so i've been interested in ham radio for a while now, like years honestly, but never actually pulled the trigger on doing anything about it. my neighbor has a big antenna setup in his backyard and we got to talking last weekend and now im actually thinking about just going for it and getting my technician license or whatever the first one is called.

the problem is i have no idea where to start. i looked online for a bit and there's like a ton of different websites and apps and study guides and i dont know which ones are actually worth using vs just a waste of time. also how hard is the test actually? i have a pretty decent background in electronics from work but nothing specific to radio. and do i need to memorize a ton of stuff or is it more like understanding concepts?

also how do i even find where to take the test, is that through the FCC directly or some other organization? sorry if these are dumb questions im just pretty lost on the whole process

not dumb questions at all, everybody starts somewhere. ok so the short version -- for the Technician exam you need to get 26 out of 35 questions right and the question pool is publicly available, meaning every single question that could be on your test is already out there for you to study. that makes it pretty approachable honestly.

most people just use HamStudy.org or the Gordon West book, both work fine. i personally used HamStudy when i got my ticket a few years back and it took me maybe 3 weeks of just doing practice questions in the evenings before i felt ready. if you already have an electronics background you'll probably fly through the electrical theory sections, the parts that trip people up are usually the regs and band plans stuff.

for finding a test session you want to look up a VE team near you -- that stands for Volunteer Examiner. ARRL has a session finder on their website, you just put in your zip code. some clubs also do walk-in testing which is nice if you dont want to schedule weeks out. fee is usually like 15 bucks give or take depending on the club running it.

honestly just start hammering practice tests on HamStudy and you'll have a feel pretty quick for whether you're ready or not. the pass rate is pretty high for people who actually study so dont stress too much about it

i did mine like 8 months ago and was in the exact same spot you are. what worked for me was just the HamStudy app on my phone during lunch breaks, did maybe 20-30 minutes a day for like two weeks and passed no problem. i didnt read any book or anything just the app.

one thing i'll say is dont overthink the math questions, there are only a few formulas you actually need and if you just memorize them and know how to rearrange them you're fine. ohms law basically