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1,001 questions about the ASTB (post your scores & ask your questions here!)
- Thread starter edato
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alaurin
All day, every day!
7/6/6/60 on first try, form 3.
I found the spatial apperception to be the hardest section on the test, far harder than the practice exams from the ARCO book. My entire aviation supplemental section was also aviation + nautical + navy plane knowledge, was really hoping for math or reading comprehension there. Finished every section early and had time to check answers.
I found the spatial apperception to be the hardest section on the test, far harder than the practice exams from the ARCO book. My entire aviation supplemental section was also aviation + nautical + navy plane knowledge, was really hoping for math or reading comprehension there. Finished every section early and had time to check answers.
QuaTra
New Member
What is exactly date is " end of January"? January 31st?
Yes, the 31st from what I've been told.
QuaTra
New Member
thanks for your fast respone. i took the first time is OAR is 47 which is i am not really happy; And then, i want to retake 2nd test on 22nd of jan. But I don't want to miss Mardch board. My OR said i can go with 47 but i am just at window of competitor. My GPA is 3.52 in BSEE.
I got a 5/6/7 46 form 4.. with a 3.4 in Biology. I don't think I've seen such a weird ASTB score. Any thoughts on this score with my GPA and major?
alaurin
All day, every day!
That is a weird score, I believe the first score is based off of your math/mech/reading.
For Physics: you might try playing with some physics sets or taking your old physics book out and reading through some sections. If you don't have one, I can recommend one to you. Don't get frustrated, physics is very counter-intuitive. You can also try watching the Khan academy videos. You can also try finding youtube videos explaining things you weren't too comfortable with during the test (ie: pulleys).
For math: do lots of problems. I found a website where people posted word problems online and did quite a few of those, along with the ARCO officer candidate book and flight aptitude test book problems. When I came across a problem I had a hard time figuring out, I would copy it down on a word document and create a drill sheet with it. Every day that I studied, I would first go through the drill sheet and solve all the problems.
For written: didn't really do much. You could try GRE or GMAT reading comprehension practice tests.
If you want my drill sheet, let me know.
VFRonly
Pro-Rec SNFO May, 3rd 2013
Alaurin, I am taking the ASTB in five days. Math is the section I have been most preparing for because it is my weakest. Would you mind sharing your drill sheet with me as well? I am sure it will help me out with the more difficult questions. I will send my e-mail address to you in a PM.
brouwerb
New Member
I would honestly recommend a retake. According to my officer processor the average selected applicant's OAR was around 55 and nearly everyone had 7's or higher across all other sections. Unfortunately you do not have much time if you hope to get in before the March boards.
Nick Roland
New Member
Finally got my scores back. I improved from 6/6/6 53 on form 3 to 7/7/7 56 on form 5. I spent most of my time studying the math sections and then studying aeronautical and nautical information. The math is the most important category to have down because it is the highest factor in 2 scores. Plus I felt pretty confident taking the rest of the test after finishing the math section with time to spare.
Abraham Christian
New Member
What happened to the pilot board in July? I saw someone on here said there is a potential March board, and then an August board...
The search function is your best friend
....Don't be afraid to look around before asking a question because chances are it's already been answered. This website is a great resource but use it wisely. I'm not trying to scare you or anything but some of the other members here are a little more harsh
VFRonly
Pro-Rec SNFO May, 3rd 2013
I took the ASTB for the first time today and scored a 5/6/5 47 on form 5. I am disappointed and obviously I was hoping to do much better and I felt pretty confident going into the test, however I know the MST brought my score down. I did as many practice math problems as I could do during my study time, but there was a lot of math knowledge questions which screwed with my head. Also it seems like every word problem I got besides one involved manipulating percentages and gas prices which was very difficult. I will most likely end up retaking the test and when I do I will focus pretty much all of my studying on math and mechanical. I used atrickpay's guide which was very helpful for prep for all sections, Barron's Officer Candidate School Tests, Marine gouge and the Arco Flight Aptitude Rating book. I would like to thank everyone for posting gouge in this and other threads, it has been very helpful!
Math- Make sure you are familiar with the math knowledge just as much as the word problems because I had mostly math knowledge questions on my test. I did see five or six that were just like the examples in atrickpay's guide so I was able to solve them very quickly however one was just like the guys making pizza question but it was totally different and I spaced and couldn't solve it. The amount of time you have in this section definitely makes it difficult I had to guess on at least four or five unfortunately to save time.
Reading- I found it to be more difficult than the study guides but I didn't spend to much time on this since I was comfortable with it from the beginning.
Mechanical- Really resembled stuff from the Barrons and Arco book however there were a few questions that weren't covered by either study guide.
Spatial- I found this to be pretty easy since I have flight experience but almost every view could be deceiving. I would recommend spending some time with a flight simulator to prepare for this if you don't have flight experience.
Aviation/Nautical Knowledge- I found this section to be very easy but I am a Private Pilot and prior enlisted Navy so I can't be a good judge on it. However only the basics are covered so if you study what is in the Pilot's knowledge handbook posted online for free by the FAA and Atrickpay's guide you should be fine.
Aviation Supplemental- All aviation knowledge luckily and I saw a few repeat questions here.
I hope my feedback helps someone. I thought I did a lot better so I am confused about my scores. Time to master the math and figure out how I can bring my score up.
Math- Make sure you are familiar with the math knowledge just as much as the word problems because I had mostly math knowledge questions on my test. I did see five or six that were just like the examples in atrickpay's guide so I was able to solve them very quickly however one was just like the guys making pizza question but it was totally different and I spaced and couldn't solve it. The amount of time you have in this section definitely makes it difficult I had to guess on at least four or five unfortunately to save time.
Reading- I found it to be more difficult than the study guides but I didn't spend to much time on this since I was comfortable with it from the beginning.
Mechanical- Really resembled stuff from the Barrons and Arco book however there were a few questions that weren't covered by either study guide.
Spatial- I found this to be pretty easy since I have flight experience but almost every view could be deceiving. I would recommend spending some time with a flight simulator to prepare for this if you don't have flight experience.
Aviation/Nautical Knowledge- I found this section to be very easy but I am a Private Pilot and prior enlisted Navy so I can't be a good judge on it. However only the basics are covered so if you study what is in the Pilot's knowledge handbook posted online for free by the FAA and Atrickpay's guide you should be fine.
Aviation Supplemental- All aviation knowledge luckily and I saw a few repeat questions here.
I hope my feedback helps someone. I thought I did a lot better so I am confused about my scores. Time to master the math and figure out how I can bring my score up.
OnlyTheRealist
New Member
Took the ASTB today and got a 58 6/6/6/ on form 5. The administrator of the test was not too enthusiastic about my scores and after reading through this thread I will most likely be retaking as it seems that 6s don't seem to be competitive for NFO. But enough about me, on to what I remember about the test. I studied out of the Barron's book until I could do every mechanical and math problem in both practice tests. And this http://www.nelnetsolutions.com/dod/DODHubPage.aspx?sponsor=12894&HubPage=10190 helpful website for additional tests. I read through portions of the FAA handbook to clarify principles of Atrickplay's study guide that I was unsure about. I also used the ARCO book, but probably the least out of all the materials.
Math- This was easier than expected though I found myself stretched for time in the end. I got too caught up on some word problems and that cost me a lot of time. I wouldn't worry about the algebra portion of the math section because it was incredibly easy. It was the word problems that got me. There was one similar to the pizza problem on Atrickplay's Study Guide but it was with different numbers so make sure you understand the concept and not just how to solve one specific problem. I also specifically remember a question about average test scores e.g. Tom scored 71, 76, 73, 70, what 2 scores will he need to average an 80 on all 6.
Reading - Seemed that the hardest part about this section was forgetting that your prior knowledge about the subjects that the passages are addressing is irrelevant to the answer. Just focus on what the paragraph says.
Mechanical - Like the math, easier than expected. Hardly had to do any equations, but the test asked for some specific mechanical information about types of instruments which weren't in any of the materials I used to study.
Spatial - I felt like I did really well on this section; like I only missed 2 or 3. However, my score says otherwise. It is true that the angles are more difficult than in any of the practice books but I did not find this to be the most difficult section of the test.
Aviation/Nautical Knowledge - I studied a decent amount for this section, but obviously not nearly enough. I recall a question about Amelia Earhart, Chuck Yeager, the Messerschmitt ME-262, and Vx (which I spaced on and got wrong) but there were still a large portion of knowledge that was not included in Atrickplay's Study Guide or Barron's. It has been said before, but if you really want to do well on this you have to study the FAA Handbook. There is such a large pool of information to draw upon for this section.
Supplemental - All aviation/nautical information with some question repeats. I was stumped on one question about clouds that was in this section . The question asked: What type of cloud is white, fluffy, and found at high altitudes. The answers were: nimbostratus, cumulus, cirrus, and altostratus. I guessed nimbostratus but none of those answers really seemed to fit. Also, and this has been said before, know the minimum load factor for the FAA. This question has been brought up before and I still have no idea what the answer is. The answers for the load factor on the test were: 2.4, 2.8, 3.4, 3.8. If anyone knows the answer to the load factor question please let me know because I can't seem to find it through google or the FAA handbook. There were also a lot of questions that stumped me in the section that were not in Atrickplay's or Barron's.
What I learned from this experience was that if you want to do well, to go for those 9s on the Aviation/Nautical and Supplemental portions, you have to study the FAA handbook. I memorized probably 80% of Atrickplay's aviation/nautical info and it still got me a 6 (though you could probably get a 7 if you studied it well enough.) I want to thank everyone who contributed to this thread and all the gouge they have provided. Good luck when you take the test!
Math- This was easier than expected though I found myself stretched for time in the end. I got too caught up on some word problems and that cost me a lot of time. I wouldn't worry about the algebra portion of the math section because it was incredibly easy. It was the word problems that got me. There was one similar to the pizza problem on Atrickplay's Study Guide but it was with different numbers so make sure you understand the concept and not just how to solve one specific problem. I also specifically remember a question about average test scores e.g. Tom scored 71, 76, 73, 70, what 2 scores will he need to average an 80 on all 6.
Reading - Seemed that the hardest part about this section was forgetting that your prior knowledge about the subjects that the passages are addressing is irrelevant to the answer. Just focus on what the paragraph says.
Mechanical - Like the math, easier than expected. Hardly had to do any equations, but the test asked for some specific mechanical information about types of instruments which weren't in any of the materials I used to study.
Spatial - I felt like I did really well on this section; like I only missed 2 or 3. However, my score says otherwise. It is true that the angles are more difficult than in any of the practice books but I did not find this to be the most difficult section of the test.
Aviation/Nautical Knowledge - I studied a decent amount for this section, but obviously not nearly enough. I recall a question about Amelia Earhart, Chuck Yeager, the Messerschmitt ME-262, and Vx (which I spaced on and got wrong) but there were still a large portion of knowledge that was not included in Atrickplay's Study Guide or Barron's. It has been said before, but if you really want to do well on this you have to study the FAA Handbook. There is such a large pool of information to draw upon for this section.
Supplemental - All aviation/nautical information with some question repeats. I was stumped on one question about clouds that was in this section . The question asked: What type of cloud is white, fluffy, and found at high altitudes. The answers were: nimbostratus, cumulus, cirrus, and altostratus. I guessed nimbostratus but none of those answers really seemed to fit. Also, and this has been said before, know the minimum load factor for the FAA. This question has been brought up before and I still have no idea what the answer is. The answers for the load factor on the test were: 2.4, 2.8, 3.4, 3.8. If anyone knows the answer to the load factor question please let me know because I can't seem to find it through google or the FAA handbook. There were also a lot of questions that stumped me in the section that were not in Atrickplay's or Barron's.
What I learned from this experience was that if you want to do well, to go for those 9s on the Aviation/Nautical and Supplemental portions, you have to study the FAA handbook. I memorized probably 80% of Atrickplay's aviation/nautical info and it still got me a 6 (though you could probably get a 7 if you studied it well enough.) I want to thank everyone who contributed to this thread and all the gouge they have provided. Good luck when you take the test!