This article first appeared in the K9YA Telegraph. It is published with the permission of the author.
It’s Harder to Become a Ham Today than 65 Years Ago
By Ernie Rader, W5NH
How many times have you heard an old-timer complain that it was harder to become a “real” ham back in the day? You know the type— the ones who roll their eyes at today’s newcomers, convinced that the hobby used to be “le- gitimate” only if you worked harder for it. Well, I am here to say they have it wrong. Becoming a ham today is much more difficult than it ever was 65 years ago.
Time Was…
I was licensed in 1956. Back then, the process was straightforward. You learned Morse Code at a manageable five words per minute, studied a bit of basic electronics, understood the fundamental concepts of ham radio, and then you took a test. Weeks later, you were issued a Novice class license. But here is the kicker—even with that license in hand, I still didn’t feel like I was a “real” ham. It was just the first step.
Fast forward to today. A prospective ham needs to memorize hundreds of questions, all of which have multiple answers, and pass a test to get their Technician license. That is right, hundreds of questions. And even after they have passed, they are still not really “in” yet. Sure, they have the license, but the real depth of the hobby? That is a whole other world they have only just begun to scratch.
The Challenge
Back in the 1950s, the biggest challenge was simply getting on the air. You could buy a transmitter, build a receiver, set up an antenna, and you were good to go. That was the essence of it—getting your equipment up and running and making those first contacts. The barrier to entry was not too high. If you were motivated, you could get there quickly. And that is what made it exciting—the simplicity of it. You got on the air and learned by doing. No complicated setups. No overwhelm. Just you, your radio, and the airwaves.
Today, it is a whole different ballgame. The moment a new ham gets licensed, they go out and buy a Baofeng or some other handheld radio, strap it to their belt, and look for a local ham club to join. They are hoping to find a group of people who will help them grow in the hobby. But too often, they are met with grumpy old-timers who look down on their inexpensive radios and treat them like they’re not “real” hams. The old- timers, who had to figure out everything themselves back in the day, seem unwilling to offer help to newcomers. “Why should I help them?” they think. “I had to learn the hard way and did it on my own.”
A Steep Learning Curve
And so, the newcomer, feeling lost and intimidated, keeps their mouth shut, hoping to pick things up on their own. But instead of a welcoming atmosphere, they are faced with jargon and tech-heavy conversations that might as well be in a foreign language. Digital modes, CW nets, code plugs, ARES, Pactor, MARS, RACES, FT8, PL tones, nodes, remote control via the internet—on and on it goes. The complexity of the hobby has exploded, and the newcomer is expected to just know it all. It is enough to make anyone feel overwhelmed.
By the end of their first meeting, the newbie is likely to feel like they have just been hit by an avalanche of information. They came to explore a hobby they were excited about, but now they are questioning whether they can even keep up. The excitement they felt is quickly replaced with frustration, confusion, and a sense of being out of their depth. Many of them—disheartened and lost—walk away and never return to the hobby.
Information Overload
Here is the thing: it was easier to become a “real” ham decades ago because the path was simpler. There were fewer distractions, fewer options, and fewer hurdles. We learned things gradually, piece by piece, as technology and methods evolved. But today? Newcomers are bombarded with so much information, so many paths to follow, and so many things to figure out all at once. Instead of a gradual, step-by-step learning process, they are thrown into a whirlwind of confusion. The hobby feels less like an adventure and more like a mountain to climb.
I do not want to dismiss the progress that has been made in ham radio, or the new technologies that have come along. But the reality is that becoming a ham today is more than about passing a test, buying a radio, and learning to navigate a sea of confusing tech. It has, unfortunately, become less about mentorship, and more about self-directed learning. For many, it is just too much to handle.
The bottom line is this: becoming a ham today is not just about memorizing answers and getting your license. It is about finding a community that’s willing to help you, understanding an ever-growing landscape of new technology, and building your skills a little at a time. And for a lot of newcomers, that journey is just too overwhelming without help.
I suppose the experience varies from one locale to another. But I live in a high-tech area with two good EE programs, and many of our entry-level hams have no difficulty at all with computer-controlled radios, FT8, digital VHF/UHF hotspots, etc… the very things that some senior hams dislike. The newbies are often confused about HF, but fewer than half of them are interested in HF to begin with.
Sorry, I disagree.
Back in the olden days, you had to find a local ham to administer the Novice exam, then upgrades required a visit to the FCC office. Educational material was limited to a short list of books, perhaps at the local library or mail order from the ARRL. Now there is useful online content everywhere. Yes, information overload can be an issue but that is part of life in the 21st century.
There have always been grumpy old-timers and there still are. They need to be avoided.
Bob K0NR
It’s easier now than it was back then (for me, 1966), and I’m glad it is.
Then: To take anything above a Tech exam, I either had to travel 120 miles to NYC, where exams were given four days a week, or travel 40 miles to a closer exam site, where exams were given four days a year.
Now: Take the test on a computer or tablet at home; no travel necessary. (Although, as a VE, I have to admit that for many candidates, getting set up on Zoom is harder than taking the exam.)
Then: Learn Morse code. Even at 5 WPM, this discouraged plenty of applicants who would have made good hams. (And I suspect the number of Novice candidates who were mown down by bad advice on how to learn the code was considerable. Looking at a table of dots and dashes is not the way to go.) The toll was even greater at the 13 WPM required for a General license.
Now: Learn code only if you want to. And plenty want to, if the number of LICW members is any indication.
Then: Finding an Elmer was tough for those of us living in small towns or rural areas.
Now: Open up YouTube and take your pick of Elmers. Or search online for local clubs. Or online courses for the exams.
Then: You had two references for exams: the ARRL License Manual or the Ameco manual.
Now: You have the question pool, and any number of people on YouTube willing to talk you through each one. And as far as each question having multiple answers, note that you don’t have to memorize the wrong answers.
Then: Your Novice license evaporated in one year. That was the end of ham radio for no small number of people.
Now: Ten year license terms.
Then: CW, phone, and for the real experimenters, RTTY.
Now: Lots of choices, and no requirement that you learn about all of them or even most.
As someone who has been in the hobby almost 3 years now, I’ll say that I immediately got my General because the number of things that a technician can do is very limited. Most of the hobby exists in the HF space these days.
The most popular activities, POTA and FT8 are gated by having HF capabilities beyond 10m. That means they need to get a general to access 20m and shelling out $500-$1200 on an entry level HF station.
The things that techs can do are very limited and frankly pretty boring. They can check into a net (boring), they can tinker with APRS (gets old fast), they can send a couple Winlink emails (gets old fast). That’s about it. The repeaters are quiet.
That leaves them with the few exciting activities: working satellites, emcomm, and foxhunts. Working satellites is very fun, but requires some skill. Folks involved in ARES/RACES can be very off-putting and they oversell their abilities. Foxhunts are fun and a chance for community if you live somewhere where they’re put on regularly.
In addition, with my experience as a VE, it seems like many people get their technician for the wrong reasons. They don’t get licensed because they think it is an interesting hobby, they get licensed because they believe that it allows them to reach their family in the event of an emergency. They quickly learn that 2m/70cm doesn’t give them any special powers and they give up on the hobby.
It is so sad to see someone get frustrated by having a false sense of the capabilities of the technicians license. I see a similar effect with Meshtastic. They hear false promises online, get the equipment and learn that it doesn’t hold up to the promises.
I love this hobby, and I want it to continue, but the tech license needs to evolve to give people some access to the state of the art of ham radio, which I believe it no longer does.
The privileges that the Tech license gives you were very popular at one time. Repeaters, satellites and microwaves were cool. Most of those activities have been replaced by cell phones. Others by the MURS, FRS and GMRS. So Tech license isn’t seen as valuable anymore.
It is not that big of a hurdle to move up to the General license. If you learned the concepts presented in the Tech questions, the General is just acfew more laws and frequency questions. If you just memorized the Tech questions, yeah it may be a bigger deal.
I know a number of Techs that learned morse code and got on HF. They found that to be their “niche” and never upgraded.
Either way, you need to put the effort in to get the results. And it’s not really that big of an effort. Stop being a “victim” and just get on with it. It really is worth the attempt!