OSHA 511 study materials
OSHA 511 study resources

OSHA 511 study plan

OSHA 511 · Give each week a clear focus.

8 weeks · About 6 hours per week

Week 1

Hazard communication and personal protective equipment & Introduction to OSHA and the OSH Act

  • Explain how the five levels of the hazard control hierarchy (elimination, substitution, engineering controls, administrative controls, PPE) apply to real tasks, and assign an appropriate control to 10 written scenarios

  • Outline the required contents of a written hazard communication program under 29 CFR 1910.1200(e), including the chemical list, SDS availability, labeling, and training provisions

  • Locate and interpret key sections of a 16-section safety data sheet (hazard identification, first aid, exposure controls, physical and health hazard data)

  • Select eye, head, hand, foot, and respiratory protection by hazard using 1910 Subpart I requirements, and state the employer's duties for training, fit, and defective-equipment replacement

  • Summarize employer duties under OSH Act Section 5(a)(1) and 5(a)(2) and employee duties under 5(b), plus the anti-retaliation protection in Section 11(c)

Your checkpoint

A written hazard assessment covering 5 tasks from a real or simulated workplace, with PPE selected and justified for each, plus a self-scored 20-question quiz (pass mark 85%)

Week 2

Materials handling, confined spaces, and other general industry subparts

  • Determine whether a space is a permit-required confined space by applying the 1910.146 criteria (atmospheric hazard, engulfment, entrapment, other serious hazard)

  • Sequence pre-entry atmospheric testing (oxygen, flammables, toxics) and identify the elements that must appear on an entry permit

  • Describe the training and evaluation requirements for powered industrial truck operators under 1910.178(l), including the three-year re-evaluation and refresher triggers

  • Apply the materials-handling rules in 1910.176 and 1910.184 to a storage and rigging scenario, including load limits and sling inspection criteria

  • Distinguish the roles and duties of the entry supervisor, attendant, and authorized entrant during a permit space entry

Your checkpoint

A completed permit-required confined space entry permit template plus a written decision tree classifying 6 described spaces, with the governing paragraph cited for each

Week 3

Recordkeeping and reporting (29 CFR 1904)

  • Determine whether an establishment is partially exempt under 29 CFR 1904.1 and identify which injury and illness records it must still keep

  • Classify 12 case scenarios under 1904.7 by applying the death, days away, restricted work or transfer, medical treatment beyond first aid, loss of consciousness, and significant diagnosed injury criteria

  • Complete OSHA Form 300 entries and Form 301 details correctly, including privacy-concern cases

  • Calculate total recordable case rate and DART rate from a given set of exposure hours and case counts

  • State the Form 300A posting window and the five-year record retention requirement, and distinguish the 8-hour fatality reporting deadline from the 24-hour inpatient hospitalization, amputation, and loss-of-eye reporting deadline

Your checkpoint

A complete mock OSHA 300 Log, supporting 301 incident reports, and a 300A summary for a simulated establishment, with a documented TRIR and DART calculation scoring at least 90% against an answer key

Week 4

Machine guarding and hazardous energy control

  • Identify point-of-operation and other machine hazards and match each to a guarding method permitted under 1910.212 and 1910.219

  • Write out the six-step hazardous energy control procedure under 1910.147, from notification and shutdown through verification and release from lockout

  • Differentiate authorized, affected, and other employees by their training and involvement requirements

  • Explain group lockout, shift-change transfer, and coordination with outside servicing contractors

  • Recognize the limited situations in which 1910.147 does not apply, such as cord-and-plug connected equipment under exclusive control

Your checkpoint

A written energy control procedure for one machine listing every energy source, isolation device, and lockout step, plus a 10-item LOTO and machine guarding quiz scored at 80% or better

Week 5

Walking-working surfaces and fall protection

  • Inspect portable and fixed ladders against 1910.23, including duty rating, the 4-to-1 setup angle, three-point contact, and removal-from-service criteria

  • Apply the 4-foot fall protection trigger under 1910.28 to walking-working surfaces and identify the fixed-ladder height at which a personal fall arrest or ladder safety system is required

  • Compare guardrail, safety net, and personal fall arrest systems, including the 42-inch top rail, midrail, and toeboard dimensions and the standard anchor strength and free-fall limits for fall arrest

  • Evaluate holes, floor openings, dock edges, and stairways and select the correct covering or guard system for each

  • Describe inspection, care, and removal-from-service criteria for harnesses, lanyards, and anchorage connectors

Your checkpoint

A walking-working surface hazard assessment of 5 areas with the specific 1910.2x paragraph cited for each finding and the control selected

Week 6

Electrical safety standards

  • Distinguish qualified from unqualified persons and map each role's training obligations under 1910.332

  • Apply the work-practice requirements in 1910.333 for de-energizing, verifying de-energized state, and re-energizing equipment

  • Identify correct and incorrect uses of flexible cords, temporary wiring, and outlet/GFCI protection under 1910.305

  • Select test instruments, insulated tools, and shock-protective PPE appropriate to a described task under 1910.334 and 1910.335

  • Explain how the electrical safe work practices rule interlocks with the 1910.147 lockout/tagout standard during servicing

Your checkpoint

A 15-item electrical safety audit checklist applied to a described panel, cord, and extension-lead scenario, with every finding tied to a paragraph number

Week 7

Introduction to OSHA and the OSH Act & Recordkeeping and reporting (29 CFR 1904) & Machine guarding and hazardous energy control

  • Trace an OSHA inspection from opening conference through walkaround and closing conference, and state employee representation and interview rights

  • Differentiate willful, serious, repeat, and other-than-serious violations and describe how penalty factors are applied

  • Re-drill the two domains with the lowest practice scores by re-answering missed items and writing a corrected rationale for each

  • Compare the federal program with a state plan covering public employees and explain what changes for a covered employer

Your checkpoint

A personal error log listing every missed practice item from weeks 1 through 6, its domain, the correct rule citation, and a one-sentence reason the original answer was wrong

Week 8

Walking-working surfaces and fall protection & Electrical safety standards & Hazard communication and personal protective equipment & Materials handling, confined spaces, and other general industry subparts

  • Complete two timed, full-length practice exams and score at least 80% on each

  • Re-teach the three weakest objectives from the error log aloud or in writing without notes

  • Reconcile every remaining error-log entry to a specific standard paragraph or subpart

  • Build a one-page citation index mapping each domain to its governing Subpart and key paragraph numbers for final review

Your checkpoint

Two completed timed practice exams with scores recorded, an error log fully reconciled to citations, and a finished one-page citation index

Milestones

Week 4: Score 80% or better on a cumulative 40-question quiz covering domains 1, 2, 6, and 7, and submit the mock OSHA 300/300A package and the written energy control procedure for review

Week 6: Score 80% or better on a 30-question quiz covering domains 3 and 4, and confirm every entry in the error log lists a specific standard paragraph

Week 8: Score 80% or better on two timed full-length practice exams, with no domain below 70%, and submit the completed error log and citation index