Earning an Amateur Extra Class License

For years, I had thought about getting into ham radio, but put it off, not having the time to devote to studying. Finally, at the beginning of 2023 I picked up a copy of Ham Radio School’s Technician License Course by Stu Turner. It was a little more interesting to read than the official ARRL handbook I had looked through previously. The resources on the accompanying site were helpful to review and practice, but I really found the most useful study resource to be Hamstudy.org. It has a simple interface to practice flashcard-style review of the questions with intelligence to re-practice ones you missed more frequently until you start to get them right consistently. This was the key for me to get my Technician license in February. I took the exam at a local STEM education center I came across – who offered weekly tests! (Most of the clubs I found offered only monthly or at events.) I’m glad I found them as they were the key to earning my General and Amateur Extra licence classes.

Having finally gotten over the hump of getting my initial license, I became quickly interested in learning more and unlocking more of the HF bands with my General license. While I again purchased another book, I found it harder to get through and ultimately signed up for a 4-evening intensive classs through New England Sci-Tech / NEAR. It’s a non-profit that focuses on STEM education — ham radio, electronics, space, science and related areas. The class was taught entirely online via Zoom, with instructor, Bob Phinney – who is a lifelong teacher who started NE Sci-Tech after retiring from full-time teaching. This was super helpful because he has experience in explaining things and helping you remember them! This was probably the biggest differentiator over some of the free online Youtube courses I came across. Most of these were largely just an experience ham reading through the question pool with limited explanation of concepts — which makes it harder to understand or memorize. I again used Hamstudy.org to review and was able to earn my General class license the week following the course.

Emboldened, I signed up for the Amatuer Extra License Course the day before my General Exam. A much longer course at 8 weekly online classes, covering the nearly 700 questions in the Amatuer Extra exam, the course proved to be the best way for me to learn. I didn’t even bother buying a book this time. With the weekly material covered and practice on Hamstudy.org, I was able to build up my knowledge of the question pool over the course of 2 months and quickly registered for my exam. The Tuesday after our final class, I took and passed my exam and earned my Amatuer Extra license! For anyone thinking about upgrading their license, I would highly recommmend these courses. They are well taught, affordable, and support a great non-profit that largely supports STEM education for children and providing a makerspace for those with science-related interests.

The group also supports an amatuer radio club and maintains several area repeaters. Check them out at www.nescitech.org.