The "Massachusetts EMT Candidate Handbook" will be distributed to each student as part of their course.  The booklet is also available on-line, in PDF format.  (Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader.)
Some additional information about the Massachusetts EMT-B Practical and Written exams follows:

We will receive word from OEMS, very near the end of the course, regarding our scheduled Practical Exam date.  It is usually about 3-5 weeks after the end of the course.  Applications will be distributed about two weeks before the course ends.

Mail your application and $70 fee to OEMS immediately following the end of the course. OR, give your application and check, together in a sealed envelope, to your instructor who will mail it with the rest of the course paperwork.  If your application and/or check are late, incomplete, or incorrect, you may not be assigned to test with the rest of your class. Do not wait to mail your application!

All candidates for EMT certification must pass a Practical Exam before they are eligible to schedule their computerized written examination. There is an additional $45 fee for the EMT-B written exam. 

You will receive written confirmation from OEMS by mail, within one week of the Practical Exam, listing the exam date, time, and location, as well as what you will need to bring with you.

The Practical exam for the NSCC course is usually held on a Saturday, beginning at 8 a.m., and runs until the early afternoon. It is almost always held at our building, using our equipment. Make up exams, held at other locations, may use different equipment. 

You and your partner, as a team, must bring a "patient" for the practical exam. No textbooks, skill sheets, or other materials are permitted at the exam. If you are found with any of these in the testing areas you will fail the exam! 

There are four stations on the practical exam. The skill sheets you received in class show the steps in each exam station. You are responsible for only those steps listed on the skill score sheets, no additional information or steps are required. When your partner is present you will instruct them what to do and are "responsible" for them. However, you are examined "as individuals."  Some additional information about each station is listed below. 

A failure of ether part of a station is a failure for that entire station. You will receive no word of how you did on the exam that day. However, at the end of the day, those who fail only one station will be allowed to take a "same day retest" of that station. All other candidates will be sent home. If you fail two or more stations you must retake the ENTIRE practical exam at a later date. Practical Exam results are expected to arrive by mail in about 2 weeks. Do NOT call OEMS for your test results! 

You may make up to 3 attempts to pass the practical exam within 1 year from the end of your EMT course. DO NOT WAIT TO APPLY!!! The fee for each retest is ½ the initial exam fee ($35).  You may also request that OEMS send you a copy of your examiner's score sheet for any Practical Station which you failed.  It is highly recommended that you request this information! 

STATION 1:
Resuscitation is simply 2 rescuer CPR. Each of you will take a turn as the lead rescuer and as the second rescuer. The oral airway does not fit in the CPR mannequin so you will demonstrate insertion next to the mannequin's face. The B.V.M. will be in 4 pieces and needs to be properly assembled prior to use.  The oxygen regulator will be attached to the tank and will not need to be assembled. 

Defibrillation is performed alone, while your partner waits outside. You will demonstrate the SAED for at least one set of 3 shocks. You must verbalize instructions given to "imaginary" rescuers doing CPR, and may either demonstrate or verbalize the use of the SAED after the first set of 3 shocks. (You will be allowed to find out how the SAED provided at the exam site works if you are not familiar with that type.) 

STATION 2:
Traction Splinting will be done twice, with each of you acting as the lead rescuer. You will tell the examiner if it is the patient's Right or Left leg which has the injury. The patient's shoe is to be removed prior to the start of the station. 

Upper Extremity Splinting will also be performed by each candidate. Each of you will choose a card that indicates one of the seven injuries listed on your skill sheets. The examiner may position it any way they prefer, but if your patient positions it, the examiner may not bother to change it. 

STATION 3:
This entire station is performed alone, while your waits partner outside. You will have an "imaginary" assistant who must be instructed by you verbally. A scenario will be read to you for each portion of the station. Vital signs and answers to any assessment questions you ask of the patient will be provided to you by the examiner. You must demonstrate all appropriate treatments for the patient's condition, and verbalize anything you can not actually do (because of lack of equipment, etc.).  A stethoscope will be provided, any other "imaginary" equipment you need is assumed to be present and you must verbalize its use. 

Trauma Assessment will include your demonstrating an initial assessment, verbally choosing a focused or rapid trauma assessment - which you will not actually perform - and demonstrating a detailed physical exam. 
Medical Assessment will include your demonstrating an initial assessment, demonstrating a focused assessment, verbalizing a detailed physical exam - which you will not actually perform - and verbalizing other continuing and repeat assessments. 

STATION 4:
Spinal Immobilization will also be performed by each of you as the lead rescuer.  You will be randomly assigned either a seated or a supine patient. You must then decide what equipment you will use (long board, short board, or KED). A four rescuer log roll, using two imaginary assistants, will be utilized for the supine patient; the examiner will look primarily at C-Spine stabilization during this maneuver. All equipment will be disassembled prior to use, including the head-pad base for the long back board. 

About 10 days after successfully completing the EMT-B Practical Exam, you will receive information about scheduling your computerized written exam.  Detailed information about this process, and the locations of testing centers, may be found in the "Massachusetts EMT Candidate Handbook," distributed to each student as part of their course, and available on-line. 

Payment must be made when you schedule your appointment (by phone, fax or on-line) and may be
made in one of 3 ways: 
  - Credit Card 
  - E-check (by providing the checking account and routing numbers for your bank account) 
  - Voucher system (by mailing a certified check or money order (no personal checks or cash) to 
    a P.O. Box.  You will then receive a credit to use when you shekel your appointment. This 
    process is expected to take about 10 business days. 

You must bring 2 forms of "signature" ID to the exam.  One must be a "government issued photo ID."  The second form of acceptable ID may be explained to you by a customer service representative.  (I hope to have further information about this in the future.)

You have 2 hours to complete the exam.  You may take a tutorial, to familiarize you with the way the exam computer works, prior to the start of your 2 hour exam period.

The exam consists of 100 multiple choice questions. The questions are dived into 6 topic areas:
      Administration & Operations         Children & OB/GYN        Patient Assessment
      Airway & Breathing                      Circulation                       Other Emergencies 

The computerized written exam will be scored as soon as you complete it.  Upon passing the exam, you will receive a wallet card, signifying that you are now a certified EMT, before leaving the exam site. 

Exams must be scheduled at least three business days in advance.  Retests may be scheduled as early as one business day after failing an exam.  You may make up to 3 attempts to complete the exam within 6 months after passing your Practical Exam.  Do not wait to schedule your test!

Each of the five computerized testing sites throughout the State is expected to accommodate 16-20 OEMS candidates (EMT-B, EMT-I or EMT-P) per testing day.   It is, therefore, possible that there will be a short wait for an appointment opening.

Time Limits: 

You have one year from the official end date of your EMT-B course to successfully complete the practical exam. You may make up to a maximum of 3 attempts within this one-year period to pass the practical exam. 

You then must successfully complete the computerized written examination within six months of passing the practical exam. You may make up to a maximum of 3 attempts within this six-month period to pass the written exam. 

If you need to retest either of the exams, do not wait to reapply! If you run out of time, you must repeat the entire EMT-B course.