So, I'm studying for the Air Traffic Standardized Aptitude Test, better known as the AT-SAT. It's a test that all aspiring controllers must take, and it determines whether you will advance further into the ATC hiring process or be sent home. Think of it as the ACT for controllers. The test is given at many locations throughout the United States; I'm taking mine in St. Charles, Illinois. Anyway, the test includes eight sections:
- Dials
- Applied Math
- Angles
- Scan
- Air Traffic Scenarios
- Letter Factory
- Personality
- Analogies
The names are pretty self-explanatory. Dials consists of five aircraft instruments, where you are asked to give readings; Applied Math is just that - only no calculators, E6Bs, CX2s, or anything of the like are allowed; Angles gives you several angles and asks you to tell the degrees; Scan asks you to contact "aircraft" within a certain range; Air Traffic Scenarios is just that - an actual ATC simulation; Letter Factory is a conveyor belt game all sorts of dorked up; Personality is like a mini Meyers - Briggs; and Analogies consists of word and picture problems similar to what you would find on an IQ test. This will be the most pressure-fraught test I have taken since the SAT in my life. No one outside the FAA (and likely no one inside, either) knows exactly how the test is scored, but it is believed that the Applied Math section is the most heavily weighted, and the Personality section is there just for kicks.
The test is scored in two ways: a points score based on 100, and a letter grade system. The points system is what you're used to from school, but the letters are very different - instead of the ABCDE that you're used to, the new letter system is WQ (Well Qualified), Q (Qualified), and F (Failing). WQ is 85-100 on the points system and is like scoring an A - it gives you the best chance of being selected for a facility. Q is 70-84.99 and is like scoring a C - you could still be selected if you select a state that has a great need of controllers. F is 0-69 and is just like in school - FAIL! If you score this it's time to start filling out job applications.
So far I've been studying the StuckMic.com study guide (which is VERY helpful), coming up with my own Applied Math questions, and playing the Jeremy Justice Scan and ATC Scenarios games. I've decided not to buy the "Green Book," a decision that I hope doesn't come back to bite me. I don't know how I'm going to do on the test. Math is my weakest subject and that worries me. I'm hoping for a WQ score, but that seems like somewhat of a long shot unless I ace the math. A Q score may still be enough to get me a tentative offer letter (TOL) for Fairbanks.
Anyway, I hope you've found this post informative, and if you're taking the test, make sure you are prepared!
