CW Academy

CW Academy is a program created and delivered by the CW Operators’ Club and is aimed at increasing the number of competent CW operators on the HF CW sub-bands. It addresses all levels of enthusiasts: from those aspiring to become licensed operators who want to learn and use Morse code; to veteran operators who are intent on increasing their CW skills, speed, and activity.

Classes are 8-weeks in duration and are offered three times per year. January and February; May and June; and September and October. They are hosted by CW Academy Advisors, whose role is to guide students through the syllabus with Zoom meeting twice a week. The courses are immersive, practical, and rewarding.

There are four levels of class offered:

Beginners: for those starting out who don’t know the code. You’ll finish your 8-weeks confident and QSO ready with a character speed of 18-20 wpm and a word speed of 6-8 wpm

Fundamental: a great follow-on from the Beginners class. Build on your basic skills and further develop Instant Character Recognition (ICR). Finish up with a character speed on 20 wpm and a word speed around 10-15 wpm.

Intermediate: this is the ideal class for those who have been on-air for some time and feel confident around 15 – 18 wpm. In this class we strengthen ICR and start introducing head copy. Those completing this course can expect to be around 25 wpm character speed and 20 wpm word speed.

Advanced: this is for those who want to master head copy and enjoy a ragchew only taking notes as required. For those interested, we go well outside the comfort zone and dabble in fast code; up to 30-32 wpm. Expect to finish this class with a solid foundation of head copy skills at 25 wpm, copy behind skills and far better instand word recognition.

All four levels include exercises and feedback to make sure your sending is smooth and clear, with good timing and cadence. We also wade into the long grass and discuss the mindset of the HF CW operator and what it takes, beyond just knowing the code, to have rewarding and enjoyable QSOs on air: from SOTA/POTA, rag chewing, chasing DX, QRP, weak signals, keys, bugs, paddles, and optimising your station.

We offer limited classes here in VK and ZL at sociable hours – typically between 7 -9 pm local. You can also join classes run out of North America or Europe. If you’d like to know more visit CW Academy’s website and if you have further questions, send me an email or message via this website.

You can also read what other VK and ZL students say about CW Academy on the Testimonials page.