This course is intended to help you prepare for the Basic Amateur Radio examination. There are eight chapters. These eight chapters correspond to the eight broad subject areas of the Basic exam. The eight broad subject areas are further divided in to sections. In Hamstudy, these sections are referred to as “lessons” and the terms lesson and section may be used interchangeably.
Some chapters have more lessons than others. Each lesson highlights a group of four to eleven (4 to 11) questions. On your exam, you will get only one question from each of the one hundred (100) sections (lessons).
Each lesson is numbered by the sections of the exam. The “B” refers to the “Basic Question Bank,” from which all the exam questions come. Chapter 1 contains all the questions that begin with “B-001.” “B-001-001” refers to the first group of questions, and “B-001-001-001” would be the individual number of the first question in the Basic Question Bank.
Each lesson begins with some instructional material discussing the topics and the questions that the lesson addresses. By carefully reading the instructional material, you should be able to answer correctly whichever question you get on your exam from that lesson.
Once you have read the instructional material, carefully look at each question and the possible answers. In this Hamstudy course, the first possible answer is always the correct answer. The correct answer will be followed by the three incorrect answers, also called “distractors.” The incorrect answers are there to tempt you away from the correct answer.
On Hamstudy quizzes and your real exam, the correct and incorrect answers for each question will appear in random order. You will have to identify the correct answer to get the mark. As well, the real exam will randomize the order of the questions.
Here is an example of a question:
| What appears on the exam or quiz | What it means or is |
|---|---|
| B-001-001-001 | The number of the question |
| Which document assigns the authority to make Canadian regulations governing radiocommunications? | The test item – this is the actual question you must answer |
| ● The Radiocommunication Act | In the Hamstudy lessons, the correct answer will always appear first. HOWEVER in the Hamstudy quizzes and on the actual ISED exams, all of the answers are in random order. |
| ● The Broadcasting Act ● The Standards for the Operation of Radio Stations in the Amateur Radio Service ● The International Telecommunication Union’s Radio Regulations | In the Hamstudy lessons, the three “distractors,” or incorrect answers, will appear after the correct answer. HOWEVER in the Hamstudy quizzes and on the actual ISED exams, all of the answers are in random order. |
REMEMBER: In the Hamstudy lessons, the correct answer always appears first. But in the Hamstudy quizzes and on an official exam, the correct answer and the distractors will appear in random order. You have to select the correct answer from among four possible answers.
Quizzes and practice exams
Once you feel you know the material in a particular lesson, you can try the Hamstudy quiz that appears at the end of the lesson. The quiz will offer all the questions in that lesson, and randomize the order of the answers. At the end of the quiz, you will be able to identify which questions you missed. Go back and review the instructional material for that lesson.
You may also consider trying a practice exam. These are available on the ISED website’s “Exam Generator.” This is at: https://ised-isde.canada.ca/site/amateur-radio-operator-certificate-services/en/amateur-radio-exam-generator
The Exam Generator will allow you to test your knowledge on specific sections of the exam, or on the exam as a whole. The practice exams draw their questions from the same 984-question Basic Question Bank that is used for an official exam.
Alternate between the online quizzes of the course, the ISED Practice Exam Generator and the instructional material of the course. This will train you to recognize the questions and prepare you to succeed on the exam. When you consistently score passing marks on the practice exams, you will be ready to try an official exam.
The Official Exam
Of the 2,000 Amateur Radio Basic exams conducted each year, only a few dozen are conducted by ISED officers. Most Amateur Radio exams are administered by Radio Amateurs who have been accredited by ISED. These Accredited Examiners (AEs) have passed the Basic, Advanced and Morse Code exams and have been individually approved by ISED and entrusted to conduct the exams. AEs must renew their accreditation every three years. AEs can be audited by ISED at any time. Maintaining the integrity of the examination process is very important.
You can search for an Accredited Examiner (AE) to conduct your exam. You can find AEs here: https://ised-isde.canada.ca/site/amateur-radio-operator-certificate-services/en/accredited-examiners .
When you do an official exam for the Basic qualification, you will have access to three documents:
- A 100-question examination paper. The questions and the answers are presented in plain text with no illustrations or formatting. For each question, you will be offered four possible answers: A, B, C and D.
- An answer sheet in grid format. This is where you will record your choice of the four possible answers for each question.
- A five-page supplement of approved reference material. This reference material will show the formulas you may be required to use for calculations on the exam, and a series of block diagrams of transmitters, receivers, station configurations, a power supply and a Yagi antenna. This supplement does not explain any of these. You may use this as a memory aid in your exam.
Otherwise, you may not have any reference material in your exam at all. A basic or scientific calculator is acceptable, provided it does not store formulas. You may not use the calculator in your mobile phone. You may have blank paper with you. For the integrity of the exam, there should be nothing and no one present that would provide you with any assistance.