The guy asked for help, and your gonna just tear him down by telling him what you did cuttercoasty.. Typical cg bs.. Sethdowling visit the mkshop website, http://www.mkshop.moonfruit.com/# download the e-4 mk3 study guide, and also grab the OLD FN study guides, they will help you greatly!
If they can pass all the end of chapter tests in the course material at once in a sitting without much trouble then they are probably ready for the test - the info is in the books for 99.9 % of the stuff its just a matter of figuring out what specific stuff they want you to remember... it helped me to write down all the questions i could remember after the test and make flash cards from there.
And as far as the test being hard - the MK3 striker test is FAR harder than the MK2 and MK1 course material just because of the AMOUNT of stuff... especially since they took the AC&R off of the e5/e6 tests.
You have maybe 4 books maximum for e5/e6 and you have over 6 books of stuff for MK3, its ALOT to grasp at one time and they ask really specific questions, even if you are on a boat and hands on with all the stuff its going to be easier to understand but is still a ton to remember.
I definitely dont think its fair to say anything negative about his Fn that cant pass because as someone who has taken all 3 tests up to e-6 MK3 was the hardest and most PIA one out of the three... i ended up just going to school to get it over with and i didn't learn anything new there and got 100% every school tests without much effort at all. If that counts for anything.
In my humble opinion once you have the basics its all just little building blocks from there. Agree with Kmonty21.
Good luck with your studying! Keep at it and dont get discouraged you'll get it!
Also make sure all the info you are using are in date to the current test you are taking. When I was in I was given an old guide to study which was not compatible with a newer version of the test they were given as they were redoing everything. So if you find your self retesting a bunch of times that might be an issue to look at. Other than that, Hands on and tons of reading and you'll do just fine, everthing will come in time.
Somehow the link to the MK shop didnt make it onto my post. I posted, and didnt come back in here till now. I was not trying to cut down the original poster. I had that link in the post to point in a direction that would help. it also had another paragraph in there, but obviously it isnt there now. Whatever you all think, fine... I am an a** for being mean in my post.
If some of you have been in a while you will know there are several types of people to want study guides. People who want the building blocks , and there are people who want to take an easy road around to make rate. Ive seen both, and seriously, it doesnt get easier when you move up in rate. The responsibilities get harder and the jobs more independant.
I had a shipmate that worked with me at a previous unit years ago who took the MK2 test at least 3 times before he realized the study guides werent doing it for him. Finally took my advice and sat down with his course materials and wrote his own study guide. Passed no problem the final time. The best study guide is one that you have to make for yourself.
Had a conversation with an MK Master Chief down in Yorktown in May about study guides and servicewide tests. Sorry, his name escapes me right at the moment... Anyway, the Master Chief said, that study guides are pretty much outdated the second they hit the net. Because the course writers get them too. That is why our tests are always different. What you study from last years test isnt always going to help this years test.
The typical CG BS is really just an excuse for what ever people dont agree with. The CG has been suffering from inexperience for years due to the increase in size and the technology that we are required to be familiar with. Machinery is aging in the cutter fleet, and machinery is getting more high tech in the small boat fleet. I dont want to see people fail,and I am going to continue and make my people work for their quals/advancements same as you and I had to work for it.
I am just stating my opinion here.. no need for anyone to get offended or angry about it. I am fair to my shipmates and I spend many many hours of my liberty time teaching and I hate to see people shortcut. If people want to shortcut, they go around me and others who believe the same as I do about these subjects, and it does show later on when qualification boards are done. Be good at what you do and teach the best you can and never stop studying even if you are done with your course materials.
I dont know what the test is like now, but I struck 3rd 8 years ago and I did it by reading the End of Course Material cover to cover. I would recommend you skim through the NEM, focus on shipboard AUX and Main Prop. If I remember most of my test was Aux mixed with a lot of Electrical and Hydraulics. GOOD LUCK. Just set yourself 1 hour a day aside and read. If you have taken it and failed get the results sheet they send you and hit your weak areas harder!
