Expert: MARK A. HOWELL - 4/23/2009

Question
I am a 25 year old male who is trying to enlist in the Air Force. I have 3 alcohol related tickets all dating back further than 6 years. I also had a possession of drug paraphernalia (marijuana pipe) ticket dropped after a friend owned up to the charge. I know I need a waiver for bad behavior. I scored a 96 on my ASVAB and have around 50 hours of college credit. I also have a referral letter from a retired MajGen and retired LtCol. I know waivers in the Air Force are very difficult to come by, but I am trying to figure out if I will have a good chance of getting in? Also are there any extra measures that can be taken to help my chances?

Answer
Lauren,
In general, past alcohol abuse is waiverable, but if it led to other problems such as violence, then you will have more trouble getting a waiver.  Concerning drugs; "soft drugs" such as marijuana and hashish are usually waiver-able, while "hard drugs" such as cocaine and heroin are usually disqualifying.  Plus the more time that has passed since the incidents the better.

However, the AF recently announced they are not granting any more waivers this year for anything.  So they must be close to their recruiting goals already.  Have you considered any of the other Services?  The Navy is a good second choice.  Basically, all the services are pretty similar, they just have different missions.

I know 2 letters of reference is all that is required by most Services but you should check with that recruiter for the very latest.

I'd say you have a good chance in all but the AF right now.  It doesn't hurt to shop around among the recruiters.  See what they have to offer.  You may be pleasantly surprised!

Good luck,
Colonel H