UK Amateur Radio Exam Stats

In response to a recent request, we have collated the UK amateur radio exam stats, showing the number of new entrants to the hobby annually, and the percentage pass rates for the UK exam.

Number of new amateurs

This graph shows those passing an entrance-level exam since 1980. Data for 2002-2004 is a “best guess”, as only partial data could be found in the public domain. The increase in 2020 is related to the switch to online exams due to Covid.

Uk Ham Radio New Entrants Stats
Number of amateurs entering the hobby since 1980

Number of Passes per Year

This table and graph show the total number of people passing each of the 3 UK licence exams:

Foundation Intermediate Full
2015 1475 632 300
2016 1438 661 290
2017 1310 592 250
2018 1366 696 292
2019 1384 684 348
2020 2774 759 258
UK Exam Passes Annual Trend
UK Exam Passes Annual Trend

 

Percentage pass rate

This table and graph show the percentage pass rate for all 3 UK licence exams:

Foundation Intermediate Full
2015 84.9% 92.5% 62.1%
2016 84.1% 95.2% 70.2%
2017 81.5% 91.6% 68.6%
2018 86.0% 93.3% 61.6%
2019 83.0% 91.0% 54.0%
2020 89.9% 87.4% 68.3%
UK Ham Radio Exam Percentage Pass Trend
UK Ham Radio Exam Percentage Pass Trend

Progression Rate

Tracking progression from Foundation-to-Intermediate, and Intermediate-to-Full based only on yearly passes is not a true representation of actual progression (as students don’t always pass in the same year). This graph shows the exam passes at higher levels as a percentage of the previous level, based on data in the public domain – although the precise percentages aren’t known, this still remains a useful graph as an indication of the progression trend over time.

Exam Progression Trend
Passes as a percentage of previous licence level passes, per year

 

Data is sourced from published RSGB stats from various RSGB reports and publications. Data is accurate to the best of our knowledge at the time of publication.

Related Links