Ham Radio Exams In-Person

[SaitoH]

[CodexMafia]

Where will these be located? Are you just doing Tech exams?

[SaitoH]

Bronze 1, information should be in hacker tracker. Links should be added in a tiny bit for pre-reg

[gdmoisboq]

CodexMafia - historically the exam teams at Defcon have been staffed to and have offered all 3 exam elements. SaitoH, correct me if I'm wrong but I believe we'll be adequately staffed this year also.

[BananaJr]

Quick noob question... how hard are these three exams and what do they get you? I've been wanting to dive into ham for several years, and haven't pulled the trigger. But what a cool place to get my certs (DEFCON)! I suppose I should also ask about cost. I just saw this post and haven't refreshed my memories on ham stuff at all... I've studied up on this a couple times in years past when I was thinking about getting into it, but then got busy and forgot about it again. :-)

[gdmoisboq]

bananajr,
difficulty is relative. how well do you take tests? what is your background? the tech exam is about 75% rules and procedures, 25% technical (physics, electricity, simple electronics, etc). general is about 50/50 with more complex tech. extra is around 75% relatively advanced tech.

as to cost, the exams at Defcon are no cost this year, but the number of tries may be limited. once you have your ticket you can pick up a handheld for < usd100. you can also spend thousands building the shack of your dreams. you may find hams in your area with loaners or even "free to a good home"

what to do? communicate across the world without the internet, work with local emergency teams(after training), various public service opportunities are out there.

ARRL has some articles for prospective hams. also search around news articles, particularly charitable events-many have their comm provided by hams

warning - your study attempts may be dated as exams are updated on a 4 year cycle. this is the last year of the current cycle. a new tech question pool goes into effect 01 july 2022, general in 2023, extra in 2024. the 4th year of the cycle has no changes.

there are numerous FREE training sites on the net to help study

as encouragement, I personally know of 6 hams who passed all 3 exams in a single session including 2 at past Defcon sessions. we have had some people join the linecon, decide to stay and leave with a ticket, cold.

hope this helped

[BananaJr]

bananajr,
difficulty is relative. how well do you take tests? what is your background? the tech exam is about 75% rules and procedures, 25% technical (physics, electricity, simple electronics, etc). general is about 50/50 with more complex tech. extra is around 75% relatively advanced tech.

as to cost, the exams at Defcon are no cost this year, but the number of tries may be limited. once you have your ticket you can pick up a handheld for < usd100. you can also spend thousands building the shack of your dreams. you may find hams in your area with loaners or even "free to a good home"

what to do? communicate across the world without the internet, work with local emergency teams(after training), various public service opportunities are out there.

ARRL has some articles for prospective hams. also search around news articles, particularly charitable events-many have their comm provided by hams

warning - your study attempts may be dated as exams are updated on a 4 year cycle. this is the last year of the current cycle. a new tech question pool goes into effect 01 july 2022, general in 2023, extra in 2024. the 4th year of the cycle has no changes.

there are numerous FREE training sites on the net to help study

as encouragement, I personally know of 6 hams who passed all 3 exams in a single session including 2 at past Defcon sessions. we have had some people join the linecon, decide to stay and leave with a ticket, cold.

hope this helped

Thanks, gdmoisboq! I haven't studied at all, just looked at it a few years ago. I'm an engineer, so not worried about understanding the technical stuff, though I seriously doubt I'd know the answers without studying first. I'll swing by during the con for sure, to see what it's all about and maybe take a crack at it. Maybe I could study up on the plane a bit on the way out. Do you have a link to one of your fav online free trainings? I'll Google it, but always good to get a knowledgeable reco! Thanks again!

[gdmoisboq]

ARRL is an option but searching for online training and practice exams is probably better.that way you have a better chance of fitting your style. a "local" BSA council told their kids that if they could score 80%+ on 4 practice exams, they had a good chance of passing. keep in mind that the question pools contain 10-12 times the 35 or 50 exam questions you will see.

another tool is that you will see 1 question from each subelement but the pool does not have the same number of questions for each. you can allocate your time better if you find a weak area.