There are currently three gradations of Amateur Radio license in the USA, with no-longer-used license classes grandfathered in. All ham radio licensing is dependent upon passing a multiple choice test, with every possible question in each question pool published, along with its correct answer. You can in fact pass an exam by memorizing the answers to the questions, if you choose.

Anyone, licensed or not, may listen to any amateur radio frequency on any mode. Transmission on ham radio frequencies is limited to licensees by Federal law. When I was working on my first license, I bought a radio before I passed my exam, and it was quite an incentive.

The Technician license is easiest to get but has very limited HF privileges.

The General license is a bit tougher to get and has great HF privileges. This is my class of license.

The Extra license is very challenging, and has all ham radio privileges. I’d like to do this one day, but work has pushed it to the back burner.


If there’s interest, I’m happy to support an online training event. I can probably get my Elmer (a ham radio term indicating a mentor who had a significant impact on an operator’s learning) to assist.