Gateway to Amateur Radio
Gateway to Amateur Radio
Contents
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Frequently asked questions
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Licence-free activities
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Getting licensed
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First contacts
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Branching out
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Projects & technical
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News
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ACMA
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WIA
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Gateway to Am. Radio Home
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Getting LicensedIntroductionIn return for being granted spectrum access radio amateurs must complete an assessment covering basic radio theory, regulations and practical matters. The purpose of this is to ensure that you can operate equipment without causing interference to others. Newcomers usually start with the 'Foundation Licence', giving low power access to selected HF, VHF and UHF radio bands with commercially-made equipment. Later on they can complete further assessments that give extra privileges such as building your own radio transmitters, more frequencies, extra transmitting modes and the use of high-powered equipment. To get the Foundation Licence you need to book in for a course usually run by a local radio club. This is often run over a weekend and combined with an assessment afterwards. Once your results come through, you then obtain a licence and callsign from the Australian Communications Media Authority. The following paragraphs explain the category of licences that currently exist, the exams required, and privileges granted. The remainder will explain often overlooked, but important matters such as studying, arranging an exam and obtaining a license.
As explained on the ACMA website, there are several levels of amateur licence. The higher grades confer more operating privileges, but require more advanced knowledge. Licence categories are as follows: Foundation: Allows low power voice and morse code communication on segments of the 3.5, 7, 21, 28, 144 and 430 MHz bands. Requires a simple course and assessment run by a radio club. Callsigns have 4 letter suffixes beginning with F, eg VK#F###. Operating privileges allow local and international communications including the use of internet radio linking and HF (shortwave) frequencies. Foundation licensees may not construct their own transmitting equipment, but may still build antennas, receivers, power supplies and accessories. Standard: Allows moderate power voice, data and morse communication on segments of the 3.5, 7, 14, 21, 28, 50, 144, 430, 1240, 2400 and 5650 MHz bands. Assessment covers regulations, theory and practical at an intermediate level. Callsign suffixes are three letter, beginning with H, L, M, N, P or V only. Operating privileges allow local and international communications including the use of internet radio linking, HF (shortwave) frequencies and many amateur satellites. Standard licensees can construct any part of their station. Advanced: Full amateur privileges, including high-power all-mode communication on all amateur bands. Assessment covers regulations, theory and practical at a higher level than Standard. Callsigns allocated are all three letter suffixes beginning in A-G, I-K, S-U, W-Z and all two-letter suffixes. Operating privileges allow local and international communication, including HF (shortwave) frequencies, all amateur satellites and television transmission. Advanced licensees can construct any part of their station. Detailed information on the above, including mode, power and frequency restrictions appears on the ACMA website.
Obtaining a Foundation Licence is a matter of booking a course and assessment at radio club nearest you. Course attendance is not mandatory. If you are in a remote area or are otherwise unable to attend a club course, you can learn the Those wishing to obtain their Standard or Advanced licence can study via the following means: Formal Course: Amateur radio courses are normally run by radio clubs or the WIA in some states. Classes are normally weekly for 1-2 hours. A course length of around six months for the Standard licence is typical. Courses may include regulations, theory and a practical component. Not all clubs run licence classes. Internet: A very popular way to study is via the free Internet course run by the Australian Radio and Electronics School. The course comprises reading material and twenty written assignments (one per week). Students are assigned a facilitator who provides and marks the assignments. The facilitator can also answer any questions the student might have. This course has a very high success rate and is particularly attractive for those unable to attend club courses due to distance or time constraints.
Books and videos: These are available for those who wish to study by themselves. Following the 2005 licence restructuring, there may be some changes to the syllabus and thus exam content. However most of the material in existing novice books will still be relevant for the Standard licence. Similarly books for the old 'Full' licence are most applicable to the Advanced licence. Graeme Scott's Novice Operators Theory Handbook is very popular. It is available from the WIA Bookshop. Other useful books include Questions and Answers for the Novice Licence (now out of print) and Fred Swainston's Radio Amateurs Theory Handbook, which is suitable for both Novice and Full theory. The Gladesville Amateur Radio Club produces amateur radio licence study videotapes. Students can test their progress by doing a self-test exam as contained in books such as 1000 Questions for NAOCP Candidates or on the Amateur Radio Victoria website. Study material for the Regulations can be downloaded from the ACMA website. Alternatively, try contacting your local ACMA Office for an amateur information pamphlet. An extremely useful resource is the WIA Callbook; this contains much material pertinent to the student, including amateur regulations, frequency allocations, ACMA offices, club mailing addresses and more.
Amateur exams are conducted by accredited individuals, clubs and WIA Divisions in some states. If attending a course you will be offered the opportunity to sit an exam when the course ends. Those studying independently need to contact an Invigilator Team Leader and arrange to sit an exam. Invigilator Team Leaders are generally associated with local radio clubs. Some clubs hold assessments at regular intervals, while others will conduct them as required. Recent changes to the amateur examination system and the lack of an up to date national list of currently active examiners has meant that some have had difficulty in finding an examiner. To make things a little easier, Gateway to Amateur Radio has produced a list of examiner contact details by state, mostly comprising links to relevant state websites. If you have a disability or live remote from an invigilator or club, you can arrange to sit an exam through the Australian Communications & Media Authority. In these cases a local Justice of the Peace, postmaster or schoolteacher will oversee the exam. Contact your nearest ACMA area office for further details.
The examiner will send your paper away to be marked, and you will await the results. The highlight of your days will be checking the mail box to check for the magic envelope from the WIA. At this time, you will also no doubt be drooling over catalogues, scanning the magazines and asking people their opinion on particular pieces of equipment! It generally takes three or four weeks to receive your results. If it's longer than this, ask your examiner to follow it up. The most common reason for delay is that the paperwork is incorrectly completed or is missing a signature, etc.
Once you have details of your pass, you can now obtain a certificate of proficiency. This used to be done over the counter at the local ACMA office, but is now done via the ACMA in Sydney. Please note that a Certificate of Proficiency is not a license to operate. However, the Certificate qualifies the holder to obtain the category of amateur licence commensurate with the certificate(s) held. Your callsign is printed on the amateur licence. Many amateurs like being able to choose theirs. Two-letter callsigns and callsigns featuring one's own initials are perhaps the most sought-after. There are several requirements for this to be possible. Firstly it must be within the allocated callsign block for your licence grade. Secondly, it must not be already allocated. Thirdly, the callsign must not have belonged to a recently deceased amateur. Amateurs serious about getting a 'good callsign' firstly develop a short-list (based on initials, likely confusion with other callsigns, pronuncibility, brevity on Morse etc). The ACA's online database, is then searched, eliminating calls that have already been allocated. This shorter list then forms the basis of what you might wish to request when you send your licence application to Sydney. Because of their smaller populations, the chance of amateurs getting their preferred callsign is greater in the smaller call areas (VK1, 7, 8) than in the larger states (VK2 & 3). Obtaining and renewing an amateur licence requires payment of an issue or renewal fee. This is currently around $56.00, which includes payment of the Spectrum Access Tax and an administrative component. A small discount applies for multi-year licenses, which are available for up to 5 years. Details on the ACMA website.
Related Gateway articlesThe WIA Education Service Source of study material Amateur Radio's 'hidden curriculum' Key ham skills identified
Related linksAustralian amateur study sites Australian Radio & Electronics School Get your licence with a free on-line study course VK3JDK's Licence Study Tips Ideas and resources for students Gladesville Amateur Radio Club Provides amateur licence study video tapes WIA NSW Division Provides correspondence courses and study material. Click on link above and type 'education service' in search window. Regulations Study Material
Australian Communications Authority Amateur Page All you need to know Theory Study Material How radios work Good basic theory from the Radio Design Group VK2TIP's Radio Tutorial Page Great site with theory and projects
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