I'm currently planning to try and take the CHP test next year. I'm not so egotistical to believe that I'll pass it on first try. It has taken me 20+ years to (hopefully) meet the qualifications to take it, I'm not going to get my feelings hurt if takes a couple of tries to pass.
What is employment situation like for CHP's now? Is there outage work? What kind of premium does the CHP get you above NRRPT? Do the main HP contract companies have openings for CHP's or are there specialized outfits?
...will you be taking both parts of the exam...how will you prepare...
dude.... axing iffen there are jobs for chps is like asking iffen there are jobs for doctors. yest there are jobs. outage work would be in the minority of classifications available. chp is a consultant (big bux) level, above engineering, which is above technician, which is above worm food. if a chp is gonna be involved with an outage, he is gone by the time the outage rolls around, unless he is a house chp. house chp at power plants usually start as departmental heads until they get their feet wet. then they move into regulatory affairs, environmental response, etc. chp are in demand with goverment groups (think nrc, homeland security), medical areas, and dod to name a few. study like you mean it, the rewards will be great.
Thanks SloGlo.
Wlrun, my current plan is to do like I did for NRRPT. Read everything I can get my hands on and work a bunch of problems. Maybe try and find a prep class somewhere. I plan to take both sets if they let me. I figure it is easier to get ready once than to have to do it twice.
Keep in mind that HPS don' t make it easy for a tech to even take their test. You have to show "professional" experience. They explicitly don't count tech time. I need to show that some fraction of my experience is professional. Almost 24 years of experience, need 6 that they will count. Not sure if I can even qualify yet. But it is worth a try. The old knees are complaining about ladders already and its a long time till I can afford to retire. Might be fun to see if the old brain can get restarted after all these years. It used to work but not sure how many braincells survived some of the stuff I did to them ;D
...i found the 30 Part 1 Typical Exam Questions strongly representative of the actual exam...
...the Part 1 Exam was much more time intensive than the NRRPT Exam...
...extensive use of exam prep software was very effective (i passed)...
...Cember and Bevelacqua were highly relevant...
Those were the texts that I already had and were planning to use. good news there
Where did you get the exam prep software?
...i used datachem, radware and nevada technical associates...
...strong preference for datachem...
...have you been accepted to take either part...
not yet. I'm starting to get my stuff together for application for test in 2008. When I made up my mind to do it there was only a few days left to get paperwork together for this year. It will take some time to get everything that they want. I may just be dreaming that I can get them to accept my quals. But maybe worth the effort.
...good luck on the 2008 exam...
...all 30 of the ABHP Examination Preparation Guide Part 1 Typical Questions are included in the nukeworker.com quiz "CHP Part 1 Exam Practice Test"...
...all 25 of the NRRPT Practice Examination Questions offered on the NRRPT website are included in the nukeworker.com quiz "NRRPT Practice Exam"...
We sell the CHP practice exam from Rad Ware in our online store (see table at top of page) (we also have NRRPT and RCT practice tests).