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The Federal Communications Commission has set up three classes of Amateur Radio licenses: Technician, General and Amateur Extra. In addition, three older classes of license still exist but are not available to new licensees. Here's a very brief look at what each class offers: |
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| Novice (not available) |
Since the 1950's, the Novice had been the entry-level
license to Amateur Radio, but not any more. In the early
90's, the Novice was displaced by the code-free Tech as the de facto
entry-level license. Effective April 15, 2000, the Novice was officially
eliminated, although existing Novices are "grandfathered" and can renew their
license and privileges.
The Novice License permits Morse code operation on several ham bands, and limited voice operation on three bands. |
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(No Code) |
The no-code Technician was created in 1992, and
immediately became the real entry-level license. To get a Tech license,
you must pass a written test covering basic electronics, FCC rules, safety
and operating procedures (but not the code test).
The Tech license grants full operating privileges on all Amateur bands above 30 MHz - that's VHF, UHF and above. These bands are basically "local" communications bands, and include the extremely popular two-meter band (144 - 148 MHz) with lots of FM/Repeater operation. Worldwide communication is also possible using the Amateur Radio Satellites and internet-linked repeaters. A Tech licensee who also passed a 5 wpm code test* gains the old "Novice" HF priveleges - cw and voice (we call it "phone") on a portion of 10 meters, and small cw bands on 15, 40 and 80 meters. No new license or endorsements will be issued, however, so the licensee must keep written proof of passing the test. The RARS Class aims at helping you pass this license. Morse code instructiion is offered separately. |
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| Technician Plus (not available) |
The Tech Plus was a combination of Tech and Novice, basically a Tech plus 5 wpm code*. This license became unavailable after April 15, 2000, though current Tech Plus holders will maintain their additional privileges, and any new Techs who pass 5 wpm code also earn those privileges (cw and phone on part of 10 meters, and cw on part of 15, 40 and 80 meters). | |
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Advanced
Amateur Extra |
The General Class license
requires passing a 5 word-per-minute code test*,
the Technician written test, and a somewhat more difficult General Class
written test, again covering basic electronics, FCC rules, operating procedures
and safety. General Class privileges include full operation on all
ham bands, except for slices of some bands reserved for Advanced and Amateur
Extra Class hams.
The Advanced Class license became unavailable effective April 15th, 2000, but existing Advance Class licensees have been grandfathered into their privileges and may renew their licenses. Small voice band segments, exclusive for Advanced and Amateur Extra class hams, are added in several bands as additional privileges. No additional code test is required. The Amateur Extra Class license requires passing the Technician and General tests, plus another difficult written test. For the trouble, the Extra Class ham gets exclusive privileges on some small segments in several code and voice bands. This may not seem like much, but when a band is crowded, the Extra has a bit more elbow room. No additional code test is required. |
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The "Question Pool" used for all exams is open and available for your inspection. One source is the ARRL's page http://www.arrl.org/arrlvec/pools.html . | |
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In July of 2003, the World Radiocommunication Conference decided to drop the treaty
requirement that countries had to test for knowledge of Morse code for ham
licenses with privileges on the high frequency bands. The FCC may drop
the requirement for US hams in the next few years, but for now, the 5 wpm
test is still in effect. |
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| Back to the RARS Class Info Page | ||