What's on the Virginia Master Electrician Exam? All 24 Areas and How to Study Them
The PSI outline for the Virginia master electrician exam: 90 scored items, 10 on Virginia law, with more weight than the journeyman exam on services, grounding, motors and fundamentals — on the 2020 NEC, with a study plan.
Contents
What's on the Virginia Master Electrician Exam?
PSI's candidate bulletin for the Board for Contractors publishes the master outline as 24 lettered areas and the number of scored items in each. It is one exam with one passing score — the law questions are scored with everything else — so you need 63 of 90 in total.
Virginia law (10 items)
| Area | Items |
|---|---|
| A. Standards of Practice | 3 |
| B. Standards of Conduct | 2 |
| C. Renewal and Reinstatement | 2 |
| D. Definitions | 1 |
| E. Qualification for Licensure | 1 |
| F. Revocation of Licensure | 1 |
The same ten as the journeyman exam, from 18VAC50-30 and Title 54.1 Chapter 11 of the Code of Virginia — both in the DPOR regulations booklet you bring.
Code and theory (80 items)
| Area | Items |
|---|---|
| G. General Electrical Knowledge | 4 |
| H. Requirements for Electrical Installations | 3 |
| I. Electrical-Electronic Fundamentals | 5 |
| J. Branch Circuits | 7 |
| K. Service and Feeders | 8 |
| L. Grounding and Bonding | 8 |
| M. Conductors and Cables | 7 |
| N. Raceways and Boxes | 7 |
| O. Special Occupancies | 4 |
| P. Special Equipment | 2 |
| Q. Electrical Signs and Outline Lighting | 2 |
| R. Motors and Controls | 8 |
| S. Utilization Equipment | 5 |
| T. Lighting | 2 |
| U. General Low Voltage | 1 |
| V. Communication Systems | 1 |
| W. Fire Detection and Alarm | 2 |
| X. Safety | 4 |
Up to 10 more questions may be unscored experimental items. They count against your time.
How it differs from the journeyman exam
The master exam adds 20 scored items, and 14 of them go to five areas:
| Area | Journeyman | Master |
|---|---|---|
| Electrical-Electronic Fundamentals | 2 | 5 |
| Branch Circuits | 4 | 7 |
| Service and Feeders | 5 | 8 |
| Grounding and Bonding | 6 | 8 |
| Motors and Controls | 5 | 8 |
Conductors and cables, raceways and boxes, the law areas and NFPA 70E safety (4) stay the same.
On the 2020 NEC, not the 2023
Virginia adopted the 2020 NEC effective January 18, 2024, and the exam tests it. The 2023 edition renumbered or added these rules:
| Topic | 2020 NEC (your exam) | 2023 NEC |
|---|---|---|
| Dwelling general lighting load (3 VA/ft² in both) | 220.14(J) | 220.41 |
| 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 such rule | 220.57 |
| Class 1 remote-control and signaling circuits | Article 725 | Articles 722 and 724 |
A study plan built on the weights
- Services, feeders, grounding and motors. Areas K, L and R are 24 items — more than a quarter of the exam.
- Load calculations on the 2020 tables. Service, feeder and branch-circuit areas are 15 items together.
- Fundamentals. Five items, with no handheld calculator allowed.
- The law booklet and NFPA 70E. Fourteen items between them, with both books in front of you.
- Sit a timed, full-length exam. 90 questions in 4½ hours is 3 minutes each.
Our free practice test gives you 10 questions on the 2020 NEC. The full exam prep has timed full-length practice exams weighted like the PSI outline, including the law and 70E safety areas, with calculations worked out step by step and every answer citing its section. For the day itself, see Virginia Master Electrician exam day.
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