RAC Online Basic Amateur Radio Course: Spring 2021 Registration has been closed. Thank you for a great response!

Registration for the RAC Basic Spring 2021 Course has been closed.

Thank you for another great response to our Basic course. Registration is now closed.

Please check our Amateur Radio Courses webpage for other courses offered by clubs:

https://www.rac.ca/amateur-radio-courses/

Background information:

Radio Amateurs of Canada is once again offering an online Amateur Radio course so that individuals from all across Canada can obtain their Amateur Radio Operator Certificate with Basic Qualification while continuing to practise social/physical distancing.

The course will again be conducted with the assistance of the Annapolis Valley Amateur Radio Club (AVARC) of Nova Scotia.

This course prepares students for the Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) Basic Qualification Level Operator Certificate exam to operate on allocated Amateur Radio frequencies.

Schedule and Cost:

Date: The course will start on Thursday, April 15 and will finish in late June.

Time: Classes will be held on Thursday evenings from 6 pm to 8:30 (1800 – 2030) Eastern Time (1900 – 2130 Atlantic Time) and Sunday afternoons 1 pm to 3:30 pm (1300 – 1530) Eastern Time (1400 – 1630 Atlantic Time).

Cost: The registration fee for the course is $50 plus GST/HST. The cost of the Basic Study Guide is extra and an order link will be provided upon completion of payment.

Instruction: 

The course instructor is Al Penney, VO1NO, and he has taught the Basic Qualification Amateur Radio Course since 1994.

Al was first licensed in 1977 and has been active in many areas of Amateur Radio including contesting, DXing, VHF/UHF weak signal, satellites, emergency communications and DXpeditioning. 

Al has served as the President of six different Amateur Radio clubs in both Canada and the United States and currently chairs the International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) Region 2 Band Planning Committee. In addition, he is also currently serving as the RAC Director for the Atlantic Region and is the recipient of the Amateur of the Year Award for 2020.

The course will use the GoToMeeting web-based service. Students will receive instructions on how to log on to the online sessions once they have registered for the course. Classes will be recorded, so occasional absences are not a problem.

Course material pertaining to all topics covered in the course syllabus will be provided to all registered students. It is also provided in PDF format below.

Students must have a copy of the Canadian Amateur Radio Basic Qualification Study Guide provided by Coax Publications. For more information please visit the RAC Study Guides webpage.

It is essential that all students have the necessary equipment and bandwidth capable of taking the course – at least a tablet or PC and a DSL broadband connection.