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BICSI Certification · Last updated November 2026

BICSI RCDD Exam (Registered Communications Distribution Designer): free practice test

BICSI's flagship design credential for people who plan and design ICT cabling infrastructure. The RCDD v15 exam follows four areas from BICSI's job task analysis: Design ICT Solutions (63%), Support ICT Installation Process (16%), Support ICT Bid/Tender Process (11%) and Define Scope of Project (10%). The reference is the Telecommunications Distribution Methods Manual (TDMM), 15th edition. You can test any time within one year of application approval.

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About the RCDD exam

BICSI's flagship design credential for people who plan and design ICT cabling infrastructure. The RCDD v15 exam follows four areas from BICSI's job task analysis: Design ICT Solutions (63%), Support ICT Installation Process (16%), Support ICT Bid/Tender Process (11%) and Define Scope of Project (10%). The reference is the Telecommunications Distribution Methods Manual (TDMM), 15th edition. You can test any time within one year of application approval.

What's on the exam

RCDD
Project Scope, Codes and Standards
7 key facts
Telecommunications Spaces
7 key facts
Horizontal Pathways and Cabling
7 key facts
Backbone, Optical Fiber and Outside Plant
7 key facts
Bonding, Grounding, Firestop and Power
7 key facts
Wireless, Security, AV and Building Systems
7 key facts
Bid, Installation, Testing and Administration
7 key facts

Each branch is a topic in the official outline. Members see every key fact on the full mind map. Read the free study guide →

How to pass the RCDD exam

  • 100 items in 2.5 hours is 90 seconds each. Recall items should take 30 seconds so you have time for the sizing and loss calculations.
  • Design ICT Solutions is 63% of the exam. Spaces, pathways, media, bonding and firestop decide most of your score.
  • Learn the TDMM numbers exactly: 90 m and 100 m, 30 m and two bends, 40% conduit fill, 0.07 m² per 10 m², 2 kcmil per foot.
  • Some items have more than one correct option (multiple response). Read the stem for 'select two' before you answer.

Save your results and get your Readiness Score

Create a free account after the test: your score by topic, a mistakes bank, the complete study notes for the first topic, flashcards and the RCDD Numbers & Formulas Sheet.

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What's in the premium RCDD prep

Premium RCDD prep is studied one topic at a time. Each step starts with that topic's key notes and flashcard deck, then its own question sets of 25, so you master one topic before you move to the next. When every topic is strong, the 6 full mock exams show you're ready.

3,000practice questions, every answer explained
6full-length mock exams, 100 questions each, timed
800flashcards with spaced repetition, sorted by topic
60comprehensive key notes across 7 topics

Your step-by-step study path

  1. 1
    Project Scope, Codes and Standards9 key notes, 115 flashcards, then 450 practice questions in 18 sets of 25
    Notes free with an account
  2. 2
    Telecommunications Spaces9 key notes, 115 flashcards, then 425 practice questions in 17 sets of 25
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  3. 3
    Horizontal Pathways and Cabling9 key notes, 115 flashcards, then 425 practice questions in 17 sets of 25
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  4. 4
    Backbone, Optical Fiber and Outside Plant9 key notes, 115 flashcards, then 425 practice questions in 17 sets of 25
    Premium
  5. 5
    Bonding, Grounding, Firestop and Power8 key notes, 115 flashcards, then 425 practice questions in 17 sets of 25
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  6. 6
    Wireless, Security, AV and Building Systems8 key notes, 115 flashcards, then 425 practice questions in 17 sets of 25
    Premium
  7. 7
    Bid, Installation, Testing and Administration8 key notes, 110 flashcards, then 425 practice questions in 17 sets of 25
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  8. Final step: 6 full mock exams100 questions each, timed like test day. Pass them, then book your exam.
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Free with an account

Read the complete RCDD study notes for “Project Scope, Codes and Standards”

Our first full set of comprehensive notes, about 15 minutes of reading: Codes, standards and the AHJ · Order of precedence · The standards you'll meet most · Defining the scope · Design phases and documents, a worked exam example, the traps examiners use and a one-minute recap. Create a free account to read it and see how premium notes work before you decide.

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Study tools included

3,000 practice questions

3,000 exam-style questions per exam, organized topic by topic in sets of 25. Every answer explained, with the rule it comes from.

6 full mock exams

6 full-length timed mock exams per exam, with real question counts and time limits, so test day feels like practice day.

Exam Readiness Score

One 0 to 100 number that tells you when you're ready to book. Reach 80 and you're covered by our Pass Guarantee.

800 flashcards + spaced repetition

800 flashcards per exam, in a deck for each topic, that come back right before you'd forget them. Five minutes a day keeps every number fresh.

60 comprehensive key notes

60 key notes per exam, split across its topics and each explained in full: the concepts, worked exam examples, the traps examiners use and a quick recap. Your first set is free with an account.

Mind maps

See the whole exam on one screen: every topic and the facts under it.

Sample questions with answers

These are the questions in the free test above, with answers. Try the test first. You'll learn more by getting some wrong.

1. During design, a requirement in the electrical code adopted by the local jurisdiction conflicts with a recommendation in an ANSI/TIA cabling standard. Which should the designer follow?
Answer: The code adopted by the authority having jurisdiction (AHJ). Codes adopted by the AHJ are law; standards are voluntary unless a code or contract references them. In the order of precedence, the adopted code wins. A designer can exceed a code with a standard, but never fall below it.
2. In the CSI MasterFormat system used for project specifications, structured cabling for communications is specified in which division?
Answer: Division 27, Communications. MasterFormat puts communications (structured cabling, pathways inside the communications scope, AV and voice) in Division 27. Electronic safety and security is Division 28 and power is Division 26.
3. Using the TDMM guideline of 0.07 m² of equipment room floor space for every 10 m² of usable floor space, how large should the equipment room be for a building with 30,000 m² of usable floor space?
Answer: 210 m². 30,000 m² ÷ 10 m² = 3,000 units; 3,000 × 0.07 m² = 210 m². The guideline also sets a minimum equipment room size of 14 m², which this building is well above.
4. Which door meets the TIA-569 recommendation for a telecommunications room?
Answer: At least 0.9 m wide and 2 m high, no sill, opening outward or sliding. The door should be at least 0.9 m (36 in) wide and 2 m (80 in) high, without a sill (so equipment can be rolled in), and open outward or slide where codes allow, so it doesn't eat into usable wall space inside the room.
5. A designer proposes 92 m of horizontal cable from the patch panel to the outlet, a 3 m patch cord and a 3 m work area cord: 98 m in total. Does this meet ANSI/TIA-568?
Answer: No, because the horizontal cable exceeds 90 m. Two limits apply: horizontal cable of no more than 90 m, and a channel of no more than 100 m including all cords. The 98 m channel passes, but the 92 m horizontal cable doesn't. Cable category doesn't change the distance limits.
6. Between pull points, TIA-569 limits a horizontal conduit section to:
Answer: 30 m and no more than two 90° bends. A conduit section should be no longer than 30 m (100 ft) and have no more than two 90° bends (180° total) between pull points. If the route needs more, add a pull box.
7. A conduit has an internal cross-sectional area of 860 mm². Each cable has a cross-sectional area of 30 mm². Using the 40% fill limit for three or more cables, how many cables can it hold?
Answer: 11. Usable area = 860 × 0.40 = 344 mm². 344 ÷ 30 = 11.47, and you always round down: 11 cables. 28 ignores the fill limit, 17 uses 60%.
8. An OM4 multimode backbone link is 400 m long with two mated connector pairs and one splice. Using the ANSI/TIA-568.3-D maximum values, what is the allowable link loss at 850 nm?
Answer: 3.20 dB. Fiber: 0.4 km × 3.5 dB/km = 1.40 dB. Connectors: 2 × 0.75 dB = 1.50 dB. Splice: 1 × 0.3 dB = 0.30 dB. Total = 3.20 dB. At 1300 nm the fiber figure would be 1.5 dB/km instead.
9. In a hierarchical star backbone, ANSI/TIA-568 allows no more than how many hierarchical levels of cross-connects in the backbone cabling?
Answer: Two (main and intermediate). Backbone cabling may have at most two hierarchical levels of cross-connects: the main cross-connect and one intermediate cross-connect. A horizontal cross-connect reaches the main cross-connect through no more than one intermediate cross-connect.
10. A telecommunications bonding backbone (TBB) will be 18 m long. Using the ANSI/TIA-607 sizing of 2 kcmil per linear foot, what is the minimum conductor size?
Answer: 2/0 AWG. 18 m ≈ 59 ft. 59 × 2 kcmil = 118 kcmil. 1/0 AWG is about 106 kcmil (too small); 2/0 AWG is about 133 kcmil. The TIA-607 table gives 2/0 for 16 to 20 m. 6 AWG is the minimum for short runs, 3/0 the maximum required.
11. What does the T rating of a through-penetration firestop system (ASTM E814 / UL 1479) measure?
Answer: How long it stops flame passage and keeps the unexposed side below 181 °C (325 °F) above ambient. The F rating is the time the system prevents flame passage. The T rating adds a temperature limit: no more than a 181 °C (325 °F) rise on the unexposed side. Building codes require a T rating for some penetrations, so check what the AHJ needs.
12. A pan-tilt-zoom camera with a heater needs 60 W at the powered device. Which PoE type can supply it?
Answer: IEEE 802.3bt Type 4. Power at the device is lower than at the switch because of cable loss. Type 3 supplies 60 W at the PSE but only about 51 W at the device. Type 4 supplies 90 W at the PSE and about 71.3 W at the device, enough for 60 W.
13. When designing a 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi network in North America with 20 MHz channels, which channels are used so adjacent access points don't overlap?
Answer: 1, 6 and 11. In North America the 2.4 GHz band has channels 1 to 11, and only 1, 6 and 11 don't overlap with 20 MHz channels. The 5 GHz and 6 GHz bands offer many more non-overlapping channels.
14. Which field test configuration covers the installed horizontal cable from patch panel to outlet, excluding the equipment cords at each end?
Answer: Permanent link. The permanent link is the fixed installed cabling, tested with special adapters whose cords are excluded from the result. The channel includes the patch and equipment cords. Basic link is an older term no longer used in TIA-568.
15. During bidding, a contractor finds that the drawings and the specification show different outlet counts for the same floor. What should the contractor submit?
Answer: A request for information (RFI). An RFI asks the designer to clarify design intent. The designer's answer is usually issued to all bidders as an addendum so everyone prices the same scope. Change orders come after award, submittals cover products, and punch lists come at close-out.

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  • 800 flashcards + 60 key notes per exam, by topic, plus mind maps
  • Spaced repetition + mistakes bank
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  • Content updates during your access
  • 5 bonuses: numbers and formulas sheet, standards atlas, study planner and more
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Certification guide

BICSI RCDD exam guide (2026): The RCDD exam is BICSI's test for ICT distribution designers. The current version, RCDD v15, has 100 scored items in 2.5 hours, drawn from a job task analysis and referenced to the Telecommunications Distribution Methods Manual (TDMM), 15th edition. Design ICT Solutions alone is 63% of the exam. Here's what that means for your study plan.

RCDD exam FAQ

How many questions are on the RCDD exam?

100 scored items: multiple choice, multiple response and enhanced matching, with 3 to 5 options each, with a time limit of 2.5 hours (no scheduled breaks; any break counts toward the time). Format: closed book, computer-based; a calculator and a whiteboard are provided.

What is the passing score for RCDD?

Not published. BICSI sets the cut score by standard setting (Angoff method) and reports pass or fail; practise to 75% or higher.

How much does the RCDD exam cost?

US$510 for BICSI members, US$725 for nonmembers (application incl. first attempt, 2026); retest US$230 members, US$355 nonmembers. BICSI fees can change without notice, so confirm on bicsi.org before you apply.

Which languages is the RCDD exam offered in?

English (the v15 handbook lists no other languages).

Where do I take the RCDD exam?

Pearson VUE (Pearson Professional Assessments) test centers worldwide.

Is this RCDD practice test free?

Yes. The 15-question practice test on this page is free, with an explanation for every answer and no signup. A free account also unlocks the complete study notes for the first topic. The full RCDD prep is Premium at $147 a month for this exam.

What's in the premium RCDD prep?

3,000 practice questions organized topic by topic (Project Scope, Codes and Standards: 450; Telecommunications Spaces: 425; Horizontal Pathways and Cabling: 425; Backbone, Optical Fiber and Outside Plant: 425; Bonding, Grounding, Firestop and Power: 425; Wireless, Security, AV and Building Systems: 425; Bid, Installation, Testing and Administration: 425), 6 full-length timed mock exams of 100 questions, 800 flashcards and 60 comprehensive key notes split across all 7 topics, plus a mistakes bank and the Readiness Score.

Related practice tests

Exam details are summarized from the official candidate information available in October 2026. BICSI changes formats and fees, so confirm with BICSI before you book. RCDDQuizBank is not affiliated with BICSI or Pearson VUE.

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