ASVAB

Have questions about the ASVAB exam? Click below to find the answers you need.

++tableTop tableTop++ ++table2Row ++tableItem Getting Ready tableItem++ ++tableItem Taking the Exam tableItem++ tableRow++ ++table2Row ++tableItem

++questionThe Basicsquestion++

++questionWho This Guide is Meant Forquestion++

++questionThe Scope of this Guidequestion++

tableItem++ ++tableItem

++questionHow to Use This Guidequestion++

++questionGeneral Test Tipsquestion++ tableItem++ table2Row++

++answerThe Basics

If you have ever considered joining the military (or if you have ever spent time taking ROTC in either high school or college), then you have probably already heard about the ASVAB. ASVAB stands for armed Services Vocational aptitude Battery, and its purpose is twofold. For one, your score is going to determine whether you can join the military at all and which branches of the military you are eligible to join (Marines, Army, Air Force, Navy, or Coast Guard).

Beyond that, the test will help to determine which specialties you are eligible for once you have a branch selected. This test is timed, and it tests multiple aptitudes. It is provided at all schools which have ROTC programs, and it is also provided at Military Entrance Processing Stations (MEPS). Th is means that the test is available at more than 14,000 locations across the United States.

The test was developed and is primarily maintained by the United States Department of Defense. For individuals who do not live close to one of the 65 MEPS stations in the United States, the ASVAB can also be taken at Military Entrance Test (MET) sites. These are often located in National Guard armories, military reserve centers, or inside of office buildings run by the Federal government.answer++

++answerWho This Guide is Meant For

This guide is meant for any individuals who are thinking about joining the military and want to know more about the ASVAB and the process of taking it. The guide is also meant for anyone who is planning on taking the ASVAB and wants to brush up on their knowledge and learn exactly what they need to prepare for. One interesting thing to note, which many people do not consider, is that the ASVAB tests a broad level of general knowledge. Individuals might be tempted to either take the test or use this study guide simply to gauge their general knowledge levels.answer++

++answerThe Scope of this Guide

This guide is going to take you through a good deal of information, including the following:

• what the test is about

• pre/during/post-test information

• individual test sections with study tips, information that will be covered in the test, and practice questions for each subtest

• generalized study tips which will help you moving forward, regardless of the test you are taking

• a comprehensive practice exam, close to what you will see when you take the ASVAB

• a section comprised of further reading which you can use to help bolster up your weak points

There is more to joining the military than just taking the test, of course, but this will give you a great place to start. The ASVAB is usually one of the very first things that you will do in the process of joining up, right after a cursory physical exam. Thus, this guide primarily covers information about the exam and what the exam covers.answer++

++answerHow to Use This Guide

STOP! Before you read further, do the following (it will benefit you immensely): go and take a practice ASVAB exam and record your scores.

Now, why do you believe you should take that exam before moving any further? To set a benchmark, of course. If you have a starting point, you will know what aptitudes you are weak in prior to beginning your study. This will let you narrowly focus your study in exactly the areas you need.

Do you HAVE to take a practice exam prior to the test? Of course not. You can go through the guide straight away without taking any practice tests. But if you do that, you will miss out on valuable statistical information about the success of your study. Taking a practice test will also help you determine which aptitudes you need to spend more time on. Information is the key to success, so there is no reason to turn down the information a practice test can provide you (especially since it costs nothing).

Once you have completed the guide, go take another practice ASVAB and compare the resulting scores to the ones that you received before you began your study routine. Identify weak areas and repeat the process until you are satisfied with your scores. This is one of the best ways that you can find out how much you have improved and what you need to study more.answer++

++answerGeneral Test Tips

Even the simplest test will have some tips which are universal. In this section, tips are included to help you on the ASVAB in a generalized way, regardless of which type of test you are taking or which aptitude test you are currently on. In fact, most of these tips will help you on any kind of standardized test that might take, no matter what subject the test is on (MCAT, SAT, GRE, ASVAB, LSAT, etc.).

Here are some tips to utilize before the test. Begin preparing for your test as early as you possibly can. If you do not feel as though you are quite ready for it, then do not put pressure on yourself to take it early.

With regard to the ASVAB, recruiters may, at times, try to railroad you into taking the test as quickly as possible (sometimes within a couple of days of speaking with them). If you feel like you are not ready, schedule the test for a later date.

Plan very carefully ahead of time and use your time wisely. Do not waste time or procrastinate on your studying. Study at the same general time every day. Don’t let yourself become sidetracked doing other things when you should be spending the time studying. Make sure you study in a well-lit and quiet area. Somewhere comfortable. Avoid distractions if possible. This is a great time to utilize a public library. When you are taking practice tests, you will want to make sure that you time yourself in the same way that you will be timed on the real test. This will give you the greatest feel for how the test will actually be administered. Many people who neglect to do this wind up finding themselves short on time when the test is actually being taken.

Remember to get a good night sleep and eat well prior to the test. Remember to relax and do not allow yourself to become too stressed out about what is going on in your life. Don’t eat a carb heavy meal the morning of the test, however, because it might make you tired during the test and affect your ability to concentrate. Avoid drinking lots of fluid (water or otherwise) prior to the test. You could wind up wasting a lot of the time during your test simply going to the bathroom. Don’t make that mistake.

Make sure you bring supplies just in case. While you will be given pencils and paper, it would pay to bring pencils, erasers, pens, and scratch paper just in case. You can never be too careful. Make sure you have your contacts, a backup set, and glasses if you need them as well. A watch might help you keep track of time during the physical version of the test (in case there is not a clock in the room). It will pay to invest in a watch if you don’t already have one just to be extra careful.

Here are a few tips for making the most of your study materials and practice sessions ahead of time. Make sure you study the information about the test just as much as you study what is on the test. This means the types of questions you might face, the format of the test, the length of time you have for each test section, etc.

Take adequate time to prepare by taking a practice test at regular intervals throughout your study. This will let you find your weak points so that you can narrowly focus on them. Besides the obvious, this will also alert you to weak points in areas that take longer amounts of time to study, such as vocabulary, paragraph comprehension, and grammar.

Do not spend too much time on your strong points. Review them, yes, but do not spend an inordinate amount of time going over materials that you already have a firm grasp on. Analyze why you missed questions on the practice test. Was it because you second guessed yourself? Was it because you just didn’t know how to answer the question? Remember: the more information you have, the better.

Do not try to memorize the answers to questions. Figure out what the question is about and study it. Specific questions are not as important as having a firm grasp of the concepts being tested. Do not try to memorize everything in this guide (or any guide) in a small time window. It simply won’t work. In fact, it will probably undermine the work that you are trying to accomplish.

Generalize the types of thinking that you will have to use during each aptitude test you will take. Make sure you spend time on every part of the guide during your studies. All of them are unique, and all of them will help. Multiple short study sessions are better than single long study sessions.

Here are some strategies you can use to help you narrow down answers. Break down the amount of time that you actually have to spend on individual questions. This can be found by dividing the test time by the number of questions. Make sure you read through every single answer prior to marking anything. You have to keep in mind that many tests want you to select the “best” answer, meaning more than one might be correct, but one of them is “more” correct than the others. Do not make any snap judgments about a particular answer without reading the others, because more than one might be technically correct.

Use clues within the question to help you select the answer and make an educated guess. Run through the test questions very quickly to get the easy ones out of the way first (for the pen and paper version, at least). That way you can determine which questions you will need to spend more time on. If all else fails, go with your gut. People will often second-guess themselves and end up marking the wrong answer. If you lean toward a certain answer right from the start, then go with it.

Eliminate any answers that you can right from the start. On multiple choice tests, two or sometimes three answers will often be obviously wrong. Cross through them or ignore them so that you do not waste valuable time. Always read the full directions before going to try and select answers. This is shockingly important, and it is something that many individuals, for whatever reason, do not do. Big mistake.

Finally, there is one other thing you need to remember: Follow the rules during the test. Don’t do anything that might be misconstrued as cheating. Don’t talk to anyone. Avoid shifting your eyes around to others. Only ask questions to the test administrator. Do not copy down any questions to your papers. If you finish a section early (on the physical version of the test), review your answers. Do not sneak looks at material not being covered yet.answer++