MCAA Masonry

It is a 100-question, multiple-choice, open-book exam. Questions are split by discipline: Codes and Standards 27, Quality Assurance Best Practices 18, Safety 17, Ethics and Business Practice 16, Masonry Products 12, and Bidding Practices 10. You must score 80% or better to become certified.

The program certifies the company, but the primary individual responsible for day-to-day masonry operations, such as an owner, CEO, or senior manager, earns the credits and sits the exam. If that primary leaves the firm, the company loses its accumulated progress toward certification.

The primary needs 75.00 continuing education credits: 16.00 Quality Assurance Best Practices, 10.00 Codes and Standards, 10.00 Ethics and Business Practices, 10.00 Safety, 5.00 Bidding Practices, 5.00 Masonry Products, and 19.00 flexible. Separately, 100% of the firm's supervisors must each earn at least 15.00 credits in any discipline.

Yes. Under the grandfather clause, credits may be submitted for courses taken up to five years ago. You will need documentation such as a certificate of completion, proof of payment, and a course description. Self-reported credits require MCAA approval after the course is taken.

You will be allowed to retake the exam at a future date. The initial certification fee includes tracking services and the exam fee for up to three exams, so a single failure does not automatically require another payment.

The initial fee is $600.00 for MCAA members and $850.00 for non-members, covering tracking services and up to three exams. Certification is valid for three years and renews for $500.00, provided the required continuing education hours are verified. You are not required to retake the exam to renew.

Within each three-year period, the primary must earn 45.00 continuing education credits, and supervisors in the firm must earn an additional 15.00 credits during the same period. Once the renewal fee is paid and hours are verified, certification renews without retaking the exam.

MCAA provides a recommended list when the primary is ready to sit. It includes the International Building Code, A201, ASTM standards, BIA and NCMA tech notes, MCAA's masonry code requirements, hot and cold weather construction, masonry estimating, wall bracing standard, quality assurance class book, OSHA 10-hour notes, and your own course notes.

Open book does not mean easy to navigate. Candidates who have not tabbed and indexed their references lose time hunting for answers, and Codes and Standards carries the most questions at 27. Build a tabbing system and practice locating answers under time pressure before exam day.

Yes. A supervisor is anyone in the field who manages others, such as a foreman or project manager, and all must be listed. If you fail to list every supervisor, you risk losing your certification status, since each listed supervisor must earn 15.00 credits.