2025 QSO Party Rules
Welcome to the official rules page for the New Jersey QSO Party, an eagerly anticipated event within the amateur radio community hosted by the Burlington County Radio Club. This page provides comprehensive details on the contest's objectives, operating bands, entry categories, modes of communication, scoring system, and the exchange protocol that participants are expected to follow. Whether you're a seasoned ham operator or a newcomer to the scene, understanding these rules will ensure you're well-prepared to compete effectively and enjoy the camaraderie and excitement of the NJ QSO Party. The contest is designed to encourage radio operators to connect across New Jersey and beyond, fostering a spirit of competition and fellowship among enthusiasts. For full details on the contest's date and time, specific rules regarding NJ Club Aggregate Scores, and the necessary information for logging and submitting your contacts, please review the sections below. Happy contesting!
Objective
- Contact as many NJ amateurs in as many NJ counties as possible.
- NJ stations contact as many amateurs in the US, Canada and the world as possible.
Date/Time
- Date: Saturday September 20st 2025
- Start Time:Sat 10:00 AM (NJ local) (1400 UTC)
- End Time:Sat 10:00 PM (NJ local) (0200 UTC)
Bands
- 80 , 40, 20, 15 and 10 meters ONLY.
- Note: 'Self spotting' is allowed & encouraged as is 'assisted'.
- Suggested frequencies:
| Band | CW | Phone |
| 80M | 3.550 | 3.825 |
| 40M | 7.050 | 7.190 |
| 20M | 14.050 | 14.250 |
| 15M | 21.050 | 21.400 |
| 10M | 28.050 | 28.400 |
| Digital - Use frequencies associated w/mode |
Entry Categories
- Single Operator
- High power / Low power / QRP
- Multi-operator
- High power / Low power / QRP
- Mobile/Rover/Portable
- Low power / QRP
- NJ stations, operating in more than one NJ county, must append a slash and the county abbreviation to their call.
- Non-NJ stations, operating in more than one state or province should append a slash and their state or province abbreviation to their call.
- Mobile or portable stations that change geographic area (county for NJ stations or S/P/DX for others) are considered to be a new station and may be contacted again for QSO points and multiplier credit. No station may claim simultaneous operation in more than one county, state, or province.
- Rookie
- Licensed within 1 year of date of the NJQP.
- Rookie operators should select "Rookie" in the overlay category.
- Remote Station
- Remote station is defined by the location of the transmitter.
- For example, if the transmitter is in NJ then it is an in-NJ station, regardless of where the operator is located. If the transmitter and receiver are out of NJ then it is an out-of-NJ station, again regardless of operator location.
Modes
- CW and Phone.
- Digital - Any mode capable of completing a QSO with the NJQP exchange will be considered a valid digital contact.
- No repeater or internet modes.
NJ Club Aggregate Score
- Entrants should specify which ARRL affiliated NJ based club, if any, they wish their score to be attributed.
- Must be a bona-fide member in good standing of said club.
- Only members operating in NJ are eligible to contribute toward club aggregate score.
Exchange
- New Jersey Stations: RS(T), 4 character county (see table below)
-
Outside of New Jersey Stations: RS(T), 2 character state abbreviation, Canadian province abbreviation, or DX (see tables below)
-
US States
State Abbreviation State Abbreviation Alabama AL Montana MT Alaska AK Nebraska NE Arizona AZ Nevada NV Arkansas AR New Hampshire NH California CA New Mexico NM Colorado CO New York NY Connecticut CT North Carolina NC Delaware DE North Dakota ND Florida FL Ohio OH Georgia GA Oklahoma OK Hawaii HI Oregon OR Idaho ID Pennsylvania PA Illinois IL Rhode Island RI Indiana IN South Carolina SC Iowa IA South Dakota SD Kansas KS Tennessee TN Kentucky KY Texas TX Louisiana LA Utah UT Maine ME Vermont VT Maryland MD Virginia VA Massachusetts MA Washington WA Michigan MI West Virginia WV Minnesota MN Wisconsin WI Mississippi MS Wyoming WY Missouri MO (NJ - use counties)
-
NJ Counties
County Abbreviation County Abbreviation Atlantic ATLA Hudson HUDS Bergen BERG Hunterdon HUNT Burlington BURL Mercer MERC Cape May CAPE Middlesex MIDD Camden CMDN Monmouth MONM Cumberland CUMB Morris MORR Essex ESSE Ocean OCEA Gloucester GLOU Passaic PASS Salem SALE Somerset SOME Sussex SUSS Union UNIO Warren WRRN
-
Canadian Provinces
Province/Territory Abbreviation Province/Territory Abbreviation Alberta AB Ontario East ONE British Columbia BC Ontario North ONN Golden Horseshoe GH Ontario South ONS Manitoba MB Prince Edward Island PE New Brunswick NB Quebec QC Newfoundland/Labrador NL Saskatchewan SK Nova Scotia NS Territories TER -
Foreign Stations
Foreign Abbreviation DX Station DX
Power
| High Power: | 150W or more |
| Low Power: | 10W to 150W |
| QRP: | < 10W (SSB), < 5W (CW) |
Scoring
- The same station may be contacted on CW, Digital and Phone on each band.
- Rover stations may be contacted in each county, state, province, or country.
- QSO score = two points per valid CW or Digital QSO plus one point per valid phone QSO times the number of multipliers.
-
Power Multiplier
- High power = 1
- Low power = 2
-
QRP = 4
NOTE: The power multiplier is for the highest power used for any NJQP QSO. QRP station must be QRP at all times during the NJQP.
- Final score = QSO score (see above) times the Power Multiplier.
Multipliers
- NJ Stations: NJ Counties (21) + States (49 not NJ) + Canadian Provinces (14) + DX (1) for a maximum of 85.
- Non-NJ Stations: NJ Counties (21) for a maximum of 21.
Awards
- A plaque for the highest scoring station in SNJ (minimum 50 contacts).
- A plaque for the highest scoring station in NNJ (minimum 50 contacts).
- A plaque will be awarded to the highest scoring non-NJ station (minimum 25 contacts).
- Certificates will be awarded to the highest scoring station in each NJ county, and in each state and province. Certificates will be sent via email.
- Special Award for First time Winners: A special award to the ARRL affiliated NJ based club with the highest aggregate score (minimum 3 entries, 75 total contacts) Explanation 3 (or more) entries, the sum total contacts of all the clubs entries e.g. 73+1+1, 25+25+25, 15+30+10+20 etc.
- Additional awards for significant achievement may be awarded at our discretion.
Logs
- Only electronic Cabrillo logs will be accepted. All logs must be emailed to njqp@comcast.net by October 1.
- Paper logs may be converted to Cabrillo format using the NJQP application on www.b4h.net/cabforms website.
- Cabrillo format:
Other Info
- ALL decisions made by the sponsor are final!
- Logging Programs: N1MM, N3FJP