Howdy,

I just recently graduated and am strongly considering joining the Texas Air National Guard or Air Force Reserves. I've done a fair amount of research and just recently contacted a recruiter. I have had military service in the back of my mind for a while and I want to serve the country and develop as a person through part time service. I have talked with some friends in the Army National Guard but don't know anyone in the Air Force. I was not in the corp at A&M.

Any advice on joining the Air Force? What are some things that I should be aware of? Any good/bad careers? How should I prepare for BMT and OTS? Questions to ask my recruiter?

What was your major? What interests you career wise? How much military "away time from civ world" is acceptable?

Regardless of service...stay fit. Running and any form of strentgh training should do for entry level. You want to talk to an OFFICER recruiter unless you want to enlist and then be a Mustang.

Need to find out what career fields the USAF Res and Texas ANG have here in state. Not all are here and if you want one that isnt, it can limit you org choices and may require regular out of state travel.

Check the TMD jobs website for latest openings in the Army and Air Guard in Texas. Good starting point. Then you could maybe focus on whatever region you'd like to stay in

do your research before you ever go to a recruiter.

they want to get their numbers up, so they will try and sweet talk you and lie to you.

I was active duty and an Air Force Reservist. I have a current part time employee in the Army National Guard who came off of active duty and is currently an A&M student. If you are in the BCS area you can stop by for a cup of coffee one morning if you still have questions.

There are definitely good/bad careers but a lot of that depends on the person. I job I would love; you may hate. You need to start looking around.

Your specific unit will make a big difference in the guard or reserve, maybe more so than active duty. If you do not fit in with the culture, it's going to be miserable. Because people do not PCS with the frequency of active duty. If you do not like your commander on active duty; they will move in a couple of years (or you will). If you love your commander on active duty; they will move in a couple of years….

You can still transfer units if you want to move. The process is not that hard as long as both locations have your job.

The thing I was not prepared for is that sometimes in the reserve (guard too) is that you end up having some long months. With a drill weekend, its 12 days in a row without a day off. Your regular Monday F job, drill weekend, then another M F at your regular job before the next Saturday off.

I ended up having to go inactive because I could not commit any longer. I was working 5060-hour weeks. Had little kids still at home and then my parents moved here for us to take care of. I have a handicapped mom, and my dad had dementia. Things were bad and I had to become his guardian. I live in College Station and my reserve unit was in San Antonio. While reserve weekends were often a break, I felt buried.

Make sure you are in a job you like. Ask to tour the unit first. Make sure you interview them; especially about things relating to culture.

Currently reservist in SATX, over 24 yrs in, prior enlisted. I can tell you this, its a great thing to be a member of the armed forces, wouldn't change that ever. However, there are differences between active, guard, and reserve. Do not get swayed by the recruiters, they are number junkies, can and will make empty promises. If you have a degree in STEM, I would talk with an officer recruiter. The commissioning process has changed over the last couple years, so there are now more opportunities to compete and complete initial training. Feel free to reach out if you have questions and good luck on your future.