Advice for job election.

[Rabbit69]

Could use a little advice for job selection when I head to MEPS next Tuesday. I took the written ASVAB and scored a 96 AFQT M99 A97 G95 and E99. I have good vision and should have no problem getting any physical or security clearance. I think this opens up any AFSC to me. I would like to do Weather, though am also looking at Pharmacy, Photography, contracting, and Technical Applications. Would it be wise to go open general or should I try for gaurenteed? I am 27 and believe I need to get in before I turn 28 in December.

Are these good job choices? What other enlisted careers have you heard a lot of people say they love doing? I'm good at wrenching and electronics, but don't particularly enjoy doing either. Administrative stuff isn't too bad. I like using my brain more than my body.

[sigecaps]

Impressive scores. I would definitely try for the guaranteed jobs. Although I know the pharmacy, photography, contracting can be tough to get. I've never heard of technical applications before.

I think those are all fine choices. I mean it's really up to what you want to do. What you want to get out of your Air Force career. Based on what you said you like doing, you should also consider doing some sort of intelligence job. We have several different kinds of jobs: imagery analysts (1N1), linguists (1N3), network analysts (1N2), communication signals analysts (1N2), non-communication signals analysts (1N5), and all source analysts (1N0).

I'm an all source analyst which means we get to dabble a little into everyone elses fields. I enjoy the intellectual challenge of putting pieces of intel together to figure things out, your job description really varies depending on the unit you are assigned to which I consider an awesome thing because it gives you so much variety (again all source analyst), there's usually a high reenlistment bonus in for you if you decide to stay in (generally anywhere from 60-90K), it's cool to know the "real story", your TS/SCI clearance will be worth a lot of money if you decide to get out. Just to give you an idea of how varied your job is, I've worked closely with pilots in a unit to provide intelligence support to the F-22 Raptor, being a weapons of mass destruction and theater ballistic missiles analyst for CENTCOM, and being an air defense analyst for AFCENT. I've deployed to Southwest Asia to provide analysis for OEF. And I'll be deploying this summer to be an interrogator.

I should warn you though that the 1N0 career field is at a 1:1 deployment ratio right now (meaning we can be expected to be deployed for six months, and home at station for six months; every year), and will probably be at this deployment ratio for a very long time to come. We are at this ratio because our skills are desperately needed in the AOR, and it's not easy/cheap to replace/retain 1N0s. TS clearances are so lucrative on the outside that many of our Airmen leave at their 4/6 year mark, and the deployment tempo doesn't help. This could be a good or a bad thing depending on your situation. If you are a single guy who doesn't mind a litte adventure and making a lot more money while deployed, this is a good thing (most of the jobs in the AOR have you working on base, so you are well protected and safe). The downside is if you have a family, then the deployments will definitely be a drag and you may want to consider a different job.

[Rabbit69]

Thanks for the reply. Tech Apps is what used to be called Applied Geophysics. What little info I found on it seemed interesting, but its requirements are the hardest to meet for entry(M83 & E81) which makes me a bit weary of how difficult it must be. Intelligence sounds interesting to me, but the deployment does not. I am married and my wife is freaking out over me being gone for Basic and Tech school. I don't mind a lot of deployment as long as it is accompanied.

If I go for gauranteed, do I find out at MEPS whether it is available or not? I just don't want to be sitting on a waiting list indefinately.

[sigecaps]

Thanks for the reply. Tech Apps is what used to be called Applied Geophysics. What little info I found on it seemed interesting, but its requirements are the hardest to meet for entry(M83 & E81) which makes me a bit weary of how difficult it must be. Intelligence sounds interesting to me, but the deployment does not. I am married and my wife is freaking out over me being gone for Basic and Tech school. I don't mind a lot of deployment as long as it is accompanied.

If I go for gauranteed, do I find out at MEPS whether it is available or not? I just don't want to be sitting on a waiting list indefinately.

OK stay away from intel then. I also read that the minimum score for Technical Applications is 57 on the EDPT. Did you take this test? It's not computed from your ASVAB scors. If there is a job that MEPS can guarantee when you get there, they will tell you. Otherwise you may have to wait for the job you want.

[Rabbit69]

I hadn't even heard of that test until now. If I am interested in that job, should I request to take it when I get to MEPS or will they have me take it after I meet with the counselor?

[sigecaps]

Well your MEPS interview is where you start listing jobs for your contract. I think it might be too late to take that test then. Have you been talking with your recruiter about the jobs you were interested in? He should have signed you up for the EDPT before your MEPS interview.

[Rabbit69]

I'll ask him before I head to MEPS. He's new to being a recruiter, so he may not have thought of everything.

[BRUWIN]

Could use a little advice for job selection when I head to MEPS next Tuesday. I took the written ASVAB and scored a 96 AFQT M99 A97 G95 and E99. I have good vision and should have no problem getting any physical or security clearance. I think this opens up any AFSC to me. I would like to do Weather, though am also looking at Pharmacy, Photography, contracting, and Technical Applications. Would it be wise to go open general or should I try for gaurenteed? I am 27 and believe I need to get in before I turn 28 in December.

Are these good job choices? What other enlisted careers have you heard a lot of people say they love doing? I'm good at wrenching and electronics, but don't particularly enjoy doing either. Administrative stuff isn't too bad. I like using my brain more than my body.

Intelligence, particularly Geospatial Analyst or also referred to as Imagery Analysis....but never mind, you don't want todeploy. Ever consider Walmart then?

[Rabbit69]

Worked for Walmart already. Aside from the fact that NO ONE is hiring right now(been trying to find something since January and willing to do just about anything), I want something that will get me some education so I can get out of the dead end jobs. I'm willing to deal with deployments for at least 4 years, but I don't want a job with a high rate of them if I can avoid it.

[sigecaps]

Worked for Walmart already. Aside from the fact that NO ONE is hiring right now(been trying to find something since January and willing to do just about anything), I want something that will get me some education so I can get out of the dead end jobs. I'm willing to deal with deployments for at least 4 years, but I don't want a job with a high rate of them if I can avoid it.

The Post 9/11 GI Bill is really sweet. If your long term goal is to go to school after you get out, sign up for four. Don't let them talk you into going in for six. Hell I recommend signing up for four to most people unless there was some sort of signing bonus involved (9/10 there isn't one, at least not in the Air Force).

[Rabbit69]

I'd have no incentive to sign up for 6. I've got enough college credits to go in E-3 and like you said, no bonuses unless I do something like Pararescue(was an EMT in the past, no thanks) or EOD. I think I would enjoy doing weather or pharmacy and they have decent civ careers should I decide to 4 and out.

[Smeghead]

Deployments are not accompanied and there are a lot of them. Very few career fields sit at home these days.

[Rabbit69]

As I said, I don't mind normal 60-90 day deployments. I just don't want a job that regularly goes for 6 months at a time if I can avoid it.

[sigecaps]

As I said, I don't mind normal 60-90 day deployments. I just don't want a job that regularly goes for 6 months at a time if I can avoid it.

And you can. There are still jobs on tempo band B, a 1:4 ratio or 6 months deployed for every 24. Intel, EOD, Pararescue, and Security Forces aren't those jobs. Actually I think I read somewhere that contracting is now at a 1:1 deployment ratio too. These requirements should go down dramatically though for most of these jobs, especially as we begin to pull out of Iraq.

[Smeghead]

If 60-90 is normal, sign me up that job

[Rabbit69]

If 60-90 is normal, sign me up that job

Then you would want a job in bands A, B, or C. D averages 4 months a year and E averages 6.

I've read up more on Tech Apps and if it is available I am definately shooting for it whatever the deployment rate is for it. After reading about the EDPT test, I'm not too worried about that.

[Smeghead]

Then you would want a job in bands A, B, or C. D averages 4 months a year and E averages 6.

I've read up more on Tech Apps and if it is available I am definately shooting for it whatever the deployment rate is for it. After reading about the EDPT test, I'm not too worried about that.

Thanks for the education, I knew nothing at all about tempo bands. With arrogance like that you'll go far :rolleyes:

[Rabbit69]

Thanks for the education, I knew nothing at all about tempo bands. With arrogance like that you'll go far :rolleyes:

Oh, I'm sorry, were you being sarcastic in your previous post?

[Smeghead]

I'm saying if your main thought is not deploying then go somewhere else. EVERYBODY is deploying, more and more--even the jobs you wouldn't thought. My career field is rapidly approaching 1:1. Pararescue? A-10 driver? OSI? EOD? No, I'm PA, a friggin' desk riding noner. So like I said, if you're concerned about deploying, this isn't the place for you.

[CMSBROWN]

http://us.st12.yimg.com/us.st.yimg.com/I/yhst-50863389838911_2041_16745920

Sign up for this...you will not regret it. ;)

[Gigglendorf]

9S100, the Technical Applications field, is a very small group of people doing a wide variety of things.

I have never heard of anyone qualified to do the job who made it through their FIRST technical training school who do not love the job.

I also didn't hear about the reporting identifier until far too late in my career to give ti a try myself.

It is a reporting identifier, not a career field. Every assignment these guys can get is different enough that they have to go back for technical training when they PCS. They are grouped together to provide career progression opportunities.

This is NOT a special duty.

These guys are the closest thing to Renaissance men in the USAF.

I would certainly tell you to try to get into that field if you can.

With your scores, you could qualify for the Exceptionally Well Qualified program, which significantly increases your chance to get a contract for a specific AFSC. Ask your recruiter about the program.

[Rabbit69]

It isn't my main thought at all. My main thought is doing something I enjoy. But there are enough things I enjoy that I can choose something I enjoy AND get to be with my wife more than 6 months of the year. No one knows what deployments are going to be like by the time I get out of Tech School. With the Iraq pullout they should be dropping off soon. The Air Force is also raising enlistment numbers which should help drop deployments. Don't be so cynical. If I wasn't prepared for the possibility of long and/or frequent deployments, I wouldn't be trying to join the Air Force. But that doesn't mean I don't want to avoid it as much as possible. Let the single people and the guys who can't stand their wives have those jobs.

[Rabbit69]

Thanks for the info Gigglendorf. That sounds like an excellent field. I looked at the locations and they are all over the world and many of them have just one guy working there. That would be awesome. I've also seen that after I spend awhile in the field I can get pretty much any job I want. Options are always good.

CMSBROWN, I take it you are an aerial gunner? That sounds so awesome(I love flying), but my wife said I can't do anything that regularly involves gun fire, even if it is me firing 4000 25mm rounds per minute.

[Smeghead]

With the Iraq pullout they should be dropping off soon. The Air Force is also raising enlistment numbers which should help drop deployments. Don't be so cynical.

Yeah, because there isn't a place called Afghanistan. Oh and the Air Force hasn't been deploying since Desert Storm. And that is sarcasm, just so you don't have to ask.

[CMSBROWN]

CMSBROWN, I take it you are an aerial gunner? That sounds so awesome(I love flying), but my wife said I can't do anything that regularly involves gun fire, even if it is me firing 4000 25mm rounds per minute.


No I am a cop...who flies around the world doing cool stuff....but if I could change and go back in time that is the job I would have picked.

Rabbit....you better take them out of your pants and hide them with take like that....your wife will never let you do anything fun. :eek:

[Rabbit69]

Well, this does have a pretty big effect on her life too, so I don't mind giving her quite a bit of input. That's funny you say that because she's always bitching that everything has to be my way and she NEVER gets what SHE wants.

But yeah, COD4 is awesome where you get to control the guns on the AC-130 (Spooky IIRC). If I can't get a contract in one of jobs I want...who knows. Until then I'll just have to get my rush riding motorcycles.

[Smeghead]

Look, you call me cynical, it's not cynism. The Air Force is a completely different beast, even in just the 12 short years I've been in. We deploy often, everybody does. And we have people outside the wire who ordinarily would be the last people anyone would think of in those situations--Public Affairs, JAGs, Contracting, Chapel staff. Then take the folks you would imagine to be going outside the wire and multiply that by a factor of 10--cops, OSI, EOD, vehicle operators, Intel are all getting plenty of time in bad guy land.

President Obama's call for a withdrawal from Iraq doesn't mean we all get come home. It just means we'll go to Afghanistan instead. My career field is already adding folks there. And the Deid will always be there. Yes it should slow down, but it's not going to return to a pre-9/11 state. Don't forget the ILOs and other 365s out there.

You seem every family oriented, have you considered the Guard? It could be more stable for you.

Bottom line, someone who comes in wanting and expecting one thing, and then finding the reality to be very different hurts the rest of us when that person either finds ways to avoid their turn to go or does something to get themselves kicked out. We have to pick up the slack. And no I'm making no assumptions that that's what you'd do--just giving examples of what I've seen happen.

[sigecaps]

I think we're looking at what, 60,000 troops in Afghanistan, after the surge. Our commitment to Afghanistan has always been and will remain quite small. In fact 60,000 troops will barely be above the 50,000 that will remain in Iraq past the combat forces pull out date of Aug 2010. Bottom line, with 100,000 and soon 150,000 less troops to support in Iraq; this will imply a much smaller logistical chain for the Air Force to support in the AOR. Deployment tempo should go down dramatically across the board in the next few years.

[Smeghead]

Deployment tempo should go down dramatically across the board in the next few years.

I really hope so. I can't speak for AFSCs but for mine all I see in increased taskings.

[Rabbit69]

Well don't worry about it Smeg. When I commit to something, I do it. I have always been that way. As a teenager I comitted to not drinking alcohol, smoking, or doing drugs. Here I am 27 years old and still haven't broken that one despite quite a bit of temptation(my wife hates that I won't drink).

But about Public Affairs, how do you like it? What tempo band is that in? It is one thing I am considering still(Yes, despite the deployments).

[CMSBROWN]

Well, this does have a pretty big effect on her life too, so I don't mind giving her quite a bit of input. That's funny you say that because she's always bitching that everything has to be my way and she NEVER gets what SHE wants.

But yeah, COD4 is awesome where you get to control the guns on the AC-130 (Spooky IIRC). If I can't get a contract in one of jobs I want...who knows. Until then I'll just have to get my rush riding motorcycles.


There you go...that is seed of torment. LOL!

Good luck with whatever you choose....just chose something you enjoy or have a passion for. It will make life so much easier for you and your wife.

[BTDTNM]

Something that will set you up for life after the Air Force should be primary. BB stackers don't have much on the outside that corresponds to that career field. I wouldn't sweat the deployments. 4 years isn't that long, just do what you have to do. The new GI Bill is worth it.

[Rabbit69]

I'm not overly concerned with "after jobs". I plan to use the education benefits while in and after I am out to their fullest extent. I'd like to get a Bachelors degree while in so that commisioning is an option should I decide to stay in.

Aside from the seperation, I actually kind of look forward to deployment. It's another experience in life.

[Smeghead]

But about Public Affairs, how do you like it? What tempo band is that in? It is one thing I am considering still(Yes, despite the deployments).

C for enlisted, D for officers. Although officers are likely going to be E pretty soon. We decimated our officer corps during the cuts and basically have 3 lieutenants and a cleaning lady left. Enlisted tempo will probably increase accordingly.

The job is ... eh. Some days it's awesome, other days it beats the hell out of you. We're going through a merger with the multimedia folks (photographers and videographers) who for the most part seem to be fighting it tooth and nail. Leads to some interesting bitch sessions, I mean office discussions.

It's not a 9-5 job, at least not at the bases I've been to. You work until you're done. I've carried 60 days of leave since pretty much day 1 and didn't take a full weekend for my first 4 years. If you work well with stress you'll enjoy. We have a lot of people trying to be TIs and recruiters for a break in pace if that tells you anything.

[goldbadge]

Could use a little advice for job selection when I head to MEPS next Tuesday. I took the written ASVAB and scored a 96 AFQT M99 A97 G95 and E99. I have good vision and should have no problem getting any physical or security clearance. I think this opens up any AFSC to me. I would like to do Weather, though am also looking at Pharmacy, Photography, contracting, and Technical Applications. Would it be wise to go open general or should I try for gaurenteed? I am 27 and believe I need to get in before I turn 28 in December.

Are these good job choices? What other enlisted careers have you heard a lot of people say they love doing? I'm good at wrenching and electronics, but don't particularly enjoy doing either. Administrative stuff isn't too bad. I like using my brain more than my body.

I'm an active duty enlisted recruiter just like your recruiter so I may be able to help a little. The test you need to take for tech apps(applied geophysics) is the edpt. Its usually given once a week at the MEPS. After you list your regular jobs and you are physically qualified for tech apps have your recruiter schedule you for the test. If you pass it you will list it while you are up at MEPS right after you test. Its not a huge career field so it still may not come around. Sounds like you are going to be quald for alot of jobs. Keep in mind alot of people with perfect vision fail depth perception so that could eliminate sevaral jobs. Tell the job couselors at MEPS what type of work interest you and they will tell you the jobs that we have in those fields. We have no "open general" in the Air Force. When you go to MEPS you list at least 4 GTEPS(particular jobs) and the aptitude area those jobs fall under. We have the mech, admin, general, and electronic areas. You will only get picked in one of your choices whether it be the area or the GTEP. Now since you have a very high asvab scores ask your recruiter if his boss will authorize you to list GTEPS only. Depending on his squadron you may or may not. Since you are 27 you need to get the ball rolling ASAP. FY09 we dropped all age waivers.