MM0CXA - Training

Dundee Amateur Radio Club Training Facilities

Exam Centres - Room E007, D&A College, Old Glamis Road, Dundee / Monikie Scout Hall, Monikie Angus

As Lead Instructor, with the Dundee Amateur Radio Club, I organise and administer courses for the Foundation, Intermediate and Advanced levels of the Amateur Radio Licence. I am also a Registered Instructor/Assessor with the Radio Society of Great Britain (RSGB). Dundee club has a number of Registered Assessors with varying degrees of skills and knowledge. Therefore, we can offer a complete training package.

	All training is given free of charge. The only costs are the training manuals, exam costs and any kits required for assessments. The manuals and kits can be acquired via the club and exam fees are paid either directly to the RSGB or via the club (depending on payment method). There is no longer a requirement to pass a Morse test to obtain a Full licence. This was done away with some years ago. However, part of the Foundation course is a Morse assessment. This is not to teach you the mode but to give you an understanding of what it sounds like. The assessment is done at your own speed and you have crib sheets to help you recognise the characters.

The Chelmsford Amateur Radio Society have allowed us to use their PowerPoint lesson packages and because of this we can offer a more complete training system. The slides provide a complete and up to date way of teaching the three levels. The Foundation & Intermediate levels are taught mainly in the classroom but there is the opportunity, weather permitting, to get out into the fresh air and do some of the practical elements at a portable location. This would allow you to actually set up a field or contest station away from the college and get an actual feel for what happens. This can be done at the college when a portable location is not available - it just isn't as much fun. If you would like more information about our training courses please get in touch by clicking here: Training Info: As mentioned above, Morse is no longer a requirement for obtaining a Full licence. However, it is possible to sit a Morse test and therefore, have a qualification in the mode. There are registered Morse Assessors in our area (RSGB Region 2) and they can be found in the following list. The assessor, in bold, is based at Dundee Amateur Club. William Cecil, GM3KHH in Moray – up to 25 wpm Bernie Macintosh, GM4WZG in Dalgety Bay, Fife – up to 25 wpm James Mackinnon, GM4EKC in Aberdeen – up to 30 wpm Norman Mackenzie, GM3WIJ in Aberdeen – up to 25 wpm Thomas Brown, MM0TGB in Kirkcaldy, Fife – up to 30 wpm Colin Hall, GM4JPZ in Dundee - up to 25wpm


	Dundee Amateur Radio Club Training Team
	Lead Instructor	Andy Burns	MM0CXA
	Exam Secretary	Peter Carnegie	GM1CMF
	Instructors / Assessors	Tom Harrison	GM3NHQ
		Jim Wilson	MM0DXD
		Bob Ganson	MM0BTD
	Morse Assessor (up to 25 wpm)	Colin Hall	GM4JPZ
	Portable & Special Event Instruction	Paul Glasper	GM0BKC


Course Reports
24 Mar 2015 - Foundation
It is always a good thing when you run a successful course and people come out smiling. On the 24th March 2015 we ran the first Foundation course, under our new training system and, I am glad to say, it proved to have a positive outcome. 3 out of 4 passed with good marks. The one that didn't quite make it was hit by nerves and will re-sit the exam just as soon as we can get it arranged. The ones, who passed are now waiting for their new callsigns and are looking forward to getting "live on air".
	From Left to Right Instructor: Andy Burns - Candidates: Mark Cook, Stephen Gilruth, Tony Barclay

30 Jun 2015 - Foundation - Intermediate & Advanced
On the 30th June we held a full set of exams at our new exam centre in Monikie Scout Hall, Monikie. All three levels were represented. There were 8 candidates in total, 1 x Foundation, 4 x Intermediate and 3 x Advanced. It was quite a tense time trying to get everything organised because we only usually do one exam at a time. However, because we had the new centre and plenty time (we thought) we went for it. On the night everyone arrived in plenty of time and once we had got people settled and briefed it was time for the exam to start bang on 19:00. For the next 2 hours the candidates and invigilators were fully occupied and the concentration was felt by all. By the end of the night we couldn't decide who was sweating the most but they all left feeling confident. When the results were formalised, the callsigns were duly applied for and apart from one candidate ( who is trying to think up a good personal suffix) everyone are now putting their hard work to good use.
	From Left to Right Michael Devlin (MM6MNY), Jon Marsh (2M0DOL), Darren Lee (2M0RRS), Martin Smith (2M0RTO), Denis Speirs (2M0DOI), Mark Strachan (MM0LWS), Sam McQueen (MM0HHH), Gabriel McQueen (MM0MOZ)