Expert: Rod Powers - 12/16/2007

Question
I am considering joining the Air Force, and I want other opinions than my recruiters.

I have chosen the MOS Radio and TV Broadcasting Apprentice, and I am wondering what the chances of this job being deployed to the Mid-East.

And can you put in your contract where you want to be stationed at.

Answer
Hi Ryan,

First of all, the Air Force doesn't have "MOS's (Military Occupation Specialties). That term is used only for the Army and Marine Corps. The Navy and Coast Guard use the term "ratings" for enlisted jobs, and the Air Force uses the term "AFSC," or "Air Force Specialty Codes" to describe enlisted jobs.

I'm afraid I have some bad news for you. For an active duty Air Force enlistment, they're not going to let you go to MEPS and give them just one job choice. As I like to explain it, the Air Force is not a "job placement" agency. You'll likely have to give five choices, and which ever one comes available first, is the one you'll get. For details, see my article about Job Choices in the Military at: http://usmilitary.about.com/cs/joiningup/a/recruiter3_2.htm (The active duty Air Force process is on page 3 of the article at: http://usmilitary.about.com/cs/joiningup/a/recruiter3_3.htm).

AFSC slots such as 3N0X2 (Radio & TV Broadcasing -- see: http://usmilitary.about.com/od/airforceenlistedjobs/a/afjob3n0x2.htm) slots are pretty rare. Why? Check out my page at: http://usmilitary.about.com/library/milinfo/blnumafenlisted.htm

As you can see on this page, the total number of slots for Radio and TV Broadcasting in the entire active duty Air Force is only 172. Now, compare that with other career fields, such as Security Forces (AFSC 3P0X1), which has over 21,000 active duty slots.....well, you do the math as to which slots are likely to be available at any given time.

There are less than 5 3N0X2 slots available for new enlistees each year. As you can see from the article I referenced before, the Air Force isn't going to let you apply for just one job. So, your chances of landing an 3N0X2 slot as a new enlistee are small.....very small.

If you do happen to land the slot, AFSC 3N0X2 is what is known in the Air Force as an "CONUS/OVERSEAS imbalanced AFSC." What that means is that most of the slots for the AFSC are located overseas. The Air Force doesn't really need a whole lot of radio and TV broadcasters in the states (where there are thousands of radio stations, and news programs such as CNN, Fox News, MSMBC, etc. Where they need broadcasters is in overseas areas, so that deployed U.S. Military personnel, and those stationed overseas have access to U.S. News.

Those in the Radio and TV broadcasting career fields (in all the branches) spend a vast majority of their military careers stationed overseas, and -- yes, that includes combat zones, such as the Middle East.

I'm afraid the active duty Air Force does not have a first duty station guarantee program. The Army has such a program, but it's only available to certain (mostly combat) jobs. The Navy has a similar program (in that they can guarantee a first duty assignment to specific geographical areas, such as the West Coast or East Coast, but -- again -- only for certain rating (job) programs. The active duty Air Force, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard do not have any guaranteed assignment programs for new enlistees.

For more information about the United States Military, feel free to visit my U.S. Military information website at: http://usmilitary.about.com Hope this helps!

Rod Powers
http://usmilitary.about.com