United States Air Force: Why I Enlisted

Good morning!

If you are viewing this post you may or may not know that I have enlisted in the United States Air Force. You may be curious as to why I have made this decision, what I will be doing, and where life will be taking me in the coming months/years.

I'll start at the beginning and go from there...

When I was a Junior in High School they had everyone in my class take the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB). I scored in the upper 70's and was almost immediately contacted by the United States Marine Corps about an opportunity to serve my country. This was the first time that I seriously considered joining the Armed Forces. I started the process then, but decided I needed to serve my Mission before I started my career. Unfortunately, it took me until I was 24 years old to complete that objective.

When I returned from the Philippines, I was determined to become an Anthropologist and began focusing my education to that end. Military service was still in the back of my mind, but my relationships and uncertain future kept me from making any commitments. Finally, I believed myself too old and gave up on the possibility of serving.

Three years ago I moved to Colorado to take a job in Colorado Springs with a software company as their Internal Technical Support/Systems Administrator. I work within view of the Air Force Academy and often see Airmen at the local shops and restaurants. I also have a co-worker who joined the Air National Guard. Over the three years I have been living here I began to understand myself more and what I needed to be successful. Structure, a clear career path, and something that I believe in.

I also learned that the Air Force recently increased the maximum age of enlistment to 39 years old. Suddenly serving in the military was a possibility again. I considered joining as an Officer since I already have a Bachelor's Degree. The process to become an Officer as a civilian is between 18-24 months, and after postponing this decision for so long, I was unwilling to wait.

I looked at my current financial situation with paying for rent and utilities, and discovered that after these things I was not bringing home nearly as much as I hoped, or needed to in order to do all the things with my life and for my wife that I want. With what little was left over, I was paying other bills and debts, and wasn't saving anything. I compared that with what I would be making as an Enlisted Airman, and discovered that I would be making MORE doing that than what I was currently doing.

Here was a job that would be putting more money in my bank account, had a clear career path, structure, the opportunity to travel the world, and the chance to serve my country and protect its citizens and Constitution. Our housing and health care would be taken care of, which means that we could take care of our future children without worrying about the crushing debt that mortgages and hospital bills bring with them.

Considering all of these things, I decided to talk to a recruiter and Enlist with the intention of becoming an Officer later.