Construction Technology · for students
Leaving Certificate Construction Technology · 20% of your grade

Your skills test

Near the end of 6th year you spend three hours in the Construction Technology classroom. You are given a drawing you have not seen before. You mark out, cut, fit and put together a small wooden piece from that drawing. The skills test's official name is the Craft Skills Assessment, or the CSA.

20%of your final grade: 120 marks. Your written exam and your project make up the rest.
3 hoursOne session, in late April or early May of 6th year. The SEC (State Examinations Commission) sets the date.
1 drawingThe same task for every student in Ireland. The SEC sets it and the SEC marks it.
Term 2The SEC sends the cutting list. Your timber is prepared to width and thickness before the day.

1You make a small frame

This is the SEC's sample task: a book stand. Look at it as a frame. Two uprights and two rails make the frame. Four joints hold it together. A leg lets the frame stand up.

1 2 3 4 leg middle rail (behind) dowel upright upright top rail bottom rail 6 mm birch-ply base
The SEC sample book stand, simplified, seen from the front. The joints are numbered. Hidden parts are dashed. Overall size 244 × 260 × 70 mm.

Four joints make the frame

  • 1
    Dovetail halvingTop rail to left upright. You set a 1:6 slope and cut to it.
  • 2
    Cross halvingTop rail to right upright. The upright runs up through the rail. You cut each piece to half its thickness so the two cross flush.
  • 3
    Bridle jointBottom rail to left upright. You saw and chop an open slot in the foot of the upright, and the rail fits into it.
  • 4
    Stub mortise and tenon6 mm wide, 20 mm deep. You use a mortise gauge, then the mortise machine or a chisel. You cut the tenon by hand.

The rest of the stand

  • The leg pivots on a 6 mm dowel. It has a small chamfer at the top and a 30° foot.
  • The middle rail is screwed to the back of the uprights.
  • Shaped ends: splayed rail ends, a sloped top and an R30 curve.
  • The base is 6 mm birch ply, screwed on from below.
Most of the task is a frame: four accurate joints, pulled together square.The leg, the curves and the screws are where the rest of the marks are won. Each year's task is a new piece, but the past skills tests show the same kinds of frame and joint again and again.
The SEC sample skills test as it prints: the drawing and the materials list (scroll)
SEC sample Craft Skills Assessment, cover SEC sample Craft Skills Assessment, the book stand drawing SEC sample Craft Skills Assessment, materials list cover SEC sample Craft Skills Assessment, list of materials and equipment

2Four stages, start to finish

You work through the same four stages every time. Three of them are marked.

1

Read the drawing

Read every view and every detail. Find each size before you touch the timber. Keep the drawing open beside you all session.
Marked · interpret and mark out
2

Mark out

Work from one face side and one face edge. Mark every piece and every joint before you cut anything. Check each one against the drawing.
Marked · interpret and mark out
3

Cut and shape

Use hand tools, the cordless drill and the machines. Work in a sensible order. Check with a square and a rule as you go. Work safely.
Marked · craft skills
4

Put it together

Test-fit each joint and adjust it. Assemble in the right order. Fit the dowel, the leg, the screws and the base where the drawing shows them.
Marked · assembly

3Your three hours

You plan your own time on the day. Here is one way to share out three hours for a task like the book stand. The blocks are drawn to scale.

Read10
Mark out every piece45 min
Cut the four frame joints60 min
Shapesplays, curves · 25
Bore15
Assemble15
Check10
01 hour2 hours3 hours

Minutes. A guide for practice, not an SEC rule.

Marking out is where the session is won.Cut the frame joints first, while you are fresh. If you rush the marking out, every joint that follows loses marks.

4What the examiner looks for

Your work is judged on three things. This is what high-quality work looks like in each one.

1

Interpret and mark out

You read the whole drawing correctly. You mark out every piece accurately and precisely.
2

Craft skills

Your work is precise and careful all the way through. Your joints are accurate, and the finish is of a high quality.
3

Assemble

Your piece is put together precisely, accurately and completely.
The SEC has not yet said how the 120 marks are shared across these three. Treat all three as important.

5Skills to have in your hands

These are the skills the SEC sample asks for, and the skills the old skills tests asked for again and again. Any year's task can ask for a joint that is not on this list.

SkillIn the sampleWhere you practise it
Marking out from a face side and face edge, with a knife, square, marking gauge and mortise gaugeEvery pieceYour 5th-year frame projects
Cross halving: saw to the line, pare the floor flat, so one piece passes through the otherJoint 2Your 5th-year frame projects
Bridle joint: saw the cheeks, chop out an open slot, fit the other piece into itJoint 3Your 5th-year frame projects
Dovetails: set a 1:6 slope; dovetail halvings and through dovetailsJoint 1Your 5th-year frame projects
Mortise and tenon: 6 mm and 10 mm, by machine and by handJoint 4Your 5th-year frame projects
HousingsNot in the sampleYour 5th-year frame projects
Angles: set a sliding bevel to 1:6, 30°, 45° and 60°Ends, footYour 5th-year frame projects
Curves: mark with a compass, cut with a coping saw or scroll saw, smooth with a spokeshaveR30 curvesYour 5th-year frame projects
Small features: chamfers, sloped tops, removed corners. Keep them small and crispLeg, railsYour 5th-year frame projects
Holes: bore to a set depth on the pillar drillDowel, legYour 5th-year frame projects
Screws: pilot hole, countersink, drive the screwRail, baseYour 5th-year frame projects
A moving part that pivots freely and holdsThe legYour 5th-year frame projects

6Two years of practice

You do not get ready for the skills test in a few weeks. Through 5th year your teacher will set a series of small frame projects. Each one adds a new joint or tool.

6th year, week by week. This is one typical plan. Your teacher will give you your school's dates.

123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930
Craft
Your project (the ECE): your artefact is made in these weeks
In
Skills test practice, timed
Test
Weeks of 6th year
Weeks 1–2
Back in practiceA short marked-out, jointed piece. Every machine is shown to you again.
Week 23
Project in, cutting list outYour project is handed in. The SEC cutting list has arrived, and you read it together as a class.
Weeks 24–29
Timed practicePast skills tests against the clock. The last run is judged the way the examiner judges.
Week 30
The skills testThree hours, late April or early May. The SEC sets the date.

7On the day

The drawing is the exam paper. It has a box for your exam number. Read each year's SEC instructions for the rules.

In the sample

  • Your timber is already prepared to width and thickness. You mark out and cut every joint and every shape yourself.
  • No glue and no abrasive paper. Joints hold by a good fit. You finish surfaces with the plane and the spokeshave.
  • Leave your marking-out lines visible. They show the examiner how you worked.
  • The tools and machines are listed on the materials list. Your PPE (personal protective equipment) is set out at your bench.

Before the day, your teacher will

  • Teach you the skills, craft piece by craft piece, through 5th and 6th year.
  • Show you what high-quality work looks like.
  • Read the cutting list with your class when it arrives.
  • Give you timed practice: three hours, a drawing, a set of timber.
  • Arrange any reasonable accommodations the SEC has approved for you.

During the three hours, your teacher cannot

  • Give you advice, show you how, or check a joint.
  • Answer questions about the drawing.
  • Mark out, cut or adjust any part of your work.
  • Step in, except to stop something unsafe.

8Practise with past skills tests

Before the CSA, Construction Studies had a skills test too. Here is every one the SEC set from 1996 to 2026, newest first. Swipe through, or use the arrows. Open a drawing and try marking it out.

Yellow the joint is also in the SEC sampleWhite the joint is in that year's testM&T = mortise and tenon
2026 skills test drawing: Display UnitOpen PDF ↗2026Display UnitTee dovetail halvingThrough dovetail10 mm through M&T6 mm through M&THoused slotEdge lapDays 1–3 in one PDF 2025 skills test drawing: Desk OrganiserOpen PDF ↗2025Desk OrganiserTee dovetail halvingCross halvingThrough dovetailBare-faced tenon6 mm through M&THousingHoused slotDays 1–3 in one PDF 2024 skills test drawing: Awards DisplayOpen PDF ↗2024Awards DisplayTee dovetail halvingCross halvingTee bridleTwin through tenonsBare-faced tenonHoused slotDays 1–3 in one PDF 2023 skills test drawing: Jewellery StandOpen PDF ↗2023Jewellery StandTee dovetail halvingCross halvingTee bridleTwin through tenonsBare-faced tenonHousingDays 1–3 in one PDF 2022 skills test drawing: Wash StationOpen PDF ↗2022Wash StationTee dovetail halvingTee bridleTwin through tenonsBare-faced tenon6 mm through M&TDays 1–3 in one PDF
2020–2021Not set (Covid)
2019 skills test drawing: Entertainment CentreOpen PDF ↗2019Entertainment CentreTee dovetail halvingCross halvingTee bridleThrough dovetail6 mm through M&TDays 1–3 in one PDF 2018 skills test drawing: Display StandOpen PDF ↗2018Display StandCross halvingThrough dovetailHoused slot6 mm M&TDays 1–3 in one PDF 2017 skills test drawing: Display StandOpen PDF ↗2017Display StandCross halvingThrough dovetailTwin through tenons10 mm through M&T 2016 skills test drawing: Stand for Tablet ComputerOpen PDF ↗2016Stand for Tablet ComputerTee dovetail halvingCross halvingStopped mortiseThrough dovetailBare-faced tenonHousing 2015 skills test drawing: Stand for HeadphonesOpen PDF ↗2015Stand for HeadphonesCross halvingTee bridle6 mm through M&T 2014 skills test drawing: Spice RackOpen PDF ↗2014Spice RackThrough dovetailTwin through tenons6 mm through M&THoused slot 2013 skills test drawing: Display UnitOpen PDF ↗2013Display UnitCross halvingThrough dovetailTwin through tenons6 mm through M&THoused slot 2012 skills test drawing: Tablet Computer StandOpen PDF ↗2012Tablet Computer StandTee dovetail halvingCross halvingTwin through tenons10 mm through M&T 2011 skills test drawing: Display UnitOpen PDF ↗2011Display UnitTee dovetail halvingTwin through tenons6 mm through M&THoused slot 2010 skills test drawing: EaselOpen PDF ↗2010EaselTee dovetail halvingCross halving6 mm through M&T 2009 skills test drawing: Music StandOpen PDF ↗2009Music StandTee dovetail halving6 mm through M&T 2008 skills test drawing: BookstandOpen PDF ↗2008BookstandCross halvingTee bridle6 mm through M&T 2007 skills test drawing: Key HolderOpen PDF ↗2007Key HolderThrough dovetailTwin through tenons6 mm through M&T 2006 skills test drawing: Display StandOpen PDF ↗2006Display StandThrough dovetailTwin through tenonsHousing 2005 skills test drawing: DVD StandOpen PDF ↗2005DVD StandThrough dovetail6 mm through M&T 2004 skills test drawing: Trophy StandOpen PDF ↗2004Trophy StandTee dovetail halvingTwin through tenonsHousing 2003 skills test drawing: Compact Disc HolderOpen PDF ↗2003Compact Disc HolderTee dovetail halvingTwin through tenonsHousing 2002 skills test drawing: Cutlery BoxOpen PDF ↗2002Cutlery BoxTee dovetail halvingTwin through tenons6 mm through M&T 2001 skills test drawing: Money BoxOpen PDF ↗2001Money BoxTwin through tenonsGroove for a panel 2000 skills test drawing: Cutlery HolderOpen PDF ↗2000Cutlery HolderTwin through tenons6 mm through M&T 1999 skills test drawing: RackOpen PDF ↗1999RackTenonsHousing 1998 skills test drawing: CD RackOpen PDF ↗1998CD Rack6 mm tenons 1997 skills test drawing: CabinetOpen PDF ↗1997CabinetTwin through tenonsHousingGroove for a panel 1996 skills test drawing: Shelf UnitOpen PDF ↗1996Shelf UnitThrough M&TGroove for a panelDowelled joint
See how the skills test fits with your written exam and your project, on the subject page →

Sources: SEC (State Examinations Commission), Sample Craft Skills Assessment (2028L029C1ES, 2028L029C4ES), pages reproduced from the SEC. NCCA (National Council for Curriculum and Assessment) (2025), Guidelines to support the Additional Assessment Components in Leaving Certificate Construction Technology. Past Construction Studies skills tests: SEC, 1996–2026. Craft pieces: constructiontechnology.ie. © constructiontechnology.ie 2026