You’ve studied.
You’re passing practice exams.
Eventually there comes a point when the next useful thing to do is stop studying for the examination and actually take it.
Fortunately, finding an amateur radio license examination doesn’t have to be difficult.
Start With the PCARS Calendar
PCARS includes amateur radio examination opportunities on our calendar when we’re aware of sessions that may be useful to people in Perry County and the surrounding area.
We deliberately don’t duplicate recurring examination dates on this page.
Schedules change.
Locations change.
Special sessions are added.
Occasionally sessions are canceled or moved.
The calendar is where PCARS will maintain the current local information we know about.
If you don’t see a convenient examination there, that doesn’t mean there isn’t one available.
It just means it’s time to widen the search.
There Are Several VE Organizations
As we discussed in Getting Licensed, amateur radio examinations are administered by Volunteer Examiners working through Volunteer Examiner Coordinators, or VECs.
Several VEC organizations are represented by active VE teams in our region.
That matters because examination sessions aren’t all listed in exactly the same place.
If you’re looking for a session, it’s worth checking more than one source.
ARRL VEC
The American Radio Relay League maintains an examination-session search that can help locate in-person amateur radio examinations.
ARRL also provides information about remote video-supervised examination opportunities.
ARRL’s search may also include sessions coordinated through organizations other than ARRL, so check the VEC information in an individual session listing if that matters to you.
Laurel VEC
Laurel Amateur Radio Club VEC is particularly relevant to our part of the country.
Laurel VEC maintains its own examination-session search that can search by ZIP code and distance or by state.
Search Laurel VEC exam sessions
Laurel VEC administers its amateur radio examinations without an examination-session fee.
Remember that an exam-session fee and an FCC license application fee are two different things.
We’ll come back to that below.
W5YI VEC
W5YI Volunteer Examiner Coordinator teams also administer amateur radio examinations.
W5YI-coordinated examination sessions can be located through the HamStudy session finder.
The HamStudy session system can include both in-person and remote examination opportunities depending on the available sessions and filters.
Search Across Multiple VECs
If you don’t particularly care which VEC coordinates your examination, you can broaden the search.
That can be useful when your priority is simply finding an examination that fits your location and schedule.
The organization administering the examination matters less than finding a legitimate session that works for you.
Local or Remote?
Both in-person and remote amateur radio examinations are available.
A remote examination can be especially useful when travel is difficult or when local session timing doesn’t fit your schedule.
An in-person examination has another potential benefit: it gives you an opportunity to meet amateur radio operators in the area.
Those may be the same people you later hear on a repeater, meet at an event, ask for help with an antenna, or work alongside during amateur radio activities.
Neither approach is inherently the “right” way.
Use the option that makes sense for your circumstances.
Don’t Assume You Can Just Walk In
Some examination sessions accept walk-ins.
Others require advance registration.
Some have limited space.
Remote sessions necessarily have their own procedures.
The safest rule is simple:
Read the individual session listing before you go.
If anything is unclear, contact the person or team listed for that examination.
Confirm:
- The date
- The starting time
- The location or remote-session instructions
- Whether registration is required
- What identification or paperwork the team requires
- The examination-session fee, if any
- The payment methods accepted, if a fee applies
Different VECs and VE teams can have different procedures.
Following the instructions for the session you’re actually attending is more useful than assuming every exam works exactly like the last one somebody told you about.
Please Pre-Register When You Can
Even when an examination is advertised as accepting walk-ins, pre-registering is a good idea.
Around Southeast Mississippi, scheduled examination sessions are sometimes canceled when no candidates have registered in advance.
Remember that Volunteer Examiners really are volunteers. Holding a session may require several people to set aside time, travel to the testing location, open or arrange the facility, and prepare for the examination.
If nobody has indicated that they’re coming, a team may decide there is no reason to hold that particular session.
On the other hand, most of the VE teams we’re familiar with locally will still conduct a scheduled session when even one candidate has pre-registered.
So if you’ve decided to take the exam:
Register for the session.
Don’t assume somebody else already has.
Your registration may be the reason the session happens.
Pre-registration also gives the VE team a way to communicate with you if the time, location, or other details change.
If a session listing provides registration instructions or contact information, use them.
Get Your FRN Before Exam Day
If you’re applying for your first amateur radio license, you’ll need an FCC Registration Number, commonly called an FRN.
The FRN is used in your licensing transactions with the FCC.
Create the required FCC account and obtain your FRN before exam day rather than trying to sort it out while everyone else is ready to begin testing.
ARRL’s current exam-session guidance specifically directs new applicants to register through the FCC’s CORES system and obtain an FRN before attending the examination.
Keep your FRN somewhere you can find it again.
You’ll use it for future FCC licensing transactions too.
Bring Identification
You should expect an examination team to require identification.
The exact requirements can depend on the VEC and your circumstances, particularly for students or applicants who don’t have a conventional photo ID.
Read the instructions supplied for your particular examination session.
If you’re uncertain whether the identification you have will be accepted, ask the exam team before exam day.
That’s much easier than discovering a problem while sitting at the testing table.
Already Licensed?
If you’re taking an examination to upgrade an existing amateur radio license, check the session instructions for any additional documentation the team requires.
That may include proof of your existing license or examination credit that isn’t already reflected in the FCC licensing system.
Again, don’t guess.
Ask the VE team conducting your session.
What Does It Cost?
There can be two separate costs involved in getting your first amateur radio license:
- An examination-session fee, if charged by the VEC or VE team
- The FCC application fee for the new license
These are not the same charge.
Examination-Session Fees
Exam-session fees depend on the organization administering the examination.
Some sessions charge a fee.
Some do not.
Laurel VEC, for example, does not charge an examination fee.
Check the listing for the session you’ve chosen rather than assuming a particular price.
FCC Application Fee
As of November 2026, the FCC application fee for a new amateur radio license is $35.
That fee is paid to the FCC, not to the local VE team.
Because government fees can change, verify the current amount with the FCC when you’re ready to apply rather than relying indefinitely on the number printed on this page.
Special Circumstances? Ask.
A regularly scheduled public examination isn’t necessarily your only option.
As we mentioned in Getting Licensed, some VE teams in our area may be willing to work with groups or help accommodate people who have difficulty traveling to a normal examination session, including shut-ins.
If transportation, mobility, health, accessibility, or another circumstance is preventing you from taking an examination, don’t assume that means you can’t get licensed.
Contact PCARS.
We may be able to help you identify an area VE team and ask what options are available.
We can’t promise that every situation can be accommodated.
But it costs nothing to ask.
On Exam Day
Give yourself enough time to arrive, get settled, and follow the instructions from the VE team.
You don’t need to walk into the room acting like you already know everything about amateur radio.
You’re there because you’ve been learning.
Take your time.
Read the questions carefully.
Answer the ones you know.
Work through the ones that require a little more thought.
And rememberoperators too.
They want to see new people enter the hobby.
If You Pass
First:
Congratulations.
Depending on the team, schedule, and VEC procedures, you may have the opportunity to attempt the next license-class examination during the same session.
If you want to try it, great.
If you don’t, that’s fine too.
For a new license, remember that passing the examination itself does not mean you can immediately begin transmitting.
Your license must be granted by the FCC.
Once that happens and your callsign has been issued, then it’s time to get on the air.
If You Don’t Pass
Take a breath.
Look at what gave you trouble.
Ask whether another attempt is available if you narrowly missed and the examination team permits retesting during that session.
If not, go home knowing something useful:
You now know exactly what the real examination feels like.
Study the areas that gave you trouble and try again.
You didn’t fail at amateur radio. You found the part you need to learn next.
Can’t Find a Session?
Ask us.
PCARS wants to help people in Perry County and the surrounding area find a path into amateur radio.
If the PCARS calendar doesn’t show something that works and the examination-session searches aren’t helping, contact us at info@pcars.club.
We may know of another local resource or be able to help connect you with an area VE team.
What’s Next?
Once the examination is behind you and your callsign arrives, a very different question tends to appear:
What radio should I buy?
Please don’t answer that question by purchasing the first radio an algorithm puts in front of you.
Before spending money, let’s figure out what you actually want to do with amateur radio.