Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
UBC Radio Science Lab
2356 Main Mall, Room 4034,
Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4
Tel: 604.822.3544
Fax: 604.822.5949
E-mail: david.michelson@ubc.ca
Prof. David Michelson, VA7DM, holds Amateur, Digital, and
Advanced Amateur radio certificates. He is an
ISED accedited examiner for amateur radio and works with the
IEEE Student Branch at UBC to support both the university and
general community by holding amateur examination sessions
throughout the year. Please contact him at davem@ece.ubc.ca
to arrange for an exam.
The amateur radio service is a radiocommunication service
in which radio apparatus are used for the purpose of
self-training, intercommunication or technical investigation by
individuals who are interested in radio technique solely with a
personal aim and without pecuniary interest.
Many Student Design Teams in the Faculty of Applied Science at
UBC use Amateur Radio (or would benefit from using Amateur
Radio) in pursuit of their team objectives. Examples include the
UBC Orbit satellite design team, the Unmanned Aerial Systems
student design team, and the Solar powered vehicle student
design team. Other students use Amateur Radio to pursue projects
of personal interest.
The following links provide helpful background information
for those preparing for a certification exam.
It's best to work with a partner or colleague as you prepare
to write the certification exam.
The materials presented here represent the bare minimum. Pointers to more detailed study guides and both in-person and online courses, can be found at Radio Amateurs of Canada - Amateur Radio Course Study Guides.
Survey (using SQ3R) the overview material at:
ISED -> Broadcasting and Telecommunications Regulations -> Spectrum Management and Telecommunications -> Spectrum Allocation -> Amateur Radio Service During the first pass, separate the material into
three categories:
1. things you know well
2. things of which you are aware but need to learn more
3. things that are completely unfamiliar
During successive passes , your goal is to transform items
from Category 3 into Category 2 and from Category 2 into
Category 1.
Use the ISED documents (Steps 1 and 2), the EMO Lessons (Step 3), Wikipedia or Google to look up unfamiliar terms.
Read and Review (using SQ3R) the following documents from ISED:
RIC-1 - Guide for
Examiners Accredited to Conduct Examinations for Amateur Radio
Operator Certificates
Issue 7, March 2022
RIC-3 - Information
on the Amateur Radio Service
Issue 5, March 2022
Basic
Qualification Question Bank for Amateur Radio Operator
Certificate Examinations
Issue 3,
December 11, 2021
Advanced
Qualification Question Bank for Amateur Radio Operator
Certificate Examinations
December 17, 2019
RIC-9 - Call Sign
Policy and Special Event Prefixes
Issue 2 (Provisional),
October 2005
RBR-3 - Technical
Requirements Respecting Identification of Radio Stations
September 2007
RBR-4 - Standards for the
Operation of Radio Stations in the Amateur Radio Service
Issue 2, January 2014
These documents contain facts and figures. You need to
commit them to memory, and, if possible, appreciate the intent
and context.
The basic certificate exam consists of 100 multiple-choice questions drawn from ISED's RIC-7. The questions focus on eight subject areas: 1) Regulations and Policies, 2) Operating and Procedures, 3) Station, Assembly, practice and Safety, 4) Circuit Components, 5) Basic Electronics and Theory, 6) Feedlines and Antenna Systems, 7) Radio Wave Propagation, 8) Interference and Suppression.
Review (using SQ3R ) the following materials produced by the Ontario EMO (Emergency Measures Organization). Although they are a little dated, they are still mostly relevant and quite useful.
Lesson # 1 - Regulations and Policies (based largely on the ISED documents)
Lesson # 2 - Operating and Procedures
(based largely on the ISED documents)
Lesson # 3 - Block Diagrams Definitions & Safety
Lesson # 4 - Circuit Components
Lesson # 5 - Basic Electronics & Theory
Lesson # 6a - Antennas
Lesson # 6b - Feed Lines
Lesson # 7 - Radio Wave Propagation
Lesson # 8 - Interference
During the first pass, separate the material into
three categories:
1. things you know well
2. things of which you are aware but need to learn more
3. things that are completely unfamiliar
During successive passes , your goal is to transform items
from Category 3 into Category 2 and from Category 2 into
Category 1.
Use the ISED documents (Steps 1 and 2), the EMO Lessons (Step 3), Wikipedia or Google to look up unfamiliar terms.
Study the following external document in detail:
Annotated RIC-7
by
Donn Hilton and François Daigneault. Although it is a little
dated, it is still mostly relevant and quite useful.
Use the EMO Lessons (Step 2), the Industry
Canada documents (Steps 1 and 3), Wikipedia or Google to
look up unfamiliar terms, or ask one of
the Project TAs or Prof. Michelson for
help.
When you believe that you have a solid grasp of the material,
obtain the exam generator software from:
ExHAMiner V2.5
(2014 04)
Be certain to download at least one Question Bank from the above
page and deposit in the same folder as the program. If you are
preparing for the advancedd qualification, be sure to download
the essential schematics (2014 09) from the same page.
Once you are doing well with ExHAMiner, take a practice exam generated by the:
ISED Amateur Radio Exam GeneratorFor more information, please contact Prof. Dave Michelson, VA7DM, davem@ece.ubc.ca.
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
UBC Radio Science Lab
2356 Main Mall, Room 4034,
Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4
Tel: 604.822.3544
Fax: 604.822.5949
E-mail: david.michelson@ubc.ca