JAN/FEB 2026 RETA Breeze

12. Dec. 2025—Candidate failed full CIRO exam with a total score of 62%. This candidate did not use the CIRO Practice Test in 2025. RETA has included one practice test in the registration fee for CARO, CIRO and CRST since 2020. Additional practice tests can be purchased for $59 per attempt. Practice tests are especially helpful in preparing candidates to find tables, charts, formulas and other information in the onscreen references more easily during each test. These reference documents appear in each test’s study guide on the RETA website and next to test questions for each practice test and full exam. This candidate’s CIRO total score in Decem ber 2015 was 87% with no content area score below 75%. His Dec. 2025 CIRO total score was 62% with six of eight content area scores below 70%. Clearly, he did not demonstrate the same skill levels in his 2015 and 2025 CIRO examinations. This candidate’s 2025 CIRO score was reduced by unfamiliarity with the SDS’s that appear in the References which are located onscreen next to questions on the test. His score of 91% in safety on the 2015 exam fell to 61% in 2025. RETA does not expect any candidate to memorize an SDS, however, the test requires that candidates know when to use it to help protect the health and safety of anyone in or near a refrigeration facility. Some candidates can benefit from a supplemental answer key for CIRO and CRST on the RETA website that explains answers to 28 questions based on a sample screen, plus eight questions based on a ladder diagram. These demonstrate the pathway to answer ing questions about the sample system in their study guide by using formulas, tables and screens in the references document for that test. This supplemental answer key was created to help candidates understand how to use

Certification Checklist The last place many failing candidates look to discover why they failed a test is in the mirror! These steps can help candidates prepare to pass an exam to earn a RETA credential. Skipping these steps often leads to a failing score: 1. Download and review the Study Guide for your test from the RETA web site. 2. Review current editions or an online course for references listed in the Study Guide for your test. 3. Review the certification screens on the RETA website for other resources such as the Supplemental Answer Keys for CIRO and CRST that answer questions that appear in the study guide. 4. Review the directions for navigating the References Document that will appear on the screen next to questions during your test. These instruc tions appear in the study guide and in the References for each Practice Test and full exam. 5. Take the Practice Test for your credential under the same conditions as will apply during your full exam. One Practice Test is included in the regis tration fee for CARO, CIRO or CRST. Additional attempts can be purchased for $59 each. All of these—except RETA books and online review courses—can be down loaded for free on the RETA website. Members qualify for discounts on books and online reviews. – DR

information in RETA books and references. Candidates must determine what informa tion in a system screen is relevant to the question, whether tables and/or formulas are required, and which of the answers may properly address normal and abnormal conditions in that system. RETA created these resources to help all candidates succeed in advancing their careers. Candidates, employers and the public all benefit when system operators and technicians are fully qualified to improve the

safety and efficiency of their industrial refrigeration facilities.

Dr. Ron Rodgers RETA Accreditation Manager and Psychometrician

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JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2026