The Military Blog

ASVAB Practice Questions could help you

Both the paper-based and the computerized ASVAB are multiple-choice tests. You choose the correct (or most correct) answer from among four choices. Here are some tips to keep in mind as you tackle the choices:

Read the directions carefully. Each subtest has a paragraph or two describing what the subtest covers and instructions on how to answer the questions. Although instructing you to read the directions may seem obvious, when you’re in a hurry, you can sometimes misread the directions, and that won’t help you get the right answer. For example, if the directions on Paragraph Comprehension subtest informs you that a paragraph applies to questions number 3, 4, and 5, and you misread it as 4, 5, and 6, you’re going to get at least one of those questions wrong.

Most ASVAB test proctors agree — the majority of the time when there’s an issue with an applicant’s scores, the misreading of directions is the prime offender.

Make sure you understand the question. If you don’t understand the question, you’re naturally not going to be able to make the best decision when it comes to selecting an answer. Understanding the question, though, requires attention to three particular points:

Take special care to read the questions correctly. Most questions ask something like, “Which of the following equals 2 × 3?” But sometimes, a question may ask, “Which of the following does not equal 2 × 3?” You can easily skip right over the word not when you’re reading, assume that the answer is six, and get the question wrong.

On the math subtests, be especially careful to read the symbols correctly. When you’re in a hurry, the + sign and the ÷ sign can look very similar. And blowing right by a negative sign or another symbol is just as easy.

Make sure you understand the terms being used. When a math problem asks you to find the product of two numbers, be sure you know what finding the product means. (It means you have to multiply the two numbers.) If you add the two numbers together, you arrive at the wrong answer.

Take time to review all the answer options. On all the subtests, you select the correct answer from four possible answer options. Often, a person reads a question, decides on the answer, glances at the answer options, chooses the option that agrees with his or her answer, marks it on the answer sheet, and then moves on. Although this approach usually works, it can sometimes lead you astray.

On the ASVAB, you’re supposed to choose the answer that is most correct. (Now and then you do the opposite and choose the answer that is least correct.) Sometimes several answers are reasonably correct for the question at hand, but only one of them is the best answer. If you don’t stop to read and review all the answers, you may not choose the one that is most correct. Or, if you review all the answer options, you may realize that you hastily decided on an incorrect answer because you misread it.

If you’re taking a paper test, mark the answer carefully. A machine scores the ASVAB paper-based answer sheets. You have to clearly mark the answer so that the machine knows what answer you’ve selected. This means carefully filling in the space that represents the correct letter answer. You’ve done this a million times in school, we know, but it’s worth repeating. Don’t use a check mark, don’t circle the answer, and don’t let your mark wander into the next space. If you must erase, make certain that all evidence of your prior choice is gone; otherwise, the grading machine can get confused and credit you with the wrong choice or, worse, disregard your answer and give you no credit at all.

On the paper version, the very real possibility exists of incorrectly marking the answer sheet — answering Question 11 on the line for Question 12, Question 12 on the line for Question 13, and . . . you get the idea. (Don’t laugh — this happens more often than you would guess.) Be especially careful if you skip a question that you’re going to return to later.

Incorrectly marking the answers can cause a real headache. If you fail to get a qualifying score, the minimum amount of time you must wait before retaking the ASVAB is 30 days — you have to wait a whole month to do it all over again. Even then, your journey to military glory through ASVAB torment may not be over. Regulations allow the testing- center commander to request another retest if a 20-point or greater difference between two test results pops up. So, if you’re not careful, you’ll be taking three ASVABs when all you really needed to take was one. Sound fun?