FCC Element 1 Exam Practice

Basic radio law and operating practice. Pass Element 1 for the Marine Radio Operator Permit, or as the first part of the GROL. Practice with the official question pool until you know every answer.

Start practicing · Topic Study · Sample questions

What's on the Exam

  1. Rules & regulations (6 questions): Equipment Requirements; License Requirements; Watchkeeping; Logkeeping; Log Entries; Miscellaneous Rules & Regulations.
  2. Communications procedures (6 questions): Bridge-to-Bridge Operations; Operating Procedures; Distress Communications; Urgency and Safety Communications; GMDSS.
  3. Equipment operations (6 questions): VHF Equipment Controls; VHF Channel Selection; MF-HF Equipment Controls; MF-HF Frequency & Emission Selection; Equipment Tests; Equipment Faults.
  4. Other equipment (6 questions): Antennas; Power Sources; EPIRBs; SARTs; Survival Craft VHF; NAVTEX.

How the Exam Works

Format
24 multiple-choice questions, one from each key topic of the Element 1 question pool. You pass with 18 correct (75%).
Questions
Every question comes word for word from the FCC's Element 1 pool (144 questions, approved by the FCC on June 25, 2009). The answers do too, though their order can change.
Where
At an exam session run by a COLEM, one of the organizations the FCC authorizes to give commercial operator exams.
Cost
Each COLEM sets its own exam fee.
License
Passing gives the Marine Radio Operator Permit, and the first part of the GROL. The COLEM files your application with the FCC.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many questions are on the Element 1 exam?

24 multiple-choice questions, one from each of the 24 key topics in the Element 1 pool. You need 18 correct to pass (75%).

Where do the questions come from?

From the FCC's Element 1 question pool, which the FCC publishes. Every exam question and its answers are taken from it word for word. The current pool has 144 questions, approved by the FCC on June 25, 2009.

Which licenses need Element 1?

Element 1 on its own gives the Marine Radio Operator Permit. With Element 3 it gives the General Radiotelephone Operator License (GROL), and it is part of the GMDSS licenses too.

After Element 1

Element 3 is the theory exam that, with Element 1, gives the General Radiotelephone Operator License (GROL). The Element 3 exam