Alaska Journeyman Electrician Exam: What Is on It and How to Study
Alaska publishes no outline for the journeyman certificate of fitness exam. Here is what the 2020 NEC exam covers, our 80-question study blueprint and a plan built around it.
Contents
Alaska Journeyman Electrician Exam: What Is on It and How to Study
Alaska's journeyman exam is written and graded by the Department of Labor and Workforce Development's Mechanical Inspection section. It is on the 2020 NEC, Alaska's adopted code with no state amendments (8 AAC 70.025), and you need 70% (8 AAC 90.115).
What Mechanical Inspection publishes, and what it does not
Mechanical Inspection publishes the pass mark and the retake wait, but no question count, time limit, content outline or reference list. Prep providers report about 80 questions in 4 hours, open book with the NEC, but they disagree with each other. Confirm the format when Mechanical Inspection schedules you, and be wary of any source that quotes an official breakdown.
Our study blueprint
Since there is no official outline, we built our own 80-question blueprint from the NEC chapters that comparable state journeyman exams weight most. It is not official. It is a sensible way to spread your study time:
| Area | Questions | Where it lives in the 2020 NEC |
|---|---|---|
| Branch circuits, feeders, services and overcurrent protection | 13 | Articles 200-240 |
| Wiring methods and materials | 13 | Chapter 3 |
| Grounding and bonding | 9 | Article 250 |
| Electrical theory and fundamentals | 8 | Ohm's law, power, transformers |
| General requirements and definitions | 6 | Articles 90, 100, 110 |
| Equipment for general use | 6 | Chapter 4 (cords, switches, panelboards, luminaires, appliances) |
| Motors, motor circuits and controllers | 6 | Articles 430, 440 |
| Calculations | 5 | Article 220, Chapter 9, box fill |
| Special occupancies | 4 | Chapter 5 |
| Special equipment | 4 | Chapter 6 |
| Special conditions and communications | 3 | Chapters 7 and 8 |
| Alaska certificate of fitness law | 3 | AS 18.62; 8 AAC 90 |
Study plan
- Make sure you have the 2020 NEC. Much current material is on the 2023 edition, which moved several rules: the non-dwelling lighting table is Table 220.12 in 2020 (Table 220.42(A) in 2023), lighting demand factors are Table 220.42 (Table 220.45 in 2023), and Class 1 circuits are in Article 725 (Articles 722 and 724 in 2023).
- Start with Chapters 2 and 3. Branch circuits, services, conductor ampacity (Table 310.16) and wiring methods are half of a typical journeyman exam. Practice finding the table first, then the exception.
- Learn Article 250 as a system: grounding electrode conductor sizing (Table 250.66), equipment grounding conductors (Table 250.122), bonding jumpers and the service main bonding jumper.
- Drill motors. Use the full-load current tables (430.248, 430.250), not the nameplate, for conductor and protection sizing, and Table 430.52 for the branch-circuit device.
- Do the calculations by hand: voltage drop, dwelling loads with the 220.42 demand factors, box fill (314.16), conduit fill (Chapter 9).
- Read the certificate of fitness rules once: carrying your card on the job, two trainees per journeyman, direct supervision, renewal and 16 hours of CE.
Practice
Our free Alaska Journeyman practice test follows this blueprint on the 2020 NEC, and every explanation cites the section. For the logistics, see exam day.
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