RDA exam pass rate and what studying actually worked

by fatima_y 40 views3 replies
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fatima_yOP
May 24, 2026

I'm scheduled for the RDA in 5 weeks and starting to panic a little. I passed dental school with a 3.4 GPA so I'm not a bad student, but the sheer volume of material is overwhelming. Anatomy, radiology, infection control, chairside assisting - where do you even start?

I've been reading about rda meaning and what the credential actually covers in practice, and it's broader than I expected. I thought it was mostly chairside stuff but the infection control and radiation safety sections are substantial.

Currently scoring around 68% on practice questions. I'm studying 2 hours a day on weekdays and about 4 hours on weekends. Is there anyone who went from that range and passed? Or did you need to be in the 80s on practice before you felt ready?

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rashid_c
May 24, 2026

Radiology safety is worth extra study time. I missed 6 of those and barely passed. Make sure you know film processing, exposure settings, and radiation protection inside out - they test the details.

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brett_l
May 24, 2026

I was scoring 65-70% on practice tests and passed on my first attempt. The real exam felt about the same difficulty as the harder practice sets. Infection control was the biggest section for me - probably 20% of the questions.

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tamara_w
May 26, 2026

Your schedule sounds solid. I did 90 minutes a day for 6 weeks and passed with room to spare. The anatomy sections are more about landmarks and tooth morphology than deep physiology so don't overthink it.

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