Seriously thoughtful I'm in a bind

[Spoon Man]

Hello,
I recently took the PAST and was told that while I could pass the test, my flat feet, rolled ankles, and rolled knees would pose a problem for me in Indoc as well as later on, and that given the choice the individual in charge of placing jobs would deny any requests for a Para Rescue job.

Now, I've been offered a job with Air Force EOD, but I'm not sure that this would be a good choice for me. I just can't figure out how any of the skill sets learned for this job would translate to anything I would want to do in the civilian sector. I don't plan on being a lifer in the Air Force, but I would like to do my part for a bit as long as I can translate it out into the civilian field.
On the flip side, I've been offered a full ride to college. There are plenty of opportunities there, but I'm also not certain that its the right choice for me. I would like to serve, I'm just not certain if EOD is the right thing for me. I've been given until Friday to decide.

I just wanted to get the opinions of people who have more life experience than I. Thanks.

[kindlekitten]

first, congrats! second, there are always bomb squads on the civilian sector to work with, that is the most immediate response. next, there are quite a few avenues beyond that; demolitions of buildings, engineering of roads, land management and so on. learning the math and engineering behind proper EOD disposal is going to be pretty intense and pave the way to quite a few other engineering type possibilities. I don't know if the Air Force has a Sapper school, the Army does, I would suggest adding that qualification as well. that would help down the road once again with the engineering skill set. your recruiter should have a list of "if you take this job, then this civilian job is equivalent", ask about it.

Good Luck!

[dsvick]

Yep congrats on passing. KK is right, in fact even without the EOD experience many law enforcement agencies will give hiring preferences to former military, so you may not have to be locked into that particular branch. Even if law enforcement is not an interest there are lot of skills and knowledge you will take with you from the military that, while not directly related to any specific civilian job, will make you a much better overall candidate for just about any job than many other people. I tell people all the time that boot camp was the worst experience of my life, but it was the best thing I ever did for myself.

One thing to keep in mind - there is a reason that they offered you an EOD job. Beyond the obvious "it is the one they need people in" you have to consider "why" they need the people. Given everything that is going on in the world right now EOD is probably going to be one of the most overworked jobs in the military. Even if you are not deployed, a large part of your time will be spent teaching classes to people that are getting deployed, with your own continuing PME, and getting ready to deploy. Also, I would bet that the stress level of your typical EOD tech is even higher than your average grunt on patrol or manning a checkpoint. On the other hand KK is right, there will a lot more technical instruction you'll get from that path as opposed to some others.

It sounds like you are pretty smart so there may even be other jobs you would qualify for that also would give you some training that is specifically usable in civilian life. It is the air force, so there are a lot of other tech jobs out there, don't let the recruiter steer you into one just because that is what he needs the most of at the time.

[kindlekitten]

have you taken the test yet? that will give you a good break down for all of the skill sets and the corresponding jobs. when I went in I scored highest in admin and languages. no way in hell was I going to touch admin, I very much regret passing up languages, but my next highest was in the technical skill set which is how I ended up in telecommunications. you don't HAVE to take the first thing offered. and as far as the "decide by friday" (and I bet they are telling you the job will be gone right?), nope. that job is always in demand.

[dsvick]

Also, unless there is a specific reason your picked the Air Force, don't be afraid to shop around the other services. If you're looking for something more high tech the Air Force and Navy will be your best bets, but the Marines and Army will have some as well.

[Spoon Man]

I scored a 93 on the ASVAB, so according the that I'm pretty much set for whatever jobs I want to do in the military, I'm just not that technical of a person. I think EOD could be fun, but I don't know if I would really want one of the jobs that it would translate into. My recruiter does not have one of those lists that tells you what you could qualify for in the civilian field, it was the one of the first things I asked for.

From what I hear from people that are getting out it may or may not matter what I do while I'm in, but I really don't know. At some point I know I want to get a steady job and have a family, I really don't think I would make the air force a career and I don't know that I want a job that greatly increases the potential that any children I have would grow up without a father. However, I would like to serve and doing a dangerous job now, while I'm without wife and child, is something that doesn't bother me so much.

[kindlekitten]

hmmmm your recruiter seems to be deficeint on some of his info... let me see what I can find real quick...

[kindlekitten]

play around with this site and see what you find. I had 3 months as a "hometown recruiter" between AIT and permanent party. yeah, some stuff has changed, but it is basically the same. if you have any questions, feel free to ask

[Spoon Man]

Just found that site too actually, the only job equivalency that sounds like something I would like to do comes from being a EOD Manager (3E800) which would require me being in for at least 12 years, and I'm not certain that I'd really want to do that.

However, another option occurred to me, I could go to school and do the Army Reserves or the National Guard. I've got an Army recruiter locally that I trust (hes really that only recruiter that I could ever say that I truly trusted) and I've given him a call. He said its close, but there is a chance still for me to get into the guard, now I need to look at schools I guess if I'm going to do this.

[kindlekitten]

keep poking around and keep asking questions! pretty much every job you can think of that is required to run a city is represented somewhere in the military. I joined as a "Telephone Installer and Lineman" (that job description no longer exists, it's broken down into other things). I was able to get my Journeyman status while on active duty. that is a HUGE deal in the trades! and a difference of at least $10 and as much as $25 an hour. many of the trades represented in the military have this possibility

[dsvick]

Be careful with the guard and reserve right now if you are planning on going full time to school. Even with the draw down there is every chance you may get called up and, if not actually deployed, at least placed on active duty for a year.

[kindlekitten]

Originally Posted by dsvick

Be careful with the guard and reserve right now if you are planning on going full time to school. Even with the draw down there is every chance you may get called up and, if not actually deployed, at least placed on active duty for a year.

yep definetly. I think I would MUCH rather be in an active duty unit than a Reserve or Guard Unit for an activation

[Spoon Man]

Thanks KindleKitten, to be honest I never pegged you as a military person! I'm even more impressed now.

The guy from the Army that I spoke with said that the options they have are a stable and an unstable option. The unstable options means that I could be deployed or put on active duty, but the pay is better. The stable option means I lose out on money, but its guaranteed that it could not happen that way.

[kindlekitten]

I think doing a 3-4 year active tour is a not a bad deal. if you're in a fixed station environment (not deployed) you can even take night classes and weekend seminars. I got my Associate's that way. and then went on to further education afterwards.

I guess it would be easy to think that way, but I did my enlisted time, Reserve, deployed to a very small war during that time, and was also ROTC, had to turn down my commission as my husband was being sent to Germany and we had 2 little kids. son grew up to be a SEAL ;o)

[Spoon Man]

Thats interesting, I was looking at SEALs a while ago.