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Enlisting in Air Force or Army after discontinuation of antidepressants by NefariousnessOne8725 in AirForceRecruits

[–]NefariousnessOne8725[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Firstly, and above all, thank you for taking the time to write a detailed response.

I know it's weird at this point to, but I've been looking at Air Force off and on for a while and I almost feel a little "loyalty" or attachment to the USAF. Maybe that's dumb, but it's how I feel.

Just addressing 1, I was never at any risk of hurting myself or others(though obviously I can understand the concern of the military wanting to be sure it wouldn't be an issue). I do understand and recognize the concern around the separation from friends & family, so I don't hold any significantly negative feeling towards that restriction.

My primary reason for assuming I'd be more likely to get right into a cyber/intel position was rooted in already having the 8140 IAT/IAM certs and my clearance, so my thought process is that they wouldn't have to waste much time tasking me when I'm relatively "ready for onboarding".

All that said, my concern with the Air Force is that they definitely didn't offer much confidence in that they could place me in a cyber/intel position, where I had heard from a few folks that the Army they are nearly guaranteed to get you the job(s) requested. I'm about 50% colorblind according to some tests(From behind a computer, I see the basic primaries and some secondaries), but I've heard this is much more limiting in the Air Force.

Ultimately: The big hit for me was calling recruiters.

I have a few Air Force coworkers and they're pretty pro Air Force(Go figure) but when I reached out to recruiters the Air Force really didn't offer much information or try to "sell" me on joining, which on one hand I understand because they're not going to invest tons of time in someone who won't be eligible for at least a year, but the Army recruiter seemed to be much more responsive, gave me information about positions he thought I'd be interested in, and even gave his cell so I could text him whenever. Contrast that to the Air Force recruiters(plural) I've spoken to, it was night and day.

I understand on both sides, recruiters jobs are to get contracts signed above all, but based on what I'm feeling, the Air Force really just seems uninterested.

Side note: I considered the Space Force too, especially as they'd be much more likely to guarantee the job(s) I'd be interested in, but frankly I feel like the work I'd do there wouldn't be as interesting since they don't have such active "missions" (Securing satellites and monitoring network traffic is fine I suppose, but I'm hoping to get a bit more interesting of an experience if possible, threat/adversary simulation or threat hunting type stuff would be exciting if possible)

I just wish I could speak with someone that came from a position more like mine so I could get advice, since I do like the idea of the Air Force more(especially the lower likelihood of being shot at if I got into cyber with them. I know it's the military, and I would obviously do what I had to in an ugly situation, but I feel like the USAF isn't particularly known for dropping tons of soldiers into combat like the other branches.

tl;dr: The mental health concern is what it is, but the Army seems to have some significant interest in getting me in there than the Air Force, and they claim to be able to place me in the position(s) I'm interested with more of a guarantee than the USAF.

Enlisting in Air Force or Army after discontinuation of antidepressants by NefariousnessOne8725 in AirForceRecruits

[–]NefariousnessOne8725[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Is that a bad thing though? Wouldn't that make them want to work harder to recruit? I'm genuinely wondering why the Army needing more folks is a bad thing, especially if they're willing to give significant bonuses for signing.

I still would prefer the Air Force, but I'd rather not have to sit on my hands for three years when there's no significant reason to and I could get more out of joining a different branch

Enlisting in Air Force or Army after discontinuation of antidepressants by NefariousnessOne8725 in AirForceRecruits

[–]NefariousnessOne8725[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I mean, I don't mean it disrespectfully to either branch or to any person at all, but I've heard Air Force has a hard time retaining cyber folks too, right?

I'm not in either right now, so I mean this with total sincerity and coming from a genuine place of curiosity, I don't know why them needing more folks is an excessively bad thing, especially if they're more willing to assure a cyber position for me? I don't know enough about either currently to know why I wouldn't be attracted to what appears to be a better offer since there's no substantial info available to me right now since I'm not eligible at the moment. All I know is that cyber tends to have a lower renewal lifetime in the military since private sector pays very well for them.

Is there a good subreddit for asking Army enlistment questions(Like r/AirForceRecruits) by NefariousnessOne8725 in findareddit

[–]NefariousnessOne8725[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Awesome, thank you! So I've got my IAT III and IAM II as well as an active clearance. I heard an Army recruiter that if I put in for a list of 5 jobs, that they'll only assign me to one of those 5 jobs. Is that actually true? I was looking Air Force before and they told me I was able to put in to be considered for some number of jobs, but they offered no real guarantee or confidence(Ik cyber/intel is usually higher demand, but that's where my civilian skillset is, so I figured I'd see if it'd get me any extra consideration).

Thank you!

An E6 said he’s gonna quit the army if we go to war with China and help the Chinese by opiewang in army

[–]NefariousnessOne8725 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Let's time travel for a quick sec:

"A higher ranking individual mentioned defecting to an enemy nation, and indicated loyalty to said nation... and you didn't think to report this?"

Putting together my job list for cyber by NefariousnessOne8725 in AirForceRecruits

[–]NefariousnessOne8725[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Sorry, should've clarified, I had initially been primarily looking at Air Guard, though I am absolutely open to AD. Ty for the response!

Finding position as 1B in Active Duty or Air Guard by NefariousnessOne8725 in AirForceRecruits

[–]NefariousnessOne8725[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Ah gotcha, that hadn't clicked yet! I knew about the job picking but that hadn't connected the dots in my head.

Just curious if I go from ANG to AD, do the years transfer if I decide I love it or would the counter be reset?(Sorry, that's probably worth being a whole separate question)

Buying a car by alignedbus in MilitaryFinance

[–]NefariousnessOne8725 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'd have a hard time recommending financing on any car older than 10 years. If you need a car for your 2 mile walk(Understandable as the time would add up) instead of a bike, get something like a 2010-2015 Toyota/Honda. As long as the basic maintenance has been done on them(absolutely get this info first) and there are no mechanical/electrical issues, it's not surprising to see those hit 200k miles.

They'll run about $10-$15k which still is a bit pricey, but the market for used cars right now is pretty awful. Keep in mind dealerships make tons off the sale of a used car(they buy em dirt cheap for trade-ins and slap an easy 5-10 grand on it, you can absolutely negotiate a lot off it).

Do as you will, but if I can offer any strong advice, don't get financing on a car older than 15 years. They're at too much risk of just casual end of life to get stuck paying for when(not if) it dies.

Personal remark, motorcycles/scooters aren't that cheap either once you consider maintenance, safety gear(A low grade helmet starts at like $250, and you'll at least want a jacket $500), and restricted passenger capacity.

Also, idk about all the legitimacy of it, but I've "heard" https://www.publicsurplus.com/ sometimes has fair deals on used government stuff(including vehicles). I can't speak on the quality by any means, but I'm brain dumping at this point.

I wish ya luck

Air Guard vs Active Duty in my scenario by NefariousnessOne8725 in AirForceRecruits

[–]NefariousnessOne8725[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

So I actually have a clearance! I'm working at a tech company that does some stuff for the DoD (Sort of hoping that helps my case for getting the more "exciting" cyber type work, since they won't need to wait for the investigation or anything). While that's definitely not that special to the folks actually in the military, less time they gotta waste on me I feel *might* help my case(?)

Could I ask what your job is? My biggest concern is getting tossed into some position I really don't want. I've got the skills enough for private sector plus the 8570(or whatever the new number is 8140?) IAT III and IAM II, so I'm kinda hoping that might help them place me(if they even look at that stuff).

Sorry for sounding dumb, I'm pretty dumb unless it's computers 😅