Expert: Cynthia Bedell - 12/8/2009

Question
My son-in-law was just recently separated from the air force.  He was given the CDC's twice but did not pass them.  The second time he missed the test by 3 points.  He has a code of 2C on his DD214 and his discharge is honorable.  He would like to go back into some form of armed services even if it is not the Air Force.  He was told by a Navy recruiter that he cannot get back in any service with that code.  Is this true and if so, can he appeal to have the code changed and be able to enlist in the Navy, Coast Guard, Army or whatever.  he was told by the Army recruiter that he has to wait 2 years before being able to enlist with them.  What is his recourse?

Answer
Dear Lillie --

Since your son-in-law received an honorable discharge, he will be eligible to enlist in another service but he will need to petition for an eligibility waiver due to his poor re-entry code.  

Unfortunately, the services are offering very few waivers right now.  The poor job market means that many high quality recruits are applying to enlist and waivers are not needed to fill the billets.

In general, the Air Force rarely offers waivers.  Further, the Air Force almost never waivers its own negative re-entry codes to allow re-enlistment.  The Army and the Marine Corps are most likely to offer waivers for a poor re-entry code, but right now they are not offering many waivers either, since they are getting plenty of high quality applicants who do not have a history of failing to meet military standards.

Your son-in-law can attempt to have his discharge paperwork changed to make re-enlistment more likely.  To review the requirements for such a petition, please go to the following web site: http://www.arpc.afrc.af.mil/library/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=9018

Good luck to him.