Hey so i am a junior in high school but want to join the air force my first plans were to be a police opfficer and get all my degrees in the air force like my criminal justice and all but then again i want to become a pilot what do you think the best way to go is? please help me out

Thaw,

Are you looking to be an SP in the Air Force? I have friends that are SP's and the only complaints I have ever heard from them are deployment lengths (180 days a year) and schedules like civilian police officers (you might have to be on patrol on christmas, thanksgiving, etc) If you have the means to become a pilot than by all means, do that! I was a combat controller in the AF, now a civilian in college. The good news is you are still young, so get acquainted with your local AF recruiter and ask them as many questions as you can about both of these careers. You don't need to sign anything, but definitely explore your options. Hope this helps.

Thaw,

first off, you need to make up your mind about what you want to do, and then work towards that particular goal. If you want to be a pilot, then you'll need to get a 4 year college degree and go through a commissioning program, either the Academy, ROTC while in college, or Officer Training School (OTS). If you're going to go for the Air Force Academy, then I recommend you go to their website and start doing your OWN research on what it takes to get in. I'd also recommend searching the Air Force's website to find more information on both ROTC and OTS. To put things simply for you, going for a pilot slot is not easy, and you need to show initiative and responsibility to get there.

On a final note, when talking to recruiters, don't sign anything, and don't say you'll do this or that, just tell him or her what career you're interested in and ask questions. I'd also recommend taking your parents w/ you so that they can ask questions as well.

Good luck,
giblackjack

thank you very much that helped out alot!, one more question, so can i take my 4 year while in the air force on the base? at there college to become a pilot?

It may be technically possible, but I strongly suspect you won't find it feasible. If you'd like the AF to pay for your college, either get into the Academy, or do ROTC and apply for a scholarship. Either way, start getting into shape now! www.afrotc.com is another good site for info specifically on ROTC, and has a page which covers some physical fitness stuff. If you get into the Academy, you'll need to be in excellent shape when it comes to your cardiovascular system, because the Academy is in Colorado Springs, CO, and is probably one of the highest cities in the US. The Academy also has it's own website, I recommend you google it to find it.

I'm an oldtimer, so not sure how this relates to your situation, but I was USAF, USAF Res, and Air National Guard, as well as a police officer.

If you go with a big police department, they will give you all the training that you need, in fact they prefer you to only have their training, so I'd check with your local police agencies to see if a degree in Crim. Just. is worth it. If you go with a smaller department, then you normally go through a community college as you only need an Associate degree. Once you become a police officer your shifts will bounce around so getting a college education becomes about impossible. I'd also talk to a military recruiter to see what degrees will allow you to do what you want to do in the military as if your degree doesn't meet their needs they may not take you as an officer.

If you want to go into the reserves or Guard as an officer, you have to be a prior active duty officer (except in special circumstances) so getting a degree first is the best.

Doing a stint in the military is good as it will help you with understanding a police career, so if you're going to do college first, try the pilot job.

Look around and see if a local police agency has an Explorer program as that will allow you to see and talk to police officers to see if that's the way you really want to go.

As an old retired cop, I'd suggest taking a long hard look at what it's like to be a cop as it's not necessarily all it's cracked up to be.

Thawsoldier, i am currently in the USAF as Security Forces (Military Police). I wouldnt really recommend it unless you know for a fact that you will enjoy it. It is pretty much that you have to be somebodys buddy in order to have it good in this field. if you do come in to the USAF, come into a field that you are interested in an then study criminal justice while the schooling is paid for. I am studying computer science, even though i am a cop. but that is becuase i dont enjoy the field as i thought i would. My unit is a little different than a regular cop unit though. we get to fly around WY, CO, and NE in a helicopter about every other day. The other units work about 3-5 days a week in tweelve hour shifts, and it is basic security details, not typical police work. i think it is like 10% of the people that come in to MP is a typical cop( and that is being generous), the rest are glorified security guards. I would be more than happy to support you in any decision you make as for a job with the USAF. there are many good ones, but it is all personal preference. Good Luck to You (basic isn't as bad as many will tell you, just do every thing you can to stay healthy during basic and make sure that you run, do push-ups and sit-ups on a regular basis prior to basic so as to not have any problems in basic).