What to bring to a VE session
Amateur radio exams are given by Volunteer Examiners (VEs). The session is relaxed, but forgetting one item can send you home. Here is the checklist.
Before the day
- Get your FRN. Register in the FCC’s CORES system and write down your FCC Registration Number. Most VE teams require it; your Social Security number is not used on the forms.
- Find a session. Search the ARRL’s exam-session finder or your local club’s schedule. Many teams want you to pre-register, and some offer online exams by video.
- Ask the fee and how to pay. Fees are set by each VE team, often around $15, and some take cash only.
What to bring
- Photo ID: a driver’s licence or passport.
- Your FRN, written down.
- The exam fee, ideally exact cash.
- Two pencils with erasers and a pen.
- A simple calculator: basic or scientific, with its memory cleared. Phones, and calculators that store formulas or text, are not allowed.
- If you are upgrading: a copy of your current licence, plus any CSCE (the certificate of a passed element) from an earlier session.
On the day
You fill in the NCVEC Form 605 application, take the exam, and the VEs grade it on the spot. Pass, and you leave with a CSCE. If there is time and you pay again, many teams let you try the next element the same day.
After you pass
The FCC emails a link to pay its $35 application fee through CORES; the licence is not issued until that is paid. Your call sign usually appears in the FCC database within a few days to two weeks. You may transmit as soon as it shows up there, with no need to wait for paper.
Practice tests built from the current FCC question pools, with every answer explained.
Ham Radio Technician study centreRules, fees and requirements change. Check the FCC, FAA or your examining team for the current details before you buy or test.