How the drill works
Each set serves all 37 situations in a shuffled order, with the four options shuffled too. Check your answer and the explanation says why the right title fits and what each of the other three is about.
Your score is one point per situation, out of 37. At the end you see your misses by subject area, so you know which books to tab or skim next. Hit New shuffle for a fresh order. Use the set number if you report an error.
Worked examples
Example 1: steel joists on the truck
Step 1: name the thing in the situation. It is steel joists and joist girders, and the task is lifting and setting them. Step 2: look for a title that names it. SJI Technical Digest No. 9 is titled for handling and erecting steel joists and joist girders. Step 3: rule out the near misses. The SDI manual is about steel deck, BCSI is about wood trusses, and the PCI manual is about precast concrete. The answer is SJI Technical Digest No. 9.
Example 2: a payroll tax question
Step 1: the subject is the company's payroll taxes, not the building. Step 2: that is business and law, and the NASCLA Contractors Guide to Business, Law and Project Management names both. Step 3: Construction Project Management and Construction Jobsite Management are about running projects and sites, not company taxes. The answer is the NASCLA Contractors Guide.
The 24 listed references and what their titles cover
Short titles as the drill uses them. The bulletin lists the full titles, editions and publishers; the reference books guide repeats them.
| Reference | What the title says it covers |
|---|---|
| Mechanical and Electrical Systems for Construction Managers | The mechanical and electrical systems in a building |
| ICC A117.1-2017, Accessible and Usable Buildings and Facilities | How to make buildings and facilities accessible |
| BCSI (handling, installing, restraining and bracing wood trusses) | Handling, installing, restraining and bracing metal plate connected wood trusses |
| Carpentry and Building Construction | Carpentry and general building construction |
| 29 CFR 1926 (OSHA construction standards) | The federal safety and health rules for construction |
| Construction Jobsite Management | Running the jobsite |
| Construction Project Management | Managing construction projects |
| NASCLA Contractors Guide to Business, Law and Project Management | Running a contracting business: business, law and project management |
| PCI Erectors' Manual (erection of precast concrete products) | Erecting precast concrete products |
| Green Building Fundamentals | Green building |
| Gypsum Construction Handbook | Gypsum board and gypsum construction |
| SJI Technical Digest No. 9 (handling and erection of steel joists and joist girders) | Handling and erecting steel joists and joist girders |
| International Building Code | The model building code |
| ACI 318, Building Code Requirements for Structural Concrete | The building code requirements for structural concrete |
| PTI Level 1 Field Fundamentals (unbonded post-tensioning) | Field work on unbonded post-tensioning |
| Modern Masonry: Brick, Block, Stone | Brick, block and stone masonry |
| Pipe and Excavation Contracting | Pipe and excavation contracting |
| Principles and Practices of Commercial Construction | How commercial buildings are built |
| Roofing Construction and Estimating | Building and estimating roofs |
| CRSI Placing Reinforcing Bars | Placing reinforcing bars |
| SDI Manual of Construction with Steel Deck | Construction with steel deck |
| ACI Contractor's Guide to Quality Concrete Construction | Quality concrete work from the contractor's side |
| EPA Developing Your Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan | Writing a stormwater pollution prevention plan for a construction site |
| ANSI/EIMA 99-A-2017 (EIFS) | Exterior insulation and finish systems |
This is a map of titles, not a summary of their contents. Next, map your weeks with the NASCLA study plan builder, drill the where-to-look cards in the NASCLA flashcards, and read the NASCLA study guide for when to tab during your plan.
NASCLA reference finder FAQ
Why practice choosing a book for an open-book exam?
Because the clock includes your lookups: 115 scored questions in 330 minutes. Every minute spent in the wrong book comes out of the next question. Knowing which title to grab before you read the options keeps lookups short, and it tells you which books most need tabs.
Do I need all 24 references on exam day?
The test center supplies none of them, so any book you leave at home is one you cannot open. Which ones you buy is your call; the reference books guide lists the editions PSI allows and the rules for marking them. Two of the 24, the OSHA construction standards and the EPA stormwater guide, can be read free online.
Are these situations taken from the exam?
No. Every situation is written for this site, and each answer is plain from the book's title alone. They are not recalled exam items, and nothing here quotes or summarizes what any listed book says on a point. Use them to learn the shelf, then read the topic in your own copy.