Army ASVAB practice test and score requirements

The Army states: "To enlist, you need an ASVAB score of at least 31." That number is the AFQT percentile, computed from four subtests. It opens enlistment; your line scores then decide which Military Occupational Specialties (MOS) you can choose.

If you score below 31, the Army describes a route back: "If you have a minimum score of 21, there’s an academic track of the Future Soldier Preparatory Course to help you better your score. This 90-day program provides training on all the subjects covered on the ASVAB, as well as opportunities to retake the test."

The Army lists ten line scores and the subtests behind them. Verbal Expression (VE) is the combined Word Knowledge and Paragraph Comprehension result.

Subtest lists are from goarmy.com, which names each line score in full; the two-letter codes are the standard composite abbreviations used in the Defense Manpower Data Center’s ASVAB score-scale report. Each MOS lists the line score and minimum it needs; goarmy.com does not publish the weighting inside a line score.

Verbal Expression and Mechanical Comprehension each appear in six of the ten line scores; Arithmetic Reasoning, Mathematics Knowledge and Auto & Shop Information in five each. General Technical is built from Verbal Expression and Arithmetic Reasoning alone. Start with the four AFQT subjects: they move your enlistment score and most line scores together.

Then add the technical subjects behind the jobs you want. Auto & Shop Information and Mechanical Comprehension drive Combat, Mechanical Maintenance, Operators & Food and Surveillance & Communication; Electronics Information and General Science drive Electronics and General Maintenance; Skilled Technical adds General Science and Mechanical Comprehension to the verbal and math core.

• Arithmetic Reasoning (AR)
• Mathematics Knowledge (MK)
• Word Knowledge (WK)
• Paragraph Comprehension (PC)
• General Science (GS)
• Electronics Information (EI)
• Auto Information (AI)
• Shop Information (SI)
• Mechanical Comprehension (MC)

• Take the AFQT subjects test first: 55 questions across Arithmetic Reasoning, Word Knowledge, Paragraph Comprehension and Mathematics Knowledge with computer-format section timing. It shows which of the four core subjects needs work.
• Run ten-question drills in each weak subject. Every question has a worked explanation, so review the method behind each miss before trying fresh questions.
• Add Auto Information, Shop Information and Mechanical Comprehension drills for the mechanical line scores, and Electronics Information plus General Science for Electronics and General Maintenance.
• Finish with the full computer-format test (135 questions, ten sections) to rehearse pacing across the whole battery before your appointment.

• AFQT subjects test: 55 questions, four sections
• Full computer-format test: 135 questions, ten sections
• Ten-question drills in every subject

Every branch minimum is an AFQT score. Official scoring computes it from the Standard Scores of four subtests: Arithmetic Reasoning, Mathematics Knowledge, Paragraph Comprehension and Word Knowledge. It is reported as a percentile from 1 to 99, the percentage of a national reference group of 18- to 23-year-olds who scored at or below you.

The Department of Defense groups AFQT percentiles into categories. A 31 is the floor of Category IIIB; a 50 is the floor of Category IIIA.

• Army retest rule: "After your first attempt, you must wait one calendar month to retake the test. Your third attempt can be administered no earlier than six calendar months after your second test."
• The Army also states that "your most recent score—not your highest—will be used to assess your performance." A retest can lower your score of record, so retest when fresh practice shows a real gain.
• An AFQT gain of 20 or more points within six months triggers a confirmation test (C-Test), which may be taken immediately.
• Official applicant guidance says ASVAB scores may be used for enlistment for up to two years from the date of testing.