wrote:

So if we remove the under-10
population from consideration, the median age of amateurs should be
somewhere around 50 years.

Is there any real data on the median age of amateurs? Does a database
exist that contains date-of-birth so that the actual statistic could be
developed?

My personal opinion, based on looking around at gatherings of amateur
radio operators and on-the-air contacts, is that the median age is
closer to 60, at least for US ops. I wish we had real data.

73, Steve KB9X

"Steve Bonine" wrote in message
...

[snip]

My personal opinion, based on looking around at gatherings of amateur
radio operators and on-the-air contacts, is that the median age is closer
to 60, at least for US ops. I wish we had real data.


Keep in mind though that this also is not representative. It is the older
operators and retirees that have the time and money to more actively
participate in the hobby.

This is true in many activities. For example, the average age of the
members in the community band to which I belong is also in about the 50 to
60 year old range.

Dee, N8UZE

"Dee Flint" wrote in message

"Steve Bonine" wrote in message
...

[snip]

Keep in mind though that this also is not representative.
It is the older operators and retirees that have the time
and money to more actively participate in the hobby.

I know plenty of licensed people a lot younger than that who have plenty
of money to go on air but have simply lost interest. The internet has a
lot to do with it IMHO, this discussion for example would probably have
taken place on a packet radio BBS 10 to 15 years ago. Indeed I ran a
packet BBS for 11 years, when I started it in 1993 I had around 100 users,
when it closed in 2004 there were just three.

They have just introduced a lifetime licence here in the UK, which means
no more renewals will be necessary, although a licensee will have to
confirm every 5 years if they still want to retain the callsign. This will
still give a false impression of the number of people actually on the air,
though.

This is true in many activities. For example, the
average age of the members in the community band to which
I belong is also in about the 50 to 60 year old range.

Dee, N8UZE

There are also those who still hold licences but are inactive. Of the 20
or so people that I still keep in touch with from my old radio club, only
3 or 4 apart from me are still actively on the air, even though they still
hold callsigns, plus I'm the only one of those who still has 2m/70cm
equipment in the car. Age wise, most of them are anywhere between 30 and
50, with one or two approaching 60 and one who is 62.

Ivor G6URP

On Mar 11, 12:21�pm, Steve Bonine wrote:
wrote:
So if we remove the under-10
population from consideration, the median age of amateurs should be
somewhere around 50 years.

Is there any real data on the median age of amateurs? *Does a database
exist that contains date-of-birth so that the actual statistic could be
developed?

I don't know of any.

At various times, FCC has required date-of-birth information. But that
policy has changed over time, so the license database contains DOB
info on some, but not all, US hams, depending on when they were first
licensed. So the FCC license database is not a reliable sample or
source.

My personal opinion, based on looking around at gatherings of amateur
radio operators and on-the-air contacts, is that the median age is
closer to 60, at least for US ops.

The problem with using such observations is that they
are not reliable samples either. For example, the hams
you see at gatherings are those who have the time,
interest and resources to go to them. The younger
amateur who is raising children, taking care of elders,
busy with a career or education, etc., is much less likely
to go to a hamfest or club meeting.

Similar concerns go with on-air observations. The younger
ham with a car full of children is less likely to be operating
mobile, for example. The ham with a 60-hour-per-week day job is not
likely to be on the air at 2 PM on a weekday. Etc.


*I wish we had real data.

Me too!

The numbers I see published lack even the most
basic detail. For example, I've seen claims that
the "average age of US hams is xx years" -
without any info about how the number was
derived, whether it's the mean, median, or
some other number, nor how it compares to
the US population as a whole.

73 de Jim, N2EY