NYC Assistant Civil Engineer
Examination Questions And Correct
Answers (Verified Answers) Plus
Rationales 2026 Q&A | Instant
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1. Which property of a soil describes its resistance to deformation
under an applied load?
A. Permeability
B. Plasticity
C. Compressibility
D. Gradation
Answer: C. Compressibility
Rationale: Compressibility describes the tendency of soil to decrease in
volume when subjected to loading. It is particularly important when
evaluating settlement beneath foundations, embankments, and other
structures.
2. Which soil type generally has the highest permeability?
A. Clay
B. Silt
C. Sand
D. Organic soil
Answer: C. Sand
,Rationale: Sand has relatively large interconnected voids that permit
water to flow readily. Clay has much smaller pores and therefore
generally has substantially lower hydraulic conductivity.
3. In the Unified Soil Classification System, a soil designated GW is
best described as:
A. Well-graded gravel
B. Poorly graded gravel
C. Well-graded sand
D. Silty gravel
Answer: A. Well-graded gravel
Rationale: The symbol GW means gravel with good particle-size
distribution and little or no fines. The first letter G identifies gravel
and W indicates well graded.
4. What is the primary purpose of a Proctor compaction test?
A. Determine concrete strength
B. Determine optimum moisture content and maximum dry density
C. Determine soil permeability only
D. Determine groundwater elevation
Answer: B. Determine optimum moisture content and maximum
dry density
Rationale: A Proctor test establishes the relationship between soil
moisture content and dry density under a specified compactive effort.
These values help establish field compaction requirements.
5. Which field test is commonly used to determine the in-place
density of compacted soil?
,A. Slump test
B. Sand-cone test
C. Vicat test
D. Air-content test
Answer: B. Sand-cone test
Rationale: The sand-cone method measures the volume of a small
excavated hole and the mass of soil removed. The resulting field
density can be compared with the laboratory maximum dry density.
6. What does the factor of safety for a slope generally represent?
A. Ratio of available strength to required strength
B. Ratio of water content to density
C. Ratio of excavation depth to width
D. Ratio of dead load to live load
Answer: A. Ratio of available strength to required strength
Rationale: A factor of safety compares resisting capacity with the
driving demand. For slope stability, it provides a measure of how much
the available shear resistance exceeds the forces tending to cause
failure.
7. Which test is commonly performed to estimate the bearing
capacity characteristics of subsurface soils?
A. Standard Penetration Test
B. Slump test
C. Los Angeles abrasion test
D. Air entrainment test
Answer: A. Standard Penetration Test
, Rationale: The Standard Penetration Test provides a field penetration
resistance value that can be correlated with soil density, strength, and
certain foundation-design parameters.
8. What is the primary function of a retaining wall?
A. Increase rainfall
B. Resist lateral earth pressure
C. Eliminate groundwater
D. Reduce concrete curing time
Answer: B. Resist lateral earth pressure
Rationale: Retaining walls support soil at different elevations and
resist lateral pressures generated by the retained material. Drainage
behind the wall is also important because water pressure can greatly
increase lateral loading.
9. Which condition generally increases lateral earth pressure on a
retaining wall?
A. Effective drainage behind the wall
B. Removal of surcharge loads
C. Accumulation of groundwater behind the wall
D. Lower retained soil height
Answer: C. Accumulation of groundwater behind the wall
Rationale: Hydrostatic water pressure adds to earth pressure and can
significantly increase the total lateral force on a retaining structure.
Proper drainage is therefore essential.
10. What is the approximate unit weight of normal-weight
concrete commonly used for preliminary calculations?
Examination Questions And Correct
Answers (Verified Answers) Plus
Rationales 2026 Q&A | Instant
Download Pdf
1. Which property of a soil describes its resistance to deformation
under an applied load?
A. Permeability
B. Plasticity
C. Compressibility
D. Gradation
Answer: C. Compressibility
Rationale: Compressibility describes the tendency of soil to decrease in
volume when subjected to loading. It is particularly important when
evaluating settlement beneath foundations, embankments, and other
structures.
2. Which soil type generally has the highest permeability?
A. Clay
B. Silt
C. Sand
D. Organic soil
Answer: C. Sand
,Rationale: Sand has relatively large interconnected voids that permit
water to flow readily. Clay has much smaller pores and therefore
generally has substantially lower hydraulic conductivity.
3. In the Unified Soil Classification System, a soil designated GW is
best described as:
A. Well-graded gravel
B. Poorly graded gravel
C. Well-graded sand
D. Silty gravel
Answer: A. Well-graded gravel
Rationale: The symbol GW means gravel with good particle-size
distribution and little or no fines. The first letter G identifies gravel
and W indicates well graded.
4. What is the primary purpose of a Proctor compaction test?
A. Determine concrete strength
B. Determine optimum moisture content and maximum dry density
C. Determine soil permeability only
D. Determine groundwater elevation
Answer: B. Determine optimum moisture content and maximum
dry density
Rationale: A Proctor test establishes the relationship between soil
moisture content and dry density under a specified compactive effort.
These values help establish field compaction requirements.
5. Which field test is commonly used to determine the in-place
density of compacted soil?
,A. Slump test
B. Sand-cone test
C. Vicat test
D. Air-content test
Answer: B. Sand-cone test
Rationale: The sand-cone method measures the volume of a small
excavated hole and the mass of soil removed. The resulting field
density can be compared with the laboratory maximum dry density.
6. What does the factor of safety for a slope generally represent?
A. Ratio of available strength to required strength
B. Ratio of water content to density
C. Ratio of excavation depth to width
D. Ratio of dead load to live load
Answer: A. Ratio of available strength to required strength
Rationale: A factor of safety compares resisting capacity with the
driving demand. For slope stability, it provides a measure of how much
the available shear resistance exceeds the forces tending to cause
failure.
7. Which test is commonly performed to estimate the bearing
capacity characteristics of subsurface soils?
A. Standard Penetration Test
B. Slump test
C. Los Angeles abrasion test
D. Air entrainment test
Answer: A. Standard Penetration Test
, Rationale: The Standard Penetration Test provides a field penetration
resistance value that can be correlated with soil density, strength, and
certain foundation-design parameters.
8. What is the primary function of a retaining wall?
A. Increase rainfall
B. Resist lateral earth pressure
C. Eliminate groundwater
D. Reduce concrete curing time
Answer: B. Resist lateral earth pressure
Rationale: Retaining walls support soil at different elevations and
resist lateral pressures generated by the retained material. Drainage
behind the wall is also important because water pressure can greatly
increase lateral loading.
9. Which condition generally increases lateral earth pressure on a
retaining wall?
A. Effective drainage behind the wall
B. Removal of surcharge loads
C. Accumulation of groundwater behind the wall
D. Lower retained soil height
Answer: C. Accumulation of groundwater behind the wall
Rationale: Hydrostatic water pressure adds to earth pressure and can
significantly increase the total lateral force on a retaining structure.
Proper drainage is therefore essential.
10. What is the approximate unit weight of normal-weight
concrete commonly used for preliminary calculations?
