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1,001 questions about the ASTB (post your scores & ask your questions here!)

Does the speed in which you answer terrain association questions on the PBM affect your score? Or is it just right or wrong with a 30 second time limit? Thanks
 
Options for ASTB score of 56 6/7/8

Hello, I recently took the ASTB and earned the score above. Before taking the test, I had been hoping for immediate select scores for NFO which I earned w my score. I was also hoping to see if I had a shot of earning the scores to possibly apply as a pilot. According to my recruiter, my scores are still seemingly acceptable for the pilot position just not as immediate select. My recruiter believes I would be accepted as a pilot if I were to apply in the boards with my 3.7 GPA and two bachelor degrees. The problem is it seems pilot is locked till July 2025. I’m fine with waiting till then, but my recruiter is pushing for me to take advantage of my NFO immediate select scores and just send it. I’m not opposed to working towards becoming an NFO, but I feel as though I’d feel regret not attempting to submit my application to become a pilot. I’ve been doing my research on both positions, but any info/advice regarding the careers would be greatly appreciated. If anyone has had any similar experiences or would like to give me some outside insight, that would be great!
 
cofaviation said:
Options for ASTB score of 56 6/7/8

Hello, I recently took the ASTB and earned the score above. Before taking the test, I had been hoping for immediate select scores for NFO which I earned w my score. I was also hoping to see if I had a shot of earning the scores to possibly apply as a pilot. According to my recruiter, my scores are still seemingly acceptable for the pilot position just not as immediate select. My recruiter believes I would be accepted as a pilot if I were to apply in the boards with my 3.7 GPA and two bachelor degrees. The problem is it seems pilot is locked till July 2025. I’m fine with waiting till then, but my recruiter is pushing for me to take advantage of my NFO immediate select scores and just send it. I’m not opposed to working towards becoming an NFO, but I feel as though I’d feel regret not attempting to submit my application to become a pilot. I’ve been doing my research on both positions, but any info/advice regarding the careers would be greatly appreciated. If anyone has had any similar experiences or would like to give me some outside insight, that would be great!
Click to expand...
If you want to be a pilot then only submit for SNA, and until they change the board schedule everything is rumors. Don't let your recruiter push you to apply something you are not all in for or will be wondering "what could have been".
 
exNavyOffRec said:
If you want to be a pilot then only submit for SNA, and until they change the board schedule everything is rumors. Don't let your recruiter push you to apply something you are not all in for or will be wondering "what could have been".
Click to expand...
Do you know if there’s anyway I can find out more about the boards? I feel like I’m in the dark with information regarding this. My recruiter tells me the basics if that concerning the boards and my application process.
 
rybs said:
Does the speed in which you answer terrain association questions on the PBM affect your score? Or is it just right or wrong with a 30 second time limit? Thanks
Click to expand...
I don't think it does but it's best to confirm with someone else.
 
cofaviation said:
Do you know if there’s anyway I can find out more about the boards? I feel like I’m in the dark with information regarding this. My recruiter tells me the basics if that concerning the boards and my application process.
Click to expand...
You are really at the mercy of what is posted, however the bottom line is this is your career and you need drive this process. If you need to wait 3 months, 6 months or 9 months to get what you will be happy with is it worth it for you? 9 months out of a 20 year career is not that long.
 
DBM said:
I don't think it does but it's best to confirm with someone else.
Click to expand...
I asked my recruiter and can confirm the terrain ID portion is not based off of speed, thanks for your input! I got confused because the ASTB prep app added reaction time to the terrain ID practice test in the latest update.
 
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rybs said:
I asked my recruiter and can confirm the terrain ID portion is not based off of speed, thanks for your input! I got confused because the ASTB prep app added reaction time to the terrain ID practice test in the latest update.
Click to expand...
Yeah no worries brother.
 
Napk1ns said:
Hey Everyone,

This thread and forum has been a great deal of help to me and I am hoping to help other applicants as well


I took the ASTB today and got a 62 8/7/8

My major is in political science and I have zero flight experience

The test took me about two hours to complete and went smoothly


Math
Simplifying expressions, solving for x, probability, combined work problems and fractions made up the majority of the questions. There were a few geometry questions, but as long as you know how to find the area/volume of a square, circle, and triangle, you should be fine. Know the pythagorean theorem and rules of exponents as well. The big thing is to just make sure you do the math correctly. The math wasn't incredibly hard, and an average high school student will score well in the section. There are just opportunities for simple calculation errors everywhere, so be quick, but accurate. I finished with over 10mins to spare.

Reading
Like what other people have said, very boring. Basically reading rules and regulations from the Navy and understanding what they are saying. There were some I had to reread, but they were all understandable. The big thing here, is go with the BEST answer. Some of these questions will have multiple answers that all technically are correct. However, one will be better than the others.

Mechanical
I think I did one calculation. It seems like the trend recently has been more conceptual questions than anything. With that being said, understand the concepts. Know simple machines and their mechanical advantages, know Boyle's law and Charles' law. Understand how to read a simple circuit and how it works. I got one circuit question, but the majority of the others were based on gears, gasses, and simple machines.

ANIT
Just study the cram flashcards. If you can memorize those, you will destroy this section. I watched some videos on how airplanes fly and how airfoils work. There were a few navigation and Naval questions, but mostly relating to flying and rules.

NATFI
Be honest.

UAV
This is the one thing you have no excuse of not getting 100% on. The ASTB app and quizlet both offer practice for this. With a week of practice, sub 3s response time and 100% accuracy should be expected. I was averaging about 2s and 100% accuracy on the test. Use the compass trick and you will have no issue.

Stick And Throttle
Buy a joystick and throttle setup. I didn't use the X52, I just found some $30 one on eBay and it worked fine for me. I downloaded a joystick mapper to my computer and used that. Practice with the link below and play on all sorts of difficulty with all sorts of duration. I don't recommend anything under 30s and anything over 2mins though. The big thing is to keep your focus. If you practice enough, it should feel almost natural. Personally, when I would think about what I was doing, I would stray farther from the target, so I just let my practicing take over.


Dichotic Listening
Make sure the headphones work and that the volume is good. Some people suggest leaning towards the ear, I personally just found that distracting. If you can do the stick and throttle portion on autopilot, you will have no issue with this.To avoid any confusion, I used scratch paper to label which hand I use for odd numbers and which hand I use for even numbers. I also left a note in front of my face saying which hand is for odd numbers and which hand is for even numbers. This just freed up any brain space I may have needed. I personally found it helpful. The jomo sim has listening practice as well as the ASTB app.

Emergency Procedures
Write them down. Write it in a way so that when you take a glance at it, you will know exactly what to do. I did not do any practice for this and I did just fine.

Terrain Identification
Honestly seemed impossible as I was preparing for the test. I had an incredibly difficult time while preparing with the ASTB app. At first, I never got a question correct. The day prior to the test, I was getting about 70-80% on the app. The actual test was easier than the app as well. Linked is the method I used, which helped a lot. It is just practice. To add to this video though, there were two other things I did which helped.

1) If you can't find a vertical reference line on the left side, find one on the zoomed in image and just apply the technique there. So find a vertical line on the zoomed in image, find out which way it is tilted in the original image, and determine the cardinal direction. After that, just flip it. So NNE would become NNW.
2) If there is not vertical line on the original image, but there is another line that aligns with one of the directions on the compass (ie. horizontal line), use that as your reference. It is the same method, except applied to a horizontal line.

This is extremely confusing so feel free to PM me or leave a response and I will be happy to clarify.


Other Tips
- Don't look at memes before the test. This is a bit unconventional, but during the listening portion of the PBM, I was thinking of a funny video I saw and realized I missed two numbers. Then I thought about how I missed two numbers and realized I missed another while thinking about that. So try to eliminate mental distractions
- Don't take the test hungry. I got really hungry during the test and was thinking about Taco Bell. It didn't mess me up, but it was a distraction in my mind. I ended up getting Taco Bell afterwards, but during the test, the thought of a quesadilla did float across my mind when I should have been more focused.
- Use as much scratch paper as you want. Use it for anything. If you even have a slight thought that you want to take a note of something, write it down.
- Listen to ASTB subjects instead of music while driving. I did this for about a month and I was very confident on any of the topics. I will link a Youtube channel which helped me

Resources
- Gomez Drive
- Kyle's Drive
- ASTB App
- Kieno Thomas (www.youtube.com/@kienothomas)
- Cram Flashcards (
Use these resources and you should be prepared

Feel free to message and/or reply and I would be happy to help
Napk1ns said:
Hey Everyone,

This thread and forum has been a great deal of help to me and I am hoping to help other applicants as well


I took the ASTB today and got a 62 8/7/8

My major is in political science and I have zero flight experience

The test took me about two hours to complete and went smoothly


Math
Simplifying expressions, solving for x, probability, combined work problems and fractions made up the majority of the questions. There were a few geometry questions, but as long as you know how to find the area/volume of a square, circle, and triangle, you should be fine. Know the pythagorean theorem and rules of exponents as well. The big thing is to just make sure you do the math correctly. The math wasn't incredibly hard, and an average high school student will score well in the section. There are just opportunities for simple calculation errors everywhere, so be quick, but accurate. I finished with over 10mins to spare.

Reading
Like what other people have said, very boring. Basically reading rules and regulations from the Navy and understanding what they are saying. There were some I had to reread, but they were all understandable. The big thing here, is go with the BEST answer. Some of these questions will have multiple answers that all technically are correct. However, one will be better than the others.

Mechanical
I think I did one calculation. It seems like the trend recently has been more conceptual questions than anything. With that being said, understand the concepts. Know simple machines and their mechanical advantages, know Boyle's law and Charles' law. Understand how to read a simple circuit and how it works. I got one circuit question, but the majority of the others were based on gears, gasses, and simple machines.

ANIT
Just study the cram flashcards. If you can memorize those, you will destroy this section. I watched some videos on how airplanes fly and how airfoils work. There were a few navigation and Naval questions, but mostly relating to flying and rules.

NATFI
Be honest.

UAV
This is the one thing you have no excuse of not getting 100% on. The ASTB app and quizlet both offer practice for this. With a week of practice, sub 3s response time and 100% accuracy should be expected. I was averaging about 2s and 100% accuracy on the test. Use the compass trick and you will have no issue.

Stick And Throttle
Buy a joystick and throttle setup. I didn't use the X52, I just found some $30 one on eBay and it worked fine for me. I downloaded a joystick mapper to my computer and used that. Practice with the link below and play on all sorts of difficulty with all sorts of duration. I don't recommend anything under 30s and anything over 2mins though. The big thing is to keep your focus. If you practice enough, it should feel almost natural. Personally, when I would think about what I was doing, I would stray farther from the target, so I just let my practicing take over.


Dichotic Listening
Make sure the headphones work and that the volume is good. Some people suggest leaning towards the ear, I personally just found that distracting. If you can do the stick and throttle portion on autopilot, you will have no issue with this.To avoid any confusion, I used scratch paper to label which hand I use for odd numbers and which hand I use for even numbers. I also left a note in front of my face saying which hand is for odd numbers and which hand is for even numbers. This just freed up any brain space I may have needed. I personally found it helpful. The jomo sim has listening practice as well as the ASTB app.

Emergency Procedures
Write them down. Write it in a way so that when you take a glance at it, you will know exactly what to do. I did not do any practice for this and I did just fine.

Terrain Identification
Honestly seemed impossible as I was preparing for the test. I had an incredibly difficult time while preparing with the ASTB app. At first, I never got a question correct. The day prior to the test, I was getting about 70-80% on the app. The actual test was easier than the app as well. Linked is the method I used, which helped a lot. It is just practice. To add to this video though, there were two other things I did which helped.

1) If you can't find a vertical reference line on the left side, find one on the zoomed in image and just apply the technique there. So find a vertical line on the zoomed in image, find out which way it is tilted in the original image, and determine the cardinal direction. After that, just flip it. So NNE would become NNW.
2) If there is not vertical line on the original image, but there is another line that aligns with one of the directions on the compass (ie. horizontal line), use that as your reference. It is the same method, except applied to a horizontal line.

This is extremely confusing so feel free to PM me or leave a response and I will be happy to clarify.


Other Tips
- Don't look at memes before the test. This is a bit unconventional, but during the listening portion of the PBM, I was thinking of a funny video I saw and realized I missed two numbers. Then I thought about how I missed two numbers and realized I missed another while thinking about that. So try to eliminate mental distractions
- Don't take the test hungry. I got really hungry during the test and was thinking about Taco Bell. It didn't mess me up, but it was a distraction in my mind. I ended up getting Taco Bell afterwards, but during the test, the thought of a quesadilla did float across my mind when I should have been more focused.
- Use as much scratch paper as you want. Use it for anything. If you even have a slight thought that you want to take a note of something, write it down.
- Listen to ASTB subjects instead of music while driving. I did this for about a month and I was very confident on any of the topics. I will link a Youtube channel which helped me

Resources
- Gomez Drive
- Kyle's Drive
- ASTB App
- Kieno Thomas (www.youtube.com/@kienothomas)
- Cram Flashcards (
Use these resources and you should be prepared

Feel free to message and/or reply and I would be happy to help out
Click to expand...
I take my test this Saturday, any tips on the ANIT portion? I feel that will give me the most challenge and want to be as prepared as I can.
Click to expand...
 
Know the basics of flight and some aviation rules. The cram flashcards and ASTB app do a great job of asking similar questions. It is a broad subject with a lot of possible questions, but those two types of questions appeared most for me. Of course, your test may be different
 
Has anyone taken the OAR recently? During the reading comprehension section, were you able to see the specific question they were asking, or did you just have to choose between A, B, C, or D? I’m asking because when I took the exam, I read the passage, but I didn’t notice a clear question related to what I was answering. Has anyone else experienced this too?


Example:

Between November 15 and December 21, 1864, Major General William Tecumseh Sherman marched Union troops from the recently captured city of Atlanta to the port of Savannah. The goal was not only to capture the port city and secure Georgia for the Union, but also to destroy the Confederacy's infrastructure and demoralize its people. Sherman and his troops destroyed rail lines and burned buildings and fields. They packed only twenty days' worth of rations, foraging for the rest of their supplies from farms along the way. By the time they reached Savannah, they had destroyed 300 miles of railroad, countless cotton gins and mills, seized 4,000 mules, 13,000 head of cattle, 9.5 million pounds of corn, and 10.5 million pounds of fodder. Sherman estimated his troops inflicted $100 million in damages


Answers Choices:


A : Strongly resisted the actions of Sherman’s troops.

B: Was greatly weakened by the destruction.

C: Used Sherman’s March as a rallying point.

D: Was relatively unaffected by the march.
 
Last edited:
Would y'all recommend not even worrying about the ASTB/OAR until closer to graduation? I am no longer considering BDCP. I am a junior.
 
NEVFR said:
Would y'all recommend not even worrying about the ASTB/OAR until closer to graduation? I am no longer considering BDCP. I am a junior.
Click to expand...
I think it solely depends on you. If you have the extra time to study, and want to get it out of the way then I would encourage you to do it sooner than later.
 
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