- The Short Answer: Certified Transplant Preservationist
- Why the Acronym Confuses People
- Who Awards It: ABTC and PSI
- What a Transplant Preservationist Actually Does
- The Five Exam Domains
- Who Qualifies to Sit for It
- Exam Format and Cost at a Glance
- Numbers to Read Carefully
- Keeping the Credential Current
- Sequencing Your Prep Around the Domains
- Frequently Asked Questions
- CTP here means Certified Transplant Preservationist, awarded by the American Board for Transplant Certification (ABTC).
- Eligibility requires 12 months of organ-preservation work experience, with a supervisor attestation.
- The exam has 110 questions (100 scored, 10 unscored) and a two-hour limit at PSI test centers.
- Organ Recovery carries the most scored items: 30 of 100, followed by Organ Preservation at 25.
The Short Answer: Certified Transplant Preservationist
On this site, CTP stands for Certified Transplant Preservationist. It is a professional credential for people who work in organ preservation, the part of the donation and transplantation process concerned with keeping recovered organs viable and safely documented between the donor and the recipient. The credential is awarded by the American Board for Transplant Certification (ABTC), and the examination is delivered through the testing provider PSI.
If you landed here searching for the meaning of the letters, that is the whole answer. The rest of this article explains what the credential covers, who it is for, how the exam is built, and where candidates commonly get tripped up by the name itself. For a broader overview, see our explainer on what CTP certification is, or the shorter CTP meaning page.
Why the Acronym Confuses People
Three letters carry a lot of weight in professional life, and "CTP" is shared by several unrelated credentials in other industries. A quick web search can surface treasury, project, and technology certifications that have nothing to do with transplantation. Those programs have different certifying bodies, different eligibility rules, different fees, and different exams.
This matters practically. A candidate who budgets from the wrong fee schedule or studies from the wrong content outline can waste months. The safest habit is to anchor every plan to ABTC's own published materials, especially the ABTC Candidate Handbook, which contains the CTP Examination Content Outline.
Who Awards It: ABTC and PSI
The American Board for Transplant Certification sets the standards, writes the content outline, and awards the credential. PSI is the testing provider that runs the computer-based delivery at its test centers. In certification records and application workflows you may see the code ROC-P associated with the preservationist program, so do not be alarmed if the paperwork uses that label alongside the CTP name.
ABTC administers several certifications for the donation and transplant community. That is one more reason to read carefully: the Board's website lists multiple examinations side by side, and each has its own eligibility and content outline. The CTP outline is the one that governs what you will be tested on here.
What a Transplant Preservationist Actually Does
A preservationist works in the organ-handling pathway that follows recovery. The role centers on the physical and documentary stewardship of organs: how they are preserved, how specimens that accompany them are collected, and how organs are labeled and packaged so they travel safely and arrive with accurate information. Employers are typically organizations involved in organ procurement and transplant logistics, and the experience requirement means most candidates are already working in or near these settings.
The exam tests knowledge, not hands-on technique. It is an educational credential assessment, so treat any clinical detail you learn in prep as exam content to be understood, and always defer to your organization's current protocols and applicable policy for real-world practice. Verify current clinical policies before applying anything you read in study materials to actual cases.
If you want to see how this role connects to hiring, our page on CTP jobs covers the employment side, and CTP training discusses how people build the experience the credential expects.
The Five Exam Domains
The examination content outline organizes the test into five official domains. ABTC publishes the outline in the Candidate Handbook, and summing its recall, application, and analysis columns gives the number of scored items allocated to each domain. These are count-based allocations, not percentage weights published by the issuer.
| Domain | Scored Items (of 100) |
|---|---|
| Domain 1: Professional Practice | 15 |
| Domain 2: Organ Recovery | 30 |
| Domain 3: Organ Preservation | 25 |
| Domain 4: Specimen Collection | 12 |
| Domain 5: Organ Labeling and Packaging for Transport | 18 |
Two domains together account for more than half of the scored content: Organ Recovery (30) and Organ Preservation (25). That does not mean the other three are optional. A smaller domain still contributes real points, and the exam is scored on overall performance rather than by separate domain passes.
Domain 1: Professional Practice
The framework around the technical work.
- Professional conduct and responsibilities in the donation and transplant setting
- Documentation and communication habits that support safe, traceable handling
- Understanding the scope of the preservationist role
Domain 2: Organ Recovery
The largest domain, at 30 of 100 scored items.
- Concepts surrounding the recovery process and how it connects to what follows
- Asepsis and the principles that protect organ integrity during handling
- Why recovery details matter downstream for preservation and transport
Domain 3: Organ Preservation
The second-largest domain, at 25 of 100 scored items.
- Preservation principles and the reasoning behind them
- Maintaining organ viability across the interval before transplant
- Recognizing situations where preservation steps need attention
Domain 4: Specimen Collection
The smallest domain, at 12 of 100 scored items, but a frequent source of detail-oriented questions.
- What specimens accompany an organ and why
- Collection, handling, and labeling expectations for specimens
Domain 5: Organ Labeling and Packaging for Transport
At 18 of 100 scored items, this is where documentation and logistics meet.
- Accurate labeling so identity and information travel with the organ
- Packaging principles and transport considerations
- How errors at this stage create risk at the destination
For a deeper domain-by-domain walkthrough, read our complete guide to all five CTP content areas.
Who Qualifies to Sit for It
The CTP is an experience-based credential, so you cannot simply register and test on day one of a new career. ABTC requires 12 months of organ-preservation work experience. That experience does not have to be your full-time responsibility, which is helpful for people whose duties are split across several functions. A supervisor must attest to your experience through an employee attestation.
Once you are approved, ABTC provides a 90-day examination-eligibility window in which to test. Here is a caveat worth taking seriously: public instructions differ on whether that window starts at payment, at application approval, or at eligibility confirmation. Those triggers are not interchangeable, so do not assume. Read the dates on your own authorization, and if anything looks inconsistent, resolve it directly with ABTC or PSI before you book. Our CTP requirements guide and exam dates page go through scheduling in more detail.
Retake rules
If you do not pass, you must wait 90 days before retaking. After three unsuccessful attempts, you must earn 20 Category 1 CEPTCs (continuing education points) before you can reapply. Because fees apply again on each reapplication, a failed attempt is both a time cost and a financial one.
Exam Format and Cost at a Glance
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Total questions | 110 multiple-choice |
| Scored items | 100 |
| Unscored pretest items | 10 |
| Time limit | Two hours |
| Answer format | Four options, one best answer |
| Delivery | Computer-based at PSI test centers |
| Reference materials | Closed book; calculators prohibited |
| Identification | Two forms required |
| Exam fee | $495 |
| Application fee | $150 |
| Total per attempt | $645 (before any $225 international administration surcharge) |
The "one best answer" wording is important. Several options may look plausible, and your job is to pick the most correct one. That rewards candidates who understand the reasoning behind a practice rather than memorizing isolated facts. The ten unscored pretest items are mixed in and you cannot tell which they are, so treat every question as if it counts.
Fees are nonrefundable and apply again to reapplications. For a full financial picture, including how to think about the investment, see our CTP certification cost breakdown.
Numbers to Read Carefully
The 110-versus-120 question conflict
You may see two different question counts online. The current ABTC Candidate Handbook, dated August 13, 2026, describes 110 questions: 100 scored and 10 unscored. However, PSI's public online store listing for the CTP still describes a 120-question certification exam. When sources conflict, the handbook controls the live exam count. Plan around 110 questions and a two-hour limit, and treat the 120 figure as outdated listing text.
How to interpret the pass rate
ABTC's March 2025 statistical report records a historical 2024 CTP pass rate of 52% among 86 candidates. Read that number for what it is. It is not a 2026 rate, it is not a passing score, and it is not documented as a first-attempt-only figure. It is one year's result for one group of candidates. It tells you the exam is not a formality, but it should not be treated as a prediction of your own outcome. Our CTP pass rate analysis explores how to read it responsibly.
What the passing standard actually is
Passing is determined by overall performance against ABTC's expert-established examination standard. There are no separate domain passes, and there is no published fixed percentage to aim for. Anyone quoting an exact numeric cut score is going beyond what ABTC has published. See what is known about the CTP passing score for the careful version.
Keeping the Credential Current
Certification is valid for three years. To renew, you have two routes:
- Earn 60 CEPTCs, including at least 20 Category 1 and 10 Category 2 points, or
- Pass the examination again.
The single-certification renewal fee is $395. Because continuing education points accumulate over three years, the practical advice is to track them as you go rather than scrambling near the deadline. ABTC publishes its recertification requirements, reviewed August 2025, and those documents are the authority if you need to confirm what counts in each category.
Whether the credential is worth the cumulative cost depends on your employer, your role, and your goals. Do not assume a certification pay premium; compensation varies by organization and region. Our ROI analysis and salary guide treat this question without assuming a guaranteed raise.
Sequencing Your Prep Around the Domains
Because the exam is built from five domains with uneven item counts, the most useful planning idea is to match your study time to both the weight and your own gaps. Here is one way to sequence a short plan tied to the CTP outline. For a fuller treatment, see our CTP study guide.
Orient and Professional Practice
- Download the Candidate Handbook and read the CTP content outline
- Work through Domain 1 (15 scored items) to build the vocabulary the other domains rely on
Organ Recovery
- Spend the most time here: it is 30 of 100 scored items
- Focus on asepsis and the reasoning behind recovery-stage handling
Organ Preservation
- Cover the 25-item domain, linking each concept back to recovery
- Practice distinguishing the best answer among plausible options
Specimens, Labeling, Packaging, and Review
- Cover Domain 4 (12 items) and Domain 5 (18 items), where precision wins points
- Finish with timed mixed practice at about two hours per 110 questions
Key Takeaway
Do not let the smaller domains slide. Specimen Collection and Labeling and Packaging together account for 30 scored items, and they reward careful, detail-oriented reading. A quick cross-check against our one-page CTP cheat sheet can help you spot weak areas before test day.
When you are ready to test your recall under realistic conditions, our CTP practice tests use original questions written for exam-style review. They are not copies of protected exam items, and they are meant to build skill rather than to predict your score. For a sense of difficulty before you commit, read how hard the CTP exam is, and return to the main practice site whenever you want more timed practice.
Frequently Asked Questions
CTP stands for Certified Transplant Preservationist, a credential awarded by the American Board for Transplant Certification (ABTC). It recognizes knowledge in organ preservation and related handling. For more on the name, see what CTP stands for.
No. The treasury credential shares the acronym but is a separate program with its own certifying body, fees, and exam. The Certified Transplant Preservationist credential is an ABTC examination in the donation and transplant field, and its facts should never be mixed with the treasury credential's.
The current ABTC Candidate Handbook describes 110 questions: 100 scored and 10 unscored, with a two-hour limit. A PSI store listing still mentions 120 questions, but the handbook controls the live count.
You need 12 months of organ-preservation work experience, which does not have to be your full-time responsibility, plus a supervisor employee attestation. After approval you receive a 90-day examination-eligibility window, so confirm your start date with ABTC or PSI.
Certification is valid for three years. Renewal requires 60 CEPTCs, including at least 20 Category 1 and 10 Category 2 points, or successful re-examination. The single-certification renewal fee is $395.