The ASVAB General Science component of your test is both demanding and rewarding. In this section, we go through helpful preparation techniques you can adopt in the lead-up to your exam.
The ASVAB General Science component of your test is both demanding and rewarding. In this section, we go through helpful preparation techniques you can adopt in the lead-up to your exam.
One of the more challenging parts of your test preparation involved tackling the tremendously large syllabus of the ASVAB General Science test. Many candidates have difficulty precisely because of the wealth of scientific facts they’re expected to recall. This doesn’t have to be a problem, though, as long as you become familiar with what’s expected, as well as taking part in innumerable quizzes. These quizzes will help you to determine where you’re going right from where you need to make an extra effort. It’s incumbent upon you, therefore, to make such an attempt.
This guide will go some way toward achieving that goal, as we take you through the requirements and the syllabus of the exam. From there, we will look at the type of question you can expect, as well as strategies to help you prepare for exam day. We will begin by looking at what you can expect to face on the day – the first step in exam preparation.
Of course, your ASVAB General Science exam is just one part of the overall test. The test is composed of nine distinct subjects – with the GS component being just one of them. At the same time, you may not be aware of the different formats this exam can take – as there are two available options: written and computerized. By far the more common method of examination these days is the computerized version. In your ASVAB General Science test, you will be expected to answer 16 questions in 8 minutes – meaning you have just 30 seconds to answer each and every question! Not much time. That’s where long-term preparation comes in!
This is an important statistic as it should underpin your entire study approach. You will need to train to become efficient at answering questions in the correct way – while avoiding rushing by focussing on irrelevant details. This will, of course, take a considerable amount of practice but, with enough time, you will certainly achieve what you desire. For more information on exam strategy, please see below for more information. At this point, it’s probably worth considering the format of the questions involved. All questions in the ASVAB General Science test are characterised by 1 question and 4 possible answers. This, as with the time we just mentioned, should also play a part of your overall exam strategy.
Why? Well, if you know in advance of the ASVAB General Science question type, you are better placed to eliminate answers you know to be false. This means you reduce the possibility of selecting the correct answer. You need to avoid guessing answers. Always try to rationalize the question and work out the most plausible option. Your choice needs to be a sound one, backed up by evidence, and must be logical. There’s little point viewing one of the four answers and assuming it’s correct, as often these questions are phrased in such a way to catch students out. So, you need to concentrate at all times, while having within your inventory an appropriate strategy to deal with the questions.
At the same time, though, you will need to harvest a sufficient degree of general science knowledge over the course of your studies. You cannot rely on exam strategy without the requisite study performed – in other words, the two go hand in hand. This knowledge should be accrued over the previous weeks and months in a defined way. You need to have an adequate study strategy, one that deals with every conceivable subject on your ASVAB General Science exam, but done so in a comprehensive way that doesn’t go into too much irrelevant detail. This is where many military candidates actually fall.
Always attempt each question in the ASVAB General Science exam. Time spent eliminating potential answers increases the chance of selecting the right one.
This is because many candidates might become too interested in a particular topic, over-study it and, as a result, spend less time on other sections. This may be due to the fact candidates find some topics more interesting than others, and so are biased in favour of studying them to an unnecessarily detailed level. You need to be able to identify the specific knowledge tested on the exam and prepare for this in advance. You can guarantee this via any number of ways, the simplest being to enrol in the ASVAB Test Study subscription program that covers all the required details involved in the ASVAB General Science test.
When you have our resources present, you can now begin your study. You should begin with one topic at a time; while perusing the titles and headings before you sit down to digest the material therein. Inevitably, much of the material will be new to you, though you might have some basic familiarity with the subject at hand. Either way, go through the material and make some succinct notes. These notes should not be written as a copy-and-paste job from the resources but, instead, re-written in your own words. By doing this, you are more likely to remember it as you will be using your mental faculties more. Follow these steps accordingly:
If you were to do the opposite and copy-and-paste notes directly, you run the risk of pretending to study. This means writing hundreds of pages of notes without really understanding what it is you’re writing. Avoid this by writing in your own words as it’ll challenge you as to whether you actually do understand the material at hand. These notes should be reviewed on a daily basis, but they should be short enough for you to review. If you write hundreds of pages of notes, you will find them difficult to review and, consequently, will be no different than reading from the resource in the first place.
Once you have completed a given section, you should now engage in some form of self-assessment – preferably assessment in the form of the style of questions you will expect on the day of your exam. This is a crucial step. Many candidates fall at this hurdle due to an irrational fear of being evaluated – as attaining a low mark may result in a loss of confidence. This must be overcome and the best way of achieving this is through reinterpreting how we view assessments. ASVAB General Science assessments should be viewed as positive experiences; where the worse mark you achieve the better. This errors should be considered a “blueprint”, that allows you to determine where to study next.
Calibrating your current level of ASVAB General Science knowledge is essential to improvement. Use the self-assessments positively in this regard. Couple this work with the study you should aim to do consistently, and at defined times according to the timetable you have drawn up. The study area should be both quiet and oxygenated, and you should write all notes in your own words. Understand the requirements of the exam, as well as how much time you have available – with all of these factors go toward enhancing your mark. Also consider checking out our resource section, as this provides you with all the study guides you need to pass your ASVAB General Science exam.
If you would like to learn more about exclusive resources you can use to pass your ASVAB General Science exam, click here for more information.