Difficulty of test?

[Blackmar401]

So I just got into gmrs like a couple months ago. Today I got curious and looked up the Ham test. I started going through the practice questions? Or testing pool I guess, and basically knew all of the first 20ish. Seemed to be just basic electrical stuff and common sense. Obviously I would imagine there is ham specific stuff like frequency and specs. Should it be easily passable with a little studying one of the test prep books?

[axorlov]

If your background is in natural sciences or crafts, the test preparation will be easy. On the other hand, if you are more into philology, literature (especially english romantics of 18th century), art in general - the preparation could take like maybe the whole 4 hours!

 

There are helping resources on the internet. hamexam.org is one, there are plenty of others.

[Blackmar401]

If your background is in natural sciences or crafts, the test preparation will be easy. On the other hand, if you are more into philology, literature (especially english romantics of 18th century), art in general - the preparation could take like maybe the whole 4 hours!

 

There are helping resources on the internet. hamexam.org is one, there are plenty of others.

union pipefitter. I read there are like 500 questions in thr pool and I didn't feel like going through them all. If the test is available online I will probably order the book and go for it but the closest in person test is like an hour minimum away. Could be up to 3, im just going by the state its in.

[axorlov]

Hamexam.org, go there, start taking practice tests. Do not order the book just yet, because there are resources to help. See how you do with the practice tests. Btw, creating an account is not needed, but if do create an account, it'll keep your statistics and point to areas where to concentrate studies for the improvement. Once you are confident that you pass, go ahead, schedule the appointment or whatever it takes these troubled days.

[Lscott]

So I just got into gmrs like a couple months ago. Today I got curious and looked up the Ham test. I started going through the practice questions? Or testing pool I guess, and basically knew all of the first 20ish. Seemed to be just basic electrical stuff and common sense. Obviously I would imagine there is ham specific stuff like frequency and specs. Should it be easily passable with a little studying one of the test prep books?

Yes. There are 12 year old kids that take and pass the exam.

[tweiss3]

So I just got into gmrs like a couple months ago. Today I got curious and looked up the Ham test. I started going through the practice questions? Or testing pool I guess, and basically knew all of the first 20ish. Seemed to be just basic electrical stuff and common sense. Obviously I would imagine there is ham specific stuff like frequency and specs. Should it be easily passable with a little studying one of the test prep books?

The Tech license is really simple, and based on your comment, it won't take much to get you to pass it.

[mbrun]

The entry level Technicians exam is fairly easy, but I personally took (and still take) the examination process quite seriously. I wanted to get my ham ticket 40 years ago, but was put off by the CW portion of the exam. Only this past year did I learn it was no longer a subject that was tested on, so with this knowledge I finally decided to study for my license. I obtained both my Technician and the General Class upgrade. I now am actively working towards the Extra Class.

 

For me, amateur radio is all about gaining knowledge, experimentation and then working and collaborating with others that share that passion. Some get into it just because they want to use the cool cheap walkie-talkies that are available now.

 

Many folks I have heard say ‘just memorize the answers’. For me, that was the last thing I wanted to do. Yes, I wanted to pass, and I new I would given my nearly 40 years working in a branch of the communications field. However, I have always admired the hams and looked up to those that were took it seriously. I knew many that had some good solid technical chops. I was not going to sell myself short if I entered. I studied the books, went on lots of learning trails to fill in knowledge gaps, then took many practice tests and researched each topic when I got something wrong until finally I knew I could get every possible question right. You can feel pretty good about yourself and your accomplishments when you study, I know I did on test day.

 

As I reflected on passing each exam, I realized that passing was truly nothing more than just earning my ticket, my permission to enter. I learned that the knowledge gained in the testing process was just a drop in the bucket compared to what there is know. There is still so much more to learn and so little time to learn it. I wish I had not waited.

 

Don’t sell yourself short. Take it seriously, then get your ticket and enjoy the learning process which is the amateur radio hobby.

 

 

Michael

WRHS965

KE8PLM

[jc1240]

I recommend this series of books by Craig "Buck" K4IA.  I like his philosophy of not using the usual sources because for every right answer they have, there are 3 wrong answers your brain is picking up.  He only focuses on the right answers so they stand out on the test.  

 

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1985125641/

[OldRadioGuy]

The lower level ham tests require more memorization of frequencies and things.

So there much more to memorize and not so much to understand at a deep level.

 

The higher level tests have much more general electronics theory.

If you have a decent background in electronics they are pretty easy.

I'm sure there are tons of good tutorial videos on youtube.

 

I've had my extra class since 1985 so I used these things called books.

 

Vince

[AdmiralCochrane]

I have more trouble remembering the band restriction questions on the General test than the electronics

[WRCY896]

I got Gordon west's book for tech on Tuesday. I read Tuesday evening, and yesterday, and have taken several practice exams on QRZ.

 

I am averaging above 85 percent, where I was in the 70's yesterday morning. If I miss a question on the practice exam, I go back, re read the material and take a test again pretty simple.

[BoxCar]

You can also take practice exams at HamStudy.org. I use it and it's great. The ARRL book is written around the exam and provides the background information. The ARRL book is cheaper through Amazon than from ARRL.

[WyoJoe]

So I just got into gmrs like a couple months ago. Today I got curious and looked up the Ham test. I started going through the practice questions? Or testing pool I guess, and basically knew all of the first 20ish. Seemed to be just basic electrical stuff and common sense. Obviously I would imagine there is ham specific stuff like frequency and specs. Should it be easily passable with a little studying one of the test prep books?

From the way it sounds, there are a few things you'll want to familiarize yourself with, but otherwise, I think you should pass the Technician exam fairly easily. Yes, you'll want to know stuff like frequencies, band plans, and some other things. In addition to the resources already mentioned, there are a lot of resources to help you prepare on YouTube. One channel in particular, "Ham Radio Crash Course," has become popular recently.

 

The host, Josh Nass, KI6NAZ, does a good job with providing preparatory materials for the various levels of ham licenses.

 

I would recommend preparing for at least the Technician and General classes. If you pass both, you'll have access to most amateur radio frequencies. Technician doesn't provide much access to the HF bands, but General does for most of them. There is a small portion of the amateur bands that is restricted only to Amateur Extra licensees, however. When you take your Technician exam, if you pass, you may be given the opportunity to take the General exam. If you pass the General, you may be able to take the Extra exam. I took all three on the same day, but didn't pass the Extra exam, so I ended up getting licensed in the General class.

 

As for taking the courses online, I believe there are some ways to do so. I know the Greater Los Angeles Amateur Radio Group (glaarg.org) has offered online courses, but I didn't see any upcoming ones on their website. I'm sure there are other places to take the exams online, but this is the only one I'm familiar with.

[n4gix]

I recommend this series of books by Craig "Buck" K4IA.  I like his philosophy of not using the usual sources because for every right answer they have, there are 3 wrong answers your brain is picking up.  He only focuses on the right answers so they stand out on the test.  

 

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1985125641/

 

Craig's books are terrific. I'm using his book as a study source for the Extra. Nearly 40 years as a General and I never seemed to get around to studying for my Extra. Honestly, the primary reason now is so that I can help with VE testing. I can do that now, but only up to the General Class...

 

If my only reason was for the very slightly increased frequency privileges, it wouldn't be worth the bother frankly. 

[wayoverthere]

Craig's books are terrific. I'm using his book as a study source for the Extra.

One more votes for his books...that was one of my sources when I tested for tech, and I'm planning to pick up the one for general as well.

[WRCY896]

I did an online test with the San Benito County amateur radio association last night. I passed my Technician test 31/35. It was quite simple, and easier and less stressful than I thought it would be.

 

Waiting on my call sign now, and beat the $35 fee haha.

 

I will continue to study for general and have Craig's book for that.

[jgillaspy]

I used the Hamstudy.org app and got 100% on the tech test. I decided to take the General while I was at it. After looking at the first 8 questions and not having a clue I turned it back in. Didn't want to waste anyone's time. Now I'm studying for the General exam, trying to get it before I have to pay for it.

 

JG

[BKmetzWRKZ843]

I passed my tech exam yesterday afternoon. Everything was done online with Zoom. It went better that I thought. So how did I prepare? I'm old school so I bought some study guides books. I read through them 3 times, first time to get familiar with the material, second time I pushed myself to not look at the answer first before choosing one of the multiple choice selections (making myself think about what I was reading), and third time I marked up the text with a highlighter marker to make sure I was reading the text and not just glossing over and moving on.

I downloaded the free Roy Watson study apps to my phone. I did not use the practice tests. The practice tests are randomly selecting 35 questions out of the 435 question pool. With the practice tests and on the actual test, you're only getting 2, maybe 3 questions per section. You might do well on 3 or 4 practice tests and feel confident. That's setting yourself up to fail. I used the section quizzes. Now you're answering all 435 questions from the 10 sections. By using the section quizzes I covered the section content much faster and got instant feedback on where I was weak. When I could pass with 100% on most section quizzes, I felt ready. I scored 30/35 or ~86%. If I would have slowed down just a few seconds per question, I would have scored 100%. There's no time limit to take the test.

Good luck.

 

[mbrun]

I passed my tech exam yesterday afternoon. Everything was done online with Zoom. It went better that I thought. So how did I prepare? I'm old school so I bought some study guides books. I read through them 3 times, first time to get familiar with the material, second time I pushed myself to not look at the answer first before choosing one of the multiple choice selections (making myself think about what I was reading), and third time I marked up the text with a highlighter marker to make sure I was reading the text and not just glossing over and moving on.
I downloaded the free Roy Watson study apps to my phone. I did not use the practice tests. The practice tests are randomly selecting 35 questions out of the 435 question pool. With the practice tests and on the actual test, you're only getting 2, maybe 3 questions per section. You might do well on 3 or 4 practice tests and feel confident. That's setting yourself up to fail. I used the section quizzes. Now you're answering all 435 questions from the 10 sections. By using the section quizzes I covered the section content much faster and got instant feedback on where I was weak. When I could pass with 100% on most section quizzes, I felt ready. I scored 30/35 or ~86%. If I would have slowed down just a few seconds per question, I would have scored 100%. There's no time limit to take the test.
Good luck.
 

Congratulations on passing your test. You should be proud of yourself for both your effort and your accomplishment. I thank you for taking it seriously.

Welcome to the amateur community!

73


Michael
WRHS965
KE8PLM

Edit: Grammar

[BoxCar]

+1 from another new ham. Find a local club, get involved. It's well worth it.

[AdmiralCochrane]

Congrats! 

[jc1240]

Congratulation

9 hours ago, BKmetzWRKZ843 said:

I passed my tech exam yesterday afternoon. Everything was done online with Zoom. It went better that I thought. So how did I prepare? I'm old school so I bought some study guides books. I read through them 3 times, first time to get familiar with the material, second time I pushed myself to not look at the answer first before choosing one of the multiple choice selections (making myself think about what I was reading), and third time I marked up the text with a highlighter marker to make sure I was reading the text and not just glossing over and moving on.

I downloaded the free Roy Watson study apps to my phone. I did not use the practice tests. The practice tests are randomly selecting 35 questions out of the 435 question pool. With the practice tests and on the actual test, you're only getting 2, maybe 3 questions per section. You might do well on 3 or 4 practice tests and feel confident. That's setting yourself up to fail. I used the section quizzes. Now you're answering all 435 questions from the 10 sections. By using the section quizzes I covered the section content much faster and got instant feedback on where I was weak. When I could pass with 100% on most section quizzes, I felt ready. I scored 30/35 or ~86%. If I would have slowed down just a few seconds per question, I would have scored 100%. There's no time limit to take the test.

Good luck.

 

Congratulations!

[axorlov]