ok so ive been interested in ham radio for probably a year now, my neighbor has a big antenna setup and it got me curious. i finally decided i want to actually get my technician license but im kind of overwhelmed by where to start. like do i just show up somewhere and take a test or is there coursework involved? i looked at the FCC website and it was not super helpful for a complete beginner

also how hard is the tech exam actually? i have a pretty decent background in electronics from tinkering with stuff but no formal training. someone at work mentioned hamstudy.org but i dont know if thats legit or just some random site. any advice would be appreciated i just dont want to spend months studying if i dont need to

hamstudy.org is absolutely legit, thats basically what everyone uses now. the question pool for the technician exam is public so sites like that just drill you on the actual questions that could show up. once you're getting like 85-90% consistently on the practice tests you're probably ready to go sit for the real thing.

the tech exam honestly isnt that bad, 35 questions multiple choice, you need 26 right to pass. with an electronics background you'll breeze through the electrical theory stuff, the main things to study are the regulations and the specific band/frequency stuff because that's where people who think they already know everything tend to slip up. i'd give yourself maybe 2-3 weeks of casual studying and you should be fine. find a local ARRL club because they usually run VE sessions pretty regularly and some of them are free or just a small fee

i just did this like 4 months ago so pretty fresh for me. i used hamstudy and also the ARRL technician manual which i got used off ebay for like 6 bucks. honestly the manual was overkill for just passing the test but i liked having the extra context for why things are the way they are. took me about 3 weeks studying maybe 20 mins a night and passed first try with a few to spare

one thing nobody told me — when you pass you have to wait for the FCC to actually grant your license before you can transmit anything, usually a few days but sometimes longer so dont freak out if you dont see it in their database right away. also get the GQRP or just search for hamstudyorg they have an app too which made it easy to study on my lunch break