Offical PUBNAT 8 is OUT

[stlsiuc]

89-LX,

Where did you take your ATSAT at?

[RdRunnr12]

Originally Posted by 89-LX

<LI type=circle>11/05/2009 11:37:43 AM (Central Time): An AT-SAT score of 70 or above is necessary for passing. Your score was 100. Eligible applicants are categorized as "well qualified" or "qualified" based on AT-SAT scores.
Not bad for only taking 3.5 hours.

They don't have a pat on the back smiley so I'm giving you a clap. Evidently you're looking for one after making sure everyone knows that it only took you 3.5 hours.

On a side note, Congrats on the score!

[basefrk2]

Where was that message?

Was it on the first page of your ASAP profile, right where the original test date notification was?

[89-LX]

Originally Posted by stlsiuc

89-LX,

Where did you take your ATSAT at?

KPIT on the 3rd.

Originally Posted by RdRunnr12

They don't have a pat on the back smiley so I'm giving you a clap. Evidently you're looking for one after making sure everyone knows that it only took you 3.5 hours.

On a side note, Congrats on the score!

Haha, I was just saying it wasn't too bad. The whole events leading up to it are pretty bad. We (my brother and I) flew from DTW-LGA Monday morning to pick up a car I bought, and drive that back to KPIT for the test. On the way to KPIT, the trans blew up, and set us back 6 hrs to get repaird. Well the problem comes in that I only got 3 hrs of sleep Sunday night. We didnt get into KPIT till 345 at night, and into bed till around 400. So I only got another 3 hrs of sleep. 6 hours of sleep in 48 hours. And to do it with little to no sleep in 3.5 hrs and to get a 100, I was pretty happy. Plus I was letting people know how long it only took myself.

And thanks for the congrats. I'm meeting with the facility I want to go to next week or weekend to plug in and listen, talk to them face to face, etc.

Originally Posted by basefrk2

Where was that message?

Was it on the first page of your ASAP profile, right where the original test date notification was?

When I first logged in, it said the message:

**** NOTICE Regarding AT-SAT Score ****


AT-SAT test score information entered:

• 11/05/2009 11:37:43 AM (Central Time): An AT-SAT score of 70 or above is necessary for passing. Your score was 100. Eligible applicants are categorized as "well qualified" or "qualified" based on AT-SAT scores.

AT-SAT test list generated:

• 08/13/2009 03:17:51 PM (Central Time): You have been authorized to take the AT-SAT test for announcement AAC-AMH-09-PUBNAT8-12162. You will be contacted within a few weeks to schedule the test. If you have questions about the process, please call Aviation Careers Division at 405-954-4657.

When I clicked on Ussr Information Tab, and then Test Information, it says:

Test DescriptionTest ScoreTest DateDate Received
from ContractorCTI Graduation
DateTest StatusAT-SAT10011/03/200911/05/2009 Pass

[flyingwriter]

Congrats on the perfect score!

[89-LX]

Originally Posted by flyingwriter

Congrats on the perfect score!

Thanks. I see your test was on 11/3 also, how did you do? Where did you take it at also?

[flyingwriter]

Originally Posted by 89-LX

Thanks. I see your test was on 11/3 also, how did you do? Where did you take it at also?

I took mine in St. Charles, IL. I still haven't gotten my score back yet, but I'm sure it was pretty poor.

[89-LX]

Originally Posted by flyingwriter

I took mine in St. Charles, IL. I still haven't gotten my score back yet, but I'm sure it was pretty poor.

I thought I scored low too, but it turned out good. Just keep your head high. I put in to take the test in IL also, but they put me in KPIT. Sucks, quite a drive from Michigan. Oh well.

[tblessett]

So I took my brain washer today and feel like a complete idiot. I'll let everyone know how much of an idiot i am when my score comes in. I guessed over half of the letter factory questions and blew up four planes.

I guess driving a truck isn't so bad after all

[hship]

tblessett,

i'm sure it's not as bad as you think. everyone says they feel like they did bad. if you kept calm and kept working, then you did good. i hope you get wq!!!!! wow, truck driver to atc, that's a big switch. i wish you luck.

[Jess]

Try not to worry too much. (I know, you're going to anyway. I sure did!) I also crashed about 4 planes and guessed most of the Letter Factory questions and got WQ. If you feel okay about the other stuff, you probably did fine.

[flyingwriter]

Originally Posted by tblessett

So I took my brain washer today and feel like a complete idiot. I'll let everyone know how much of an idiot i am when my score comes in. I guessed over half of the letter factory questions and blew up four planes.

I guess driving a truck isn't so bad after all

I'm even more of an idiot then - I guessed on ALL of the letter factory questions and blew up FIVE planes!

[PGT]

Originally Posted by flyingwriter

I'm even more of an idiot then - I guessed on ALL of the letter factory questions and blew up FIVE planes!

and you wonder why you haven't gotten your score yet

[tblessett]

Oh yeah, and ANALOGIES.......

If I never see another colon again in life, it would be too soon.

What time is it? .......OH NO!!! The colon followed me............I see it on my digital clock.........HELLLLPPPPP!!!

Wow, I need to go to bed. I've officially lost my mind. Take it easy ya'll. Thanks for the confidence in my test score. We'll see.

[SIUav8er]

Originally Posted by tblessett

Oh yeah, and ANALOGIES.......

If I never see another colon again in life, it would be too soon.

What time is it? .......OH NO!!! The colon followed me............I see it on my digital clock.........HELLLLPPPPP!!!

Wow, I need to go to bed. I've officially lost my mind. Take it easy ya'll. Thanks for the confidence in my test score. We'll see.

I think you'll be pleasantly surprised. I know I was!

[Rosstafari]

As long as we're shooting the breeze on these...

Originally Posted by WoH

So lets go over some rumors

1. 95+ only:

This is one of the classic rumors, one that repeats itself every few months. It's completely wrong, and anybody who wants to grind through gathering together individual test scores and comparing them to who gets selections will find that people in the 85-89 range are picked just as often as 90-94 and 96-100.

Which, incidentally, supports one of the few "official" things that we dug up several months ago... that applications are grouped according to Qualified and Well Qualified, with no regard to percentage score. *gasp*

2. Well Qualified only:

The confusion on this one comes because there used to be Qualifieds who'd get selected. But that was a lonnnng time ago, at the combined PUBNAT3/4 panels at the latest, which was last January. Why'd it happen then and it isn't happening now? Simple: numbers. The FAA was still at the point where they thought that they'd be able to cram thousands of people through the system yearly, which, of course, was impossible. Once the system started to get backlogged with PUBNAT2 hires, they slowed things down -- hence the lessened number of PUBNAT openings (which are accounting for the huge increase in applicants, by the way... other sources, like reinstatements, CTO, VRA and CTI don't change significantly year to year, although CTI is growing a bit).

With the system slowing to a crawl, more people applied to fewer openings. One rumor is that 9000 people applied to PUBNAT8. I've never seen it substantiated, but it's not unreasonable to believe. Of course, that means that the FAA now can be more selective with who they pick, and as the AT-SAT is the sole determination to the skill level of an OTS applicant (and CTI, for the most part, unless you consider grade requirements), that's the bar they're judged by. With thousands of people applying to hundreds of openings, there's just no reason for them to pick Qualified applicants. Why would they? They can't even take all of the Well Qualifieds. On a related note, it's also why it's ludicrous to turn down any offer that the FAA gives you.

It's kind of like that scene in Dumb and Dumber, where she tells him that it's a one in a million shot, and he misunderstands goes, "So you're telling me there's a chance!" Well, technically, a Qualified could get hired. In practice, no, it's not going to happen. It's not to anyone's benefit to choose ignorance in the name of "staying positive" on that one... if you scored below 85, you should either plan for a retake in a year or change your career ambitions.

3. No more PUBNATs:

Another perennial rumor that comes up every few months. It almost always comes from a cranky CTI grad who's frustrated at seeing OTS people get in who didn't "earn" their right to be there. Don't misunderstand me as characterizing all CTIs like that... it's a very small minority. But that's usually where it comes from.

Anyway, all of the other hiring sources combined don't come close to meeting the need that will be created by mandatory retirements. That's what caused the staffing crisis in the first place, and it's why the FAA's "hiring plan" is continuing several years into the future. There's absolutely no way to meet that need without OTS hires. Period.

Some people will point at the reduced rate of PUBNAT openings as "evidence" that PUBNATs are ending. Well, duh. Of course they're slowing down. The system couldn't handle hiring so many trainees at once and its backlogged, so they're not going to keep cramming people in when they can't accommodate them. That's not the same as "no more PUBNATs", though. It's just typical FAA ineptitude... first they didn't plan for the crisis, then they reacted to it by trying to push in more people than the system could handle. Ugh.

Chalk this one up there with the silly "hiring freeze" rumor that started on JC a few months back. Remember that one?

4. No more PEPCs:

This rumor came from a well-spoken CTI student who shared it on StuckMic about a week ago. Sounds believable to me, and people who've received letters from the most recent panels haven't received PEPC invites, so it may be the case. It wouldn't be a surprise. Too bad, though, because it was a nice way to meet other applicants.


Anyway, the lesson here is to not get sucked into every rumor that you see on the boards. In a vacuum of information like this one, people'll make up stuff to fill the space. The post count next to someone's name is often a good indication of how reliable their information is, but not always. Just don't go putting your eggs into the basket of some yahoo who you heard on a forum.

[tblessett]

. Always my hero, and we've never met. Well said!

[Bigey]

Extremely well said!

Thank you for putting it out there! I was close to doing it, but havent had enough time to type all that!

[Wyopoke79]

I agree with many things in the post above..

However.... the "Hiring Freeze" was real. Some facilities were "frozen" and couldn't recieve trainees...... I know...I was one of them and I spoke to Hr about this multible times... the reasons why...I don't know. (prolly lack of funds)

I was told by someone in managment that the OTS hires will be done soon... who know if that is true...

Also... Anyone, at this point, that turns down any job offer by the FAA doesn't want to work for the agency.


Carry om

[Rosstafari]

Uh... I think my verbosity killed the PUBNAT8 discussion. Sorry. Quick, WoH, say something inspirational.

[WoH]

Originally Posted by Rosstafari

Uh... I think my verbosity killed the PUBNAT8 discussion. Sorry. Quick, WoH, say something inspirational.

Give up...it's only going to get worse

[timxc911]

This seems like a good spot to jump in on my 3rd post and say.

Hi my name is Tim and I am a pubnat8......

Took my test yesterday in Holsville, Ny and awaiting results.....Good luck to those who havent taken it yet! Word analogies sucked, but pictures were simple(too bad there werent more).

[tblessett]

Seriously, you should have just stopped at "...analogies sucked."

[timxc911]

..ok here goes. Analogies sucked

[rohawk72]

So does anyone have ANY clue when the panels are meeting for pubnat 8?