Posted on Jan 1, 2017
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Great Article about the Occupational Physical Assessment Test from the folks that put it together. Worth the read!
Commentary: Why the OPAT will improve new soldier readiness and how the Army is doing it right
Posted from armytimes.com
Basic Combat Training (BCT)
Basic Training
Recruiting
APFT
Posted >1 y ago
Responses: 6
Suspended Profile
I believe it's a great baseline test that will be modified for even better use for specific MOS requirements in the future. It's a great step towards reducing injuries and having a common platform for movement training.
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Has any of these standards been put into a practice run by Recruiting Command? I'd like to hear the opinion of current Recruiters on the ground and where the rubber meets the road. When I did my recruiting tour it was hard enough finding qualified recruits, I can only imagine what pressure would be added now.
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CPT Ryan H.
SFC Dante Alanis - I imagine as the army feels the need to grow, they could look at OPAT requirements as they do other things. But I don't foresee it getting harder when the Army needs less people. As of now, it is only a prerequisite to ship to training and not awarding an MOS. it is not intended in its current form to be more than a screening tool to reduce overuse injury-related attrition. But should the Army need to grow quickly, I assume senior leadership will look at the OPAT and if it is slowing up the recruiting and training they first unit of assignment. As SGT Goodrow states, the OPAT is not precluding too many people at his station from shipping in his observation.
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SFC (Join to see)
as a DA Select recruiter, I believe that it is a waste of time for the Future Soldiers and us, since we have no clue how much the kid is going to improve on there physical fitness while in BCT.
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Truth of the matter is, it will change nothing. No recruiter is going to risk losing a contract over this test. I guarantee it will get pencil whipped
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CPT Ryan H.
Easy guarantee, SFC. Undoubtably some will pencil whip it - human nature to bend the rules where they may to eat an edge. But would you allow it as general practice at your recruiting center if you were the NCOIC? I have more faith in the backbone of the army than to believe it will be egregious. It wouldn't at mine. It is simply too easy to oversee something this easy to implement.
But the Army is thinking up an answer to that question as we speak.... a longitudinal study of all soldiers and how they perform would include big data (think "who was your recruiter/drill sergeant/platoon sergeant/instructor/commander" etc.) throughout every Soldiers entire career. then you can track those that fudged too much APFT, asvab, OPAT.... and hold leaders to account. I can't imagine we are too far from that now that most training records are getting digitized.
But the Army is thinking up an answer to that question as we speak.... a longitudinal study of all soldiers and how they perform would include big data (think "who was your recruiter/drill sergeant/platoon sergeant/instructor/commander" etc.) throughout every Soldiers entire career. then you can track those that fudged too much APFT, asvab, OPAT.... and hold leaders to account. I can't imagine we are too far from that now that most training records are getting digitized.
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