PSEE Cheat Sheet 2026

The 30 highest-yield PSEE facts, distilled from real exam questions. Print it, save it as a PDF, or study it here — free, no sign-up.

1. Select the sentence that is free of redundancy: → The meeting will commence at 9 AM.
2. A supervisor says: 'Flag all files with status PENDING or ESCALATED. Do not flag CLOSED or UNDER REVIEW files.' Which action is correct? → Flag a file marked ESCALATED and do not flag one marked CLOSED.
3. Which sentence uses parallel structure correctly? → The clerk is responsible for filing reports, answering phones, and updating records.
4. You are shown this sequence: 7, 3, 1, 9, 5, 2, 8, 4, 6. Which option matches it exactly? → 7, 3, 1, 9, 5, 2, 8, 4, 6
5. If inflation increases the cost of a service from $850 to $918, what is the percentage increase? → 8%
6. Copy this address accurately: 255 Albert Street, Suite 410, Ottawa, ON K1A 0A6. Which option is correct? → 255 Albert Street, Suite 410, Ottawa, ON K1A 0A6
7. Choose the correctly spelled word from the options below. → Separate
8. Which word is a synonym for 'DILIGENT'? → Industrious
9. Government revenue this year is $5.4 billion. If revenue grew by 8% from last year, what was last year's revenue (rounded to the nearest tenth of a billion)? → $5.0 billion
10. Which sentence correctly uses a semicolon? → The meeting was canceled; the storm made travel impossible.
11. A committee has 5 members: Ana, Ben, Carlos, Diana, and Eve. Ana and Ben cannot serve together. If Ana is on the committee, who is excluded? → Ben
12. A clerk receives a stack of 240 documents and must file 30 per hour. How many hours will it take to complete the filing? → 8 hours
13. You are preparing a briefing note and realize you are missing key data. The meeting is in two hours. What is the best approach? → Note the missing data clearly in the briefing and attempt to source it before the meeting.
14. A colleague drafted: 'The committee will meet on Tuesday, March 12th, at 10 a.m. in the morning.' What is wrong with this sentence? → 'in the morning' is redundant with 'a.m.'
15. Think about the sequences 5, 6, 11, and 17. What figure should come after that? → 28
16. Which sentence correctly uses the apostrophe? → The department's budget was approved yesterday.
17. Which act prohibits federal employees from engaging in partisan political activities while on duty? → Hatch Act
18. Identify the error in: 'Between you and I, the new policy seems unfair.' → 'I' should be 'me'
19. Which word means 'to officially withdraw or cancel a law or order'? → Repeal
20. A table shows employee absences by month. If the total for the year is 360 absences and January had 45, what percentage of annual absences occurred in January? → 12.5%
21. Your supervisor asks you to process a file that appears to contain incomplete information. What is the most appropriate action? → Bring the incomplete information to your supervisor's attention before processing.
22. Which sentence uses a comma correctly? → After reviewing the proposal, the supervisor approved it.
23. Which sentence uses subject-verb agreement correctly? → Neither the director nor the staff were notified.
24. Which of the following words is spelled correctly? → Accommodate
25. Which word correctly fills the blank? 'The memorandum was addressed ____ all division chiefs.' → to
26. Colour-coding system: Blue = Active; Green = Archived; Red = Urgent; Yellow = Awaiting signature. A clerk sees a red file. What is its status? → Urgent
27. Think about sequences 3, 6, 11, and 18. What figure should come after that? → 27
28. A project requires 3 employees working 8 hours a day for 10 days. If 4 employees are assigned instead at the same daily hours, how many days will it take? → 7.5 days
29. Which of the following sentences is grammatically correct? → Neither the manager nor the staff was informed.
30. Choose the word that is spelled correctly. → occurrence