What's on the Kentucky Journeyman Electrician Exam? All 9 Areas and How to Study Them
The ICC outline for the Kentucky journeyman electrician exam (703_KY): 80 questions across 9 areas, led by wiring methods (26%) and branch circuits and conductors (19%), on the 2023 NEC — the renumbered load-calculation rules, and a study plan built on the weights.
What's on the Kentucky Journeyman Electrician Exam?
The Kentucky Standard Journeyman Electrician exam (703_KY) follows the national ICC journeyman outline: nine areas, each a set percentage of the exam. It is 80 four-option multiple-choice questions in 4 hours, open book with the 2023 NEC and Ugly's Electrical Reference, and you need 70% overall.
The outline
| Area | Share of exam | About this many of 80 |
|---|---|---|
| Wiring Methods and Materials | 26% | 21 |
| Branch Circuits and Conductors | 19% | 15 |
| Equipment and Devices | 13% | 10 |
| Services | 11% | 9 |
| Special Occupancies, Equipment, and Conditions | 11% | 9 |
| General Knowledge | 6% | 5 |
| Motors and Generators | 6% | 5 |
| Feeders | 4% | 3 |
| Control Devices | 4% | 3 |
ICC publishes percentages, not question counts, so the counts are rounded.
Where the weight is
- Wiring methods lead. At 26%, about 21 questions, it is more than one question in four.
- Branch circuits and conductors (19%) comes next. Together the top two areas are 45% of the exam.
- Equipment and devices (13%), services (11%) and special occupancies, equipment, and conditions (11%) are the middle tier, about 28 questions between them.
- Feeders, control devices, motors and general knowledge are 20% together. Small areas, but about 16 questions you should not give away.
On the 2023 NEC
Kentucky has enforced the 2023 NEC since January 1, 2025, moving up from the 2017 NEC, and ICC tests the 2023 edition. Study material written for an older edition numbers several load-calculation rules differently:
| Topic | Older editions | 2023 NEC (your exam) |
|---|---|---|
| Non-dwelling general lighting unit loads | Table 220.12 | Table 220.42(A) |
| Lighting load demand factors | Table 220.42 | Table 220.45 |
| Non-dwelling receptacle demand factors | Table 220.44 | Table 220.47 |
| EV charging load in a load calculation | No rule | 220.57: 7,200 VA or the nameplate, whichever is larger |
| Class 1 remote-control and signaling circuits | Article 725 | Article 724 (general rules in Article 722) |
For one- and two-family dwellings and townhouses, Kentucky delayed 210.52(C), 230.67 and 314.27(C) to July 15, 2026.
A study plan built on the weights
- Wiring methods and branch circuits first. About 36 of the 80 questions.
- Then equipment, services and special occupancies. About 28 more.
- Learn the 2023 numbering. If your notes or older books cite Table 220.12 or Article 725, update them to the table above.
- Know where things are in both books. The exam is open book, so it rewards finding a section quickly as much as knowing it. Ugly's is allowed in any edition.
- Sit a timed, full-length exam. 80 questions in 4 hours is 3 minutes each.
Our free practice test gives you 10 questions on the 2023 NEC. The full exam prep has a timed full-length practice exam weighted like the ICC outline, with calculations worked out step by step and every answer citing its NEC section. For the day itself, see Kentucky Journeyman Electrician exam day.
Ready to pass Kentucky Journeyman Electrician?
Start your prep with unlimited practice tests and codebook-referenced answers.
Start Studying →
