As a Canadian with mostly American friends attending school in the United States, it is quite natural, and even expected, that I would be the butt of many Canada jokes.

At this point, after three and a half years at Penn, I’ve come to accept it as an almost-daily phenomenon that occurs due to widespread ignorance among Americans about their neighbors up North.

But then again, some things remind me that we Canadians may bring it onto ourselves.

For example, today I was browsing through the Canadian Army website (yes, we do have an army, and we are actively fighting in Afghanistan), and started clicking around to find the eligibility requirements for joining the forces. (Don’t worry Mom, I’m just curious.)

What I found was quite amusing, especially when comparing the differences between the eligibility requirements of the Canadian army and the US Army.

Pre-enrollment for the Canadian army requires each candidate to pass two examinations. The first part is physical fitness. The Canadian physical test consists of, among other things, push-ups, sit-ups, and chin-ups, and the minimum repetitions for each physical activity for men under 35 are 19, 19, and 6, respectively.

Compare this to the US, where the minimum is 30-35 for push-ups and the mid-40 range for sit-ups (chin-ups not required for the US Army). Even I, a self-proclaimed skinny Ivy-League blogger, could meet the Canadian minimums (I tried for the purposes of this post).

It is when comparing the two countries’ aptitude tests, however, where the differences become clear.

The Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB), administered by the United States Military Entrance Processing Command, requires a candidate to show sufficient knowledge and understanding of nine sections: General Science, Arithmetic Reasoning, Word Knowledge, Paragraph Comprehension, Mathematics Knowledge, Electronics Information, Auto Shop, Mechanical Comprehension, and Assembling Objects. For sample questions, go here.

The Canadian Forces Aptitude Test (CFAT), on the other hand, asks the candidate to answer tough questions like:

Small means the same as: A) sturdy   B) round   C) cheap   D) little

And to really filter the candidates:

A boy buys a toy for $20, a book for $10, and a compact disc for $15. How much does he pay for all?

At this point you probably think I’m joking. Well, click here to see a CFAT practice test.

I fully support the Canadian forces, but can you see why I’m the butt of jokes around here?

Tags: ASVAB, Canadian Army, CFAT, US Army

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