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

Hi: How can I find your post about the Status of OCS Programs, thank you again.

http://www.airwarriors.com/community/index.php?threads/ocs-status-fy-13.39176/

Hi:
Thanks again.INTEL - goal of 7, 28 identified CLOSED. So it means only seven to be accepted ,and 28 (if they sign) will be pushed to the next year.Thus by taking second portion of the exam do I have more options? Can I take exam in two part, lets say one in the begging of July and second 3 weeks later.
Thank you

Yes, they will be pushed unless goal changes, but the result is they probably won't be selecting any INTEL of a long while, there were people in designators that were originally selected for FY11 and were pushed 2 FY's.

The second portion of the exam can open up Pilot and NFO for you if you have the scores.

You can merge the test, you can take the OAR then take the other later, however they are waiting on one signature to start the new exam, not sure if it will be possible with the new exam, and if you take the OAR, then the test changes you would have to take the entire exam over.

NayOffRec,

I have a question that my OR has not been able to answer. On some of the descriptions for the INTEL officer test requirements, it states that I need a minimum of:
OAR -35
AQR - 3
PRT

The AQR score only comes from taking the whole ASTB, right?
I just want to make sure that I would not have to take the whole ASTB and just the OAR portion of test.

Thank you in advance for your answer.

That was a missprint from a long time ago, AQR is not required, but INTEL is closed for the foreseeable future, so it really doesn't matter

NavyOffRec,

Thank you for clearing that up.
I have one more question that I would like to ask if you would be so kind as to answer it.

When you say "INTEL is closed for the foreseeable future" is there anyway that you can put that in terms of months or years?
My OR thinks that the October board might still happen after I have shown him your post, but I feel that he really does not have a grasp of what is going on in terms of the Boards and such.

One more question: Can I request to change my OR or am I just stuck?

Once again, thank you in advance.

Years, one of the contributers here has a wife in the INTEL community and there are manning issues, which is why there is a goal of 7 this year and 28 already selected, so that is 21 people who don't get to go to OCS for years??

Just because a board is on the schedule doesn't mean it is happening, the board schedule is made out before the goals are known, it is all speculation, that is why we cancel boards all the time.

When the director of OCS accessions says closed, it is closed, now they always put a tag "unless goals change" but there are still 21 waiting.

If your OR read the emails from NRC he would know, what rank is your OR?

It may not be the OR there are several NRD's that restrict info to the OR's and some of those OR's are about doing what they want, which causes nasty email to be sent out from NRC, I have seen them, there are some ACR's/CR's/XO's/CO's that shouldn't be in charge of watching paint dry.

NavyOffRec,

Once again, thank you for your answers.
I can now see why the age maximum for the INTEL went up to 42 from 35 at the time of commissioning.

I am curious as to if they did open a board for INTEL, would someone more competitive be sent to OCS before the ones that are already identified?
I am trying to gauge what my options are at this point since I am near the threshold for the prior age maximum.

Thank you once again in advance!

My OR is a Lieutenant.

The max age for INTEL has been 42 for quite a while

No, they send them in order of waiting, but goal would have to go up by 21 and even then the FY14 board wouldn't be until early 2013.

How close are you to the max age?

LT's are often tasked with running a division now, and they are only on recruiting for 2 years

NavyOffRec,

Thank you for your prompt replies.

I guess in that case I can wait to put my package together for awhile longer.
I'm just wondering if it would even be possible for me to enlist and then put in the package for INTEL officer in the next couple of years?

I just turned 34.

So I guess he is really not well versed in the OR knowledge as I was hoping he would be.

"

If you want to be an officer don't enlist

LT's used to be just OR's, now they are division officers first and OR's second, or that is how it is turning out, don't blame him so much, blame the guy that came up with this "master plan"

They are also shifting to prefer tech degrees for INTEL, not what many people agree with, but that is what they are doing.

Thank you for all the information that you have cleared up. Now I can figure out what to do while waiting for the boards to open.

Fortunately, I have a degree in physics, and I think it will help my package out a little more than I expected.

Once again thank you for taking the time to answer all the questions.

If you have a degree in physics, and real good grades (you would need this to get picked up Intel anyway) ask about nuclear power school instructor.

Thank you again

Took form 5 today and scored 54 6/6/6. I am near completing Masters in Aeronautical Science from ERAU 4.0 GPA. Studied with Petersons. I know the scores are sub-par, thought I did much better on the test than I did. Retake?

It is not often a person is picked up with 6's, I would retake after studying since the next board is months away.

I agree with NavyOffRec. I was non-select w/ 6s but pro-recced with 7s. You've plenty of time to study and I recommend using more than just Peterson's. Plenty of good info available on this site.

Sounds Good. Appreciate the advice.

Hey all,

I need some advice as to how to proceed from where I am now. Currently I am a rising junior at a good 4 year university. For the past two years I tried to take on an engineering/applied science major and it's not something I've been able to do well in pretty much from the start, which has resulted in currently a 2.2 cumulative GPA. Any non-technical class I've ever taken has pretty much been an A and sometimes a B. Unfortunately I've bombed most of the engineering courses I've taken so I'm not really in great shape grade-wise. Finally I've made the decision that it will be way more important to switch my major to something I can handle success-wise and something that I can enjoy studying. I'm between majoring in Economics or U.S. History. So that's my first question.

Second, I've always wanted to be a naval aviator, since I was a little kid sitting on the floor in front of the TV and watching JAG with my parents. I've always wanted to serve and I've always wanted to be in the Navy. The reason I'm not in ROTC or at the Naval Academy or something of the like is that a couple of years ago while applying to college, I had that high school mid-life crisis type thing where I decided I wasn't mature enough to decide that that was what I wanted to do with my life, no matter how long I had wanted it. Now I'm 20 years old and halfway through college, and I'm trusting myself with the decision that this is what I want. My second question is about my path from here. I know about BDCP and that would be awesome, but I know I'm not qualified yet. I suppose when I do get my GPA up I can apply and try to get it for my senior year, but I don't really need to have college paid for; I would more go for BDCP to have the guaranteed slot at OCS. I just don't know what I should start doing right now. I know at the very least I need to work hard and get my grades in order, but beyond that I don't really know what I can do to get the ball rolling; I'm a hands on type of person and I'm not comfortable unless I'm actively working toward something.

So to sum it up, I really need help choosing a major (U.S. History or Economics), and I need a suggestion for my next step forward. Beyond that, I know it would absolutely SUCK to hear, but if I need a reality check about this, please let me know. Outside of my academics, I'm an EMT, an Emergency Room Technician on top of school, and I've been a pretty active patriot since I was in middle school. I just need some help getting started and someone to point me in the right direction.

Sorry for the obnoxiously long post, and many thanks in advance to anyone who can help me!

They have not selected anyone for BDCP in about 2 years, and, it would be mathematically impossible to get your GPA to a point where people were selected before.

You are also not qualified at this point to apply to any aviation program, the minimum GPA to apply is 2.5, now just because you meet the minimum doesn't mean that is the GPA at which you can be selected, you need to be closer to 3.0 to be considered and have really good ASTB.

Basically you need to 4.0 your last 2 years.

Meesh, I have good news - the next 2 years of your life are going to suck. You have to get your GPA up, that's your biggest hurdle. I would even consider retaking 2-3 courses you did poorly in and ace those bad boys to get your GPA higher. Either of those majors will most likely not affect your selection, so pick one you wouldn't mind doing the rest of your life (I'm a Public Relations major). Start volunteering, looking for clubs to join, then try to obtain a leadership positing in. Also, when it comes time to take the ASTB, study your butt off for that, too. Get good scores, and if you don't, learn from the first test and study your weak areas. Write a good moto statement (leave out the early life crisis part!) and have it reviewed here. If you do all of that, you'll make it hard for them to turn you away.

This is all info posted around here a million times, but if you want it, it's not too late for you. Also, if serving is really the most important part for you, consider putting in packages for the CG, AF, or Marines. I was turned away from the CG and was accepted by the Navy with the exact same package. Hope that helps man, good luck.

This is a very last-minute question from a long-time lurker. My ASTB is Wednesday (tomorrow) morning at 10 a.m. PST, so I'm just trying to get any last bits of helpful stuff jammed into my brain.

My main concern right now is trivia-type information in the aviation or OAR sections. I've studied every piece of gouge on this site along with the PHAK, the For Dummies book, ARCO and Peterson's, and I've been using a deck of 80 flash cards to cram all the aviation stuff in. Yet, when I browse this thread, I see other curveball questions like, "Which bomber was used in the '50s," "What classification is the Sidewinder missile," "Which of these craft would best be suited for a ground attack," and other things like that.

What I'm wondering at this point is: Does anyone have any broad recommendations for the type of aviation knowledge I might effectively study for a few hours tonight that didn't appear in any of the gouge/popular study materials? I understand that the ASTB is very much a "1,000 miles wide but one inch deep" sort of thing, so I couldn't possibly study everything that may appear, but the advice can't hurt.

Thanks!

[quote="asheldon917, post: 704684, member: 34103] Does anyone have any broad recommendations for the type of aviation knowledge I might effectively study for a few hours tonight that didn't appear in any of the gouge/popular study materials? I understand that the ASTB is very much a "1,000 miles wide but one inch deep" sort of thing, so I couldn't possibly study everything that may appear, but the advice can't hurt.

Thanks![/quote]

I'm by no means an expert on anything, but it's my understanding that questions like the ones you mentioned are there because they are indicative of a lifelong interest in military aviation. I.E. if you grew up obsessed with fighters you'd still know at test taking age that AIM-9's are Sidewinders, what planes we flew when, and what planes are suited to what jobs, etc. Maybe skim wikipedia for some high level stuff, but your time is probably best spent preparing for things you know will be on the test.

I don't want to come across sounding like I know anything for certain, but I understand the last night stress of studying and I thought you were warranted at least some kind of reply. Good Luck!

That makes plenty of sense I think I'd best stick to the flash cards and avoid trying to cram a ton of information in that might only theoretically wind up on the test. Thanks!

I think this is what you should stick with. The pool of information they pull from is almost limitless its essentially impossible to "study" everything.

Best advice? Get some sleep. If you've been studying up till now, cramming will be of minimal benefit to you. Get some quality shut eye and you'll be better prepared than anything else you could tonight.

Good luck!

Agreed... My best ASTB prep was getting a good nights rest. Then do a practice test or two before you go to get your mind up and running again.