Oklahoma Roofing Contractor Commercial Endorsement Exam: What You Need to Know in 2026
This is the Oklahoma Roofing Contractor Commercial Endorsement exam. It is a PSI exam, and it is open book. Open book does not mean easy. It means you have to find things fast in books you already know your way around.
This guide walks you through what is on the exam, what the questions look like, which books you need, and how to work through them without running out of time.
Exam Overview
Here is the short version of how the exam is run and scored.
| Questions | 50 questions |
| Time limit | 150 minutes |
| Passing score | 70% correct |
| Books in the exam room | Open book |
| Exam fee | $92 |
On exam day
- You must bring one valid, unexpired, signature- and photo-bearing primary ID matching the name you registered under.
- Candidates should arrive at least 30 minutes before the appointment time.
- Candidates bring their own references; no additional loose papers are permitted, later editions are allowed except for Code books, and downloaded references must be bound, hole-punched in a binder, or stapled in the left-hand corner.
- Highlighting and underlining done before the exam are permitted, writing in references is not, and only permanent tabs may be used.
- A silent, battery-operated, non-printing, non-programmable calculator without an alphabetic keyboard is allowed.
- All personal items, including electronic devices and any writing devices or extra reading material, must be stored in secure storage outside the testing room.
References you may bring
- Architectural Sheet Metal Manual (2012)
- International Building Code (2018 or 2024; starting 9/14/2026 the 2024 code can be used, and as of 12/14/2026 the 2018 code will no longer be used or allowed)
- NRCA Roofing Manual: Membrane Roofing Systems (2023)
- NRCA Roofing Manual: Metal Panel and SPF Roof Systems (2024)
- NRCA Roofing Manual: Steep Slope Roof Systems (2021 or 2025; as of 3/15/2026 the 2021 version will no longer be allowed)
- NRCA Roofing Manual: Architectural Metal Flashing Condensation and Air Leakage Control, and Reroofing (2022)
- Code of Federal Regulations - 29 CFR Part 1926 (OSHA) (with latest available amendments)
- Code of Federal Regulations - 29 CFR Part 1926 Selections by PSI (with latest available amendments)
Scheduling, changes and retakes
- After State approval, you contact PSI to schedule, either online at https://test-takers.psiexams.com/okcontractors or by phone at (855) 834-8750.
- You must be approved by the State before scheduling with PSI, and there is no expiration on your eligibility.
- Candidates who miss the appointment, arrive after the examination start time, or lack proper ID forfeit the examination fee and cannot test as scheduled.
- Results are given on screen immediately after the examination, with a diagnostic report of strengths and weaknesses for those who do not pass.
- A 30-day wait follows a first failure; electrical exams keep a 30-day wait for further retests, while all other exams require 90 days from the second failure onward.
- Candidates who pass the license exam are issued a license by the Oklahoma State Construction Industries Board.
Source: State of Oklahoma Electrical, Mechanical, Roofing, and Plumbing Examinations Candidate Information Bulletin, Effective 9/11/2026 (Copyright © 2026 by PSI). Check the bulletin before test day: fees and rules can change.
Topics Covered on the Exam
The official outline breaks the exam into six topics. Low Slope Roofing carries the most weight by a wide margin. Plan your study time the same way.
Low Slope Roofing — 15 items (30%)
This is the biggest block on the exam. Questions here cover membrane types and how they attach: built-up, polymer-modified bitumen, EPDM, thermoplastic, liquid-applied and SPF. Expect ASTM classifications — which EPDM type has fabric backing, which asphalt type is right for interply moppings at a given slope, which perlite board types are made as cover boards for re-cover work. You will see recommended numbers: minimum nominal thickness for PVC sheets, ballast application rates for loose-laid systems, maximum kettle temperature for hot bitumen, minimum offset between board joints in adjacent insulation layers. Tapered insulation shows up too — saddle and cricket slope relative to the field, and the flashing height raised curbs must allow above the insulation. Flashing and metal edge questions appear here as well: why caulking is not recommended along the lower edges of a formed metal coping, how far the exterior vertical face of an edge flashing extends below the top of the wall material, and minimum clearances between pipes, curbs and walls. There is also code work — IBC rules on what may be reinstalled during reroofing and what must be done when a re-cover over wood shingles creates a combustible concealed space. And you may get a straight math item, like figuring total gallons of liquid membrane from a coverage rate and a coat count.
Architectural Metal Roofing Systems and Sheet Metal Flashing — 9 items (18%)
Metals and how they behave together. Aluminum, copper, galvanized steel, Galvalume, stainless steel and zinc, plus dissimilar metal contact and galvanic corrosion. Panel systems get split into architectural versus structural, each with its own minimum slope. Expect questions on why non-structural panels need a continuous or closely spaced substrate, how valley slope drops below field slope on a 3:12 panel roof, and when tension precision leveling should happen in coil production to cut down on oil canning. Drainage comes up here too: built-in gutter design, the elevation difference between the front and back edge, which metals are recommended for built-in gutters because they can be soldered or welded, expansion joint spacing in long gutter runs, and what to install at a scupper opening when the scupper is the primary drain. Code items cover coping width on parapet walls and when a complete, separate standing-seam system does not require removing the existing covering.
Repairs and Reroofing — 8 items (16%)
Evaluation first. You need to know how to tell a roof problem from a non-roof problem — clogged condensate lines, parapets above flashings, plumbing piping. If a non-roof source is leaking, a new roof will not fix it. Questions cover verifying roof structure capacity before a re-cover, deciding whether existing counterflashings have enough service life left to reuse, and whether to install new base flashings over old ones or tear them out. There are attic and deck items: what eave baffles are for, what to do when you find faced and sealed wood sheathing during a replacement, and how to cut a new raggle without blocking weep holes. Slate repair has its own questions, including the nail-and-bib method and how the bib is shaped to hold by friction.
Safety — 7 items (14%)
Straight OSHA 29 CFR 1926. Fall protection on low-slope and steep roofs, personal fall arrest components, guardrails, safety nets, warning lines and safety monitors. Ladders, stairways, scaffolds. PPE selection and the employer's responsibility to require it. Fire protection is covered too: extinguisher rating per 3,000 square feet of protected building area, the alarm system the employer must establish, flammable liquid storage. Also definitions — what makes someone a "competent person," who may operate equipment, danger sign colors, and how often first aid kit contents get checked.
Moisture and Energy Control — 6 items (12%)
R-value, U-factor, k-value and C-factor, and how you actually run the numbers. Expect dew-point analysis questions — including which thermal resistance value to use for a tapered system, and what R-value a ventilated airspace gets in a temperature gradient calculation. Vapor retarders versus air barriers is a recurring theme: loose-laid polyethylene without taped joints fails one of those two jobs. Thermal bridging at fasteners and structural supports can cause condensation at the bypass point. Multiple insulation layers do more than add R-value. IBC rules on unvented attic assemblies with air-permeable insulation round it out.
General Roofing Knowledge — 5 items (10%)
Roof classifications, low-slope versus steep-slope, and IBC fire classifications for roof assemblies — including which combustible roof coverings are allowed in Type I and II construction and when combustible roof insulation is permitted in any construction type. Steep-slope covering basics: minimum nails per full-length three-tab strip shingle, how far nails must extend through a thin plywood deck, ASTM clay tile grades for frost resistance, and what underlayment configuration IBC and IRC prescribe for asphalt shingles at 4:12 or greater outside high-wind regions.
Sample Questions
Four practice questions, no answers given. Work them with your books open and time yourself.
1. Low Slope Roofing
For the purpose of complying with model energy code provisions such as the IECC, which method is used most often to calculate the minimum required R-value for a roof assembly?
A. Average R-value of all roof assembly components
B. Thermal transmittance (U-factor) of the roof deck alone
C. Overall building energy performance modeling
D. Total R-value of the roof system insulation products
Tests whether you know which method the NRCA manual identifies as the one used most often for energy code compliance.
2. Architectural Metal Roofing Systems and Sheet Metal Flashing
You are a roofing contractor installing metal roof panels on a commercial building. The project specifies a copper roof. Which fastener types are acceptable for attaching copper panels?
A. Galvanized steel, aluminum, or stainless-steel fasteners
B. Aluminum, copper, or galvanized steel fasteners
C. Copper, brass, bronze, copper alloy, or 300 series stainless-steel fasteners
D. Bronze, brass, galvanized steel, or copper alloy fasteners
Tests fastener compatibility with copper roofs under the IBC.
3. Repairs and Reroofing
When a re-cover asphalt shingle roof system is installed, what must be done with all existing penetrations?
A. Existing penetrations must be removed and reinstalled after the re-cover is complete
B. Existing penetrations must be capped and new penetrations installed adjacent to them
C. Existing penetrations must be sealed with roofing cement and left at their current height
D. Existing penetrations must be extended through the new roof system and flashed in a water-shedding manner
Tests how penetrations are handled when a new shingle system goes over an old one.
4. Safety
Employees required to handle or use flammable liquids, gases, or ______ materials shall be instructed in the safe handling and use of these materials.
A. Corrosive
B. Explosive
C. Toxic
D. Radioactive
A fill-in-the-blank straight out of the OSHA construction standards. These reward knowing the exact wording.
Want more? Try the free practice exam — it is 10 questions.
What Types of Questions to Expect
Most practice questions are four-option multiple choice. The safety practice questions also include true/false statements drawn from OSHA 29 CFR 1926, so the exact wording of the standard is worth knowing.
Three patterns show up over and over in the practice questions:
Lookup questions. A specific number or classification. Minimum nail count. Minimum offset. Maximum spacing. ASTM type designation. These are pure book-speed questions. If you know the chapter, you find it in under a minute.
Scenario questions. "You are evaluating a slate roof..." or "You are designing a built-in gutter..." The stem gives you a jobsite situation and asks what you do or why. The answer is still in the book, but you have to recognize which rule applies before you can look it up.
Calculation questions. Coverage rates, gallons, areas. Usually one step or two. Write the arithmetic out — do not do it in your head.
On code items, a citation may give the current IBC section and also list the older 2018 edition number. Know that both editions exist and that section numbers shifted between them.
Study Materials
These are the required reference books for this exam. Get them, read them, and tab them.
Required references:
- OSHA 29 CFR 1926 — OSHA Standards for the Construction Industry. Fall protection, ladders, scaffolds, PPE and fire protection.
- IBC 2018 — International Building Code, 2018 edition.
- IBC 2024 — International Building Code, 2024 edition. Roof covering, fire classification and reroofing chapters.
- NRCA Roofing Manual: Membrane Roofing Systems — the main book for the Low Slope topic.
- NRCA Roofing Manual: Metal Panel and SPF Roof Systems — panel classifications, slopes, metals, SPF.
- NRCA Roofing Manual: Steep Slope Roof Systems — shingles, tile, slate, wood, and steep-slope reroofing.
- Architectural Sheet Metal Manual — gutters, copings, seams, and the Appendix F moisture material.
- NRCA Roofing Manual: Metal Flashing & Reroofing 2022 — architectural metal flashing, condensation and air leakage control, and reroofing.
Helpful supplies:
- Redi-Tag Permanent Colored Tabs — 100 permanent tabs in five colors, 1.125" x 1.25". Color-code by book or by topic.
- Sharpie Highlighters — 12 chisel-tip tank highlighters in assorted colors. Good for marking tables and key lines.
This is an open book exam. Your books are a tool, not a safety net — how fast you use them decides your score.
Study Tips
Weight your time the way the outline does. Low Slope Roofing is nearly a third of the exam. Spend a third of your study hours there. Metal and reroofing together are another third. General Roofing Knowledge is the smallest block — do not burn a week on it.
Tab before you study, then re-tab after. Your first pass at tabbing will be wrong. After you have worked through practice questions, you will know which tables you actually reach for. Redo the tabs then.
Learn the table of contents, not the page numbers. On a scenario question, your first job is picking the right book and the right chapter. That takes knowing how each manual is organized. Page numbers you can find; structure you have to learn.
Practice looking things up under pressure. Do not read the manuals like a novel. Take a practice question, start a timer, and find the answer. Open book strategy is a skill, and the only way to build it is reps.
Watch your pace. You get about 3 minutes per question. Some lookups take thirty seconds and some take four minutes. If an item is fighting you, mark it and move on. Finishing the easy ones first is worth more than winning one hard one.
Read every option before you answer. Options can look close to right — a fastener list that is almost correct, a slope that is close but not the one in the manual. Check each one against the book.
Drill the OSHA wording. Safety questions often turn on one word. Read the standards out loud if that helps it stick.
Use full-length practice runs. Sit down with your books, set a timer, and work 50 questions start to finish. That tells you where you are losing time better than anything else.
Get Started
Here is your order of operations. Check the requirements on the licensing agency website. Read the official bulletin straight through so there are no surprises on exam day.
Next, start building your book set and tabbing it. Then start drilling. Our practice exam is built to match the official outline topic by topic, so your roofing exam prep for PSI hits the same weights the real exam does. Use it as your Oklahoma roofing study guide: work the questions, find the answers in your books, and keep going until the lookups feel automatic.
Put the hours in with the books open. That is the whole job.