Journeyman Certification

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• Sample Certification Exams
• Who is Required to be Certified?
• Qualifications to Apply For Certification
• Deadline to be Certified
• How to Apply
• How to Renew your Certification
• How to Request a Replacement Certification Card
• How to File a Certification Violation Complaint with DAS
• Exam Locations
• Exam Content
• ESL Exam Information
• Journeyman Certification Exam Prep Classes
• Journeyman Instructors Needed
• Additional Information from the State
• Current California Certified Electricians
• Electrician Certification Program Statistics

WECA has developed the following Sample Journeymen Certification Exams to help individuals prepare for the State Certification Exams. These samples are to be used to help evaluate each individual's current need for additional training before taking the State Exam.  

Try a Quick General (Commercial) Certification Practice Quiz

Try a General (Commercial) Certification Sample Exam

Try a Residential Certification Sample Exam

One who performs work for an electrical contractor installing, constructing or maintaining any electrical system that is covered by the National Electric Code, is required to be certified as a General Electrician.

One who performs work for an electrical contractor installing, constructing, or maintaining any electrical system that is covered by the National Electrical Code in single family homes and multi-family units, including hotels and motels, where the primary occupancy of the building is considered residential and the maximum voltage received from a utility company is a 3 phase, 4 wire, 120/208 or 120/240 volts, is required to be certified as a Residential Electrician.

One who performs work installing the required panel boards and feeders for commercial tenant space in a multi-family/multi-use occupancies falling under subsection (1), where less than 50 percent of the first floor level is used for commercial tenant space, but not performing any tenant improvement for these spaces, is required to be certified as a Residential Electrician.

One who performs work for an electrical contractor involving the installation, construction or maintenance of systems as covered in Article 760 of the National Electrical Code, is required to be certified as a Fire/Life Safety Technician.

If you are the holder of a valid C-10 license and are working under that license, certification is not required. However, if you are performing covered electrical work not under your own valid license - for example, if your license is not in effect for some reason, or you are working under someone else's C-10 license - certification is required.

In order to apply for certification an applicant must show proof of the required experience as referenced in Title 8 section 291.1 Eligibility for Certification.

The certification deadline for general electricians (with the exception of apprentices enrolled in state-approved apprenticeship programs or enrolled as electrician trainees with a state-approved educational provider) and fire/life/safety certification was January 1st, 2006.
The deadline for residential electrician certification (with the exception of apprentices enrolled in state-approved apprenticeship programs or enrolled as electrician trainees with a state-approved educational provider) was January 1, 2007.
The deadline for voice-data-video (VDV) and non-residential lighting certification (with the exception of apprentices enrolled in state-approved apprenticeship programs or enrolled as electrician trainees with a state-approved educational provider) is January 1, 2009.

For detailed instructions on how to apply for California State Certification first print a copy of the Certification Application, then follow the instructions listed on the State of California Web Site.

How do I apply for renewal?
To renew your certification, complete and return a renewal application, with payment, to the DAS. On the application, you must show under penalty of perjury that you have worked 2,000 hours in the industry and taken 32 hours of continuing education relevant to the category of certification (general, residential or VDV). The DAS accepts payment only by check or money order payable to: DIR - Electrician Certification Fund. Payment must be included with your renewal form in order for you certification to be renewed.
Click here to download a renewal form.

When do I have to renew?
A certified electrician must renew his or her certification prior to the expiration date of his or her certification. In most cases, certification expires three years from the effective date.
However, if you became certified before it was mandatory, then the certification is treated as having become valid on the first anniversary of the certification date that falls after the certification deadline. For example, for those who were certified prior to the Dec. 31, 2005 deadline for general and fire/life/safety electricians, such as on November 1, 2005, his or her certification became valid on November 1, 2006 and the deadline to renew is November 1, 2009. The deadline for residential certification was December 31, 2006.
To find out what your expiration date is, click here to enter the Certification Number from your card in the Search field at the DAS website and click through to print the Verification statement to show the extended expiration date.

What are the requirements to renew?
To be eligible to apply for renewal of your certification, you must work 2,000 hours in the industry and take 32 hours of continuing education relevant to your category of certification that is being requested in order to renew. Those 2,000 hours in the industry and 32 hours of continuing education must have been completed within three years of the valid date of your certification.

Where can I take my 32 hours of continuing education?
A certified electrician can earn hours toward his or her 32-hour requirement by taking courses from an approved educational provider such as WECA.

When can I take my 32 hours of continuing education?

Certified Journeymen who are applying for their 3 year renewal can apply as soon as they have the 2000 verifiable hours of work experience and 32 hours of verifiable continuing education training with an approved school. They no longer need to wait until their expiration date every 3 years to apply for renewal if they have the work hours and have completed their training earlier. Whenever applying for renewal early, the renewal date will be extended 3 years from their original expiration date even if they are applying early. Example: Journeyman certification expires in Dec 2014 but the Journeyman has both 2000 verifiable work hours and has taken 32 hours of continuing education from an approved school in June 2014. They can apply for renewal in June 2014 and their new expiration date would still be Dec 2017.

Does WECA offer continuing education (CE) courses?
Yes, WECA offers a wide variety of CE courses, including class-room based and online classes, as well as courses available on CD-ROM. Click here to see a full catalog of the CE courses offered by WECA.

What courses qualify for my continuing education requirement?
Courses that are relevant to the category of electrician certification that is being requested to be renewed qualify for your CE requirement. Current certification categories include general, residential and fire/life/safety. Non-residential lighting and voice-data-video (VDV) categories will soon be available through the state.
Currently, all of WECA’s CE courses are relevant to both the general and residential categories.

What kind of proof do I need to show I met the requirement of working 2,000 hours in the industry?
On the application form there will be a box to check stating you acquired 2,000 hours in the industry that you must sign under penalty of perjury.

What kind of proof do I need to show that I met the requirement of completing 32 hours of continuing education?
The renewal form includes instructions to attach Certificate(s) of Completion for your required 32 hours of continuing education. WECA will provide you with a certificate of completion for each CE course you take through our training program showing the hours you attended class, regardless of whether you pass or fail.

What happens if I submit an old version of the certification renewal form?
DAS will accept older versions of the renewal form as long as the applicant submits the form with the required Certificate(s) of Completion for the required 32 hours of continuing education.

When will DAS stop accepting renewals that do not have Certificates of Completion attached?
DAS currently requires proof of completion of 32 hours of continuing education even if the applicant uses an older version of the form that does not indicate proof of completion must be attached. The renewal application will be rejected by DAS if no proof is attached.

What do I need to do if my card has expired??
If your card has expired, you must complete and submit a new application for certification and examination with the associated fees to the state and re-take the exam. After your certification has expired you will not be recognized as a certified journeyman electrician and must register as an electrician trainee with the state in order to legally work as an electrician in California during the gap between your expiration date and the date you re-take and pass the exam.

What date does DAS use to process renewals to ensure that a certified electrician’s renewal is not expired?
The certification expiration date is the date the card expires.

If the renewal application is submitted on or before the expiration date, what date will be use to determine if the application is accepted or rejected?
DAS considers the postmarked date on the envelope for renewal applications mailed to their office. Renewal applications submitted prior to or on the date of expiration will be accepted.

Who can I call if I have additional questions about renewing my certification?
If you have additional questions, please call us toll-free at (877) 444-9322, Monday – Thursday from 7AM to 6PM, or on Friday from 7AM to 5PM.

How do I request a replacement certification card if mine was lost or stolen?
A certified electrician who loses his or her card needs to fill out a request for a replacement card form and mail it to the address printed on the form. The cost is $30.00. Click here to download a request form.

There are 100 questions on the General Electrician Exam and you have 4 hours to complete the exam. There are 75 questions on the Residential Electrician exam and you have 3 hours to complete the exam. There are 50 questions on the Fire/Life Safety Technician Exam and you have 2 hours to complete the exam. View a break down of the type of questions contained on each exam.

The NEC Code Books are provided at the testing sites for use by those taking the test. Testing is based on the 2008 edition of the NEC code book. For more details on exam content, those scheduled to take the exam should review the Candidate Information Bulletin attached to their exam letter for the Exam content outline in the beginning pages.

PSI Services, LLC is the proctor administering the electrician certification exam for the state of California. Visit their website to learn more about the specifics of the exam, or contact them by phone at (800) 733-9267.

Effective April 2013, any trainee or Journeyman who has English as their second language (ESL) may request additional time to take the Electrical Certification Test. Additional time can be granted up to time and a half. General Electrician Test from 4 hours up to 6 hours, Residential Electrician Test from 3 hours up to 4 1/2 hours, VDV, FLS and NRL Test from 2 hours up to 3 hours. This can be requested for all languages if English is not their primary language.

The process is as follows:

After an applicant has submitted the Application for Electrician Examination and Certification (download) along with the appropriate fees and supporting documentation and they have received acknowledgement that their application has been processed and the applicant chooses to request additional time to take the test for ESL or ADA special arrangements the following must be submitted to PSI prior to registering for a date to take the test.

1) Complete the PSI Special Arrangement Request Form available on the DAS web site and/or WECA website.(Download)

2) Attach a letter from the applicant requesting the special arrangement that identifies their first language and that English is not their primary language and they are requesting additional time to take the electrical certification test.

3) Attach a letter from the electrician's current or latest state approved learning institution (i.e. WECA) on their letterhead. (Contact WECA to request.)

WECA offers a variety of classes to help you prepare to take and pass the State Certification Exam.  Results indicate that the majority of students who take the State Certification Exam after attending one of our classes, pass!  All Instructors have passed the exam and are State Certified!

View current class offerings >>

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Journeyman Instructors Needed

Would you like to earn extra money working part-time and help out your fellow Journeymen at the same time?

WECA is seeking Journeymen who have passed the State Certification Exam to teach evening and weekend classes. WECA will provide training.