Oklahoma Unlimited Electrical Contractor Exam Day: PSI, Two Portions, and Pacing 4 Hours

Oklahoma Unlimited Electrical Contractor Exam Day: What to Expect

PSI gives the Oklahoma electrical exams for the Construction Industries Board (CIB). CIB approves you; PSI runs the test center. As a contractor candidate you have two portions to pass: the 100-question trade exam this article covers, and the separate 50-question Electrical Business and Law exam. Each is scheduled and paid for on its own.

Scheduling

Once CIB approves your application, schedule with PSI online at test-takers.psiexams.com/okcontractors or by phone at (855) 834-8750.

1. Create a PSI account and enter the Ok Con ID number CIB gave you.
2. Your approved exam is already selected.
3. Enter a zip code, pick a test center and date, and pay $92 per portion.
4. Watch for the email confirmation.

Phone registration needs a credit card, and candidates with ADA accommodations must schedule by phone. PSI fees are not refundable or transferable. Your eligibility does not expire, but a passed portion is only banked for three years from the date CIB approves you, so do not leave a long gap between the trade exam and Business and Law.

Arriving

• Arrive at least 30 minutes early. If you arrive late you may not be admitted, and you forfeit the fee.
• Bring one valid, unexpired government ID with your photo and signature, matching the legal name you registered under.
• Phones, smart watches, bags, jackets, hats and other personal items go in secure storage. Anyone who drives you cannot wait in the building or on the property.

Three books, open book

You bring your own references. These three are allowed:

1. NFPA 70, National Electrical Code, 2023 edition, "as revised and adopted by the Oklahoma Uniform Building Code Commission." No NEC Handbooks and no spiral-bound NEC copies.
2. 29 CFR Part 1926 (OSHA construction standards), with the latest amendments: the osha.gov printout, the Mancomm hard copy, or 29 CFR Part 1926 Selections by PSI.
3. Ugly's Electrical References by George V. Hart, any edition.

For Ugly's and OSHA, later editions are fine. For Code questions, only the listed 2023 NEC counts. Oklahoma has not set a date for the 2026 NEC, so bring the 2023 book.

The Oklahoma amendments are not printed in your NFPA 70: the permanent listed-HVAC exception in 210.8(F), and cord-and-plug gas furnaces with cords up to 9 feet in 422.16(B)(5). The exam topics article explains both.

How you may prepare your books:

• Highlighting, underlining and indexing are allowed.
• Permanent tabs are allowed. Post-it and other temporary tabs are not and will be removed before the exam starts.
• Writing in the books is not allowed. Anyone caught writing in a reference has it confiscated and is reported to CIB.
• No loose papers. A downloaded reference must be spiral-bound, hole-punched in a binder, or stapled in the left-hand corner.

Calculator

Bring a silent, battery-operated, non-programmable calculator with no paper-tape printing and no alphabet keyboard. A magnifying glass is available on request.

The clock

100 scored questions in 240 minutes (4 hours), plus up to 10 unscored experimental questions whose time does not count against you. A tutorial of up to 15 minutes runs first and is not part of your exam time.

The exam is on a computer, one question per screen, with the minutes remaining shown at the top. You can go back and change answers until time runs out. You may leave only for the restroom, with the proctor's permission, and you get no extra time.

Pacing

That is 2.4 minutes per scored question.

• Theory is 10 items. Work it from what you know and from Ugly's, and save lookup time for Code questions.
• Know your tabs before you go in. Articles 210, 230, 240, 250, 314, 410, 430 and Chapter 9 should open in seconds.
• Do not let one lookup eat your time. Give your best answer, note it, and come back.
• Answer every question. A blank is always wrong.
• Check the clock at the halfway mark: about 50 done at 2 hours.

Scoring

You need 70% on each portion: 70 of 100 on the trade exam and 70% on Business and Law. Your score appears on screen as soon as you finish. If you do not pass, you get a diagnostic report showing your strengths and weaknesses. The only review of exam questions is the Comments link on the question screen.

If you do not pass

You can retake after 30 days, and again at least 30 days after each later attempt. No attempt limit is stated. Each retake is another $92. If you pass one portion and fail the other, you only retake the one you failed, as long as you pass it within the three-year window. CIB does not publish pass rates.

After you pass

Passing both portions does not finish the job. You still need the $300 initial license fee, a $5,000 bond, $50,000 general liability with CIB as certificate holder, and proof of workers' compensation, or CIB issues an inactive license. The requirements article has the details.

Before you go

Our free practice test gives you a feel for the questions on the 2023 NEC, and the full Unlimited Electrical Contractor exam prep has full-length practice exams weighted to the PSI outline, with every answer explained. For Business and Law, see the Business and Law exam prep.