Plebe Color Test

H

huenemed

5-Year Member
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Jul 11, 2011
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Worst possible call of my life - my plebe candidate did not pass the Ishihara color testing at KP, which they require if he wants an engine major (which he did). They are sending him to the Coast Guard office in Manhattan for further evaluation. He DID pass the test at DODMERB. I was reading that an alternative is the Farnsworth Lantern test and that a deck officer need only distinguish between red and green (engine officer needs to distinguish between red, green, yellow and blue).

Help! What's going to happen? How can I help?

Any references or other help that can be provided would be greatly appreciated. Just need to get past this color thing...
 
You must feel very helpless and anxious, I can only imagine. All things medical I would go straight to KP2001. He is a moderator on this forum who happens to be a flight surgeon. Send him a personal message. You probably can give him specifics you might not want to share here. He may be able to help you navigate the process along the way. I believe he was a deck major himself and it turned out sorta okay for him ( :wink: ) You have my best wishes. Please let us know how it turn out.
 
So who did you get a call from regarding this? Your DS? Do you know if everyone gets tested? I thought we did all the medical testing required during the application process. So sorry and hope everything works out..
 
Thanks for your compassion marinermom.

Yes everyone gets tested!

Rick S (don't want his name public) made the phone call. I think he is the first medical officer? I forget his actual title. Really nice, very apologetic, and really tried to keep me calm - it was all in all a very professional, compassionate phone call. Just not sure I'm getting all the information (actually, I'm sure I'm not) and I'm also sure there are other paths. All of the kids are so qualified, and of course I'm very biased towards my son!

I'm hoping the thread I linked above is accurate because I do think he can pass the Farnsworth Lantern. He is to go to the Coast Guard office in Manhattan tomorrow for "further testing" and I'm assuming it is for the Farnsworth. I know he can distinguish between red and green...
 
Someone from the Academy will assist in getting midshipmen to appointments off campus during the Indoc period. Usually they will be chaperoned by an EMT, but not always.

As to USCG color vision requirements I am unaware of any differences between an engine major and a deck major; however, I could be wrong here. Would be very odd to say the least.

Anyway, from what I know the following are authorized color vision tests for Merchant Mariners:
AOC 1965
AOC-HRR 2nd edition
Richmond 1983
Ishihara
Titmus/OPTEC 2000
Farnswerth
Optec 900
 
I've been reading this forum for a long time and never really saw the need to reply but being "color deficient" and a mid at KP I can tell you how it worked for me. I knew before I came that I had problem seeing colors and I could never see the numbers in the circles of that Ishihara test but the school made me take it anyway. I of course failed and being from New York they sent me up to West Point to take the remedial Farnswerth lantern test. That test is very easy with red, green, and white lights shown two at a time and you just have to say what you see. When I came for indoc on one of the first few days they gave everyone the Ishihara card test again and I of course failed again. However, unlike your son, in my case they did not call my parents and they also did not need to set up an off campus medical appointment. They pulled me aside during drill practice, took me to Patten (medical on campus), and just gave me the lantern test again which actually kind of upset me because they sent me up to West Point to take it the first time when Kings Point was half an hour away. I don't know what has changed in two years. I'm a deck major and don't know if that's why I took it on campus as opposed to something else off campus but I never heard of anyone doing that during indoc.
 
color test

Don't know if it applies here but it has been suggested to take the test with no glasses or contacts if said eye aids are tinted. My older brother got booted from the Coast Guard Academy for color blindness. He passed for NROTC as the examiner had him take off his tinted glasses. And that is how he spent 20 years in the Navy instead of the Coast Guard.
 
Was he a line officer in the Navy? I believe NROTC has some room because they could commission in a non-line path and not have to worry about those pesky starboard and port side lights. I may be wrong.
 
line officer

LineInTheSand said:
Was he a line officer in the Navy? I believe NROTC has some room because they could commission in a non-line path and not have to worry about those pesky starboard and port side lights. I may be wrong.
Click to expand...

He was a line officer. He passed the test once he got rid of the brown tinted glasses.
 
Thanks all for the replies.

Coast Guard is tomorrow and we'll find out. I'll post and let every one know.
 
My son is one of the others going to the Coast Guard for further color testing tomorrow. He also wanted to do engine. Pretty devastating news for me. He also had passed the medical exams last fall. I think he was given a PIP color test. I also have color issues, and my brother too, and he went to Cal Maritime and failed the Ishihara and FALANT (Farnsworth Lantern), and they gave him a YARN test (yes actual yarn, to see if you could distinguish wire colors) and he passed that, and he was in engineering. It seems it used to be that engineering had the less stringent color requirements and that is why he chose engineering. I called my brother when I got this news and he said he thinks he could have passed the FALANT if he went with his first impression and had not second guessed it. That same brother is now a pilot too! It is interesting that I find I see colors more vividly with certain tinted sunglasses (probably red tint). I didn't find out I had color deficiency until I was in my 20's and applied for a job with Mattel Toys. They tested me and that's when I learned it. I would never have thought I had a problem with colors.
 
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I'm sorry to say my DS is coming home along with one other who failed the USCG color deficiency test. Thanks to everyone for all the support. Everyone that got an appointment has proven they are the best of the best. So long folks.
 
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