Florida Project Mgmt Exam Study Guide (2026)
Everything the Florida General Contractor Project Management Exam tests, topic by topic: what each section covers, the facts that come up most, and how to study it. Pair it with the free 15-question practice test.
The exam at a glance
| Questions | 60 multiple-choice questions |
|---|---|
| Time | 4.5 hours |
| Passing score | 70% (42 of 60 correct) |
| Format | Open book (approved reference list) |
| Licensing body | Florida Construction Industry Licensing Board (CILB) |
| Test provider | Pearson VUE |
Mind map: the whole exam on one screen
1. Scheduling and CPM
This topic covers building and reading a critical path method (CPM) schedule: forward and backward passes, float, PERT estimates and crashing. Many questions are short network calculations, so a clean, repeatable method saves time and points.
Key facts
- The critical path is the longest path through the network. It sets the shortest possible project duration, and its activities normally have zero total float.
- Forward pass: early finish (EF) = early start (ES) + duration. Backward pass: late start (LS) = late finish (LF) - duration.
- Total float = LF - EF, or LS - ES. It is the time an activity can slip without delaying project completion.
- Free float = earliest ES of the following activities - EF of the activity. It is the slip allowed without delaying any successor.
- PERT expected time = (O + 4M + P) / 6. PERT standard deviation = (P - O) / 6.
- Crash cost slope = (crash cost - normal cost) / (normal time - crash time). Crash critical activities with the lowest slope first.
- Resource leveling shifts noncritical activities within their float to smooth out peaks in labor or equipment demand.
Flashcards
Exam tip: Draw the network and write ES, EF, LS and LF on every activity before you answer, and remember that crashing a noncritical activity never shortens the project.
2. Fall Protection and Access
This topic covers OSHA rules for working at height and getting to work areas: guardrails, personal fall arrest, ladders and stairways. These are the most frequently tested safety numbers, and all of them are in 29 CFR 1926 Subparts M and X.
Key facts
- Fall protection is required on walking or working surfaces with an unprotected side or edge 6 feet or more above a lower level (29 CFR 1926.501(b)(1)).
- The top edge of a guardrail top rail must be 42 inches, plus or minus 3 inches, above the walking or working level (29 CFR 1926.502(b)(1)).
- A top rail must withstand at least 200 pounds applied outward or downward within 2 inches of its top edge (29 CFR 1926.502(b)(3)).
- Personal fall arrest anchorages must support at least 5,000 pounds per employee attached, unless designed by a qualified person with a safety factor of at least two (29 CFR 1926.502(d)(15)).
- A personal fall arrest system must limit free fall to 6 feet or less and keep the worker from contacting any lower level (29 CFR 1926.502(d)(16)(iii)).
- Portable ladder side rails must extend at least 3 feet above the upper landing surface (29 CFR 1926.1053(b)(1)).
- A stairway or ladder is required at a break in elevation of 19 inches or more. Stairways with 4 or more risers, or rising more than 30 inches, need at least one handrail (29 CFR 1926.1051(a), 1926.1052(c)(1)).
Flashcards
Exam tip: Watch the trigger heights: 6 feet for general fall protection, 10 feet for scaffolds, and 19 inches for requiring a stairway or ladder.
3. Excavations and Trenching
This topic covers OSHA Subpart P: when a protective system is needed, soil types, maximum slopes, egress and inspections. Expect depth triggers and slope ratios that you can find quickly in the 29 CFR 1926 reference.
Key facts
- A protective system is required in excavations 5 feet or deeper, unless the excavation is entirely in stable rock (29 CFR 1926.652(a)(1)).
- Protective systems for excavations deeper than 20 feet must be designed by a registered professional engineer (29 CFR 1926.652(b), Appendix B).
- Maximum allowable slopes for excavations 20 feet or less: stable rock vertical, Type A 3/4:1, Type B 1:1, Type C 1-1/2:1 (29 CFR 1926 Subpart P, Appendix B).
- Trenches 4 feet or deeper need a stairway, ladder, ramp or other safe exit within 25 feet of lateral travel (29 CFR 1926.651(c)(2)).
- Spoil and equipment must be kept at least 2 feet from the edge of the excavation, or held back by retaining devices (29 CFR 1926.651(j)(2)).
- A competent person must inspect excavations daily before work starts, as needed during the shift, and after rainstorms or other hazard-increasing events (29 CFR 1926.651(k)(1)).
- Type A soil has an unconfined compressive strength of 1.5 tons per square foot or more. Type C soil has 0.5 tsf or less (29 CFR 1926 Subpart P, Appendix A).
Flashcards
Exam tip: Keep 4 feet (egress) and 5 feet (protective system) straight, and remember slope ratios are written horizontal to vertical.
Test yourself on these topics
Take the free 15-question Florida Project Mgmt test, then save your results to unlock your Readiness Score and the mistakes bank.
4. Scaffolds, Fire and Reporting
This topic covers scaffold capacity and fall protection, job-site fire extinguisher rules, and when an employer must report serious injuries to OSHA. These rules come from 29 CFR 1926 Subparts L and F and 29 CFR 1904.
Key facts
- Each scaffold and scaffold component must support its own weight plus at least 4 times the maximum intended load (29 CFR 1926.451(a)(1)).
- Workers on a scaffold more than 10 feet above a lower level must be protected from falling (29 CFR 1926.451(g)(1)).
Flashcards
Exam tip: Do not mix up the reporting clocks: 8 hours for a death, 24 hours for a hospitalization, amputation or lost eye.
5. Cost Control and Earned Value
This topic covers tracking a project's cost and schedule performance with earned value, plus markup and margin math. Questions are almost always calculations, so memorize the formulas and the sign conventions.
Key facts
- Earned value (EV) = percent complete x budget for that work. Planned value (PV) is the budgeted cost of work scheduled. Actual cost (AC) is what has been spent.
- Cost variance CV = EV - AC. Schedule variance SV = EV - PV. A negative value means over budget or behind schedule.
Flashcards
Exam tip: Every earned value formula starts with EV, so compute earned value first and never use actual cost as earned value.
6. Cranes and Rigging
This topic covers crane power line clearances, swing radius hazards, inspections, load chart math and sling tension. Expect questions from 29 CFR 1926 Subpart CC and rigging rules in 1926.251.
Key facts
- If any part of the crane, load line or load could come within 20 feet of a power line up to 350 kV, the employer must de-energize and ground it, stay 20 feet away, or keep the Table A distance (29 CFR 1926.1408(a)(2)).
- Table A minimum clearances: up to 50 kV 10 feet, over 50 to 200 kV 15 feet, over 200 to 350 kV 20 feet, over 350 to 500 kV 25 feet (29 CFR 1926.1408).
Flashcards
Exam tip: In load chart questions, add the hook block and rigging to the load weight before comparing it to rated capacity.
7. Quality Control and Close-out
This topic covers concrete acceptance testing, submittals, substantial completion, the correction period and Florida lien law steps at close-out. It ties contract documents to the final payment process.
Key facts
- Concrete strength is acceptable if every average of three consecutive strength tests equals or exceeds f'c and no single test falls more than 500 psi below f'c when f'c is 5,000 psi or less (ACI 318, 26.12.3.1).
- A strength test is the average strength of at least two cylinders from the same sample, usually tested at 28 days (ACI 318).
Flashcards
Exam tip: A single low cylinder does not fail the concrete by itself: check both the three-test average and the 500 psi individual limit.
How to pass
- OSHA lookup speed wins this exam. Tab subparts M (fall protection), L (scaffolds), P (excavations) and CC (cranes).
- Know total float vs. free float, and how to find the critical path by hand.
- Most cost questions are simple ratios: CPI = EV ÷ AC, SPI = EV ÷ PV.
Frequently asked questions
How long should I study for the Florida Project Mgmt exam?
Most working candidates need 4 to 8 weeks at 45 to 60 minutes a day. Book your exam once your Readiness Score has stayed at 80 or higher for about a week.
Is the Florida Project Mgmt exam open book?
Open book (approved reference list). Check the current candidate information bulletin from Florida Construction Industry Licensing Board (CILB) for the approved reference list and tabbing rules.
What score do I need to pass the Florida Project Mgmt exam?
70% (42 of 60 correct). The exam has 60 multiple-choice questions and a time limit of 4.5 hours.
What are the most tested topics?
The outline covers scheduling and cpm, fall protection and access, excavations and trenching, scaffolds, fire and reporting, cost control and earned value, cranes and rigging, quality control and close-out. Use the free practice test to see which ones you need most.
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Summarized from official candidate information and the statutes, codes and regulations cited, checked October 2026. Confirm current requirements with Florida Construction Industry Licensing Board (CILB).