IBEW Aptitude Test Practice Questions: 22 Problems With Worked Answers (Free)

If you're searching for IBEW aptitude test practice, here it is, free: 16 algebra and functions problems and 2 reading passages with 6 questions, every answer worked step by step — written in the style of the Electrical Training Alliance Aptitude Test that IBEW/NECA training centers use to rank apprenticeship applicants. These are not leaked real questions (nobody legitimate has those); they're original problems matched to the test's published scope: first-year algebra, number sequences, functions, and reading comprehension. Work them without a calculator, on paper, before you read the answers — that's the condition you'll test under.

TL;DR

• 16 algebra problems + 2 passages with 6 questions, all with worked answers.
• The test's scope: first-year algebra, sequences, functions, reading. No trade knowledge.
• Work on paper, no calculator, then check answers.
• Miss a set → drill that topic on Khan Academy, then re-do it timed.
• New to the test itself? Read the full explainer first.

What do you need before starting?

• Pencil and scratch paper — the working matters more than the answer.
• No calculator. JATCs commonly don't allow one; confirm with your local, but practice as if it's banned.
• About 40 quiet minutes for the full set.
• If you don't know what the aptitude test is or how scoring works, start with The IBEW Aptitude Test, Explained, then come back.

What kind of algebra is on the IBEW aptitude test?

Four flavors, and the sets below cover all of them: solving equations, number sequences, functions and graphs, and word problems. Answers with full working follow each set — don't peek until the set is done.

Set A — Solve for x

A1. 3x − 7 = 20

A2. 5(x − 2) = 3x + 4

A3. x⁄4 + 3 = 9

A4. 2x + 5 = 4x − 11

Answers, worked:

• A1. Add 7 to both sides: 3x = 27. Divide by 3: x = 9.
• A2. Distribute: 5x − 10 = 3x + 4. Subtract 3x: 2x − 10 = 4. Add 10: 2x = 14 → x = 7.
• A3. Subtract 3: x⁄4 = 6. Multiply by 4: x = 24.
• A4. Subtract 2x: 5 = 2x − 11. Add 11: 16 = 2x → x = 8.

Set B — Number sequences

Find the next number:

B5. 5, 12, 19, 26, …

B6. 3, 6, 12, 24, …

B7. 2, 3, 5, 8, 12, …

B8. 40, 36, 31, 25, …

Answers, worked:

• B5. Each step adds 7. 26 + 7 = 33.
• B6. Each step doubles. 24 × 2 = 48.
• B7. The gaps grow by one: +1, +2, +3, +4 — next gap is +5. 12 + 5 = 17.
• B8. The gaps grow negatively: −4, −5, −6 — next gap is −7. 25 − 7 = 18.

Set C — Functions and graphs

C9. If f(x) = 2x² − 3, what is f(−2)?

C10. What is the slope of the line through (2, 3) and (6, 11)?

C11. Which point lies on the line y = 2x − 5: (3, 2), (4, 3), (5, 6), or (6, 8)?

C12. If f(x) = 3x + 1 and f(a) = 22, what is a?

Answers, worked:

• C9. Square first: (−2)² = 4. Then 2(4) − 3 = 8 − 3 = 5. (The classic mistake is −2² = −4 — the square applies to the whole −2.)
• C10. Slope = rise over run = (11 − 3) ⁄ (6 − 2) = 8⁄4 = 2.
• C11. Test each x: 2(4) − 5 = 3 ✓. (4, 3) is on the line; the others miss by at least 1.
• C12. 3a + 1 = 22 → 3a = 21 → a = 7.

Set D — Word problems

D13. A 12-foot length of conduit is cut into pieces 2.5 feet long. How many full pieces do you get, and how much is left over?

D14. Wire costs $84 per 250-foot spool. What does 1,000 feet cost?

D15. A crew installs 18 outlets in 3 hours. At that rate, how long do 48 outlets take?

D16. Using the formula V = I × R, if V = 120 and R = 15, what is I?

Answers, worked:

• D13. 12 ÷ 2.5 = 4.8 → 4 full pieces, using 10 feet, leaving 2 feet over.
• D14. 1,000 ÷ 250 = 4 spools. 4 × $84 = $336.
• D15. 18 ÷ 3 = 6 outlets per hour. 48 ÷ 6 = 8 hours.
• D16. 120 = I × 15 → I = 120 ⁄ 15 = 8. (Notice the formula was given — the test never assumes trade knowledge.)

What does the reading section look like?

Short passages, then questions on what was said and what was implied. Read the passage once, carefully, then answer without re-skimming for every question.

Passage 1

Before servicing electrical equipment, workers follow a lockout/tagout procedure. The worker performing the service shuts off the energy source, applies a personal lock, and attaches a tag with their name and the date. Only the worker who applied a lock may remove it. If several workers service the same equipment, each applies their own lock to the same point, and the equipment stays locked out until every lock is removed. The procedure exists because equipment that is merely switched off can be switched back on by someone unaware that work is underway.

R17. What is the main purpose of the procedure described?

R18. According to the passage, who may remove a worker's lock?

R19. Why does each worker apply a personal lock rather than sharing one?

Answers, worked:

• R17. To prevent equipment from being re-energized while someone is working on it. (The last sentence states the reason directly — "merely switched off can be switched back on.")
• R18. Only the worker who applied it. Stated verbatim; detail questions reward reading precisely.
• R19. So that no one's protection depends on anyone else — the equipment can't run until every worker has personally confirmed they're clear by removing their own lock. This is an inference: the passage implies it through "stays locked out until every lock is removed."

Passage 2

Apprentices qualify for a journeyman license by accumulating documented on-the-job hours over several years. Programs affiliated with a training center typically record these hours for the apprentice. Workers who train outside such a program are responsible for their own records, and applicants who cannot produce acceptable documentation may need employer verification for every period claimed. Licensing bodies do not accept an applicant's word alone; hours must be traceable to the employers under whom the work was performed.

R20. What is the main idea of the passage?

R21. According to the passage, who records hours for apprentices in an affiliated program?

R22. What problem does the passage imply for a worker who changes employers several times without keeping records?

Answers, worked:

• R20. Licensing requires documented hours, and who keeps the documentation depends on how you train. (Not "apprenticeships take years" — that's a detail, not the idea.)
• R21. The program's training center. Direct detail.
• R22. They'd have to reconstruct and verify hours with each past employer, since licensing bodies won't take their word for it — an inference from the last two sentences. (This is a real thing, incidentally: our free Apprentice Tracker exists because open-shop apprentices track their own hours.)

How should you use these questions?

1. Diagnose first: work all 22 untimed, no calculator, answers covered. Expected outcome: you'll know exactly which set costs you points — for most people it's Set A or C, not reading. Pitfall: checking each answer as you go teaches you nothing about test conditions; finish a full set before looking.
2. Drill the weak set, not everything. An hour a day on the matching Khan Academy Algebra 1 unit (equations, sequences, or functions) for one to two weeks. Expected outcome: the specific skill stops costing points. Pitfall: grinding your strong areas because it feels good — the points are in the weak set.
3. Re-do the whole set timed, roughly 90 seconds per algebra question. Expected outcome: format stress rehearsed away before test day. Pitfall: skipping the reading passages because "reading is fine" — under time pressure, inference questions are where careless points go.

If you can clear all four algebra sets and both passages comfortably, you're ready for the real thing at the level most applicants never reach. The next steps beyond the test: understand how the interview actually ranks you — the test is a gate, the interview is the score — know which door you're testing for, get your application in during the window (they're short), and if you want the full state-by-state route, build your free plan.

Sources: problem set and passages are original to Zero to Journeyman, written to the publicly described scope of the Electrical Training Alliance Aptitude Test (see our explainer); Houston Electrical JATC algebra-credit requirement per houstonjatc.com, checked 2026-08-19; free drill material: Khan Academy Algebra 1.