SIFT INFORMATION

[ronricorum88]

I took the test 11 March. I took the given advice to study the ASTB and FAA rotor handbook and made an extensive amount of flashcards. I studied the GMAT placement test to brush up on math. Read through Arco and Barons study guides for astb and afast portions... The copy of barons study guide I had was inaccurate for quite a few of the practice test questions believe it or not so be careful! I ended up ditching that. Night before and day of I did the practice tests and read through flash cards again and I ended up scoring an 80.

 

Great job and aloha!

[akscott60]

Perfect score? Shiiiiiit son. I was damn proud of my 150 AFAST, but that wasnt a perfect score.

[Lindsey]

Well, scored a 73. 7 points off target. More to follow.

[Helipilot PTK]

Well, scored a 73. 7 points off target. More to follow.

Awesome score! Congrats!

[ftxag76]

Great job!

[Lindsey]

Awesome score! Congrats!

 

 

Great job!

 

Thanks guys. Adaptive subtests are a beast. The better you do, the worse you feel about the test, since the questions become astronomically harder. I studied every single Math/Mechanical question in the ARCO/BARRON'S books and still didn't recognize most of the questions from those study guides (had to think back 7ish years ago to math classes in high school).

 

General thoughts:

 

Simple Drawings

As has been reported earlier in this thread, this section is extremely easy. The hard part is just trying to finish it all within the alloted time. I think I got 79/100 done within the 2 minutes.

 

Hidden Figures

Not fun. It wouldn't be too difficult except that there are 50 of them in 5 minutes, and if you take a look at the examples in the AFOQT, it can take a little while to find the correct shape. Did not like this section, but understand the value in its placement in an aptitude test.

 

Army Aviation Information Test

I'm a helicopter flight instructor, so this section was pretty much a breeze. However, it would behoove you to really understand which flight controls effect which systems and how, night vision techniques, basic flight regulations, pilot risk assessment, etc. READ THE FAA HELICOPTER FLYING HANDBOOK. All of the answers to the questions in this section (aside from the Army ones, which I guarantee you will know just from being here on the forums) can be found in that book. Read it a few times if you want to ace it.

 

Spatial Apperception

Not bad at all. They give you waaaaaaay more than enough time. I double-checked my answers but I could have triple-checked them if I wanted to. Check out the ASTB spatial apperception section -- basically the same thing.

 

Reading Comprehension

A few questions I had to flag and come back to, but still finished the 20 questions easily within the 30 minutes alloted, and had time to double-check all my answers. Hard to really study for this section, other than to just "shut your brain off" and focus only on the passage and not what you know from outside sources.

 

Math

As mentioned before, your experience here in this section will vary greatly depending on how you do. If you do well, it becomes harder. I must have had 2 or 3 questions that had you do something along the lines of 2^(-3/4). Except way more complicated than that. I won't put an actual test question on here but imagine the worst way you could use that example as a test question and you will come close to one that I saw on the test. I went into this section thinking I was gonna ace every question no problem (remember I'd put in 25 hours of study into math and mechanical prior to testing), and definitely had a on my face for several of these questions. It also does not let you skip any questions, go back, or anything. The question you have in front of you HAS to be answered to move on, and there is a penalty for getting it wrong (i.e. guessing). Because this section is adaptive, the number of questions varies and you have no clue if you will get 5 questions or 50, which makes it very nerve-wracking. Best strategy is to TAKE YOUR TIME and focus on getting the correct answer for the question in front of you.

 

Mechanical

This section to me was by far the biggest shock. Again, remember, it's adaptive. If you answer a question right, the next one is multitudes harder. Yesterday, I took four or five mechanical subtests from Arco and Barron's and scored 100% on each one (when I first started taking them, my scores were absymal, so studying paid off in that sense). So again, like the math, I thought I'd ace it. All I know is that the questions were a lot different in my experience than in the practice tests provided by the aforementioned companies. I had a lot more word problems than figures. Questions about things like AC generators that I had no idea about (and I'd studied AC generators). If you know the practice tests I'm talking about, they are about 85-90% figures and 10-15% word problems. On the actual SIFT it was about 70% word problems and 30% figures. On the whole, I think I did decently on this section.

 

 

Overall Thoughts:

I felt that the SIFT was a great test. It does an excellent job of walking the fine line of rewarding those who study and prepare while also measuring aptitude. I studied the sh*t out of that test (I was getting 100%'s on every practice test that I took after putting in ~25 hours of study for this thing) and still did not earn a perfect score. Definitely different than the AFAST which was possible to ace (or near ace) with similar amount of study.

 

So, my opinion: it's an aptitude test, but still study for it.

[rixa77]

Thanks guys. Adaptive subtests are a beast. The better you do, the worse you feel about the test, since the questions become astronomically harder. I studied every single Math/Mechanical question in the ARCO/BARRON'S books and still didn't recognize most of the questions from those study guides (had to think back 7ish years ago to math classes in high school).

 

General thoughts:

 

Simple Drawings

As has been reported earlier in this thread, this section is extremely easy. The hard part is just trying to finish it all within the alloted time. I think I got 79/100 done within the 2 minutes.

 

Hidden Figures

Not fun. It wouldn't be too difficult except that there are 50 of them in 5 minutes, and if you take a look at the examples in the AFOQT, it can take a little while to find the correct shape. Did not like this section, but understand the value in its placement in an aptitude test.

 

Army Aviation Information Test

I'm a helicopter flight instructor, so this section was pretty much a breeze. However, it would behoove you to really understand which flight controls effect which systems and how, night vision techniques, basic flight regulations, pilot risk assessment, etc. READ THE FAA HELICOPTER FLYING HANDBOOK. All of the answers to the questions in this section (aside from the Army ones, which I guarantee you will know just from being here on the forums) can be found in that book. Read it a few times if you want to ace it.

 

Spatial Apperception

Not bad at all. They give you waaaaaaay more than enough time. I double-checked my answers but I could have triple-checked them if I wanted to. Check out the ASTB spatial apperception section -- basically the same thing.

 

Reading Comprehension

A few questions I had to flag and come back to, but still finished the 20 questions easily within the 30 minutes alloted, and had time to double-check all my answers. Hard to really study for this section, other than to just "shut your brain off" and focus only on the passage and not what you know from outside sources.

 

Math

As mentioned before, your experience here in this section will vary greatly depending on how you do. If you do well, it becomes harder. I must have had 2 or 3 questions that had you do something along the lines of 2^(-3/4). Except way more complicated than that. I won't put an actual test question on here but imagine the worst way you could use that example as a test question and you will come close to one that I saw on the test. I went into this section thinking I was gonna ace every question no problem (remember I'd put in 25 hours of study into math and mechanical prior to testing), and definitely had a on my face for several of these questions. It also does not let you skip any questions, go back, or anything. The question you have in front of you HAS to be answered to move on, and there is a penalty for getting it wrong (i.e. guessing). Because this section is adaptive, the number of questions varies and you have no clue if you will get 5 questions or 50, which makes it very nerve-wracking. Best strategy is to TAKE YOUR TIME and focus on getting the correct answer for the question in front of you.

 

Mechanical

This section to me was by far the biggest shock. Again, remember, it's adaptive. If you answer a question right, the next one is multitudes harder. Yesterday, I took four or five mechanical subtests from Arco and Barron's and scored 100% on each one (when I first started taking them, my scores were absymal, so studying paid off in that sense). So again, like the math, I thought I'd ace it. All I know is that the questions were a lot different in my experience than in the practice tests provided by the aforementioned companies. I had a lot more word problems than figures. Questions about things like AC generators that I had no idea about (and I'd studied AC generators). If you know the practice tests I'm talking about, they are about 85-90% figures and 10-15% word problems. On the actual SIFT it was about 70% word problems and 30% figures. On the whole, I think I did decently on this section.

 

 

Overall Thoughts:

I felt that the SIFT was a great test. It does an excellent job of walking the fine line of rewarding those who study and prepare while also measuring aptitude. I studied the sh*t out of that test (I was getting 100%'s on every practice test that I took after putting in ~25 hours of study for this thing) and still did not earn a perfect score. Definitely different than the AFAST which was possible to ace (or near ace) with similar amount of study.

 

So, my opinion: it's an aptitude test, but still study for it.

Awesome information thanks so much! Do you mind sharing what you got? I'm a cadet and have the test coming up next friday and plan on studying a similar amount. Also is there any trigonometry in the math section?

[d10]

Also is there any trigonometry in the math section?

I hope so. That actually has some use for pilots.

[dustoffdreamer]

Nice job on the test Lindsey!! The info that you gave is really helpful, and I'm sure will definitely prove effective for many of us, so thanks for that!

May I ask what your study regime was like? Did you read things over and over again, use flashcards, etc? Did you take the same tests over again that were in the books?

[Lindsey]

Awesome information thanks so much! Do you mind sharing what you got? I'm a cadet and have the test coming up next friday and plan on studying a similar amount. Also is there any trigonometry in the math section?

 

No problem - I got a 73. If by trig you mean sine, cosine, tangent, I didn't have any whatsoever. You'll need to use the quadratic equation but that's about it. Again, this can vary because it's an adaptive test. You very may well get a trig question but who knows. Let me know if there's anything else I can help with.

 

Nice job on the test Lindsey!! The info that you gave is really helpful, and I'm sure will definitely prove effective for many of us, so thanks for that!

May I ask what your study regime was like? Did you read things over and over again, use flashcards, etc? Did you take the same tests over again that were in the books?

 

You betcha. This place has been the best resource for WOFT by far, and I aim to give back. Regarding my study regime, I didn't use flashcards because I didn't see any real point with the style of this test. You're not really rote-memorizing anything, and basic formulas are provided in the math section during the test on the sidebar. I used the Arco and Barron's books and took each practice test, went over my missed problems, took another practice test, went over my missed problems, etc and then went back and took all those practice tests over again about 6 times (not an exaggeration). Anything that wasn't explained well enough in the book, I googled. Tips posted in this thread earlier that weren't in the books (newtons, etc), I googled and tried to figure out how they would ask the question. I reread the Helicopter Flying Handbook as well.

[Lindsey]

By the way, I'll be finished with a massive SIFT study guide here in the next couple days. I wasn't going to post it directly onto the forums, but I think I might, since now I know that the SIFT is actually really great in the sense that you can't study your way to an 80 (at least not for me). It's really not much - lots of pages but that's mainly photocopied relevant pages from ARCO and Barron's. I've also collected all the gold nuggets of information found in this thread so far and compiled it neatly within the guide. Should be up here on Thurs or Friday.

[tydaddy]

Great job linds! Good, so I wasn't crazy thinking that the math problems are hard as hell...lol. I guess I was doing well! Good info! You guys need to hurry up and get accepted!

[64wannabe]

"You're not really rote-memorizing anything, and basic formulas are provided in the math section during the test on the sidebar."

 

Wow the formulas are given, that's awesome! I've been refreshing my algebra, what other math do you recommend studying?

 

Thanks for the awesome post!

[GraphiteBlur]

You guys need to hurry up and get accepted!

We couldn't agree with you more!!!

[ftxag76]

Amen! You said it

[rixa77]

By the way, I'll be finished with a massive SIFT study guide here in the next couple days. I wasn't going to post it directly onto the forums, but I think I might, since now I know that the SIFT is actually really great in the sense that you can't study your way to an 80 (at least not for me). It's really not much - lots of pages but that's mainly photocopied relevant pages from ARCO and Barron's. I've also collected all the gold nuggets of information found in this thread so far and compiled it neatly within the guide. Should be up here on Thurs or Friday.

You're awesome thanks!

 

Can you do me a favor, if you can find an online resource that has similar practice mechanical comprehension questions can you post or PM it to me? I've been studying ASVAB and ASTB mechanical comp questions but I need a lot more practice.

[Davey_HK]

Thank you for the congrats, I started this post awhile back from my phone but the whole post got erased and ive been terribly busy since then. Thank you lindsey for your commitment to helping those who are preparing to take the SIFT. I generally agree with lindseys assessment of the test although in the case of studying aviation knowledge flashcards helped me immensely. Most of the other sections i studied for I.E. math has already gone in and out of my brain and I took the test less than a month ago lol. I feel that I definitely went overboard with the amount of time spent studying aviation information, principles of flights, flight dynamics, etc. but it will only help me in the long run as I gained a thorough understanding of what is actually taking place during helicopter flight so if you are serious about flying it is worth it to familiarize yourself now.

 

Now I have to put together a moral waiver for not paying much heed to traffic laws in my late teens

Anyone in this same boat? what is the format for listing all courts, dates, nature of charge, etc.

I thought i got past this when i enlisted and gained secret security clearance, but its feeling like this will always come back to bite me in the a**.

Thanks again

[tydaddy]

Thank you for the congrats, I started this post awhile back from my phone but the whole post got erased and ive been terribly busy since then. Thank you lindsey for your commitment to helping those who are preparing to take the SIFT. I generally agree with lindseys assessment of the test although in the case of studying aviation knowledge flashcards helped me immensely. Most of the other sections i studied for I.E. math has already gone in and out of my brain and I took the test less than a month ago lol. I feel that I definitely went overboard with the amount of time spent studying aviation information, principles of flights, flight dynamics, etc. but it will only help me in the long run as I gained a thorough understanding of what is actually taking place during helicopter flight so if you are serious about flying it is worth it to familiarize yourself now.

 

Now I have to put together a moral waiver for not paying much heed to traffic laws in my late teens

Anyone in this same boat? what is the format for listing all courts, dates, nature of charge, etc.

I thought i got past this when i enlisted and gained secret security clearance, but its feeling like this will always come back to bite me in the a**.

Thanks again

 

 

That sucks man. I know they're looking for any and every reason to deny folks. Last year I was selected...passed my fought physical and all. Long story short, I wasn't able to accept last year. Fast forward to this year...I reboarded...was selected again. I had a Med inspect since my flight physical was still valid - and the doc at meps saw an allergy that had been previously approved with no waiver...and disqualified me. Got the waiver...so it was a moot point, but they're looking for any excuse in the world to dq candidates. Keep your fingers crossed.

[SemperGumby]

Now I have to put together a moral waiver for not paying much heed to traffic laws in my late teens

Anyone in this same boat? what is the format for listing all courts, dates, nature of charge, etc.

I thought i got past this when i enlisted and gained secret security clearance, but its feeling like this will always come back to bite me in the a**.

Thanks again

 

I went through selection in 2011 but also needed a moral waiver for being stupid with a paintball gun when I was 18. I submitted an essay on what happened, what I've accomplished since, and why I should be given a waiver. Then just copies of paperwork from the District Attorney's office saying that my records were expunged. The recruiter took care of the rest, as far as requesting the necessary paperwork from the DA's office.

 

Good Luck!

[I3uller]

A quick note for anyone that is stuck waiting weeks or longer to take the SIFT at MEPS or is looking for alternate testing sites. The test can be and is administered at colleges with Army ROTC programs. I barely missed the scheduling date and was stuck with having to wait over a month just to take the SIFT at MEPS so I called around to a few local colleges and was able to get a SIFT scheduled within a week at a somewhat local college. It's not a guarantee, but if you're nice and the test administer is willing to help you out, you can take the SIFT much quicker than waiting on MEPS. You can use the link below to find colleges with ROTC programs around you.

 

http://www.goarmy.com/rotc/find-schools.html

[Malloy]

Hey Guys,

 

Thanks for all the information put out. I took the AFAST in 2010 as a civilian. I ended up enlisting thanks to some misinformation regarding a security clearance and the fact that my wife didn't have a SSN. I enlisted, became a crewchief, deployed a time or two, and am back to getting my WOFT packet sorted out. When I heard that the AFAST had been dropped I was really bummed, but thanks to you all I'm excited for the opportunity to improve my score. (131 on the AFAST) No doubt I could take it and 'pass' the first time, but with the drawdown, seqestration, and so much uncertainty in Congress I'd like to 'crush it' the first time.

 

I've been printing off all the comments from those who have posted their self evaluations and advice.

 

Lindsey, a study guide would be amazing. I ended up buying a bunch when I was studying for my AFAST. Hopefully I'll be able to replicate your success and increase my chance of moving from the back end to the cockpit.

 

Thanks for all the information. For everyone that posts there have to be a hundred who read and benefit from your shared knowledge.

 

I'll put updates in here about my experience taking the test and results.

 

Thanks!!!

[lawilm]

By the way, I'll be finished with a massive SIFT study guide here in the next couple days. I wasn't going to post it directly onto the forums, but I think I might, since now I know that the SIFT is actually really great in the sense that you can't study your way to an 80 (at least not for me). It's really not much - lots of pages but that's mainly photocopied relevant pages from ARCO and Barron's. I've also collected all the gold nuggets of information found in this thread so far and compiled it neatly within the guide. Should be up here on Thurs or Friday.

 

Lindsey if you would be so sweet and kind to do that I would be forever in your debt.

[Lindsey]

I have to admit, I'm having second thoughts about posting my "guide." For the record, it's not much. A lot of pages, sure, but all that it has is a condensed version of the comments in this thread, and scanned pages from the Barron's book that are applicable to the SIFT. Now, the reason I'm having second thoughts, although I really would like to give back and help out, is two-fold:

 

(1) I have some reliable information that the board members on the USAREC WOFT board do not see your SIFT score. If you passed, that's it. So my 73 is essentially worthless except as a matter of personal pride.

 

(2) A Warrant Officer on another website remarked that "there's an awful lot of information out there about a test that requires a non-disclosure agreement to take." To be honest, I clicked through that stuff on the test pretty quick so I don't remember a non-disclosure agreement and what it entailed. I would think that as long as we aren't giving away specific questions from the test, we should be fine, but it does worry me that perhaps we are giving away too much info and that could be viewed in a negative light by Senior Warrant Officers who do frequent these boards but do not post. Obviously I do not want to compromise my own packet.

 

Therefore, I'm hesitant to offer up any study guide, even though it doesn't have anything on it that's not already publicly available from this website and others. I am open to people's thoughts on this matter...

[lawilm]

I have to admit, I'm having second thoughts about posting my "guide." For the record, it's not much. A lot of pages, sure, but all that it has is a condensed version of the comments in this thread, and scanned pages from the Barron's book that are applicable to the SIFT. Now, the reason I'm having second thoughts, although I really would like to give back and help out, is two-fold:

 

(1) I have some reliable information that the board members on the USAREC WOFT board do not see your SIFT score. If you passed, that's it. So my 73 is essentially worthless except as a matter of personal pride.

 

(2) A Warrant Officer on another website remarked that "there's an awful lot of information out there about a test that requires a non-disclosure agreement to take." To be honest, I clicked through that stuff on the test pretty quick so I don't remember a non-disclosure agreement and what it entailed. I would think that as long as we aren't giving away specific questions from the test, we should be fine, but it does worry me that perhaps we are giving away too much info and that could be viewed in a negative light by Senior Warrant Officers who do frequent these boards but do not post. Obviously I do not want to compromise my own packet.

 

Therefore, I'm hesitant to offer up any study guide, even though it doesn't have anything on it that's not already publicly available from this website and others. I am open to people's thoughts on this matter...

 

Far be it for me to make a solid comment on this and I defer to someone else knowledge but we can all understand and respect the fact that you don't want to compromise yourself.

[tydaddy]

I have to admit, I'm having second thoughts about posting my "guide." For the record, it's not much. A lot of pages, sure, but all that it has is a condensed version of the comments in this thread, and scanned pages from the Barron's book that are applicable to the SIFT. Now, the reason I'm having second thoughts, although I really would like to give back and help out, is two-fold:

 

(1) I have some reliable information that the board members on the USAREC WOFT board do not see your SIFT score. If you passed, that's it. So my 73 is essentially worthless except as a matter of personal pride.

 

(2) A Warrant Officer on another website remarked that "there's an awful lot of information out there about a test that requires a non-disclosure agreement to take." To be honest, I clicked through that stuff on the test pretty quick so I don't remember a non-disclosure agreement and what it entailed. I would think that as long as we aren't giving away specific questions from the test, we should be fine, but it does worry me that perhaps we are giving away too much info and that could be viewed in a negative light by Senior Warrant Officers who do frequent these boards but do not post. Obviously I do not want to compromise my own packet.

 

Therefore, I'm hesitant to offer up any study guide, even though it doesn't have anything on it that's not already publicly available from this website and others. I am open to people's thoughts on this matter...

I agree 100%. There's plenty of info out there...and I believe prospective army leaders shouldn't need to be spoon fed.