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I like it here a lot. People are nice, weather is good, and its a lot more laid back than our previous duty station (Valdosta, GA). I'm more comfortable and at-home here. I lived here before for college, so that is part of it.
Lots of good advice already. I've got a comment about officer/enlisted romantic relationships, though. Generally, the Air Force frowns on them; and, in some cases, punishes them as "Fraternization". Unfortunately, this area can be a real mine field. Some unit commanders don't really care if it doesn't become an issue in the unit. Others make life VERY uncomfortable for the couple. The USAF can't prohibit you from marrying, but you may have some VERY difficult issues to deal with besides getting assigned to the same base. You (or your spouse) could be "unoficially" turned down for a particular assignment, or either of you may get a less-than-desirable job once you two arrive on base. In all fairness, my info is 13 years old, so I'd like to see other viewpoints on officer/enlisted marriages. Best of luck to both of you, in any case!
I knew someone who met her husband while they were both SERE instructors. She got out and got a degree and got back in as an officer - they were married some time before she got back in. He cross-trained to a different enlisted AFSC. It was not a problem because they had a pre-existing relationship and he was not in her chain-of-command. They never had a chance to test out the co-location program as he was injured and medically retired before they moved, so I cannot speak to that.
Going from enlisted to officer is extremely competitive. You have to have your chain of command agree to submit a "package", the package gets reviewed and you go up against other peoples packages. Some troops get great opportunities to spend time with VIPs and/or deploy a lot and you may not; point being it's really a crap shoot to take that route. I would strongly recommend you start talking to an officer recruiter at a ROTC detachment of your choosing. There's 20 in GA. You take an AFOQT test, unlike the "best of the best" enlistment to officer programs, you don't need to score that high. I'd start there, then fall back on enlisting...
Enlisted: As far as the jobs go, first you need to qualify for jobs. Not only the ASVAB test, but also pass a medical eval, vision, depth perception, color blindness and even certain HS/college classes are required for some jobs. Usually a recruiter will pitch you into signing an open category. There is something called a guarenteed job, which requires effort from the recruiter. Not all recruiters are willing to do that and you may have to call multiple recruiters who are willing to put in this effort. How it works is there are monthly job drops with a "slot" and the recruiter must fill it with you. Might take a year to get one and another six months to ship out to basic if you go that route.
Lastly, it's very common for a couple to get married prior to going in. I've seen a few couples get married at the justice of the peace either in secret, a few friends and/or family members and do a bigger wedding later. mil to mil divorce rates are extremely high.
Hello there, I too am pondering joining the Air Force. I'm 25 and I have a career already, but not satisfied, there is something missing. I'm not 100% decided either, but I too wanted to network with others to get answers to my questions. Like I said I have a career already and in joining I would certainly take a cut in pay, even with the housing benefits I would still be set back for a few years.... maybe this is naive, but its not really about the money. I have a strong sense of pride being an American and I want be a part of the cause. I want to see the world, experience things and cultures that otherwise I wouldn't be exposed to. I'm on the fence but this is something I've thought about for at least 4 years now, but I was always in a relationship and not willing to give that up. Now that I'm single I've been focusing on the goals I have for myself...and this is one of them.
So I guess just as you I'm looking for encouraging words that joining could be an oppourtunity of a lifetime.
Thanks!
"ANY input from anyone, not just females and not just Air Force, is very much welcome! Please be respectful. I'm not 100% decided at this point...I'm just trying to gather as much information as possible first. I know I could just go talk to a recruiter, but I'd rather ask people who have experience first. Sorry for the volume of questions, but thanks in advance!"
I have a strong sense of pride being an American and I want be a part of the cause. I want to see the world, experience things and cultures that otherwise I wouldn't be exposed to.
I was in a simular situation and enlisted in the air force. I've been extremely disappointed with the overall quality of the people compared to my previous civilian jobs. With the seeing the world part, the majority of jobs do not travel much especially until you pass the E-5 test. There are many exceptions and a "flyer" is the big exception. My advice is buy a "how to get a govt job book" and apply for GS positions on usajobs.gov or become an officer by going on the ROTC website and find a detachment at a college. It's actually pretty easy to get into, they pay for your school and give a small monthly allowance for the next four years and eventually will most likely become an officer. If you enlist, you have to qualify for jobs...Even if you get your dream job, you can still lose it due a medical condition (accidently break a bone) or fail out of training and be forced to take a new job you didn't want...
Amy, all I can tell you, in my opinion is IF you join...put those expectations you have to the side and come in with an open mind. Reality of it is very eye-opening so stick with the reality of the experiences once you're in. Since you're 25, you've had your values set compared to your younger counterparts, keep those values close to you but at the same time be receptive of the lessons SOME good ranking people will impart in you because it will help you out in the long run.
And you have to have the stamina to wade through all the bull---. And make the most of each experiences, good or bad.
Hey, have you looked at about.com? There is a lot of basic information you can get from there. Some of it is outdated however it helped answer a lot of my questions that were similar to yours.
Thanks so much for all the input and information! It was extremely beneficial. It sounds like I'll need to put this off for a while, at least until I get my bachelor's degree and could look into going in as an officer. I'm waiting to hear back if I got accepted into Colorado Technical University. If so, I'll pursue my associate's in medical billing & coding and would like to go back and get my bachelor's in healthcare management later on. Once again, I appreciate the insight!
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I too am thinking about joining the AF....
