The APS User Orientation process is a brief introduction to the facility and the safety requirements associated with its use. It takes less than one hour and is conducted by one of the APS user office staff. The APS requires that all badged users maintain their General Employee Radiation Training certification in order to use the facility. This training may be obtained either at the APS or at the other DOE-operated storage rings (NSLS, SSRL, or ALS), but it expires 24 months after the user passes the training.

Training at the APS is accomplished through a computer-assisted training program followed by a computerized examination. It isn't difficult, but it needs to be completed. The APS user office maintains records of your GERT status; you can check with them to see how soon your training will expire.

This issuance is part of your user-orientation process. Under most circumstances you'll actually receive your badge while you're up at the user office. If your citizenship or birthplace is in one of the DOE's designated "sensitive nations", you won't be able to receive your badge right away.

The sensitive nations are: Algeria Iran Russia Armenia Iraq Sudan Azerbaijan Israel Syria Belarus Kazakhstan Taiwan China Kyrgyzstan Tajikistan Cuba Libya Turkmenistan Georgia Moldova Ukraine Hong Kong N.Korea Uzbekistan India Pakistan This delay is associated with what is known as an "Indices Check" under which the Department of Energy, in cooperation with other governmental agencies, verifies the citizenship and employment records of an individual. Users from sensitive countries who are already badged are not affected by this phenomenon.