free check, is that provider's assumption. Unlike MT, UT and VT, the PT section on the page has no before-and-after date split. The page carries a general notice that ASNT is rolling out revised topics for several NDT methods; on 21 Oct 2026 that notice did not name the methods or give dates, so re-read the page before you book.

Format, sectors and fees

• Specific exam: taken alongside the General exam, for General Industry or Pressure Equipment Sectors. Each is 40 items in 2 hours, organized under Codes, Applications and Techniques, per the examinations page.
• Delivery: computer-based, in person at Pearson VUE or an ASNT Authorized Exam Center, in English, with an online translation dictionary. Booking, ID and calculator details are in ASNT Level II exam day.
• Fees: from the PT rows on the program page, the initial exams cost $740 for members and $820 for nonmembers; an added industry sector is $370 or $410; a retake of a failed exam is $370 or $410. The retake waiting period is 30 days.
• Eligibility: 2 training days, 30 days of PT experience and 58 days of total NDT experience, with a day defined as at least 7 hours.
• Employer parts: visual acuity, practical and any job-specific exams are the employer's, not ASNT's.

What each topic asks you to be able to do

ASNT publishes headings only. The notes below are our reading of what each heading covers, written for study planning (inferred, not ASNT text).

• Review PT Principles: why a liquid enters a surface-open discontinuity and comes back out under a developer, and the full process order from precleaning to postcleaning.
• Selection of the Appropriate PT Method: matching penetrant type, removal method and remover to the part, its surface, the setting and the sensitivity the job calls for. The decision flow below is built for this heading.
• Inspection and Evaluation of Indications: telling relevant, nonrelevant and false indications apart, and sizing and recording them against the acceptance criteria your code, specification or contract names.
• Inspection Procedures and Standards: working from a written procedure that meets the referencing document, and knowing which standards that document calls up.

Standards you may be pointed to

Your procedure or the Specific exam's codes may reference these ASTM penetrant practices. We list them by number and the process named in each title only; read your own copy for scope and requirements.

Standard	Process named in the title
E165/E165M	Liquid penetrant testing for general industry
E1417/E1417M	Liquid penetrant testing
E1209	Fluorescent, water-washable
E1418	Visible, water-washable
E1219	Fluorescent, solvent-removable
E1220	Visible, solvent-removable
E1210	Fluorescent, hydrophilic post-emulsification
E1208	Fluorescent, lipophilic post-emulsification

A worked decision flow

This flow is built around ASNT's second PT topic heading, "Selection of the Appropriate PT Method," from the examinations page. ASNT publishes no sub-topics for that heading, so the questions and reasoning below are our own editorial method, not an ASNT or ASTM procedure, and an NDT Level III has not yet checked it. On the job, your written procedure and the referencing code or contract decide.

A selection has three parts, and the flow takes them in this order: the penetrant type (how the indication is seen), the removal method (how excess penetrant comes off the surface) and the remover that method uses.

1. Check what is already fixed. Read the procedure, code or contract first. If it names the type, method or sensitivity, you apply it; the rest of the flow is how you explain why it was set that way.
2. Choose the penetrant type: fluorescent or visible. Fluorescent penetrant is viewed under UV-A light in a darkened area, and a small indication glows against a dark background, which is why it is the usual choice when fine indications matter. Visible (color-contrast) penetrant is viewed in ordinary white light, so it needs no darkened booth or UV lamp, which suits field work and simple setups.
3. Choose the removal method from the setting and the part.
   • Solvent-removable: excess penetrant is wiped off with cloths, then a cloth lightly dampened with solvent. It needs little equipment and no water, so it fits spot checks and field work on a small area. It is slow over large areas, and wiping a rough surface clean without leaving background or pulling penetrant out is hard.
   • Water-washable: the penetrant carries its own emulsifier and rinses off with water. It is quick for many parts and copes better with rough surfaces and threads. The trade-off is that an overlong or forceful rinse can wash penetrant out of shallow, open discontinuities.
   • Post-emulsifiable: the penetrant will not rinse off until a separate emulsifier is applied, and the emulsifier contact time controls how much is removed. That extra step gives more control over removal, which is why it is chosen when shallow discontinuities matter and the process can be run consistently in a shop.
4. Choose the remover the method calls for. Solvent-removable uses a solvent remover. Water-washable uses water. Post-emulsifiable uses either a lipophilic (oil-based) emulsifier, applied straight onto the penetrant-covered part, or a hydrophilic (water-based) emulsifier, applied after a water prerinse has taken off most of the excess. Both are followed by a water rinse; the emulsifier time is the variable to control.
5. Plan who judges the indications. The selection is only finished when you know which code, specification or contract sets acceptance criteria, so evaluation under topic 3 has a basis.

Three cases worked through

These are study examples written for this page, not exam items.

• A short weld repair on installed piping, no water supply nearby. Step 1: assume the procedure leaves the choice open. Step 2: visible, since there is no darkened booth on site, unless the procedure asks for fluorescent. Step 3: localized field work with no water, so solvent-removable. If the weld cap is rough and cannot be dressed, wiping it clean is hard, which is a reason to raise it with whoever owns the procedure rather than carry on. Step 4: solvent remover. Step 5: acceptance from the referencing code.
• A daily run of machined parts on a production line. Step 2: fluorescent if there is an inspection booth and fine indications matter. Step 3: water-washable for speed, or post-emulsifiable if shallow discontinuities matter and the line can hold emulsifier time steady. Step 4: water, or the emulsifier the procedure names.
• Shop parts where shallow indications keep washing out with a water-washable penetrant. Step 3: move to post-emulsifiable for more control over removal. Step 4: hydrophilic or lipophilic emulsifier as the procedure specifies, with the prerinse for hydrophilic.

When you study, write out the reason for each step in your own words. The exam asks you to select a method, and a written reason for each choice is easier to check than a memorized table.

How to prepare

• Take the free 10-question check and note which of the four topics cost you the most.
• Sort your notes under the four headings. Anything that does not fit is either principles (topic 1) or procedure work (topic 4).
• Work the decision flow on parts you actually see at work, and have a Level III or your supervisor check the reasoning.
• ASNT links a Level II PT self-study collection from the examinations page and says no single source should be the only basis for preparation. That applies to this page too.
• If you are also sitting MT, its General outline changes for exams after 15 December 2026; see the MT outline change guide.

Sources

Show the list

• ASNT NDT Level II Examinations, ASNT Certification Services. Retrieved 21 Oct 2026.
• ASNT NDT Level II Certification, ASNT Certification Services. Retrieved 21 Oct 2026.
• Level II PT self-study collection, ASNT. Retrieved 21 Oct 2026.