Marine Corps ASVAB practice test and score requirements

marines.com states: "aspiring Marines must achieve a minimum ASVAB score of 31 or higher—or 50+ if holding a GED or nontraditional diploma." The Marine Corps FAQ adds that "certain Military Occupational Specialties may require a higher score."

The 31 is an AFQT percentile. Your MOS field then depends on composite scores, which the Marine Corps builds by adding subtest Standard Scores together.

The Marine Corps Camp Foster Testing Office guide to the AFCT (the in-service ASVAB retest), which references Marine Corps Order 1230.5C, lists the composites as sums of subtest scores:

WK = Word Knowledge, PC = Paragraph Comprehension, AR = Arithmetic Reasoning, MK = Mathematics Knowledge, MC = Mechanical Comprehension, EI = Electronics Information, AS = Auto & Shop Information, GS = General Science, VE = Verbal Expression (WK + PC). The Marine Corps GT includes Mechanical Comprehension; the Army’s GT does not.

Arithmetic Reasoning sits in the AFQT and in GT, MM and EL. Word Knowledge and Paragraph Comprehension count twice in the AFQT and feed GT and CL. Start with those three, then Mathematics Knowledge, which completes the AFQT and feeds EL and CL.

Then add the technical subjects for the field you want: Mechanical Comprehension for GT and MM, Electronics Information for MM and EL, Auto and Shop Information for MM, General Science for EL.

• 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 Mechanical Comprehension for GT and MM, Electronics Information and Auto and Shop Information for MM, and Electronics Information plus General Science for EL.
• 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.

• The ASVAB retest policy requires a one-month wait between the initial ASVAB and a retest, another one-month wait before a second retest, and a six-month wait for any further retests.
• 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.