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Expert: Rod Powers - 11/16/2009


Question
Hello,

It's been 5 years since I separated from the Air Force as an officer.  What resources are available to find out if I can reenter active duty?  Would I have to get back into my old AFSC?  Would I simply reapply like before?  I'm not rated.  How hard is it to return?

Thanks so much,
Ben

Answer
Hi Ben,

It's *very, very, very, very, very* hard. Here's why: When a prior service enlistee (or officer) wants to come back in, they compete against re-enlistment (or officer continuation) slots, and not new enlistee (or initial commission) slots.

Those who are currently in the Air Force have priority over such slots than those who got out and want to come back in. For the past several years, the Air Force has had absolutely no problem making their re-enlistment goals (or officer continuation conatract goals), so there are very, very, very few slots available for prior service.

For more information about the United States Military, feel free to visit my US Military information site at: http://usmilitary.about.com

Hope this helps!

Rod Powers
About.com US Military Guide
http://usmilitary.about.com

Careers: Military--Army, Navy, Airforce, Marines, Coast Guard

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Rod Powers

Expertise

Rod Powers is considered one of the premire experts about U.S. Military career information on the planet. He has more than 30,000 articles about U.S. Military career information on the About.com U.S. Military Careers Information website at: http://usmilitary.about.com. Additionally, he is the author of "ASVAB for Dummies," "ASVAB AFQT for Dummies," (available in Dec 2009), and "Veteran Benefits for Dummies," all published by Wiley Publishing. He is also the author of "Barrons' Guide to Officer Candidate School Tests," published by Barron's Educational Series.

Experience

Rod Powers is a retired Air Force first sergeant, with 23 years of active duty service, 11 of those years as an Air Force First Sergeant. He has helped thousands of military members, recruits, and military applicants since he took over the About.com U.S Military Careers Information site in 1999. He has a reputation for "telling it like it is," so questions may not be answered based on "what you want to hear," but will be answered based of the bast available information, concerning the service/situation.

Education/Credentials
Rod is a distinguished graduate of the Air Force Noncommissioned Officers Academy, the Air Force Senior Noncommissioned Officer Academy, and the Air Force First Sergeant Academy. He also holds an Associates Degree in Personnel Administration from the Community College of the Air Force (CCAF).

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