- The Exam at a Glance: Two Components, One License
- Written Exam Numbers You Need Memorized
- Domain-by-Domain Question Counts
- Open-Book Rules and Reference Tabbing
- The Practical: Six Tasks, 110 Minutes
- Eligibility Hours: 6,000 to Test, 8,000 to License
- Fees, Paperwork and Items on Hold
- Retakes and Renewal Quick Facts
- Scheduling Weak Domains Around the Counts
- Frequently Asked Questions
- The written exam is 100 questions, 240 minutes, open book, with a 75% passing score.
- Grounding & Bonding carries the most questions: ten of the 100.
- The practical has six tasks and a 110-minute limit; every task must be passed.
- Testing eligibility needs 6,000 apprentice hours on the education route, but full licensure requires 8,000.
The Exam at a Glance: Two Components, One License
This page condenses what a Utah journeyman candidate needs to carry into test day. The credential is the Utah Journeyman Electrician license issued by the Utah Division of Professional Licensing (DOPL) within the Department of Commerce. It is not the Residential Journeyman and it is not the Master license, so make sure any practice material you use targets the journeyman level.
Since August 1, 2025, new journeyman candidates sit one combined Theory and Code written examination plus a separate Utah Electrician Practical examination. Older materials, and even older wording inside the same candidate bulletin, describe a three-examination structure. Treat that wording as superseded by the dated combined-examination notice. If a study guide you found online talks about separate theory, code, and law tests, it is out of date.
The testing provider is Prov, Inc., working on behalf of DOPL. The written exam can be taken at an approved testing center or through Examroom remote delivery. The practical is always in person. For a broader orientation before diving into details, see our overview of what UT-JE is, and for a deeper preparation roadmap read the UT-JE study guide.
Written Exam Numbers You Need Memorized
| Item | Written Exam Fact |
|---|---|
| Fee | $85 |
| Questions | 100 |
| Time allowed | 240 minutes (four hours) |
| Passing score | 75% |
| Format | Computer-based, open book |
| Delivery | Approved centers or Examroom remote |
| Provider | Prov, Inc. |
A 75% passing score on 100 questions means you need 75 correct answers. Four hours for 100 questions gives you roughly 2.4 minutes per item, which is generous on paper but not on questions that require multi-step calculations or hunting through code tables. The pacing challenge in an open-book exam is rarely raw knowledge. It is how quickly you can find the right article, table, or rule. Our page on the UT-JE passing score goes deeper on how to think about the 75% threshold.
Domain-by-Domain Question Counts
The combined written exam is organized under fifteen published subject headings. The bulletin lists item counts, not percentage weights, and the counts below are in the official order. Use them to decide where your study hours earn the most return.
| # | Written Domain | Questions |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Conductors & Cables | 7 |
| 2 | Current | 6 |
| 3 | Definitions & General Requirements | 6 |
| 4 | Grounding & Bonding | 10 |
| 5 | Lighting & General Use Equipment | 7 |
| 6 | Motors & Controllers | 6 |
| 7 | Overcurrent Protection | 9 |
| 8 | Power | 5 |
| 9 | Raceways & Enclosures | 7 |
| 10 | Resistance | 6 |
| 11 | Services, Feeders & Branch Circuits | 8 |
| 12 | Special Occupancies & Equipment | 6 |
| 13 | State Laws & Rules | 4 |
| 14 | Voltage | 6 |
| 15 | Voltage Drop | 7 |
Grounding & Bonding (10 questions, the largest block)
This single domain is worth ten percent of the exam by question count. It is the best place to invest extra review time because every question you convert here moves your score more than any other heading.
- Know where to find the grounding electrode system and bonding requirements in the 2023 NEC and practice navigating Article 250 quickly.
- Be able to distinguish grounding from bonding in a question stem before you open the book.
- Expect equipment grounding conductor sizing and electrode questions to need table lookups.
Overcurrent Protection (9) and Services, Feeders & Branch Circuits (8)
Together these two headings account for 17 questions. They overlap heavily with Conductors & Cables (7), since conductor ampacity, overcurrent device ratings, and feeder sizing all feed into each other.
- Practice sizing a circuit end to end: load, conductor, overcurrent device, then voltage drop check.
- Learn where the tables live so you are not paging through the index under time pressure.
The Electrical Theory Cluster
Current (6), Resistance (6), Voltage (6), Power (5), and Voltage Drop (7) total 30 questions. This cluster is where Ohm's law, power formulas, and series/parallel calculations live. These are calculation-heavy, and only the calculator available in the Prov test console is authorized, so practice on a similar basic interface rather than your favorite scientific calculator.
State Laws & Rules (4 questions)
The smallest heading is still four questions, and they are among the most reliably winnable because the answer sits in a defined set of references: Utah's 58-1 and 58-55 licensing acts and the R156-1 and R156-55b rules. Tab those sections and treat these four questions as near-free points.
For a full walkthrough of all the content areas, including the practical tasks, read our complete guide to the UT-JE exam domains.
Open-Book Rules and Reference Tabbing
The exam is open book, but only with approved references. Approved written references include:
- The 2023 NEC (National Electrical Code)
- Ugly's Electrical References 2023
- Utah's 58-1 and 58-55 licensing acts
- Utah rules R156-1 and R156-55b
Highlighting and permanent tabs are permitted. Loose notes are not the same thing, so confirm the current rules in the Prov bulletin before test day. Note that the references are 2023-based. Do not buy or study from a book that is labeled for a different code cycle just because it carries a 2026 date on the cover, since the exam content follows the approved edition list.
Because the exam is open book, memorization matters less than navigation speed. The candidates who struggle are usually the ones who know the concept but cannot locate the supporting table fast enough. That is a big part of why people ask how hard the UT-JE exam really is.
The Practical: Six Tasks, 110 Minutes
The Utah Electrician Practical is in person and has a total 110-minute limit. It consists of six separately assessed tasks, which the domain list identifies as Domains 16 through 21:
- Torque setting
- Transformer termination
- Conduit bending
- Motor Control (commercial), using a ladder diagram
- 4-way and 3-way switch wiring
- Schematic reading and wiring
Key scoring facts: every task must be passed. Successful tasks are retained, and only failed tasks must be repeated, so a single failed task does not erase your other results. Conduit bending uses point deductions; the other tasks are pass/fail.
Conduit Bending Prep
Candidates bring the specified tools and two five-foot pieces of half-inch EMT. Because bending is the only task scored with point deductions, accuracy compounds. Practice your offsets, saddles, and 90-degree bends until your measurements are consistent, and know your bender's take-up and gain figures cold.
Torque, Termination and Wiring Tasks
Prov supplies the torque wrench. The bulletin's detailed sentence describing the torque task is truncated, so this article does not guess at what object you will torque or how it is scored. Read the full current bulletin and practice generally with torque values for lugs, breakers, and terminals so you are comfortable with the tool and the manufacturer's specified values.
Eligibility Hours: 6,000 to Test, 8,000 to License
This is the most commonly misunderstood part of the process, so memorize the distinction. The bulletin's route to examination eligibility is:
| Route | Exam Eligibility Requirement | Full Licensure Requirement |
|---|---|---|
| Education route | Four-year apprenticeship education of at least 576 classroom hours (or the specified competency equivalent) plus 6,000 licensed-apprentice work hours | Approved apprenticeship completion plus 8,000 supervised licensed work hours, plus both examinations |
| Experience-only route | 16,000 licensed-apprentice work hours | 16,000 hours with verification, plus both examinations |
In short, the 6,000-hour figure gets you into the testing room, not the license. On the education route you still need to complete the approved apprenticeship and reach 8,000 supervised licensed hours before the license is issued. For the full qualification picture, see our UT-JE requirements guide.
Fees, Paperwork and Items on Hold
Money questions are where candidates most often get tripped up, partly because the source documents conflict. Here is what is established and what is not.
| Item | Status |
|---|---|
| Written examination fee | $85 (established) |
| Practical examination fee | On verification hold. The bulletin lists $25 per section but also keeps legacy $85 wording and inconsistent all-task versus one-task pricing language. Confirm the payable amount directly with Prov. |
| DOPL application processing fee | Previously reviewed as $116; current confirmation on hold |
| Renewal | Previously reviewed as $84, biennial; current confirmation on hold |
Experience paperwork: first-time candidates must submit a Verification of Electrician Experience to Prov, with registration effective January 19, 2026. Get this paperwork in order early, since an incomplete verification is a scheduling delay you cannot study your way out of. Note that the Commerce licensing pages and the application PDF returned access errors during the latest research pass, so application and renewal figures above are carried forward from previously reviewed material rather than newly retrieved. Always check the current DOPL pages before relying on them.
Retakes and Renewal Quick Facts
Retesting
Retesting normally requires a 30-day wait. After six failed attempts, the bulletin requires 120 days before subsequent attempts. Because passed practical tasks are retained, a retake of the practical only covers the tasks you failed.
Renewal
Previously reviewed renewal details: the license renews biennially by November 30 of even-numbered years, with 16 approved continuing education hours, of which 12 are core hours made up of eight NEC hours and four NFPA 70E hours. As noted above, current renewal-charge confirmation remains on hold, so verify at the DOPL renewal page. Once you hold the license, the career side of the equation is covered in our UT-JE salary guide and the ROI analysis.
Scheduling Weak Domains Around the Counts
This is the one place we will touch on study scheduling, and it is tied directly to the exam's structure. Because the written exam gives you item counts per domain, you can allocate review time in proportion rather than studying everything equally.
Highest-count domains first
- Grounding & Bonding (10) and Overcurrent Protection (9)
- Tab Article 250 and the overcurrent articles as you go
Sizing and circuits
- Services, Feeders & Branch Circuits (8) and Conductors & Cables (7)
- Run full circuit-sizing problems from load to conductor to device
The calculation cluster
- Current, Resistance, Voltage, Power, and Voltage Drop (30 questions combined)
- Practice on a basic calculator interface to mirror the test console
Practical build-out
- Bend EMT, wire 3-way and 4-way circuits de-energized, and read ladder diagrams
- Finish with State Laws & Rules from your tabbed acts and rules
Mix in timed practice sets as you go. You can drill every written heading with our free UT-JE practice tests, and the pass rate discussion explains why we focus on qualitative preparation rather than quoting unverified numbers.
Key Takeaway
The exam rewards organization over memorization. Tab the 2023 NEC to match the highest-count domains, keep the 6,000-versus-8,000-hour distinction straight, and verify every fee you cannot confirm in writing with Prov before you pay.
Frequently Asked Questions
The combined Theory and Code written examination has 100 questions, a 240-minute (four-hour) limit, and a 75% passing score. It is computer-based and open book, and costs $85.
Grounding & Bonding has the largest allocation with ten questions. Overcurrent Protection follows with nine, then Services, Feeders & Branch Circuits with eight. These are item counts, not published percentage weights.
Every task must eventually be passed, but you do not have to pass them all in one sitting. Successful tasks are retained, and only failed tasks must be repeated. The practical has a total 110-minute limit.
No. On the education route, 6,000 licensed-apprentice work hours plus the apprenticeship education makes you eligible to test. Full licensure requires approved apprenticeship completion and 8,000 supervised licensed work hours, plus passing both examinations. The alternative experience route requires 16,000 hours with verification.
That figure is on verification hold. The bulletin lists $25 per section but also retains legacy $85 wording and inconsistent pricing language, so confirm the actual charge with Prov before paying. For a full discussion of exam timing and scheduling, see our UT-JE exam dates guide.