My Turn

alphaone

alphaone

Well-Known Member
Hi everyone, I usually post in the other sections but this one is for here obviously.....Well I am a freshmen in college, and by the time a graduate I anticipate having all my ratings through my CFI. My goal in essence is after I graduate college, go into the Military and fly, obviously, or be as close to it as possible. I am open to all branches. If I had a choice it would be the Navy but again, beggers can't be choosers. Anyway, my question basically is how do I, an enthusiastic, driven commited young man go from here to building a successfull career in the Military? Some other information about myself is that I go to John Carroll University, I expect to graduate with a major in Political Science and a Minor in either History or French. But that's subject to change..I would be doing ROTC however my school only has Army and the main reason I'm here is because I recieved basically a full ride scholarship.....Money talks you know? Alright, well all responses are appreciated to point me in the right direction, and thanks to all.
 
Give a call

To the navy recruiters. Make sure you find an officer recruiter. They won't be at the normal local office. You may be better off calling the closes university with a ROTC program. Explain your situation and that you would like to become an officer when you graduate. They can tell you your options. Post them here and a bunch of us with experience dealing with recruiters can probably tellyou if they are being honest or not. More than likely, for the navy you will be competeing for a slot in officer candidate school in P-cola Fl. 13 weeks of an officer and a gentleman, just without Richard Geare.
 
Thank you very much. Should I go ahead and call them now? Three years away from when I anticipate being able to get this whole thing started? Again thanks guys..
 
alphaone said:
Thank you very much. Should I go ahead and call them now? Three years away from when I anticipate being able to get this whole thing started? Again thanks guys..
Click to expand...

Call them early and often (always keep them updated). Ask "what do I need to do to prepare myself and be an attractive officer candidate?" If you do what they tell you to do over the next three years, they'll have little excuse not to take you. I did this for college and have been doing it for a career in federal law enforcement for years, and it's worked.
 
Yeah, stay away from the enlisted recruiters. They have a bad track record for technicalities and are all over the place when it comes to helpfulness.

Shooter13 is right. Talk to an ROTC recruiter or better yet, to an ROTC cadet that's been in for a while. If you can, talk to military pilots whenever you get a chance. They have the best advice because they've been there. There's a reason you'll never talk to a street recruiter that used to fly- because there aren't any. Recruiters have never been there and don't know what's best for you. They're mostly ethusiastic people who used to work another enlisted job and will lead you in the wrong direction. I'd only use one for paperwork. Eventually, you're gonna have to talk to one. At that point, you should already have done enough research to know what you need to do to reach your goals and will have instructions for them rather than questions.

Again, recruiters generally give bad advice when it comes to pilot hopefuls. Most of them have very basic knowledge of the pilot track and don't know all of the ins and outs.

If you decide to look at the AF or even better the ANG, I can give you some advice about the process, because I've been through it. Let me know if you're interested.

Good luck!
 
BTW, I was interviewed for a pilot slot 30 semester hours prior to my 4 year degree- just to give you an idea of how far in advance you can anticipate having to be ready for an interview. I started the process of getting to the interview about 10 months prior to that. So, I was barely into my Junior year when I first told my recruiter that I wanted to take the AFOQT (Air Force Officer Qualification Test). Freshman year's a great time to be thinking about this stuff, because you'll have a lot of work to do to get to the point of being selected. Plan ahead...don't wait too long.
 
falconvalley said:
BTW, I was interviewed for a pilot slot 30 semester hours prior to my 4 year degree- just to give you an idea of how far in advance you can anticipate having to be ready for an interview. I started the process of getting to the interview about 10 months prior to that. So, I was barely into my Junior year when I first told my recruiter that I wanted to take the AFOQT (Air Force Officer Qualification Test). Freshman year's a great time to be thinking about this stuff, because you'll have a lot of work to do to get to the point of being selected. Plan ahead...don't wait too long.
Click to expand...

I cannot emphasize FalconValley's point enough...anything involving the government takes FOREVER. 18 to 24 month hiring processes are the norm.
 
Ok, well I'm going to find the nearest Navy ROTC office and give them a call. I figure it would be a good idea to have a list in front of me of things that I need to say and questions to ask...Also, would it be a bad idea to Email them instead of call at first? And, THANKS FOR THE HELP!!
 
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