I'm currently a high school senior who just received an appointment for the Air Force Academy. I applied because I obviously have an interest in serving my country as an officer but also because I am extremely interested in working in the Space Industry and serving in the Space Force as a development engineer (wanting to work on satellites, rockets, etc.). What I have found, though, is a ton of threads about how this position is just a watered-down program manager and not what I expected. Are there high-level and technical engineering opportunities in the Space Force itself, or does that not really exist?
Space Force Engineering Opportunities
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It depends...yes, but they are hard to come by and require you to be a strong self starter in order to seek out the right opportunities
My guess is that is even harder in the Space Force than the AF because they didn't take any 61Ds (physicists), which is the career field that has the best chance of getting super technical (because we are so tiny, there is a lot of control over assignments). I have spent my whole career (almost 11 years now) doing all technical work, but it's come with a nice hefty pile of program management on the side.
I am advising 3 SF students at AFIT now (I'm an assistant professor in my current assignment), all getting their MS degrees in physics or EE, and I know of a couple SF officers getting their PhDs. They'll go on to lead highly technical programs, but yes, they are program managers. The extent of technical work they get to do will depend on what assignment they get and how quickly they can get up to speed on the technical content so they can contribute there. Space Force is still figuring out what they are doing with technical people.
What do you mean by "high-level", as in FGO+ (high ranking)? The short answer is you'll likely do a smattering of technical work as an Lt/Capt and have an opportunity for an advanced degree (astro, aero, physics etc), but not as much as your non-SF counterparts. Past captain it gets very hard to do technical work (there are exceptions like me, but they are rare).
Happy to chat more via PM or other method, I think I have had one of the most technical careers in the AF and most of my work has been Space Force related/sponsored.
My guess is that is even harder in the Space Force than the AF because they didn't take any 61Ds (physicists), which is the career field that has the best chance of getting super technical (because we are so tiny, there is a lot of control over assignments). I have spent my whole career (almost 11 years now) doing all technical work, but it's come with a nice hefty pile of program management on the side.
I am advising 3 SF students at AFIT now (I'm an assistant professor in my current assignment), all getting their MS degrees in physics or EE, and I know of a couple SF officers getting their PhDs. They'll go on to lead highly technical programs, but yes, they are program managers. The extent of technical work they get to do will depend on what assignment they get and how quickly they can get up to speed on the technical content so they can contribute there. Space Force is still figuring out what they are doing with technical people.
What do you mean by "high-level", as in FGO+ (high ranking)? The short answer is you'll likely do a smattering of technical work as an Lt/Capt and have an opportunity for an advanced degree (astro, aero, physics etc), but not as much as your non-SF counterparts. Past captain it gets very hard to do technical work (there are exceptions like me, but they are rare).
Happy to chat more via PM or other method, I think I have had one of the most technical careers in the AF and most of my work has been Space Force related/sponsored.
Thank you for your response! If I understand correctly, the all-encompassing answer is "it depends" on the assignment and location. That being said, do you happen to know if you are more likely to be placed in "more engineering-heavy" positions if you attend a graduate program/master's degree program immediately upon graduating? I know USAFA sends a decent amount of students to grad school right after graduating.
Regardless of whether military or civilian, as you progress through life, most people end up on the leadership/project management side versus the pure technical/research side. I am an Electrical Engineering major and I only know of one of my friends who even remotely stayed on the technical side of the house. Even as an Air Force pilot, almost everyone gets dragged (kicking and screaming for the most part) from the cockpit to the desk after their first/second assignment. I am the only person I know that stayed in the cockpit for all 20 years, but that came with the price of not promoting to O-5.
You were selected for USAFA for your leadership potential more than for your ability to do calculus.
You were selected for USAFA for your leadership potential more than for your ability to do calculus.
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I don't think so - there probably isn't much difference between an Lt that goes straight to AFIT/graduate school after graduation and one that does one assignment (2ish years if you apply for grad school early on) and then heads off to a MS (that's what I did, but I ended up doing both an MS and PhD). Longer than that, and maybe.
In general, when you go to AFIT, your follow on assignment SHOULD use your technical skills. It doesn't always, but you are supposed to be slated for a billet that will leverage technical knowledge, and if you aren't, AFPC actually wants to know that. Personally I recommend doing 2 years somewhere after graduation before grad school. It gives you a chance to see the real Air Force and learn a bit about what you might be interested in.
I'm a candidate for '27 and interested in development engineer AFSC as well. Industry and academia carry the bulk of the load. Comparatively, very little is done in-house. I've spoke to a family friend who works for AFRL. They stated that DEs are generally at Wright-Pat or are stationed with industry overseeing projects on behalf of the government. Don't expect to be directly involved developing the next generation tech. You'd be aware of the tech, should have a good understanding behind the tech, but personally developing tech... not so much. You will be making industry connections. You'll have TS clearance. Finally, you will be available after 5 years for other opportunities...
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This is pretty accurate - I have worked for two different directorates within AFRL in my past assignments and have seen a lot of what is described here. I'll reiterate though - it depends. IF you are motivated to do technical work and advocate for yourself while assigned to a lab, you can do some pretty cool technical work yourself (I'm talking building a system on an optics table, pressing buttons in a trailer on a field test hands on). It's one of the best opportunities out there for a newly minted engineer with just a BS degree. It's a fully lined up job where you get to learn from some very smart people right out of college and build one heck of a resume. But you can just as easily get shoved to the side and do nothing but program management. That is not what is SUPPOSED to happen to new 62 Lts, but if you don't advocate for yourself, it's the easy button for leadership that doesn't know what to do with an inexperienced Lt.