ASVAB (Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery), a series of ten tests, is considered as a key to open a US military career door. In fact, only the first four tests, including Paragraph comprehension, determine your qualifications to join the service and the other six tests will be used to place the best branch for you. Since the Paragraph comprehension ASVAB test, it is required that you be well-prepared before taking it. Thus, this article will provide you with an ASVAB paragraph comprehension study guide and the useful tips you need to succeed in this test.

 

1. What ASVAB PC test cover?

 

1.1. Structure of ASVAB PC test

 

There are 2 types of ASVAB Paragraph comprehension test. On paper and pencil version, you need to answer 15 questions for 13 or 14 passages in 13 minutes. CAT – ASVAB version requires you to answer 11 questions in 22 given minutes.

 

1.2. Types of questions in ASVAB Paragraph Comprehension test

 

There are 4 types of questions that appear in the  ASVAB Paragraph comprehension test:

  • Detail – Oriented Questions: In these questions, your task is to read a paragraph and then identify the specific details that appear in it.
  • Purpose Identification Questions: In these questions, you are in charge of determining the overall purpose of the whole paragraph.
  • Single Word Meaning Questions: In these questions, there will be a word that you need to point out its meaning, based on how it is used in the sentence or paragraph.
  • Reader Inference Questions: In these questions, you will be required to read the whole paragraph and then infer what the author’s opinion or what he/she wanted to convey.

 

2. How to qualify the ASVAB Paragraph Comprehension test?

 

The ASVAB Paragraph Comprehension test
Each military branch has different requirements for the score.

 

As mentioned before, the ASVAB Paragraph comprehension test is one of the four core tests. Thus, they combine together and range from 1 to 100. Besides, each military branch has different requirements for the score. However, to enter your aim, you can check the branches’ minimum score table below: 

Branch Diploma holders GED holders
Army 31 50
Air force 36 65
Navy 35 50
Marine Corps 32 50
Coast Guard 40 50
National Guard 31 50

 

3. Which specific skills are needed to do the ASVAB Paragraph Comprehension test?

 

In taking the ASVAB Paragraph comprehension test, there are 2 methods you need to pay attention to, scanning and skimming skills.

Skimming skill is rapid reading type. It help us focus on the titles, headings, topic sentences, tables, charts and then get the meaning under them. This skill allows us to read through the passage quickly, summarize all the information in the shortest time. It is useful for dealing with Reader Inference Questions type.

On the other hand, Scanning is a look for specific details. It means you just have a very quick look at the paragraph and find a specific number or word. When using this skill, you do not need to read the whole text. Therefore, it saves time if the paragraph is lengthy and complicated.

Related article >>> ASVAB Mathematics Knowledge Study Guide

 

4. What is the best ASVAB Paragraph Comprehension Study Guide by Estudyme?

 

Because this is a reading test, you need to practice your reading skill carefully. You can practice on our website – ASVAB Test Pro. We provide you the sample tests with the same structure and level as actual tests, to help you master all the questions and get the highest score.

 

asvab paragraph comprehension
You need to practice your reading skill carefully!

 

All the questions are used to test your ability to comprehend the presented information from the passages. Thus, all you need to do is to stay focused on what you are reading. Besides, your speed plays an important role to win this game. Our ASVAB Paragraph Comprehension study guide will give you some tips and trustful advice to improve your concentration and reading speed:

 

4.1. Look at the questions first

 

The biggest advantage of the Paragraph Comprehension Test is you can look back any times you want. Therefore, reading the questions to identify the specific detail as numbers, keywords that are mentioned in the questions then quickly scan them in the paragraph will save much time.  

 

4.2. Eliminate the wrong answers 

 

If you can not find the correct answer right away, look for options that contain wrong data or specific words that you saw in the passage. Eliminating the clearly wrong answer can help you increase your odds of finding the correct answer by 25%.

It is not difficult to find there are 2 options with the same meaning or exactly share the same idea. They are likely making the wrong choice. Your task here is just to eliminate them and focus on other options.

 

4.3. Read the 3rd word in the paragraph

 

When the question is not about the detail or vocabulary-in-context, you need to use the skimming method, read through the passage to find out the answer. We all know the trick: the first and last sentence are about the main idea. Do you know the 3rd word of the paragraph can help you with the interference questions? Try it to improve your speed and score.

 

4.4. Look for matching phrases

 

The correct answer is going to always refer to a specific part of the text, so try to identify the specific part immediately. Scan the answer choices and take a moment to check if each one is reflected in the passage. If an answer choice isn’t reflected in the text, it’s not going to be correct.

 

4.5. Look for traps

 

The qualifiers such as “always”, “sometimes”, “never” or “often” are traps that take your score away. Absolute qualifiers like “always” or “never” are often wrong answers. To be not trapped, look for exactly stated words in the paragraph and try to remember the synonyms and antonyms of those qualifiers. Besides, beware of comparison words because they are also tricky ones.

 

4.6. Determine unclear answer choices

 

When looking at the answers, you need to find which one is a vague, partial true or false option, then look back to the passage again to make your decision. Answering the ASVAB paragraph comprehension test requires you to carefully consider all the choices and wordings. In addition, you can look at the sentences before and after the vogue answer sentence, it can help you identify the meaning well.

 

The ASVAB Paragraph comprehension test is an important part of the ASVAB Test. We hope that after reading all the information we provided you in the Paragraph Comprehension ASVAB Study guide, you can fully understand and pass the test with a high score. Let’s take the Paragraph Comprehension ASVAB Practice Test right away!