Air Guard and AFROTC together?

UM....nobody saw Kuwait being invaded or 9/11 coming. I am not positive, but I would assume like ADAF they must maintain C status at all times.

Additionally, this is just my opinion, but I wonder how the airline hiring surge is going to impact the Guard units. It might actually work for the AFROTC cadets that are doing Guard.

I am curious though, how it works if you want to go rated as a 300 you go up for the rated board, but as stated you only get officially contracted until 30 days prior to commissioning than do you have to meet a supplemental rated board or do they send you to the same board as the traditional cadet?
 
To answer your question about the rated board, you would go through the motions just like every other cadet. All of this conditional release and 30 prior stuff is just so that you aren't contracted and enlisted at the same time. It would be like being commissioned and enlisted at the same time, not possible!

The only thing that differentiates me from contracted cadets is that they get a stipend and I don't. The Air Force is already paying me via the ANG. You can't double dip, unfortunately.
 
My numbers are correct. The state picks up 100% of the tuition. He receives the full GI Bill plus a GI kicker which total $700+ for the eight months he is in school. He works a lot during his time off from school and has accumulated many points. The ANG personnel at his Det have done well for spots in SFT and rated jobs. He does not get the stipend the 300s and 400s get.

When he was a freshman he needed to get some kind of release stating that the ANG would release him upon commissioning. He went to SFT last year. He is not contracted because he is still in the ANG, but he will contract 30 days before commissioning. He recently has a meeting with the ANG in which they detailed the process and he had to sign some forms stating he understands that he will need to return 1/6 of his enlistment bonuses and that the state will not reimburse him for his last semester as he will not be in the ANG when the semester ends.

For what it is worth, his Det Colonel has stated that he will encourage his children to go the ANG route as he has seen the benefits and believes this is the best path to commissioning.

There is a risk the ANG could say no to a release, but it has not happened to any who have preceeded him. There is also a risk that you don't get SFT, don't pass the AFOQT, fail the physical, wash out of flight school etc.,
 
Last edited:
Retchop said:
My numbers are correct. The state picks up 100% of the tuition. He receives the full GI Bill plus a GI kicker which total $700+ for the eight months he is in school. He works a lot during his time off from school and has accumulated many points. The ANG personnel at his Det have done well for spots in SFT and rated jobs. He does not get the stipend the 300s and 400s get.
Click to expand...

So the Air National Guard is not following suit with the National Guard when it comes to TA and the GI Bill. The National Guard no longer allows the cadet to have both. Will this be moving to the Air National Guard as well, seems like it should.
 
He enlisted 4 years ago so the state and federal benefits may have changed with the draw down etc. The ANG finance office should have the latest. It may be a good idea to meet with the finance folks at the ANG base they want to join as well as the recruiters.
 
FWIW, what I meant by rechecking the numbers was the 100% guarantee of going rated.

Granted it could be that way now, but nobody knows the future.
 
Jcleppe said:
So the Air National Guard is not following suit with the National Guard when it comes to TA and the GI Bill. The National Guard no longer allows the cadet to have both. Will this be moving to the Air National Guard as well, seems like it should.
Click to expand...

Jcleppe, perhaps the confusion is that the tuition benefit being referred to is not the TA program you are thinking of.... Many, many states offer their NG/ANG folks incredible tuition deals. For example, for some it's 100% free tuition plus book/lab fees at any state schools (CC on up to full Universities). That STATE benefit does in fact "stack" with the SR version of GI Bill. Add to that ANG especially is quite generous with their version of the GI Bill Kicker and it can be an AMAZING deal financially for young people.

Not to mention signing bonuses... drill pay... and many units have budget so airman can work extra days between semesters at full pay. You need to be flexible with your schooling of course, but if you can be.... it's an amazing option.

PS: The $700/month plus free tuition referenced above, is actually less than many receive.
 
Thanks for the info, It's great to learn about from these opportunities from those in the know.

I do have a question in regard to the NG, I've been reading that some cadets that are accepting any TA, be it the traditional TA or other options are being told they may not have the opportunity to commission to Active Duty. I'm talking about the Army, I have no idea how it works with the Air Force. Have you heard anything about this, it seems to be dependent on the State.
 
Wow thanks for all the info!! I've been busy all week and haven't gotten a chance to check it all out. I am still a newbie here lol so it will take me a minute to decipher all the codes/acronyms lol!! There is so much information out there and so many different choices to make that we are so overwhelmed! So what I have gathered so far is that it is very doable to do both while in college. I am not really sure how it affects everything once he starts school and then has to miss a semester for training but I guess we will figure that out if we go that route. Also I gathered if he did try to commission through the AFROTC and then if he got a sign on bonus he would have to return most of the money of he withdrew from the ANG. Well that's good to know! My son will not be getting the 100% TA from the state (maybe a portion) so for him just getting GI and kicker will help. I just don't want him to get his hopes to high and he find out he will still owe college more money out of pocket (loans) than he thinks. Thanks Again for everyones comments!!! It helps me learn1 :)
 
What I understand is that for ANG at least, yes the signing bonus is contingent upon completing your 6 year (typically) commitment. It's paid in 2 halfs; one immediately following completion of Tech School, the other half at the three year mark. Couple things to remember...
1) It can be a while before you get to tech school. Summer slots especially are competitive to get. (but you must go within a year or they can void your contract)
2) If you do not complete your contract for some reason (and this includes being released to go Active) they you owe the money back

That being said... 20K is a fair chuck of change for a young person out of HS used to to a part-time gig at a fast food restaurant.
 
Jcleppe said:
I do have a question in regard to the NG, I've been reading that some cadets that are accepting any TA, be it the traditional TA or other options are being told they may not have the opportunity to commission to Active Duty. I'm talking about the Army, I have no idea how it works with the Air Force. Have you heard anything about this, it seems to be dependent on the State.
Click to expand...

My understanding is that the state benefits each have their own exclusions and rules. What gets confusing (at least it was for us!) it trying to unravel which rules/conditions were unique to the units in that state, vs which were guard-wide rules. That's mostly because they aren't presented as separate things most of the time; they are lumped together at the local level. That being said... I personally have not heard of general ruling as you mention that impacts all state TA programs for the guard. Doesn't mean it's not out there though.

I understood that switching to Active in general was getting harder and harder now. Perhaps they are playing the "TA card" more often now to hold you to the original terms of the contract as another way to slow it down?
 
MedB said:
2) If you do not complete your contract for some reason (and this includes being released to go Active) they you owe the money back

That being said... 20K is a fair chuck of change for a young person out of HS used to to a part-time gig at a fast food restaurant.
Click to expand...

So if I understand that correctly, the cadet referenced above that received the 20K bonus will be required to pay the bonus back when they commission into the AF if they did not complete the 6 years in the ANG. If that's the case, why take the bonus in the first place.?
 
MedB said:
What I understand is that for ANG at least, yes the signing bonus is contingent upon completing your 6 year (typically) commitment. It's paid in 2 halfs; one immediately following completion of Tech School, the other half at the three year mark. Couple things to remember...
1) It can be a while before you get to tech school. Summer slots especially are competitive to get. (but you must go within a year or they can void your contract)
2) If you do not complete your contract for some reason (and this includes being released to go Active) they you owe the money back

That being said... 20K is a fair chuck of change for a young person out of HS used to to a part-time gig at a fast food restaurant.
Click to expand...
I would also say that to remember signing bonuses are taxable. For ADAF they immediately hold back 25% for taxes, thus be prepared to do taxes that year.

Just for clarification so there is no confusion, AFROTC cadets stipends are not taxable.
 
MedB said:
My understanding is that the state benefits each have their own exclusions and rules. What gets confusing (at least it was for us!) it trying to unravel which rules/conditions were unique to the units in that state, vs which were guard-wide rules. That's mostly because they aren't presented as separate things most of the time; they are lumped together at the local level. That being said... I personally have not heard of general ruling as you mention that impacts all state TA programs for the guard. Doesn't mean it's not out there though.

I understood that switching to Active in general was getting harder and harder now. Perhaps they are playing the "TA card" more often now to hold you to the original terms of the contract as another way to slow it down?
Click to expand...

I can see it becoming harder because I am going to assume you need the AF to agree to bring you on, and the ANG to release you. For example, two years ago ADAF told the AFROTC cadets in the fall of their senior year that if not enough cadets opted to leave they were going to have to do a separation board.

I don't know the ANG program that works in tandem with AFROTC, but I wonder how many were picked up for ADAF if they were already committed to the ANG.
 
Jcleppe said:
If that's the case, why take the bonus in the first place.?
Click to expand...
Very good question....

Pima said:
I can see it becoming harder because I am going to assume you need the AF to agree to bring you on, and the ANG to release you.
Click to expand...
That is the case. As you stated, they are already limiting AD out of the ROTC program. And on the enlisted side for making the switch, I believe there was something else published recently that stated there had to be a critical AD need for the AFSC you were trained in to be considered - they will NOT send you back to tech school as they might have in the past.

Bottom line... What we've seen suggests that making the switch is becoming less common so you better be a rock-star if you are counting on it.
 
Paying back the enlistment bonus is pro-rated. My son will have served 5 years of his six year commitment. He will pay back one sixth (1/6) of the bonus.

The cadets have their conditional releases early in the program. They slot for SFT and get their job assignments at the same time as others. The risk at this point is minimal and basically the same as any other cadet. They must graduate, stay out of trouble and succeed with the AFROTC requirement.

The key is to attend college at or near the air guard base. The commands know each other and work together to groom young leaders. The DET commander has and uses the opinion of the ANG command when evaluating and ranking the guard guys. Their performance in the ANG is a big factor.

Commissioning into the ANG is not an option. (Unless the AF has a special program again) They commission in the ADAF.

The army is a different animal.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top