The power engineering exam format, verified

Most SOPEEC power engineering exams — 5th Class through 2nd Class — follow one standardized multiple-choice format. (1st Class is the exception: it is still a written, essay-style exam, now transitioning to multiple choice.) Some study sites still publish the wrong numbers. Here are the facts, straight from the SOPEEC standard.

Format by paper

4th Class requires passing both 4A and 4B independently — a pass on one paper does not carry over to the other.

* 1st Class is the exception. Most of its eight papers are still written, essay-style — in most jurisdictions about 3½ hours each, where you answer 5 of 7 questions — not 100-question multiple choice. The transition has started: effective January 1, 2026, paper 1B4 is now 100 multiple-choice questions, the first 1st-Class paper to convert; the other seven (1A1–1A4, 1B1–1B3) remain written. SOPEEC has not published a schedule for the rest, so always confirm the current 1st-Class paper structure with your regulator. SteamTicket’s 1st Class Part B bank is multiple-choice practice — it mirrors the new MCQ 1B4 paper and builds the underlying knowledge for the essay papers.

The facts other sites get wrong

If you’ve seen conflicting numbers while studying, you’re not imagining it. For the multiple-choice papers (5th through 2nd Class), a few common errors float around online:

• “3.5 hours” — the SOPEEC multiple-choice papers are 3 hours each, not 3.5. (The written 1st Class papers are a separate, longer format — see the note above.)
• “150 questions” — SOPEEC multiple-choice papers are 100 questions. (Some older or non-SOPEEC formats used 150; the current standard does not.)
• “50% to pass” — the pass mark is 65% on every SOPEEC paper, every class.

One format, eleven jurisdictions

Eleven of Canada’s thirteen jurisdictions write the standardized SOPEEC papers, so the format above applies whether you write in Alberta (ABSA), British Columbia (Technical Safety BC), Saskatchewan (TSASK), Ontario (TSSA), or elsewhere. Since March 2023, British Columbia writes the same 100-question / 3-hour / 65% SOPEEC papers as Alberta. Two jurisdictions differ: Quebec runs its own MMF system, and Nunavut sets its own Chief Inspector examinations with different pass marks. See your province page for local details.