AFM Enlistment (English)

The official examining body sets and publishes these figures, and they can change between sittings, so this page deliberately quotes neither a question count nor a time limit. Get the current candidate handbook or recruitment page, then rehearse at exactly that pace - running out of time is one of the most common ways candidates drop marks.

Neither is stated here. Selection standards belong to the AFM and may be norm-referenced against each sitting's cohort rather than fixed at a number. Ask your recruiting office what the current cycle requires and whether sections are scored separately. Treat any third-party estimate of a cut-off or pass rate as unverified.

Expect predominantly multiple-choice items delivered in English, organised into separately timed sections. Confirm whether your sitting adds a listening or dictation component, a practical or psychomotor stage, or an interview. An English-language version does not automatically mean there is a separate English-proficiency sub-test with its own pass mark.

Retake rules are set by the recruiting authority and vary by cycle, by the section failed and sometimes by the number of attempts already used. This page cannot state a waiting period or a limit. Ask your recruitment office in writing before applying, and treat online claims about unlimited or automatic retakes as unverified.

Individually the items are not hard - most test school-level arithmetic, grammar and basic physics. The difficulty comes from breadth and pace: switching between verbal, numerical, mechanical and spatial reasoning under a clock. Candidates who are strong in one area but slow everywhere else tend to struggle more than their knowledge alone would suggest.

Start with a full timed diagnostic so you can see where you actually lose marks rather than where you assume you are weak. Then spend most of your time on your two weakest areas in short daily blocks, keeping one mixed timed paper per week so that switching between section types stays practised. Finish with full simulations.

Three recur: leaving items blank when elimination would have produced a decent guess; misreading units in ratio, percentage and rate questions; and freezing on unfamiliar mechanical vocabulary such as fulcrum, torque or mechanical advantage. Read each stem twice and estimate the answer before computing it, so an arithmetic slip becomes visible.

No advanced formula sheet is needed - arithmetic, percentages, ratios, averages and the lever-and-force basics cover most quantitative and mechanical items. For current affairs, read one reputable outlet regularly up to exam week so you can place names and institutions, rather than memorising a dated list of headlines.

The content and difficulty are intended to be equivalent; the delivery language is the difference, and it should be the one you read most comfortably at speed. Confirm with the recruiting authority that the English version runs on your test date and whether technical terminology is translated or left in English.