Expert: Rod Powers - 7/18/2006

Question
Is it easy to get a waiver for a juvenile, assault and battery charge to join the air force. I talked to the air force recruiter, he said problem with waiver applicants is, they have to take the job recruit gives them, Is this true?. Another question is I have over 70 credit hours in Mechanical Engineering, and Already have my associates in engineering. I wanted to enlist for 4 years then come back and finish off my degree so I can take a break from school. Is it better for me to just finish off my degree and enroll in the ROTC program while I am doing it, rather than trying to enlist and deal with enlistment recruits?

note: The army recruiter said no such thing about recruiters choosing a job for waiver applicants.

Answer
Hi Bruce,

Of all the military branches, the Air Force needs the fewest new recruits, and the Army needs the most.  That's just a fact of life.

What that means is that the Air Force is willing to approve fewer waivers than the Army is.  Because the Air Force is not considering very many waivers these days, it's entirely conceivable that the local recruiting squadron commander is going to impose conditions on any waivers he/she considers.

The Air Force is not only overmanned when it comes to enlisted recruits, but it is overmanned for officer applicants, as well.  Right now (and the for the past three years), the Air Force has been the hardest service to get a commission, or ROTC scholarship.  While other services, such as the Army, will take almost any degree program, for the Air Force, you need a "hard science," or technical degree (except for pilot and navigator positions), along with a very high GPA to get accepted.

I've got good news and bad news:  A degree in Mechanical Engineering is one of the degree programs that the Air Force would consider.  However, not only does the Air Force currently have more enlisted applicants than they are allowed to accept, but they also have thousands of more ROTC applciants than they are allowed to accept.  and that means they are allowed to "pick and choose," about who gets an ROTC slot and who doesn't.  There are thousands of more applicants (for just a few hundred slots per year), who don't have criminal charges -- even as juveniles.  So, when push comes to shove, who do you think the Air Force is going to choose, all other factors being equal?

One can often "live down" a juvenile criminal record by serving a few years as an enlisted member, and proving that they can serve with honor, but -- even so -- when it comes to applying for a commissioning program (as an enlisted) at a later time, you'd be competing against a limited number of slots, against other Air Force enlisted, so it would depend on your records, vs. theirs, vs. how many slots are available.

In any event, if you have the financial means to finish your college degree, my advice (for any branch) is to finish your degree first.  The military will always be waiting there, after.

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

Hope this helps!

Rod Powers
http://usmilitary.about.com