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

[Gagarin]

Hello Squad,

63/8/6/7
Major: Finance GPA: 3.48
No prior flight experience.

I was hoping for all 7's. I have the option to attempt it again in early April to hopefully have my app submitted by May for the June OCS board.

My recruiter recommends I do not retake the test, and apply for 1) SNA 2) NFO. I want SNA. I did tell him NFO would be my second choice.

I studied for the OAR for four weeks. I did not find a tracking sim until the day before the test. If I practice more, I could probably get a 7 on it instead of a 6. I don't like the idea of risking a re-test and getting a worse score and also the chance that another part of the process (like my MEPS) slows me down to miss the application window in May for the board date in June. M

My recruiter mentioned delaying the process is a risk when considering another attempt as well as scoring lower than the first try. The scoring lower risk makes sense to me. The delay risk seems odd to me, but I do not know if that is a legit concern with the amount of bearacacy and paperwork he has to deal with. Is that a legit concern? I am a healthy man with no medical problems in my history of physicals.

TLDR: worth a retake and risking a worse score and a delay in the process? or good to full send as-is?

Thank you,

Why do you think you'll get a worse score? Surely weeks of study with more resources and practice tools available can only help your new score?

 

[Lockjaw05]

Why do you think you'll get a worse score? Surely weeks of study with more resources and practice tools available can only help your new score?

Yeah, you're right. More study with more resources should result in a better score. I had read someone say the 2nd attempt is harder than the first. I do not know if that is true.

 

[alexsanchez]

First attempt at ASTB! (around 2.5 weeks of prep)

SCORES
OAR - 53
AQR- 8
PFAR - 9
FOFAR - 7

Huge thank you to everyone on this forum for providing; guidance, resources, advice, and direction! (especially @GoBoilers25 )!
Study Materials: Kyle's Drive, Gomez Drive, (can be found by searching on this thread), and (a majority of the time) ASTB Prep App! I didn't need much more outside of that!

OVERVIEW

MATH: Combined work problems, log problems, systems of equations, general computation, probability, matrices, geometry were all prominent staples during the math section for me. It is important to be 100% on top of exponent rules, log rules, and be able to do simple computations quickly/accurately. Utilizing the ASTB (@TwoScoops) app, there should be no surprises.

MECHANICAL: As mentioned before, it is very much theory based.there were maybe 1-2 questions where I was asked to calculate something, but a majority of the questions were of the sense "something at this (weight/force/speed/mass) is affecting another thing, what will happen?" Having a solid understanding of basic mechanical principles and how they relate to one another is going to serve you well!

READING: It's been said before, but this stuff is extremely dry. I never studied for the reading because I knew the test was different from online tests. One thing that took me by surprise is that there were no questions; the reading section was more of the format (insert long paragraph), select the answer that could best summarize and touch on the main points stated in the above paragraph. Reading aloud to yourself helps significantly with this section. I wouldn't spend too much time actually utilizing practice tests for this section.

ANIT: I got more questions aimed towards aviation than Naval knowledge, but it's good to know both sides. I didn't study for this section much as I got my degree in Flight, but knowing the naval information on the ASTP Prep app saved my ass for the few naval questions I got. For people new to aviation, read the Pilots Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge! Not only will you need to know it for the test, but it will serve you well far into your career if you're pursuing this job.

NAFTI: Just hang in there and truthfully answer everything, although neither or both answer may apply to you.

PBT: Use ASTP prep and buy the Logitech X-52! Huge help on this portion of the test! On the ASTB Prep app, I was scoring 35-40% consistently, 90%ish for the DLT @ 0.5 Sec intervals, (if you want a baseline to reference). The emergency section glitched out on me and didn't tell me the emergency procedures for the test, so I didn't have the exact ones in front of me. The terrain and UAV sections looked different, but the concept was the exact same as those found on the ASTB Prep app. During the real test, I thought the throttle/stick was a lot more sensitive than the ASTB Prep app, but other than that I could confidently say it helped me out in preparation.

Once again thank you to everyone on this forum, there is a lot of good information in here. If you are confused on something either reach out to me or take a minute to browse through this forum. Everyone seems to be here to support one another, and the test results people get while participating on this forum prove it!

Reach out to me with any questions, (assuming MEPS goes good) I am looking forward to meeting you guys/gals either at OCS or Pensacola!

Where

First attempt at ASTB! (around 2.5 weeks of prep)

SCORES
OAR - 53
AQR- 8
PFAR - 9
FOFAR - 7

Huge thank you to everyone on this forum for providing; guidance, resources, advice, and direction! (especially @GoBoilers25 )!
Study Materials: Kyle's Drive, Gomez Drive, (can be found by searching on this thread), and (a majority of the time) ASTB Prep App! I didn't need much more outside of that!

OVERVIEW

MATH: Combined work problems, log problems, systems of equations, general computation, probability, matrices, geometry were all prominent staples during the math section for me. It is important to be 100% on top of exponent rules, log rules, and be able to do simple computations quickly/accurately. Utilizing the ASTB (@TwoScoops) app, there should be no surprises.

MECHANICAL: As mentioned before, it is very much theory based.there were maybe 1-2 questions where I was asked to calculate something, but a majority of the questions were of the sense "something at this (weight/force/speed/mass) is affecting another thing, what will happen?" Having a solid understanding of basic mechanical principles and how they relate to one another is going to serve you well!

READING: It's been said before, but this stuff is extremely dry. I never studied for the reading because I knew the test was different from online tests. One thing that took me by surprise is that there were no questions; the reading section was more of the format (insert long paragraph), select the answer that could best summarize and touch on the main points stated in the above paragraph. Reading aloud to yourself helps significantly with this section. I wouldn't spend too much time actually utilizing practice tests for this section.

ANIT: I got more questions aimed towards aviation than Naval knowledge, but it's good to know both sides. I didn't study for this section much as I got my degree in Flight, but knowing the naval information on the ASTP Prep app saved my ass for the few naval questions I got. For people new to aviation, read the Pilots Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge! Not only will you need to know it for the test, but it will serve you well far into your career if you're pursuing this job.

NAFTI: Just hang in there and truthfully answer everything, although neither or both answer may apply to you.

PBT: Use ASTP prep and buy the Logitech X-52! Huge help on this portion of the test! On the ASTB Prep app, I was scoring 35-40% consistently, 90%ish for the DLT @ 0.5 Sec intervals, (if you want a baseline to reference). The emergency section glitched out on me and didn't tell me the emergency procedures for the test, so I didn't have the exact ones in front of me. The terrain and UAV sections looked different, but the concept was the exact same as those found on the ASTB Prep app. During the real test, I thought the throttle/stick was a lot more sensitive than the ASTB Prep app, but other than that I could confidently say it helped me out in preparation.

Once again thank you to everyone on this forum, there is a lot of good information in here. If you are confused on something either reach out to me or take a minute to browse through this forum. Everyone seems to be here to support one another, and the test results people get while participating on this forum prove it!

Reach out to me with any questions, (assuming MEPS goes good) I am looking forward to meeting you guys/gals either at OCS or Pensacola!

Quick question, where can I find this "ASTB Prep app"? And the "two scoops app?". I'm new to this and this is the first post I'm reading on this forum.

 

[Lighting_II]

Congrats on the superb scores. generally curious how was the physics portion of the test, and what did you see? Any advice for this section and the test in general?
Thanks

Honestly I would say use the ASTB app by Alex Hastings. That app has good practice for the parts that are not the OAR. For physics I would recommend the same app and any other study material that works for you.

 

[Dom0220]

Honestly I would say use the ASTB app by Alex Hastings. That app has good practice for the parts that are not the OAR. For physics I would recommend the same app and any other study material that works for you.

Alright thankyou, I have been averaging around 70% on the physics and 70% on math.

 

[alexsanchez]

Questions about prepping for the ASTB.

Are there specific apps that can be used? What book would you recommend to buy?
Also is there an app to help with the PBMs? I currently have the TBAS test prep that I used BEFORE and don't know if it's similar to what the Navy uses. It has a directional orientation ( parking lots) multi-target tracking, memorization, etc.

 

[FloridaExport]

Questions about prepping for the ASTB.

Are there specific apps that can be used? What book would you recommend to buy?
Also is there an app to help with the PBMs? I currently have the TBAS test prep that I used BEFORE and don't know if it's similar to what the Navy uses. It has a directional orientation ( parking lots) multi-target tracking, memorization, etc.

Scroll through this thread there’s tons of information even a couple pages back.

People with high scores that break down their test experience are a good place to start. Kyles and Gomez Drives, Peterson book, and the OAR math study guides. Get the ASTB prep app by Alex Hastings/TwoScoops high scorers on this thread swear by it.

Get yourself an X52 HOTAS off eBay or Amazon and practice every day for 30 min on the Jantzen sim. Again all over this thread.

Take the advice of high scorers and set yourself a schedule. Currently have a 9-5 and study two hours in the morning and an hour in the evening with Jantzen and PBM.

Take my schedule with a grain of salt as I haven’t taken the exam. However, I’ve been on this schedule for the past two months and have become increasingly more confident in taking this test every week.

Everybody here is helpful, study hard and be confident in your ability and you will do well.

Edit: Spelling

 

[alexsanchez]

Scroll through this thread there’s tons of information even a couple pages back.

People with high scores that break down their test experience are a good place to start. Kyles and Gomez Drives, Peterson book, and the OAR math study guides. Get the ASTB prep app by Alex Hastings/TwoScoops high scorers on this thread swear by it.

Get yourself an X52 HOTAS off eBay or Amazon and practice every day for 30 min on the Jantzen sim. Again all over this thread.

Take the advice of high scorers and set yourself a schedule. Currently have a 9-5 and study two hours in the morning and an hour in the evening with Jantzen and PBM.

Take my schedule with a grain of salt as I haven’t taken the exam. However, I’ve been on this schedule for the past two months and have become increasingly more confident in taking this test every week.

Everybody here is helpful, study hard and be confident in your ability and you will do well.

Edit: Spelling

Thanks for the information. I already own a x52 hotas which I used to practice for the TBAS exam. So for the Navy, they use the throttle on the PBM exam instead of the rudder used in the TBAS exam in the Air Force?

 

[Gagarin]

Thanks for the information. I already own a x52 hotas which I used to practice for the TBAS exam. So for the Navy, they use the throttle on the PBM exam instead of the rudder used in the TBAS exam in the Air Force?

Yes. They use exclusively the X52 stick and throttle. You use the stick and throttle for target tracking, the trigger and clutch for dichotic listening tasks, and the two thumb dials on the throttle and the clutch for the emergency management test.

 

[FloridaExport]

Thanks for the information. I already own a x52 hotas which I used to practice for the TBAS exam. So for the Navy, they use the throttle on the PBM exam instead of the rudder used in the TBAS exam in the Air Force?

No pedals only joystick and throttle

Here's what to expect

 

[Gagarin]

Yeah, you're right. More study with more resources should result in a better score. I had read someone say the 2nd attempt is harder than the first. I do not know if that is true.

Late reply but there isn’t any indication that you’ll have to take a harder test because you already took it once. They may have been talking about the adaptive nature of the test - questions get harder as you do better but that’s within an individual section of the test. And besides getting to the hard questions is an indication you’re doing well on the test anyway.