You’re welcome. These are really the only way to ensure you are stationed at your local base. Of course they are primarily part-time, with some full time possibilities.
I joined reserve for the same reason. If you do get on as a guard or reservist, there will eventually be AGR opportunities come up at your base, where you will have a chance to work full time near your home! I joined at 35 ha ha.
> 27
Nope.
I turned 27 just after joining, went to BMT with someone a couple years older than I, and I know another who joined in his early 30s. You'll be one of the older ones with less than 4 stripes on your arm, but you won't be the oldest.
The hardest thing for some folks about joining late is following orders from someone younger than them...but unless you make it weird everything will be fine.
You could become an Officer instead of enlisted. You will get paid a lot more. I would also look at the Space Force, if your trying to stay stateside that's where the majority of positions are. Also, less deployments compared to the Air Force, as far as I have seen.
Also maybe take it as an opportunity to travel a bit. Get stationed in Europe or Japan for a few years. If you marry, you can bring your spouse too.
There is no assurance of stability in where you'll live if you go active duty. The only stability the AF tends to offer is a pay check and health care (individual experiences may vary).
Most folks I know who joined at an older age tended to adapt to the military lifestyle easier. But were often driven nuts by their peers, which based on your rank, will likely be 18 year olds if you're enlisting.
If you're gonna do it I would look into a commission (assuming you have at least a BA), not enlisting. At least the pay will be good. Maybe the Guard/Reserves. You can mostly stay in a stable location, but you certainly can/will be ordered to TDY/deploy/leave home for periods of time. Other than that it's part time unless you decide/are able (if you decide to) to score an active Guard/Reserve slot.
I don't regret enlisting. But as I near the end of my enlistment I joined to do technical, blue collar type work and learn skills. And I did do that. I want to keep doing that. But these days they have me managing absolutely pointless programs more than it seems I'm turning wrenches which actually matters. I have zero satisfaction in my job these days.
Well if you join most likely you will move every 3 to 4 years. Since you have a degree, I would 100% go officer. If you can stick it out for 20 years, you will never have to work again. If you enlist, after 20 years, the retirement will help with stability of income, but it's not enough to live comfortably and support another. Unless you live in the hills of WV or some other very low income area.
You should look into civilian service. We always need good IT personnel, uniform wearers or not and there’s no guarantee if you go to a military recruiter that you’ll end up working in your preferred career field. Plus uniformed service members are basically guaranteed to have to move, whereas you are trying to stay local.
Alternatively you could apply for contracting gigs working at your local base. It’s a little bit more tied to the service and you might find that is meaningful enough for you.
Hi OP, I'm 40 and joined at 36. It's very doable and every day I'm glad I made the choice to enlist and that I was fortunate enough to be accepted.
In that time, I went from learning networking in the Air Force to cyber defense in the Space Force. Thankfully, my wife (then girlfriend) was supportive of my joining the military and now we have two kids!
Before joining, I was in car sales and service. No degree, but did alright. Figured I'd trade the public's bs for bureaucratic bs. Never have I had so much time off, it's great!!
Edit: Also, if you do join, credit cards and auto loan rates csn be lowered to no more than 6% under the SCRA!
I was in for 9 years, got out and and worked as a civilian for the air force for another year, and now im going back to school. You can DM me I’d be happy to answer questions. I enjoyed my years in, but I’m also happy to be a civilian now. I think I can give non biased advice.
The oldest guy in my bmt flight was 31. Also helped another guy who was over 30 & barely spoke English join and get his citizenship. Definitely not too old.
As far as staying local, if you're going in Active Duty it's hard to say. But Air National Guard and Reserves should be able to, after bmt & tech school. This could take anywhere from few weeks to over a year depending on AFSC.
I'm not sure what you really mean by instability though.
Yeah I feel you. During my short time as AD I've seen people PCS (move) several times in a year, and some staying in same base for 6 years. So it really depends ™
A key aspect of being in the military is the fact that at any time you can be sent to exotic places, to meet interesting people, and then possibly having to kill them. All of that is regardless of your desires.
If you’re good with that, then the military may be for you. If not, then maybe it isn’t
For someone who got out after the first contract. I can see pros and cons to both sides. The Air Force is limited in how high you can go with income wise. Yes I know you can gain rank which means you get more money but it’s nothing compared to the IT world on the outside especially if you go into the areas where money is insane like coding. The Air Force will have a lot of control of your life and if discipline is something you lack then it’s perfect for you. You get ordered to do things, not asked. You can get in trouble for not following orders even if it’s to work 16 hour shifts consecutively. If you were to join active duty then go IT. You’ll get better treatment then a lot of the Air Force or at least a easy office job like finance, medical, or something like that. The fulfillment your looking for may not be there. I didn’t get it as I saw how the military just throws money away on robot dogs or UTV’s that sit in a parking lot for years. Or deployments where we do literally nothing but go shopping in fancy malls off base. Even if it’s a “real” deployment you’ll sit around waiting for an army base to get attacked so you can watch the film on it or learn what happened. Age isn’t much of an factor but you’ll be old for the military. You will live in the dorms with 18 year olds. The military does provide a stable income. You get a housing allowance but in my area, it wouldn’t even cover a crappy apartment. Anyways I could go on forever about this stuff. I would recommend what others said and go reserved or guard as it will allow you to get a taste of it. You can stay where you are and if you have a degree. Push for being an officer no matter what!! Don’t let recruiters push you around. You have the power until you sign the dotted line. No take backs
GREAT INSIGHT! Thank you so much! I have had a lot of others saying to look into the reserves as well, and one said to look into civilian service - which I definitely will. I am just curious as to why the reserves get deployed more or maybe more often than active duty? I know this would be a part of joining the military regardless, but I just don't know the details as the why that is?
With reserves it really depends on your job and unit. Some units deploy all the time as others it may be rare. I would look into the unit specifically such as some Reddit group or whatever you can find on google. Recruiters will lie all day to you so their information may not be true. I know a active duty friend who never deployed his whole 7-8 years and a reservist who never deployed in their 6 years. Your career can vary so much being in the military. Also the reserves do work on a system where you can volunteer to deploy as my active unit did not let people do that. But like I said it varies. Also understand that the benefits in reserves will differ greatly than active. Such as a big benefit being your GI Bill(GI Bill is where the military will pay for college and give you a housing allowance in your area but it has specific rules that you need to know) anyways Active duty, you’ll get it with good behavior (just means you didn’t get in major trouble while in) but in the reserves it depend how much consecutive active Duty time you have as the person I know who served six years in the reserves does not have their full GI Bill. Not even half of it so even just doing one semester of full time school will not be paid for. They will pay for some but not much to make a dent. I apologize if I say too much but I hope I answered your question.
Am a woman in the Air Force. I’ve loved it, but I’ve also really benefited from leaving home and moving around. I just passed my seven year mark and I’m at my third base stateside. OP, if you have questions about the whole woman in the military deal, feel free to PM me.
I celebrated a friend's 40th in Tech school, another was 39. I joined at 21. 🤷♂️ as for getting the base you want, doesn't quite work like that, but you can explore guard or reserve options locally!
I’ve been enlisted for 15 years and funny enough, I have consulting high on my list of second career path options for the same reason. I think that a sense of pride (or a lack there of) is an issue of framing. I have an outsider’s perspective on consulting as you do for the Air Force. I would love to get paid to solve big problems. I know a common trope in consulting is that you spend all this time analyzing the problem, developing the solution(s), and then presenting your conclusion all for the client to do whatever they want anyway. The Air Force is very similar, except it’s difficult to be heard in the first place, more difficult to get leader buy-in, and more difficult still to implement said change, especially when considering the seemingly innumerable federal and other applicable regulations that dictate many of the intricacies that come with facilitating change. Not that this is what you came to discuss, but out of curiosity, what does finding meaning to your work and pride in what you do look like to you with regard to what you envision finding in the Air Force?
Mostly just being a part of something greater than a fortune 500 company. Doing thing to help the US, even if that means doing piddly thing for people above me. I would at least know what I am doing has a greater purpose than bringing some billionaire even more money. Like don't get me wrong - i make great money where I am, and I know I would be taking a pay cut, but consulting is for some but its just not seeming to be for me. I said I wanted to go into IT for the money, and it worked out for me. However I just feel like a number at this giant organization. I feel like I am just here to bring in money and not solve these big problems or really help a business. The majority of work we do is creating powerpoints and analyzing data in excel. I have no sense of community or friendship at my job and once I do get close to my team mates, the project we are on is over and we have to part ways. The instability of doing 1000 different things in consulting is great but I also hate it. Like yeah I have worked with large clients, done networking, and security type roles, but once my current project ends I have to go through the whole process all over again, and if you dont get staffed you could be on the chopping block, its just stressful and lonely and boring honestly.
Thanks for the glimpse into your side. I understand where you’re coming from to contribute to something greater than yourself. Some of the folks I’ve met during my time were the same way the whole time. Hell, an old buddy of mine hit 20 years enlisted and then commissioned as an officer instead of retiring, dropping back down to a Second Lieutenant. He will likely go all the way to 40. He just loves it. The feeling comes and goes for me. I do like my job and appreciate its greater impact, but that cog in the wheel feeling is definitely real on this side of the fence, some days more than others. The military operates much like a business. On the days the patriotic feeling wavers, it gets tough not to feel like a number waiting to execute the next Lockheed/Boeing/Northrop Grumman biddings while the entitlements and benefits get tossed around the political football field. I guess that’s my pride framing conundrum. Some others mentioned guard or reserve. It’s probably the better option considering the concerns you’ve expressed. That said, and while I don’t know exactly what you know how to do, don’t sleep on leveraging your degree and skills to do something with one of the big military money makers. I know that seems to counter your position, but no shit, many folks’ time in the military would improve drastically just by having a program with a half-competent UI and someone on the other end of a phone that gives a damn about them. I’d wager the borderline useless stuff we get from Boeing and the like would shock you. I don’t aim to steer you away from joining at all, but have you also considered something like a Boeing or other DoD contractor company?
Yes, I have tried Boeing. I don't have the experience they are looking for. Which is hard in consulting I feel because like I said, you also bounce around. Unless you are like an expert in something you just do whatever the project you are on (which could be coding, networking, or just powerpoints).
No, you are not too old to join.
If you want to stay local you could join the Air Guard, but keep in mind if you want to serve full time you should go active duty(which could send you anywhere.)
Based on everything you have said, you would probably enjoy the Air National Guard or the Air Force Reserves by comparison to active duty.
Far less instability than active duty, fewer deployments (if any) and since you are already established in IT, you can get tuition assistance to bolster your existing degrees.
You are free to PM me with additional questions. I've been activated, deployed, a drilling reservist, and an ART (full-time reservist) in my 20 year career, so I've seen a lot of what the reserves can offer.
You may want to look at r/airnationalguard and r/airforcereserves too.
Thanks!
You’re welcome. These are really the only way to ensure you are stationed at your local base. Of course they are primarily part-time, with some full time possibilities.
I will look into it. Thank you again!
You’re welcome. And to answer your question, certainly not too old.
I joined reserve for the same reason. If you do get on as a guard or reservist, there will eventually be AGR opportunities come up at your base, where you will have a chance to work full time near your home! I joined at 35 ha ha.
Thank you!
Go Guard!!
> 27 Nope. I turned 27 just after joining, went to BMT with someone a couple years older than I, and I know another who joined in his early 30s. You'll be one of the older ones with less than 4 stripes on your arm, but you won't be the oldest. The hardest thing for some folks about joining late is following orders from someone younger than them...but unless you make it weird everything will be fine.
Thanks for your insight!
You could become an Officer instead of enlisted. You will get paid a lot more. I would also look at the Space Force, if your trying to stay stateside that's where the majority of positions are. Also, less deployments compared to the Air Force, as far as I have seen. Also maybe take it as an opportunity to travel a bit. Get stationed in Europe or Japan for a few years. If you marry, you can bring your spouse too.
There is no assurance of stability in where you'll live if you go active duty. The only stability the AF tends to offer is a pay check and health care (individual experiences may vary). Most folks I know who joined at an older age tended to adapt to the military lifestyle easier. But were often driven nuts by their peers, which based on your rank, will likely be 18 year olds if you're enlisting. If you're gonna do it I would look into a commission (assuming you have at least a BA), not enlisting. At least the pay will be good. Maybe the Guard/Reserves. You can mostly stay in a stable location, but you certainly can/will be ordered to TDY/deploy/leave home for periods of time. Other than that it's part time unless you decide/are able (if you decide to) to score an active Guard/Reserve slot. I don't regret enlisting. But as I near the end of my enlistment I joined to do technical, blue collar type work and learn skills. And I did do that. I want to keep doing that. But these days they have me managing absolutely pointless programs more than it seems I'm turning wrenches which actually matters. I have zero satisfaction in my job these days.
Well if you join most likely you will move every 3 to 4 years. Since you have a degree, I would 100% go officer. If you can stick it out for 20 years, you will never have to work again. If you enlist, after 20 years, the retirement will help with stability of income, but it's not enough to live comfortably and support another. Unless you live in the hills of WV or some other very low income area.
You should look into civilian service. We always need good IT personnel, uniform wearers or not and there’s no guarantee if you go to a military recruiter that you’ll end up working in your preferred career field. Plus uniformed service members are basically guaranteed to have to move, whereas you are trying to stay local. Alternatively you could apply for contracting gigs working at your local base. It’s a little bit more tied to the service and you might find that is meaningful enough for you.
Thank you for this! I would love to, just trying to figure out what I need to do now!
Usajobs is a good place to start for this
Thank you!
/r/airforcerecruits
Thanks!
Hi OP, I'm 40 and joined at 36. It's very doable and every day I'm glad I made the choice to enlist and that I was fortunate enough to be accepted. In that time, I went from learning networking in the Air Force to cyber defense in the Space Force. Thankfully, my wife (then girlfriend) was supportive of my joining the military and now we have two kids! Before joining, I was in car sales and service. No degree, but did alright. Figured I'd trade the public's bs for bureaucratic bs. Never have I had so much time off, it's great!! Edit: Also, if you do join, credit cards and auto loan rates csn be lowered to no more than 6% under the SCRA!
Thanks for the insight. Good to know!
I’m 27, just graduated BMT last week. Had 2 other 27 yr olds, a 25 yr old, 32, 34 and a 37 yr old guy all in my dorm.
I was in for 9 years, got out and and worked as a civilian for the air force for another year, and now im going back to school. You can DM me I’d be happy to answer questions. I enjoyed my years in, but I’m also happy to be a civilian now. I think I can give non biased advice.
Thank you!
The oldest guy in my bmt flight was 31. Also helped another guy who was over 30 & barely spoke English join and get his citizenship. Definitely not too old. As far as staying local, if you're going in Active Duty it's hard to say. But Air National Guard and Reserves should be able to, after bmt & tech school. This could take anywhere from few weeks to over a year depending on AFSC. I'm not sure what you really mean by instability though.
Instability as in having to move around all the time. Would love to stay where I am, but I know joining in Active Duty is up in the air.
Yeah I feel you. During my short time as AD I've seen people PCS (move) several times in a year, and some staying in same base for 6 years. So it really depends ™
I’ve seen folks join as young as 39 years old in BMT and crush it.
A key aspect of being in the military is the fact that at any time you can be sent to exotic places, to meet interesting people, and then possibly having to kill them. All of that is regardless of your desires. If you’re good with that, then the military may be for you. If not, then maybe it isn’t
I had a guy in my brother flight who was in his late 30s at Basic. You’ve got roughly another decade or so before it turns into a fight to get in.
I had a woman in my flight turn 40 in BMT. I joined at 26, so you're certainly not too old.
I joined at 31 (active duty). If you want to stay in your local area, guard/reserve is the way to go.
For someone who got out after the first contract. I can see pros and cons to both sides. The Air Force is limited in how high you can go with income wise. Yes I know you can gain rank which means you get more money but it’s nothing compared to the IT world on the outside especially if you go into the areas where money is insane like coding. The Air Force will have a lot of control of your life and if discipline is something you lack then it’s perfect for you. You get ordered to do things, not asked. You can get in trouble for not following orders even if it’s to work 16 hour shifts consecutively. If you were to join active duty then go IT. You’ll get better treatment then a lot of the Air Force or at least a easy office job like finance, medical, or something like that. The fulfillment your looking for may not be there. I didn’t get it as I saw how the military just throws money away on robot dogs or UTV’s that sit in a parking lot for years. Or deployments where we do literally nothing but go shopping in fancy malls off base. Even if it’s a “real” deployment you’ll sit around waiting for an army base to get attacked so you can watch the film on it or learn what happened. Age isn’t much of an factor but you’ll be old for the military. You will live in the dorms with 18 year olds. The military does provide a stable income. You get a housing allowance but in my area, it wouldn’t even cover a crappy apartment. Anyways I could go on forever about this stuff. I would recommend what others said and go reserved or guard as it will allow you to get a taste of it. You can stay where you are and if you have a degree. Push for being an officer no matter what!! Don’t let recruiters push you around. You have the power until you sign the dotted line. No take backs
GREAT INSIGHT! Thank you so much! I have had a lot of others saying to look into the reserves as well, and one said to look into civilian service - which I definitely will. I am just curious as to why the reserves get deployed more or maybe more often than active duty? I know this would be a part of joining the military regardless, but I just don't know the details as the why that is?
With reserves it really depends on your job and unit. Some units deploy all the time as others it may be rare. I would look into the unit specifically such as some Reddit group or whatever you can find on google. Recruiters will lie all day to you so their information may not be true. I know a active duty friend who never deployed his whole 7-8 years and a reservist who never deployed in their 6 years. Your career can vary so much being in the military. Also the reserves do work on a system where you can volunteer to deploy as my active unit did not let people do that. But like I said it varies. Also understand that the benefits in reserves will differ greatly than active. Such as a big benefit being your GI Bill(GI Bill is where the military will pay for college and give you a housing allowance in your area but it has specific rules that you need to know) anyways Active duty, you’ll get it with good behavior (just means you didn’t get in major trouble while in) but in the reserves it depend how much consecutive active Duty time you have as the person I know who served six years in the reserves does not have their full GI Bill. Not even half of it so even just doing one semester of full time school will not be paid for. They will pay for some but not much to make a dent. I apologize if I say too much but I hope I answered your question.
Thank you!!
Welcome I hope the best for you
Also quick tip. Talk to a woman that served and ask her about her experience. It’s a different world for women in the military.
Am a woman in the Air Force. I’ve loved it, but I’ve also really benefited from leaving home and moving around. I just passed my seven year mark and I’m at my third base stateside. OP, if you have questions about the whole woman in the military deal, feel free to PM me.
Thank you!! :-)
I celebrated a friend's 40th in Tech school, another was 39. I joined at 21. 🤷♂️ as for getting the base you want, doesn't quite work like that, but you can explore guard or reserve options locally!
I’ve been enlisted for 15 years and funny enough, I have consulting high on my list of second career path options for the same reason. I think that a sense of pride (or a lack there of) is an issue of framing. I have an outsider’s perspective on consulting as you do for the Air Force. I would love to get paid to solve big problems. I know a common trope in consulting is that you spend all this time analyzing the problem, developing the solution(s), and then presenting your conclusion all for the client to do whatever they want anyway. The Air Force is very similar, except it’s difficult to be heard in the first place, more difficult to get leader buy-in, and more difficult still to implement said change, especially when considering the seemingly innumerable federal and other applicable regulations that dictate many of the intricacies that come with facilitating change. Not that this is what you came to discuss, but out of curiosity, what does finding meaning to your work and pride in what you do look like to you with regard to what you envision finding in the Air Force?
Mostly just being a part of something greater than a fortune 500 company. Doing thing to help the US, even if that means doing piddly thing for people above me. I would at least know what I am doing has a greater purpose than bringing some billionaire even more money. Like don't get me wrong - i make great money where I am, and I know I would be taking a pay cut, but consulting is for some but its just not seeming to be for me. I said I wanted to go into IT for the money, and it worked out for me. However I just feel like a number at this giant organization. I feel like I am just here to bring in money and not solve these big problems or really help a business. The majority of work we do is creating powerpoints and analyzing data in excel. I have no sense of community or friendship at my job and once I do get close to my team mates, the project we are on is over and we have to part ways. The instability of doing 1000 different things in consulting is great but I also hate it. Like yeah I have worked with large clients, done networking, and security type roles, but once my current project ends I have to go through the whole process all over again, and if you dont get staffed you could be on the chopping block, its just stressful and lonely and boring honestly.
Thanks for the glimpse into your side. I understand where you’re coming from to contribute to something greater than yourself. Some of the folks I’ve met during my time were the same way the whole time. Hell, an old buddy of mine hit 20 years enlisted and then commissioned as an officer instead of retiring, dropping back down to a Second Lieutenant. He will likely go all the way to 40. He just loves it. The feeling comes and goes for me. I do like my job and appreciate its greater impact, but that cog in the wheel feeling is definitely real on this side of the fence, some days more than others. The military operates much like a business. On the days the patriotic feeling wavers, it gets tough not to feel like a number waiting to execute the next Lockheed/Boeing/Northrop Grumman biddings while the entitlements and benefits get tossed around the political football field. I guess that’s my pride framing conundrum. Some others mentioned guard or reserve. It’s probably the better option considering the concerns you’ve expressed. That said, and while I don’t know exactly what you know how to do, don’t sleep on leveraging your degree and skills to do something with one of the big military money makers. I know that seems to counter your position, but no shit, many folks’ time in the military would improve drastically just by having a program with a half-competent UI and someone on the other end of a phone that gives a damn about them. I’d wager the borderline useless stuff we get from Boeing and the like would shock you. I don’t aim to steer you away from joining at all, but have you also considered something like a Boeing or other DoD contractor company?
Yes, I have tried Boeing. I don't have the experience they are looking for. Which is hard in consulting I feel because like I said, you also bounce around. Unless you are like an expert in something you just do whatever the project you are on (which could be coding, networking, or just powerpoints).
No, you are not too old to join. If you want to stay local you could join the Air Guard, but keep in mind if you want to serve full time you should go active duty(which could send you anywhere.)
You will be stationed where ever the af needs you. I wouldn’t plan on anything
Based on everything you have said, you would probably enjoy the Air National Guard or the Air Force Reserves by comparison to active duty. Far less instability than active duty, fewer deployments (if any) and since you are already established in IT, you can get tuition assistance to bolster your existing degrees. You are free to PM me with additional questions. I've been activated, deployed, a drilling reservist, and an ART (full-time reservist) in my 20 year career, so I've seen a lot of what the reserves can offer.
Thank you!
You're not too old, but you may want to consider being a GS vs AD. Not sure how you go about getting a GS job though.
r/airforcerecruits