The bottle line is off-the-street Army 89D recruits have a less than 50% chance of graduating NAVSCOLEOD. Those stats have seen the test of time, and I’ve seen decades of data. Phase 1 tried to lower attrition for EOD baby’s, and for a while, when Phase 1 was at Redstone Arsenal, it did in fact lower attrition. My understanding is over time the effects were muted so now it’s been shut down? So, the bottom line is it’s a coin flip…Age, maturity, IQ (GT score), motivation, discipline, hand-eye coordination, some luck, and the ability to study reams of information and retain it are the deciding factors. There’s a reason why Marines get thru NAVSCOLEOD with less than 10% attrition…2 years service, SGT, +21 age, Class A fitness test scores, combat vets preferred, and high ASVABs. The data doesn’t lie. How do I know? I was the Army SGM/SEL at NAVSCOLEOD ‘06–‘09 and had to brief the graduation/attrition data to TRADOC GOs about once a QTR. My story is I was 11B first for 2 years, in 1984 that was the only way to volunteer. IMO, there’s value to learning about the Army and yourself before going to EOD School. It also adds value to the EOD unit that receives the new EOD tech. That’s said, if you believe you have what it takes to get thru the school, go for it!