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updated ASTB study guide & info regarding test (Nov 2013)

A

acvtm164

Member
Hello,
So i have taken the ASTB twice, the first time got a 44 (didn't take aviation section) and 6 months later with much help from this website, i managed to raise the score to a 6/7/6 60. I wanted to create a post to give back to this website because of how much it's helped me. I added a couple things to the current study guide that is floating around this website and i also used it to highlight the areas of that study guide that my test (form 3) covered. If you want to skip the rest of this post to the end, there'll be the study guide link posted. If not, i'm about to go relatively in depth about the test & my experiences with it.

I originally took the ASTB in the summer (i believe June or July) and i studied rather lazily for 2 weeks. I didn't realize how difficult it would be. I came away with a 44 and was so disappointed. I then spent the rest of the summer & fall until October finishing all my classes for my graduation in Oct. 2013.

After that day, i began studying for the test. I will admit, i did not put my best foot forward initially because i dreaded anything to do with this test (and any other standardized tests because i usually do poorly on them). I began by going over the various materials found on this site; they were mainly practice tests (the links to these tests are all in my study guide attached to this post). My weakest points were always math & mechanical comprehension (i graduated with a degree in poli sci, criminal justice & sociology, so i managed to stay math free through college, unfortunately lol). Basically all i did was print up all these study guides, practice doing them myself first, then go over the problem when i got it wrong. I then drilled these steps for attacking the problems into my head and eventually got better and better. If there were problems where i had NO clue, i would go to the free tutors located at my college (i know most colleges offer them, so i'd recommend using them). I know it sounds kind of obvious but the only way i became better with these problems was by practicing & being persistent. I studied every day for about 3-4 hours. It wasn't a huge chunk of time but when i did study, i was focused.

I'm not the type of person who is gifted at math, i didn't major in anything math-related, and i'm definitely not one of the people on here who got a 57 the first time they took the test and didn't have to study so much (congrats to those people though!). I suck at these standardized tests but if i managed to pull through & raise my score that high, it is definitely possible to anyone else who didn't do their best the first time either.
 

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KingofBattle777

KingofBattle777

New Member
Hey that's great thanks. I have one question. Can't find any info on
"pressures of different sized tires & what kind of torque they give" which is one of the bullet points you added. Google and YouTube aren't really helping out either. Care to elaborate?
 
A

acvtm164

Member
Yeah sure! That point was in a list of things i had read through these forums of stuff that people recommended to study but i never got around to looking it up myself. I just tried googling it and like you said, it is difficult to find a clear website that explains it well. However, i called my grandfather who owned a tire company for years and he explained it to me. He basically said
o you get more torque when the tire has lower air but there is a point where it gets too low and can be detrimental to generating torque

o If it has too much air it won't generate much torque because it skids and the tire doesn't ride evenly on the road surface (don’t get optimal friction between road surface and tire)

o Smaller tire gives more torque because gear ratio (think of first gear vs. 6th gear, first gear generates much more torque than higher gears do)

o Much more power needed for torque of larger tire

I know this isn't the best explanation but it was the best i could do in the amount of time. I hope that helps though!
 
A

acvtm164

Member
Thanks! It was the least i could do. I'm applying for NFO and NA right now. I'm hoping the rolling status of the application process for these two fields will give me a better chance than usual to be accepted. We'll see though! I was originally applying for Intel, like yourself, but it is so difficult to be accepted currently (especially with a 3.4 gpa, non-technical degrees like poli sci, criminal justice & sociology, etc lol). Flying (as an NFO or NA) has always been a dream of mine though the minimum time commitment originally scared me off. As of now, it's the number one area i'd like to be accepted for!
 
KNSnowy

KNSnowy

Member
I honestly don't worry about the time commitment for any of the designators. I'm betting I'll be all in for a full career, but the huge appeal is that there's so MUCH to learn and improve on. Combine that with new assignments, promotions and education, and the time's going to fly by :)

I hope you get to fly! Your scores look great, so now just stand by to wait.
 
Kees

Kees

SNA Select
acvtm164 said:
Hello,
So i have taken the ASTB twice, the first time got a 44 (didn't take aviation section) and 6 months later with much help from this website, i managed to raise the score to a 6/7/6 60. I wanted to create a post to give back to this website because of how much it's helped me. I added a couple things to the current study guide that is floating around this website and i also used it to highlight the areas of that study guide that my test (form 3) covered. If you want to skip the rest of this post to the end, there'll be the study guide link posted. If not, i'm about to go relatively in depth about the test & my experiences with it.

I originally took the ASTB in the summer (i believe June or July) and i studied rather lazily for 2 weeks. I didn't realize how difficult it would be. I came away with a 44 and was so disappointed. I then spent the rest of the summer & fall until October finishing all my classes for my graduation in Oct. 2013.

After that day, i began studying for the test. I will admit, i did not put my best foot forward initially because i dreaded anything to do with this test (and any other standardized tests because i usually do poorly on them). I began by going over the various materials found on this site; they were mainly practice tests (the links to these tests are all in my study guide attached to this post). My weakest points were always math & mechanical comprehension (i graduated with a degree in poli sci, criminal justice & sociology, so i managed to stay math free through college, unfortunately lol). Basically all i did was print up all these study guides, practice doing them myself first, then go over the problem when i got it wrong. I then drilled these steps for attacking the problems into my head and eventually got better and better. If there were problems where i had NO clue, i would go to the free tutors located at my college (i know most colleges offer them, so i'd recommend using them). I know it sounds kind of obvious but the only way i became better with these problems was by practicing & being persistent. I studied every day for about 3-4 hours. It wasn't a huge chunk of time but when i did study, i was focused.

I'm not the type of person who is gifted at math, i didn't major in anything math-related, and i'm definitely not one of the people on here who got a 57 the first time they took the test and didn't have to study so much (congrats to those people though!). I suck at these standardized tests but if i managed to pull through & raise my score that high, it is definitely possible to anyone else who didn't do their best the first time either.
Click to expand...

Great post! I recently submitted my kit with a 45/5/6/6--far less than ideal and very humbling--but, I'm planning on retesting after the next rolling board in hopes of improving my scores (assuming the new ASTB-E doesn't cause me further issues). The rest of my kit is SOLID, so it sucks to know that this one factor may destroy my selection chances on the next board. The math and mechanical comprehension sections were the most troublesome for me. I worked too slow and ended up guessing on most of them in order to finish the section, which seriously damaged my scores.

I've been beating myself up about it for about a month now, but it helps to know that some added effort--as displayed by your improvement--can make a difference. Congrats on the new scores and thanks for the gouge!
 
A

acvtm164

Member
Kees said:
Great post! I recently submitted my kit with a 45/5/6/6--far less than ideal and very humbling--but, I'm planning on retesting after the next rolling board in hopes of improving my scores (assuming the new ASTB-E doesn't cause me further issues). The rest of my kit is SOLID, so it sucks to know that this one factor may destroy my selection chances on the next board. The math and mechanical comprehension sections were the most troublesome for me. I worked too slow and ended up guessing on most of them in order to finish the section, which seriously damaged my scores.

I've been beating myself up about it for about a month now, but it helps to know that some added effort--as displayed by your improvement--can make a difference. Congrats on the new scores and thanks for the gouge!
Click to expand...


Thank you! Yeah the rest of your kit sounds great. What are you applying for?

The math & mechanical comprehension held me up as well in the beginning because it is all material that i hadn't gone over in years. Just keep in mind that if you guess on the questions, i remember the second time i took it that i noticed they had answers that were meant to trick test-takers. And i know i fell for those wrong answers the first time i took the test. But I'm sure if you just study a little more and become super familiar with the material you'll be fine.

Good luck!
 
Kees

Kees

SNA Select
acvtm164 said:
Thank you! Yeah the rest of your kit sounds great. What are you applying for?

The math & mechanical comprehension held me up as well in the beginning because it is all material that i hadn't gone over in years. Just keep in mind that if you guess on the questions, i remember the second time i took it that i noticed they had answers that were meant to trick test-takers. And i know i fell for those wrong answers the first time i took the test. But I'm sure if you just study a little more and become super familiar with the material you'll be fine.

Good luck!
Click to expand...

I'm going for SNA/SNFO.

I was in the same boat--been a while since I tinkered with that stuff. So, I got myself a handful of math, physics and aeronautical books to study. Depending on how things progress, I may even hook up with a tutor--so to speak--to get me up to par a little quicker. I refuse to let this opportunity pass me by, you know?

Best of luck to you as well!
 
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