Zapier Automation: CE Credit Email Tracker and Digest

What This Builds

An automated system that catches every CE opportunity that arrives in your email, from ASRT, vendor modules, RSNA, and specialty societies. It labels the opportunity automatically, adds it to your CE tracking spreadsheet, and sends you a weekly digest of available CE credits you haven't completed yet. You'll never scramble for CE credits before your ARRT renewal again.

Prerequisites

• Zapier account at zapier.com (free tier covers this workflow, up to 100 tasks/month)
• Gmail account (the automation works with Gmail; Outlook requires a Zapier paid plan)
• Google Sheets CE tracker (from Level 2 guide)
• CE-related emails arriving in your Gmail (ASRT newsletter, vendor training invites, RSNA announcements)

The Concept

Zapier is an automation tool that connects different apps. Think of it as a set of "if this, then that" rules running automatically in the background.

Here's what we're building:

• Rule 1: When an email arrives that contains "continuing education" or "CE credit" → Gmail automatically labels it "CE Opportunity"
• Rule 2: When a "CE Opportunity" label is applied → Zapier extracts the course title and credit count and adds a new row to your Google Sheets tracker with status "Available"
• Rule 3: Every Sunday at 6pm → Zapier compiles all "Available" CE rows from your spreadsheet and sends you a summary email with the week's opportunities

Build It Step by Step

Part 1: Set Up Gmail Label Filtering (10 minutes, no Zapier needed yet)

1. In Gmail, click the gear icon → See all settings → Filters and Blocked Addresses → Create a new filter
2. In the "Has the words" field, type: continuing education OR CE credit OR CE credits OR ARRT approved
3. Click "Create filter" → Check "Apply the label" → Create a new label: "CE Opportunity"
4. Check "Also apply filter to matching conversations" to catch past emails
5. Click "Create filter"

Test: Search Gmail for label:CE-Opportunity, you should see existing CE emails now labeled.

Part 2: Create Your Zapier Account

1. Go to zapier.com → click "Sign up for free"
2. Create an account with your Gmail address
3. Connect your Gmail account when prompted (Zapier will ask for Gmail access, which is required for the automation to read your labels)
4. Connect your Google Sheets account (same process)

Part 3: Build Zap 1. Label to Spreadsheet

1. Click "+ Create" → "Zaps" → "New Zap"
2. Trigger: Search for "Gmail" → Select "New Labeled Email" → connect your Gmail → select label: "CE Opportunity" → click Continue
3. Action: Search for "Google Sheets" → Select "Create Spreadsheet Row" → connect your Google Sheets → select your CE tracker spreadsheet
4. Map the fields:

• Date Completed → Leave blank (you'll fill in when you complete it)
• Course Title → Map to Gmail "Subject" field
• CE Category → Type: "Available - To Review" (default text)
• Credits Earned → Map to Gmail "Body Plain" field (note: this won't be perfect. AI can't always extract credit counts from email bodies, so review these manually)
• Source → Map to Gmail "From Name" field

1. Click Test → verify a new row appears in your spreadsheet
2. Click "Publish Zap" → name it "CE Email to Tracker"

Part 4: Build Zap 2. Weekly Digest

1. Click "+ Create" → "New Zap"
2. Trigger: Search for "Schedule by Zapier" → Select "Every Week" → set Day: Sunday, Time: 6:00 PM
3. Action 1: Search for "Google Sheets" → Select "Lookup Spreadsheet Row" → select your CE tracker → filter for rows where "CE Category" = "Available - To Review"
4. Action 2: Search for "Gmail" → Select "Send Email" → to: your email address → subject: "Your Weekly CE Digest" → body: paste this template:

Your CE Credit Digest: [Date]

ARRT renewal: [your renewal date]
Credits needed: [formula from your spreadsheet]

--- CE OPPORTUNITIES IN YOUR INBOX THIS WEEK ---
[Zapier will insert the rows it found here]

--- TO LOG COMPLETED CREDITS ---
Update your CE tracker: [link to your Google Sheet]

---
This digest is automatic. Reply to this email with questions.

1. Click Test → verify a digest email arrives in your inbox
2. Click "Publish Zap" → name it "Weekly CE Digest"

Part 5: Maintain the System

Each week when your digest arrives:

1. Open the digest
2. For each CE opportunity, click through and complete the ones that fit your schedule
3. Update the Google Sheet row: change "Available - To Review" to the actual CE category, fill in credits earned and completion date

Real Example: ASRT Newsletter CE Catch

What happens automatically:

1. Monday: ASRT sends its weekly newsletter with a link to a free 1-credit webinar on "CT Dose Optimization"
2. Gmail detects "CE credit" in the email body → applies the "CE Opportunity" label
3. Zapier sees the new label → adds a new row to your Google Sheet: "CT Dose Optimization | Available - To Review | From: ASRT"
4. Sunday at 6pm: You receive a digest showing this opportunity (and 2 others from the week) sitting in your tracker

What you do: 5. Click through from the digest, complete the 30-minute webinar 6. Update your tracker row: "CT Dose Optimization | 1.0 credit | Radiation Protection | ASRT | Completed 2026-03-22"

Time saved over 2-year CE cycle: You stop losing track of free CE opportunities. Estimate: 2-4 hours saved hunting for last-minute credits before renewal.

What to Do When It Breaks

• "Gmail isn't triggering the Zap" → Check that the Gmail filter (Part 1) is correctly applying the label. Test by forwarding yourself an email containing "CE credit" and confirming the label appears.
• "The spreadsheet row is blank or has wrong data" → Email bodies are messy. Zapier's text extraction isn't perfect. Treat the auto-created rows as placeholders and manually verify the credit count and course title.
• "The weekly digest isn't sending" → In Zapier, open the Zap and check the Task History for errors. The most common issue is the Google Sheets lookup returning zero rows. Make sure your "Available - To Review" text matches exactly what's in your spreadsheet.
• "I'm on Gmail free tier and hitting Zapier's task limit" → The free Zapier plan allows 100 tasks/month. If you're getting more than 100 CE emails per month (unlikely), upgrade to Zapier Starter ($20/mo) or reduce the filter keywords.

Variations

• Simpler version: Skip Zapier entirely. Just use the Gmail filter to label CE emails, and manually review the label every 2 weeks. Still much better than nothing.
• Extended version: Add a Zap that creates a calendar event for CE webinar deadlines, when a CE email with a date in the body is labeled, Zapier creates a Google Calendar reminder 3 days before the deadline.

What to Do Next

• This week: Set up the Gmail filter (Part 1). It takes 5 minutes and immediately organizes your CE emails without Zapier
• This month: Build both Zapier automations
• Advanced: Add a CE deadline calendar integration so you never miss a webinar registration deadline

Advanced guide for radiologic technologist professionals. Zapier free tier supports this workflow. Gmail filter setup requires no paid subscription.