Membership

We welcome applications from anyone interested in amateur radio, related communications technologies, and/or emergency communications (EmComm).  Having an FCC amateur radio license or a NIH badge is not required for membership. Visit our About Us page for more information.

To join, please complete our Membership Application form and e-mail it to info@nihrac.org. 

Important: membership is free of charge for anyone. We do incur in expenses sporadically to maintain and enhance our Club's physical plant, therefore voluntary donations are welcomed, but they are not required.

Please notice that there is no requirement to participate in our emergency communications activities to join the Club. We have members who are current and past NIH personnel, representatives from the local community, and others who have traveled to various DX/geographical zones.  We do ask that children be accompanied by responsible adults Otherwise, the only requirement is a genuine interest in amateur radio and related technologies.

Access to our facilities in the NIH campus during club meetings and other Club activities does not require a NIH badge, but at other times it may require coordinating with a member who has an NIH  badge. Since we occupy space in a government facility, the doors to the radio station require scanning an NIH badge to unlock. See the Directions page for more details.

NIHRAC members enjoy full access to our Club’s facilities and resources, and can participate in all our meetings, projects and activities. Members can also participate in our Club governance by voting and holding officer positions. Additionally, Club members can also serve as part of the backbone of the NIH emergency communication system during scheduled outages and emergency/exceptional events, and volunteer during emergency communications drills and demonstrations at the NIH campus and other venues. 

Participation in emergency communications activities is absolutely optional and voluntary. However, we encourage members to participate in or witness such activities as they are excellent learning and community service opportunities--and usually a source of meaningful personal satisfaction, and reportedly fun.

During our monthly Club meetings (see our Home page for details) we often have technical presentations and demonstrations about a variety of topics related to the hobby, and/or collaborate in technical projects of common interest.

New members who have not yet received their amateur license from the FCC can be assisted by the club to go through the licensing process. The FCC licensing process is relatively painless. All levels of licensing require the completion of a multiple choice test, graded at the time of completion. The entry-level exam is easily passed by most people, and the complete question pool can be found on the American Radio Relay League (ARRL) Website or the National Conference of Volunteer Examiner Coordinators (NCVEC) Website.  Although we do not administer exams, there are several area organizations that do. For more information, please feel free to contact our members via our information email list info@nihrac.org.