ANS001 Exam Information and Outline
Certified Nuclear Professional (CNP)
Syllabus Update Checked on: November 9, 2026
ANS001 Exam Syllabus & Study Guide
Before you start practicing with our exam simulator, it is essential to understand the
official ANS001 exam objectives. This course outline serves as your roadmap.
The information below reflects the 2026 syllabus defined by
ANS.
Below are complete topics detail with latest syllabus and course outline, that will help you good knowledge about exam objectives and topics that you have to prepare. These contents are covered in questions and answers pool of exam.
- Exam Format
- 100 questions: single/multiple-answer multiple choice, matching and drag-and-drop
- Duration: 2 hours (plus 25 minutes administration)
- Embedded scientific calculator and electronic reference sheet
- 1. Nuclear Fundamentals (~20%)
- Nuclear structure, stability, reactions and energy release
- Radioactive decay: decay types, half-life, decay chains, chart of nuclides
- Neutron balance: keff, criticality states, delayed neutrons
- Interactions of ionizing radiation with matter
- 2. General Nuclear Safety Culture (~15%)
- Human performance tools and safety-conscious work environment
- TMI, Chernobyl and Fukushima: sequences, human factors and lessons learned
- Industry changes resulting from events
- 3. Industry Codes and Standards (~10%)
- ANS, ASME, IEEE and ASCE consensus standards
- Requirements vs. guidance; hierarchy of design requirements
- SSC qualification: seismic, environmental, Appendix B, cyber, EMI/RFI, commercial grade dedication
- 4. Applied Health Physics (~10%)
- Dosimetry and dose quantities; unit conversions
- Time, distance and shielding; half- and tenth-value thickness
- Dose limits, LNT model and ALARA
- Biological effects and radiation instruments
- 5. Licensing and Regulatory Concepts (~10%)
- Atomic Energy Act, Energy Reorganization Act, Price-Anderson Act, 10 CFR Parts 20, 50, 100
- Defense in depth; deterministic vs. probabilistic assessment
- Licensing basis, FSAR, license amendments and renewal (Parts 51 and 54)
- Technical specifications, Reactor Oversight Process, EALs and decommissioning
- 6. Non-Power Applications of Radiation (~10%)
- Detectors, counting statistics and spectroscopy
- Medical diagnostic, imaging and therapeutic uses
- Industrial radiotracers, gauges, radiography and analysis
- 7. Nuclear Power (~15%)
- Reactivity feedback and core components
- Reactor generations II–IV; PWR and BWR systems
- Thermal vs. fast reactors; SMRs and microreactors; CANDU, AGR, VVER
- Refueling outages, spent fuel pools and dry cask storage
- 8. Fuel Cycle and Waste Management (~10%)
- Front-end and back-end fuel cycle; open vs. closed cycles
- Enrichment technologies and reprocessing (PUREX, pyroprocessing)
- Transportation casks and regulations
- High- and low-level waste classes; Nuclear Waste Policy Act