MA-JE Exam Domains 2026: Complete Guide to All 19 Content Areas

How the 19 Domains Fit Into Two Written Exams

The Massachusetts Journeyman Electrician License Exam (MA-JE) is the examination for Journeyman Electrician, Certificate B, issued by the Massachusetts Board of State Examiners of Electricians (MA BSEE) and administered by PSI Services LLC. When people talk about "19 content areas," it is easy to picture nineteen separate tests. That is not how the exam works. The nineteen headings are the published exam objectives spread across two written examinations that you must pass independently.

• Part I (trade examination): Domains 1-13, with 80 questions and a 180-minute limit.
• Part II (Applied): Domains 14-19, with 30 questions and a 60-minute limit.

Together that is 110 questions and four hours of testing, but the two timers do not combine into one pool. You cannot borrow unused minutes from Part II to spend on Part I. Both parts are open-book, computer-delivered, and held at authorized Massachusetts testing centers; the candidate bulletin excludes remote and out-of-state administration. Part II is an applied written examination. It is not a hands-on practical, and it is not the master's Business and Law exam.

If you are still working out whether you qualify to sit for it, start with our MA-JE requirements guide, then return here to plan your content coverage. For a broader orientation to the credential itself, see What Is MA-JE?

Part I: Domains 1-13 and Their Question Counts

The published allocations are item counts, not percentage weights. We preserve them exactly as published and do not convert them into percentages, because the percentages are not published. Here is the Part I breakdown in heading order:

The thirteen Part I counts sum to the 80 questions on the exam. A passing result needs 56 correct, which is 70% of 80. Notice how lopsided the distribution is: Wiring Methods and Devices alone accounts for 18 items, more than Services and Grounding and Bonding combined. Transformers contributes a single question. Smart preparation reflects that imbalance without ignoring the small domains, since a one-item domain can still be the difference on a close score.

Part I Domains Worth Extra Study Time

The big four: Wiring Methods, Services, General Knowledge, Grounding and Bonding

Domains 1 through 4 together account for 44 of the 80 Part I questions. That is more than half the exam, so this is where structured study returns the most.

The mid-sized domains: Overcurrent Protection, Alarm Systems, Photovoltaic

Overcurrent Protection, Alarm Systems, and Photovoltaic each carry six items. Overcurrent questions often pair neatly with conductor ampacity from wiring methods, so study them together. Alarm Systems is where candidates who rely only on the NEC can stumble, because NFPA 72 is among the approved references and fire alarm questions may require you to know which document governs.

The modern topics: Photovoltaic and Energy Storage Systems

Photovoltaic (6 items) and Energy Storage Systems (4 items) together account for ten questions. That is more than the combined weight of Motors, Transformers, and Lighting. If your experience is mostly conventional building wiring, these two domains deserve deliberate attention: disconnecting means, rapid shutdown concepts, interconnection, and the installation rules specific to storage equipment. Many candidates under-prepare here because their daily work rarely touches solar or battery systems.

The small domains

Special Occupancies and Equipment (5), Motors (4), Low-Voltage Distribution (2), Lighting (2), and Transformers (1) are individually small, but together they make up 14 questions. Treat them as quick-reference practice: know which NEC article applies, and rehearse finding it fast.

Part II Applied: Domains 14-19

Part II is shorter and different in character. It has 30 questions in 60 minutes, and you need 21 correct to pass. The published allocations are:

Troubleshooting and Testing is the largest Part II subject at six items, but the distribution is much flatter than Part I. No single domain can carry you here, so you need competence across all six. Given a 60-minute window for 30 questions, you have about two minutes per item, which is tight for calculation and plan-reading questions.

Why Applied Questions Need Different Preparation

Part II rewards a different skill than Part I. Part I tests whether you can locate and interpret code rules efficiently. Part II tests whether you can do something with a scenario: compute a value, read a plan, diagnose a fault. Reading the code book more will not fix a weak Part II, because the bottleneck is practiced application.

The practical implication is that you should run timed problems for Domains 14 through 17 rather than only rereading. A candidate who understands Ohm's Law conceptually but has never solved a multi-step parallel problem against a clock can lose points to arithmetic slips and time pressure. Our practice test platform includes original 80-plus-30 style practice so you can rehearse both formats separately, including genuine applied-part preparation rather than recycled Part I content.

Code Edition, References and Margin-Note Cautions

Approved references

Approved references for the examination include the NEC, NFPA 72, the Massachusetts amendments, and the licensing regulations. A qualifying nonprogrammable calculator is also permitted. Because the exam is open-book, your reference setup is part of your strategy. Tabs and highlighting help you reach the right page quickly.

The handwritten-note conflict

Highlighting, underlining, and permanent tabs are addressed in the candidate bulletin, but the bulletin is internally inconsistent about prewritten margin notes: one section prohibits handwritten notes while another permits them. Do not guess. Confirm PSI authorization before annotating your references, and keep your markup conservative until you have that confirmation. Showing up with a heavily annotated book that a proctor disallows is a preventable problem.

Which NEC edition will the exam use?

This is an open question we handle carefully. The state code page identifies a 2026-code adoption, but adoption alone does not establish when the examination itself switches editions. The bulletin's own statements about timing, a July reference and a seven-month update statement, conflict. Until the Board or PSI gives an explicit examination-date confirmation, no one can honestly publish an edition-locked question bank. Verify the current exam edition directly before you buy or mark up a code book. Our overview of MA-JE exam dates and scheduling covers how to track timing updates.

Scheduling Your Weeks Around the Domain Weights

You do not need a generic study calendar. What matters is sequencing the domains so the heavy ones get the most repetition and the related ones reinforce each other. One reasonable ordering follows, adjustable to your own timeline. For a fuller plan, see our MA-JE study guide.

The logic is simple: put the biggest domains early so you can revisit them, group related topics, and save timed application work for when the underlying knowledge is in place. If you are weighing how much effort to budget, our guide to how hard the MA-JE exam is gives context on what candidates typically find challenging.

Fees, Eligibility and Retake Mechanics

Understanding the cost structure helps you plan, and the fees are itemized rather than a single lump sum. The regular application and testing charge is $226, made up of:

Qualifying VALOR applicants pay $195 after the $31 state-processing charge is waived. Initial license issuance is a separate $104. If you need to retest, retake fees depend on the part and total $135 for both. After three unsuccessful attempts, the bulletin requires additional education before further attempts, and both parts must be passed within the applicable 12-month eligibility period. For the full financial picture, see the MA-JE certification cost breakdown.

Eligibility prerequisites

Before you can test, you need a high-school diploma or equivalent, 600 hours of approved journeyman education, 8,000 qualifying work hours over at least four years, a 15-hour approved Code Update certificate, supporting school and employer documentation, and CORI authorization. A frequent point of confusion: those classroom hours, Code Update training, and work-experience hours are eligibility prerequisites, not examination timers. They have nothing to do with the 180-minute and 60-minute limits on test day.

After You Pass: Licensing and Renewal

Passing both parts is the gateway, not the finish line. Certificate B renews on the triennial July 31 cycle under Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 141, Section 3. Under 237 CMR 17.01, renewal requires 21 continuing-education hours: 15 approved code, business, and law hours plus six professional-development hours. That regulatory framework is part of why Domain 19 (Licensing Laws and Regulations) matters beyond the exam: it describes obligations you will live with throughout your career.

Many candidates also ask whether the effort pays off. Our ROI analysis of the MA-JE certification and salary guide address that question without inventing figures.

Frequently Asked Questions

Once you know how the domains are distributed, the next step is practicing against that structure. You can try the MA-JE practice tests to work through both parts, and use the MA-JE cheat sheet as a quick review before test day.