A historian is studying the Battle of Gettysburg. Which of these items is a primary source?National Archives, Educator Resources, History in the Raw (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0001 (historical concepts, terms, sources and perspectives).
A historian labels one stretch of the European past the "Middle Ages" and the next the "Renaissance." What is this practice called?Wikipedia, Periodization (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0001 (historical concepts, terms, sources and perspectives).
Chinese historians explained the rise and fall of ruling houses with the dynastic cycle. In that model, what did a run of floods, famines and rebellions signal?Wikipedia, Dynastic cycle (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0001 (historical concepts, terms, sources and perspectives).
In his Farewell Address, George Washington warned the nation to avoid permanent alliances and to rely on temporary ones in emergencies. What can be inferred about how he thought the young republic should act?Office of the Historian, U.S. Department of State, Milestones, Washington's Farewell Address, 1796 (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0002 (historical research skills).
Which chain of cause and effect does the National Archives draw from Eli Whitney's cotton gin?National Archives, Milestone Documents, Eli Whitney's Patent for the Cotton Gin (1794) (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0002 (historical research skills).
Which statement about the Homestead Act is an opinion rather than a fact?National Archives, Milestone Documents, Homestead Act (1862) (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0002 (historical research skills).
Show all 51 questions (45 more)
II. World history to 1450 9
After his bloody conquest of Kalinga, the Mauryan emperor Ashoka is best known for doing what?Wikipedia, Ashoka (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0004 (the classical world, 500 BCE to 500 CE).
The Code of Hammurabi, carved on a stone stele about 1750 BCE, records the laws of which state?Wikipedia, Code of Hammurabi (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0003 (early civilizations to 500 BCE).
In the direct democracy of Athens in the fifth century BCE, who could vote in the assembly?Wikipedia, Athenian democracy (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0004 (the classical world, 500 BCE to 500 CE).
What change defines the Neolithic Revolution?Wikipedia, Neolithic Revolution (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0003 (early civilizations to 500 BCE).
What did the Edict of Milan of 313 CE do?Wikipedia, Edict of Milan (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0004 (the classical world, 500 BCE to 500 CE).
What was the Corpus Juris Civilis, compiled by order of the Byzantine emperor Justinian I?Wikipedia, Corpus Juris Civilis (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0005 (world history, 500 to 1450).
Which lasting contribution is credited to the Phoenicians, the sea traders of the eastern Mediterranean?Wikipedia, Phoenician alphabet (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0003 (early civilizations to 500 BCE).
Which ruler founded the Yuan dynasty, the Mongol regime that ruled China?Wikipedia, Yuan dynasty (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0005 (world history, 500 to 1450).
Which was an economic consequence of the Black Death in western Europe?Wikipedia, Black Death (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0005 (world history, 500 to 1450).
III. World history, 1450 to the present 12
At the Munich Conference of 1938, Britain and France agreed that Germany could annex which territory?Wikipedia, Munich Agreement (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0008 (world history, 1900 to 1945).
The English Bill of Rights of 1689 declared that levying money for the use of the Crown was illegal without what?English Bill of Rights, 1689, The Avalon Project, Yale Law School (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0006 (world history, 1450 to 1750).
How did the United States and Britain answer the Soviet blockade of West Berlin in 1948?Office of the Historian, U.S. Department of State, Milestones, The Berlin Airlift, 1948–1949 (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0009 (the modern world, 1945 to the present).
In the Columbian exchange, which crop was carried from the Old World to the Americas?Wikipedia, Columbian exchange (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0006 (world history, 1450 to 1750).
In the wartime Declaration of the United Nations, what did the Allied signers pledge?Office of the Historian, U.S. Department of State, Milestones, The Formation of the United Nations, 1945 (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0008 (world history, 1900 to 1945).
Martin Luther's Ninety-five Theses of 1517 were written chiefly to dispute which practice?Wikipedia, Ninety-five Theses (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0006 (world history, 1450 to 1750).
What action by Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser set off the Suez Crisis of 1956?Office of the Historian, U.S. Department of State, Milestones, The Suez Crisis, 1956 (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0009 (the modern world, 1945 to the present).
What did the Haitian Revolution of 1791 to 1804 create?Office of the Historian, U.S. Department of State, Milestones, The United States and the Haitian Revolution, 1791–1804 (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0007 (world history, 1750 to 1900).
What did the Meiji Restoration of 1868 do in Japan?Wikipedia, Meiji Restoration (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0007 (world history, 1750 to 1900).
What was the main aim of the Congress of Vienna of 1814 to 1815?Wikipedia, Congress of Vienna (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0007 (world history, 1750 to 1900).
What was the outcome of the Chinese Revolution of 1911?Office of the Historian, U.S. Department of State, Milestones, The Chinese Revolution of 1911 (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0008 (world history, 1900 to 1945).
Who met at the Bandung Conference of 1955?Office of the Historian, U.S. Department of State, Milestones, Bandung Conference (Asian-African Conference), 1955 (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0009 (the modern world, 1945 to the present).
IV. U.S. history, precontact to 1877 12
According to the Office of the Historian, what followed Britain's victory in the French and Indian War in 1763?Office of the Historian, U.S. Department of State, Milestones, French and Indian War/Seven Years' War, 1754–63 (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0010 (early U.S. history, precontact to 1763).
After the Missouri Compromise of 1820, where in the Louisiana Territory was slavery outlawed?National Archives, Milestone Documents, Missouri Compromise (1820) (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0012 (U.S. history, 1801 to 1850).
The Great Compromise of 1787 is also called the Connecticut Compromise. Why?U.S. Senate, Senate Stories, A Great Compromise (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0011 (the American Revolution and the early national period to 1801).
Into how many states did the Northwest Ordinance of 1787 plan to divide the Northwest Territory?National Archives, Milestone Documents, Northwest Ordinance (1787) (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0011 (the American Revolution and the early national period to 1801).
What principle did the Supreme Court establish in Marbury v. Madison (1803)?National Archives, Milestone Documents, Marbury v. Madison (1803) (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0012 (U.S. history, 1801 to 1850).
What turned Jamestown into a profitable venture after 1612?National Park Service, Historic Jamestowne, A Short History of Jamestown (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0010 (early U.S. history, precontact to 1763).
What was the Albany Plan of Union of 1754?Office of the Historian, U.S. Department of State, Milestones, Albany Plan of Union, 1754 (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0010 (early U.S. history, precontact to 1763).
Which document served as the first constitution of the United States, in force from 1781 until 1789?National Archives, Milestone Documents, Articles of Confederation (1777) (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0011 (the American Revolution and the early national period to 1801).
Which of these did the Fourteenth Amendment do?National Archives, Milestone Documents, 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: Civil Rights (1868) (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0013 (the Civil War and Reconstruction, 1850 to 1877).
Which river did the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo recognize as the boundary between Texas and Mexico?National Archives, Milestone Documents, Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (1848) (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0012 (U.S. history, 1801 to 1850).
Which was a limit of the Emancipation Proclamation?National Archives, Milestone Documents, Emancipation Proclamation (1863) (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0013 (the Civil War and Reconstruction, 1850 to 1877).
Why did the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 reopen the national struggle over slavery?National Archives, Milestone Documents, Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854) (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0013 (the Civil War and Reconstruction, 1850 to 1877).
V. U.S. history, 1877 to the present 12
By the State Department's account, what happened to the price of a barrel of oil during the embargo of 1973 to 1974?Office of the Historian, U.S. Department of State, Milestones, Oil Embargo, 1973–1974 (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0017 (U.S. history, 1970 to the present).
The Camp David Accords of 1978 set the framework for a peace treaty between which two countries?Office of the Historian, U.S. Department of State, Milestones, Camp David Accords and the Arab-Israeli Peace Process (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0017 (U.S. history, 1970 to the present).
How did President Kennedy first respond in public to the discovery of Soviet missiles in Cuba in October 1962?Office of the Historian, U.S. Department of State, Milestones, The Cuban Missile Crisis, October 1962 (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0016 (U.S. history, 1945 to 1970).
How did Richard Nixon's presidency end in August 1974?U.S. Senate, Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities (The Watergate Committee) (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0017 (U.S. history, 1970 to the present).
How did the Zimmermann Telegram affect the United States once it became public in 1917?National Archives, Milestone Documents, Zimmermann Telegram (1917) (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0015 (U.S. history, 1914 to 1945).
In the peace treaty of 1898, which island did Spain give up its claim to without ceding it to the United States?Office of the Historian, U.S. Department of State, Milestones, The Spanish-American War, 1898 (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0014 (U.S. history, 1877 to 1914).
Over the four years of the Marshall Plan, about how much did Congress appropriate for European recovery?National Archives, Milestone Documents, Marshall Plan (1948) (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0016 (U.S. history, 1945 to 1970).
The Pendleton Act of 1883 followed the assassination of President Garfield by a disappointed job seeker. How did it say federal jobs should be awarded?National Archives, Milestone Documents, Pendleton Act (1883) (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0014 (U.S. history, 1877 to 1914).
Under the Lend-Lease Act of 1941, to which countries could the president send arms and other supplies?National Archives, Milestone Documents, Lend-Lease Act (1941) (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0015 (U.S. history, 1914 to 1945).
What did the Dawes Act of 1887 do to reservation lands?National Archives, Milestone Documents, Dawes Act (1887) (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0014 (U.S. history, 1877 to 1914).
Which law, signed by President Lyndon Johnson on July 2, 1964, prohibited discrimination in public places and made employment discrimination illegal?National Archives, Milestone Documents, Civil Rights Act (1964) (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0016 (U.S. history, 1945 to 1970).
Which wartime measure authorized the removal of people from the West Coast to inland "relocation centers"?National Archives, Milestone Documents, Executive Order 9066: Resulting in Japanese-American Incarceration (1942) (read 2026-10-09). Outline: NES History (302) framework, competency 0015 (U.S. history, 1914 to 1945).
How this list was compiled: Our own questions, written to the 17 competencies of the NES History test (302) as its test framework prints them on the National Evaluation Series site of Pearson (https://www.nestest.com/static/docs/NES_Framework_302.pdf and https://www.nestest.com/test/302, read 2026-10-09): Historiography, competencies 0001-0002, 12%; World History to 1450, 0003-0005, 18%; World History 1450 to the Present, 0006-0009, 23%; U.S. History Precontact to 1877, 0010-0013, 23%; U.S. History 1877 to the Present, 0014-0017, 23%. This bank holds three questions for each competency: 6, 9, 12, 12 and 12. Every fact was read on 2026-10-09 in the public page named under its question (National Archives milestone documents, the Office of the Historian of the Department of State, the National Park Service, the U.S. Senate, the Avalon Project and Wikipedia). Licence: Questions, choices and explanations are original work of this site.
How it works
These 51 questions of our own make a free NES History practice test, three for each of the 17 competencies of test 302. The page is unofficial and is not affiliated with Pearson, which owns the National Evaluation Series.
Read the full guide
NES History study guide: the five domains
By the framework read October 9, 2026, test 302 weights historiography 12%, world history to 1450 18%, world history from 1450 to the present 23%, U.S. history to 1877 23%, and U.S. history since 1877 23%.
How the 51 questions are spread
Six, nine, twelve, twelve and twelve, so U.S. history is nearly half the bank. Exam mode asks 50 in 60 minutes, the pace of 150 questions in 3 hours.
Where the answers come from
U.S. questions cite National Archives milestone documents, the State Department's Office of the Historian, the National Park Service and the Senate. World history before 1750 cites the named Wikipedia article or a primary text.
The framework names the people, wars and laws under each competency, so it doubles as a free study guide for this test.
Fifteen of the 17 competencies end with chronological relationships, so practice putting events in order.
Questions and answers
Is this NES History practice test the real exam?
No. All 51 questions were written for this site from the published framework of test 302 and the public page each explanation names. None repeats or rewords a real question, a sample question or an item of the paid practice test.
How many questions are on the NES History test?
150 multiple-choice questions in 3 hours of testing. A 15-minute tutorial and nondisclosure agreement come first, so the appointment lasts 3 hours and 15 minutes. No reference materials are listed.
What is the passing score for NES History?
220 is the national benchmark on the test page, which links the passing scores of Arizona and Wisconsin, since a state may set its own. This page gives the number right only; it does not convert to that scale.
What does the NES History test cover?
World history from the Neolithic Revolution to the present, U.S. history from the precontact period to the present, and historiography: sources, interpretations and research skills. U.S. history carries 46% of the score and world history 41%.