RSGB Amateur Radio Full Licence Examination — Information & Free Practice

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About RSGB Amateur Radio Full Licence Examination

RSGB Amateur Radio Full Licence Examination · GB

Key exam facts

Provider: Radio Society of Great Britain (RSGB) administers the amateur radio examinations; Ofcom is the licensing regulator.
Format: 58 multiple-choice questions, each with four possible responses. Normally online, at home under remote invigilation or in a club; paper with an Optical Mark Sheet is an exceptional arrangement where online assessment is not possible.
Exam questions: Total questions: 58.
Time limit: 120 minutes of examination answering time; special arrangements may be agreed with RSGB for candidates with disabilities.
Passing score: 35 correct answers out of 58; RSGB labels this pass standard 60%.
Exam fee: GBP £45.00 per Full Licence examination booking, as listed by RSGB; the distinct Direct to Full examination costs £95.00 and is excluded.

Topics covered

Licensing conditions and station identification (12.07%)
- Messages
- Message content, recipients, encryption, codes and offensive transmissions
- Apparatus, inspection and closedown
- Clean and stable transmitters, undue interference and Ofcom
- Electromagnetic Fields
- Licence EMF restrictions, public protection, assessment and emergency situations
- Licence Schedule
- Schedule 1 below and above 30 MHz and Notice of Coordination
Technical aspects (18.97%)
- Fundamental theory
- Component tolerances and circuit operation
- Power
- Series-parallel resistor circuits, currents, voltages, resistance and power
- Reactive components
- Capacitance, dielectric permittivity and electric charge
- Capacitor dielectrics and frequency-dependent losses
- Capacitor breakdown voltage
- Self-inductance and back EMF
- LR and CR transients and time constants
- AC theory
- Inductive and capacitive phase relationships and reactance
- Capacitor coupling and decoupling
- Inductive DC decoupling
- Impedance and current in series CR and LR circuits
- Digital signals
- Aliasing, sampling and anti-aliasing filters
- Fourier transform and frequency-domain representation
- Transformers
- Mutual inductance, turns ratios, impedance transformation and core losses
- Tuned Circuits and resonance
- Resonant-frequency formula and calculation
- Crystal equivalent circuit and series or parallel operation
- Resonant magnification, Q, component ratings and half-power bandwidth
- Dynamic resistance
- Semiconductor devices
- Zener diode reverse conduction and V/I characteristic
- Reverse-biased variable capacitance diode
- Bipolar and field-effect transistor biasing
- Small-signal amplifier configurations and amplifier classes
- Oscillator gain, phase and feedback requirements
- Cells and power supplies
- Zener-pass-transistor and integrated stabilising circuits
- Rectifier diode peak inverse voltage
- Switch-mode power supplies and comparison with linear supplies
Transmitters and receivers (20.69%)
- Transmitter concepts
- FM modulation index, sidebands, wide and narrow FM and deviation
- SSB generation, efficiency and bandwidth
- Transmitter architecture
- SSB and FM transmitter block diagrams, mixers and multipliers
- Oscillators
- Oscillator drift
- PLL and DDS synthesis, stages and signal purity
- Frequency multipliers
- Harmonic frequency multiplication
- Microphone amplifiers and modulators
- AM, SSB and FM modulators and bandwidth
- Sideband filter circuits and frequencies
- RF power amplifiers
- Linearity, harmonic distortion and intermodulation
- PA circuit components, bias and matching
- Modulation, speech processing and PA ratings
- Automatic level control and manual RF power control
- Transmitter interference
- Over-modulation and excessive transmitted bandwidth
- PA overdrive, harmonics and spurious intermodulation
- Avoidance and filtering of harmonics and mixer products
- Parasitic and self-oscillation remedies
- Synthesiser errors and preventing off-frequency transmission
- Receiver concepts
- Receiver overload, intermodulation and dynamic range
- Superheterodyne concepts
- Single and double superheterodyne block diagrams
- Mixers, intermediate frequency and products
- IF selection, multiple conversion, LO choice and image frequencies
- Coupled tuned circuits, IF amplifier gain and distortion
- Phase noise and dBc/Hz
- RF amplifiers and external pre-amplifiers
- Preamplifier noise, dynamic range and location
- Demodulation
- AM, CW, SSB and FM demodulators and FM limiter
- Automatic gain control (AGC)
- AGC voltage, attack and decay
- SDR transmitters and receivers
- Modulation phasors and orthogonal amplitude-phase representation
- I/Q mixing, direct sampling and mathematical modulation
- Transceivers
- Shared circuits and receiver incremental tuning
- Transverters, frequencies, drive and switching sequence
Feeders and antennas (6.9%)
- Feeders
- Velocity factor and electrical and physical feeder lengths
- Baluns
- Transformer, sleeve and choke baluns
- Types of antenna
- Wavelength, end correction and antenna physical lengths
- Antenna current, voltage and impedance distributions and passive elements
- Standing waves
- SWR and impedance presented by a mismatched feeder
- Return loss and relationship to SWR
- Feeder loss effects on measured return loss and SWR
- Antenna matching units
- Reactive cancellation, impedance transformation and T, Pi and L networks
- Quarter-wave impedance transformer
Propagation (5.17%)
- Radio propagation: key concepts
- Free-space spreading and fields; numerical calculations at 6E1 only
- Electric and magnetic fields and circular polarisation
- Ionosphere
- Solar flares and sunspots
- Critical frequency, MUF and daily and seasonal variation
- VHF and above
- EME and auroral propagation and equipment requirements
- Other features
- Galactic noise
- Link budget, feeder losses, gains and path loss
Electromagnetic compatibility (17.24%)
- EMC concepts
- Installation effects on immunity
- Amateur EMC standards and licence interference obligations
- Sources of interference and their effects
- Imported, home-constructed and radio-equipped devices
- Blocking and cross-modulation
- Corroded metallic junctions and passive intermodulation
- Routes of entry
- Audio leads and RF rectification
- Broadband TV amplifier overload
- IF pickup and image interference in broadcast receivers
- Filtering and remedial measures
- High, low, band-pass and notch filtering, stubs and ferrites
- Mains and braid-breaking filters
- General-coverage receiver checks for unwanted emissions
- Dummy loads in interference fault finding
- Station design and antenna placement/general principles
- Minimum necessary field strength and calculation from ERP
- RF grounding and bonding
- Balanced antennas and right-angle feeder departure
- Station design and antenna placement/mobile installations
- FCS mobile installation code
- Preventing stray RF in vehicle electronics
- Social aspects and testing
- Complaints of electromagnetic disturbance
Operating practices and procedures (3.45%)
- Band plans
- Examination band plans for 5 MHz and 472 kHz only
- CEPT and international
- Individual UK overseas operation, CEPT and HAREC
- ITU regions and Radio Regulations
Safety (6.9%)
- Electricity
- Lethal voltages and exposed circuits
- Live working restrictions and precautions
- Working with RF
- ICNIRP guidance and public exposure
- Microwave waveguide and high-gain antenna hazards
- Lightning
- Lightning, static discharge and feeder disconnection
- Working mobile and portable
- Temporary operation, risk assessment and foreign mains supplies
- Mobile and maritime mobile hazards and precautions
- Risk assessment, likelihood, severity, records and insurance
- Generator, earthing and fuel hazards
Measurements and construction (8.62%)
- Measurements
- Meter multiplier resistors, shunts and circuit loading
- Frequency measurement uncertainty, drift and bandwidth allowance
- Source and load impedance and measurement interaction
- RF power, PEP, dummy loads and measurement methods
- Crystal calibrators, counters and frequency standards
- SWR bridge sensing and displays
- Oscilloscope operation and waveform measurement
- Spectrum analyser operation, fundamentals and harmonics
- Decibels
- Power and voltage ratios, dB, dBW, dBm and dBV
- Components
- Temperature coefficients, tuned-circuit effects and remedies

How to prepare

Work through the topics, read the explanation after each answer, and revisit the areas where you miss questions. Use the official outline and reference materials below to guide your study.

These independent practice questions are not actual exam items and do not guarantee a passing result.

Frequently asked questions

What is the exam format?

58 multiple-choice questions, each with four possible responses. Normally online, at home under remote invigilation or in a club; paper with an Optical Mark Sheet is an exceptional arrangement where online assessment is not possible.

How many questions are on the exam?

Total questions: 58.

How long is the exam?

120 minutes of examination answering time; special arrangements may be agreed with RSGB for candidates with disabilities.

What is the passing score?

35 correct answers out of 58; RSGB labels this pass standard 60%.

How much does the exam cost?

GBP £45.00 per Full Licence examination booking, as listed by RSGB; the distinct Direct to Full examination costs £95.00 and is excluded.

Official sources and references

RSGB Radio Amateur Examinations Specification v1.6b
Part 1, p. 1.2 — The Syllabus
RSGB Radio Amateur Examinations Specification v1.6b
Part 1, p. 1.4 — Allocation of Questions, Full column
RSGB Radio Amateur Examinations Specification v1.6b
Cover — examination applicability
full — RSGB
The exam
RSGB Radio Amateur Examinations Specification v1.6b
Part 1, p. 1.4 — Pass Mark
paying — RSGB
Exam fees
RSGB Radio Amateur Examinations Specification v1.6b
Part 1, p. 1.2 — Candidates with disabilities
full — RSGB
The exam — online delivery paragraph

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