20-05-2019, 07:36 PM
I have been doing a bit of research into the VE-conducted exams and have found the pools of current questions for the 3 grades of USA licence at http://www.ncvec.org/
The question banks are fairly large and it takes a while to even skim them to figure out what the likelihood of an Australian amateur just passing them without much effort. Simply put, they are low - if for no other reason than the FCC rules for AR in the USA are quite different to the VK rules. Sure there are a lot of similarities but there are a LOT of major differences. Learn-able to pass the exam, certainly - with some effort.
The theory, antennas, propagation, safety etc.. vary with each level but some are probably somewhat deeper than the equivalent Aussie requirements. Some sections are fine, but you need to be up on the latest digital techniques (FT8, PSK, MS,..) to have much of a chance at the first (or a subsequent) attempt. Of course it is multiple choice ( guess? ) so there is always the opportunity to fluke an answer that you don't really know. The FCC rules are hard to guess correctly, some don't have equivalents here.
Similarly to the VK exams, the senses of the questions are sometimes tricky and you have to carefully read the question - and all of the words in it - to get the answer right. Some of the A / B /C / D answers are intentionally misleading unless read and interpreted accurately. There are the typical two absurd, one nearly correct and one actually correct but there are a lot of the "all of the above" and that makes reading and checking all of the provided answers even more closely than you might otherwise.
The pass mark is 74% so you don't have to attain a perfect score. I tried an on-line Extra Class test and got 70-odd percent the first time, 84% the second so that second one would have got me through. Unfortunately you have to successfully do the Technician test first before you can do a higher level, then pass the General before attempting the Extra Class.
I am contemplating trying the 3 levels at the one sitting (if I can) for no other reason than taking it on as a technical challenge. The Sunshine Coast exams are about a month away so plenty of time to do some swatting on AR the USA-way. I don't have any real need to take out a USA callsign (with its initial 10 year life), but I probably would if successful, because the VK licence with it's CEPT acceptance would most likely be useful anywhere I might travel around the globe.
If you are of a like mind and want to contest the VE-exams - and need some help with the documentation to make it easier - PM me through the forum or email me direct or through the contact page on my website at VK4ADC.COM as I have already done some trimming down of the question pool documents. That reduces the bulk of what you need to skim / learn and might very well take the pressure levels a lot lower. For instance the 112 pages of the Extra Class pool are trimmed to 48 pages... I've done the 'hard' work and you can get the benefit of that time spent.
What do you think ??
The question banks are fairly large and it takes a while to even skim them to figure out what the likelihood of an Australian amateur just passing them without much effort. Simply put, they are low - if for no other reason than the FCC rules for AR in the USA are quite different to the VK rules. Sure there are a lot of similarities but there are a LOT of major differences. Learn-able to pass the exam, certainly - with some effort.
The theory, antennas, propagation, safety etc.. vary with each level but some are probably somewhat deeper than the equivalent Aussie requirements. Some sections are fine, but you need to be up on the latest digital techniques (FT8, PSK, MS,..) to have much of a chance at the first (or a subsequent) attempt. Of course it is multiple choice ( guess? ) so there is always the opportunity to fluke an answer that you don't really know. The FCC rules are hard to guess correctly, some don't have equivalents here.
Similarly to the VK exams, the senses of the questions are sometimes tricky and you have to carefully read the question - and all of the words in it - to get the answer right. Some of the A / B /C / D answers are intentionally misleading unless read and interpreted accurately. There are the typical two absurd, one nearly correct and one actually correct but there are a lot of the "all of the above" and that makes reading and checking all of the provided answers even more closely than you might otherwise.
The pass mark is 74% so you don't have to attain a perfect score. I tried an on-line Extra Class test and got 70-odd percent the first time, 84% the second so that second one would have got me through. Unfortunately you have to successfully do the Technician test first before you can do a higher level, then pass the General before attempting the Extra Class.
I am contemplating trying the 3 levels at the one sitting (if I can) for no other reason than taking it on as a technical challenge. The Sunshine Coast exams are about a month away so plenty of time to do some swatting on AR the USA-way. I don't have any real need to take out a USA callsign (with its initial 10 year life), but I probably would if successful, because the VK licence with it's CEPT acceptance would most likely be useful anywhere I might travel around the globe.
If you are of a like mind and want to contest the VE-exams - and need some help with the documentation to make it easier - PM me through the forum or email me direct or through the contact page on my website at VK4ADC.COM as I have already done some trimming down of the question pool documents. That reduces the bulk of what you need to skim / learn and might very well take the pressure levels a lot lower. For instance the 112 pages of the Extra Class pool are trimmed to 48 pages... I've done the 'hard' work and you can get the benefit of that time spent.
What do you think ??
Doug VK4ADC @ QG62LG51
http://www.vk4adc.com
This Forum is only going to be as interesting as the posts it contains.
If you have a comment or question, post it as it may trigger or answer the query in someone else's mind.
http://www.vk4adc.com
This Forum is only going to be as interesting as the posts it contains.
If you have a comment or question, post it as it may trigger or answer the query in someone else's mind.