Graduate School (MBA) as a traditional reservist

[HFF]

Hi everyone,

I'm wondering if any pilots here have attended a full time or part time (non-online) MBA program while a traditional reservist. If so, were you able top balance your commitment to your unit with your course load and were you able to get any tuition assistance from the guard/reserve? I'm in the early stages of submitting my application package to boards, and I'm considering getting my MBA a few years down the line. If this is something that's feasible for me to do, it's going to influence the units I apply to. Any other comments or criticism on my plans are welcome. Thanks!

Hank

[Bergman]

Hi everyone,

I'm wondering if any pilots here have attended a full time or part time (non-online) MBA program while a traditional reservist. If so, were you able top balance your commitment to your unit with your course load and were you able to get any tuition assistance from the guard/reserve? I'm in the early stages of submitting my application package to boards, and I'm considering getting my MBA a few years down the line. If this is something that's feasible for me to do, it's going to influence the units I apply to. Any other comments or criticism on my plans are welcome. Thanks!

Hank

I have seen two guys attend full-time MBA courses in the last 4 years. Both were guard bums and made it work; their spouses were fully on-board with the time and financial sacrifices necessary and it has worked out well for them. I believe they both used the Post-9/11 GI Bill to make it happen.

They would fly in the evenings or on days they didn't have class, and take trips in between semesters.

[Striper_WSO]

You can do it. Not a reservist, but did go full-time to a top 20 program with a couple reservists/folks in the guard. Couple things to remember:

1. Most programs don't have class on Friday, which is helpful if you have to travel to your unit.

2. You get the standard long academic break over Christmas.

3. You have to do an internship between the two years, but you still should have 4-5 weeks off during that time.

4. You have to go to class. So Monday-Thursday during the academic year is pretty much non-negotiable, meaning you have to be in the seat attending.

5. Lots of shit to do outside class: organizations, interviews, projects, drinking, socializing, but if you make your reserve duty a priority, you can do it.

Best of luck to you!

[HFF]

Hi Guys,

Thanks a bunch for the replies. I have a couple of follow up questions. Firstly, I'm wondering how GI Bill benefits work for traditional reservists and guardsmen. It's my understanding that one must serve at least 6 years to qualify for tuition assistance. Does that mean 6 years in addition to your original 10 year commitment for pilots (making it 16 years) or is it concurrent?

Secondly, I assume that after graduating an MBA program one would be taking on a managerial position within a company that would involve significantly more responsibility. I'm wondering how the guys in your units balanced the added responsibilities of their civilian job with their guard duties. The only reason I ask is because I recall seeing another thread on here dealing with this topic, and I remember some responses talking about those in their unit who were having difficulty balancing a civilian managerial job with their military duties. I've visited a few units already and talked to some of the pilots about this, but the vast majority are airline pilots. Of the few who are working corporate gigs, some are making it work while others are having difficulties. Does anyone here have any experiences or advice relating to that?

Thanks again for the help.

Hank

[Marco]

You will meet the 6 year VA requirement within the 10 year pilot requirement if you are selected. Good luck.

[Karl Hungus]

Hi Guys,

Thanks a bunch for the replies. I have a couple of follow up questions. Firstly, I'm wondering how GI Bill benefits work for traditional reservists and guardsmen. It's my understanding that one must serve at least 6 years to qualify for tuition assistance. Does that mean 6 years in addition to your original 10 year commitment for pilots (making it 16 years) or is it concurrent?

Secondly, I assume that after graduating an MBA program one would be taking on a managerial position within a company that would involve significantly more responsibility. I'm wondering how the guys in your units balanced the added responsibilities of their civilian job with their guard duties. The only reason I ask is because I recall seeing another thread on here dealing with this topic, and I remember some responses talking about those in their unit who were having difficulty balancing a civilian managerial job with their military duties. I've visited a few units already and talked to some of the pilots about this, but the vast majority are airline pilots. Of the few who are working corporate gigs, some are making it work while others are having difficulties. Does anyone here have any experiences or advice relating to that?

Thanks again for the help.

Hank

There's a reason so many guard/reserve pilots work for the airlines. Few civilian jobs are as compatible with guard/reserve pilot requirements.

Your civilian employer can't legally fire you for performing military duty, nor can they legally not hire you only because you're in the military. But that doesn't mean they can't think of a multitude of other reasons to not hire you, and thus avoid an ugly legal battle.

The ones I know who balance a guard/reserve pilot job and a non-flying civilian job do so by living within driving distance to both.

To be honest, where you get your MBA will be very important to your post-grad job prospects. Those types of schools aren't exactly near most guard/reserve bases, and tuition assistance (and the GI Bill, unless the school participates in the Yellow Ribbon program) certainly won't help much in affording them. The real world doesn't give a shit about a bullshit online MBA from TUI, ERAU, Oklahoma State, etc. That's ok if that matches your career goals, but those types of degrees aren't going to match up well with the Whartons, Harvards, Columbias, Stanfords, etc. That's just reality.

Good luck- you've already made the best decision you could by avoiding active duty in the first place.

[Striper_WSO]

Call the VA and ask about your educational benefits. They can look up your information by SSN and determine what you'll get. They've always been very helpful when I've called.

As for the full-time job, it really depends on what you want to do. Do you want to work on Wall Street? Reserve job is probably incompatible. Do you want to work at a CPG company in middle America? They might be more accomodating. But getting the right location, right job, close to reserve job, flexible time for reserve duty - lining those up might be very tough.

[HFF]

Thanks for the replies. I'm currently rushing 5 heavy units which are within 1 hour driving distance of full time top 20 MBA programs and major cities. I'm graduating college in June and am taking a job at a Fortune 500 company working in operations management. Flying for the USAF has been a dream of mine since high school, but I'd also like to have a successful civilian career. Is this something that can be reasonably done provided I live within 1 hour of my base and my civilian job? Or would it be wiser to choose between the guard and my operations management career? I'm passionate about flying and public service but don't want to spread myself too thin.

[matmacwc]

I knew at least 3 doctors that flew part time F-16s, so yeah, you could do it

[angprospect]

Hello everyone,

I'm currently in the process of enlisting in the Air Guard. Got my ASVAB and going to MEPS soon. There's an opening in a nearby unit for enlisted Photojournalist (3N0X5) that I qualify for. I'm currently finishing up my senior year for my bachelor's and my recruiter says I can also apply for officer openings at the unit for Public Affairs Officer or Sexual Assault Response Coordinator (SARC) given my degree. He says it will be an advantage to the board if I enlist, because it will show that I'm dedicated to join regardless of being selected or not for officer. Overall, I'm just excited for the opportunity to serve.

My question is: I know that it depends, but how manageable/realistic would it be to hold an officer position (like PAO or SARC) while attending grad school full-time for an M.S. in Computer Science? Regardless, I intend on serving. I'm just wondering what insight folks here might have about my situation. Thanks!

[Kenny Powers]

Not to bash your plan but are there literally no other jobs available? I ask because you say you're excited to serve and it's difficult to imagine fulfilling that desire as a photojournalist. It might make sense if you were crazy about photography but you say you're interested in MS in CS.

If you really want to serve, consider doing a job that really impacts the mission, you'll probably end up more satisfied.

And if I almost had a degree, I would look straight into commissioning and not spending time enlisted because my recruiter said it'd help me commission. Trust me, I was enlisted for over a decade before commissioning. Nothing against enlisting, you just need to figure out what you want to do and do it.

As far as the commitment, I think you'll eventually just work one weekend a month, 2 weeks a year unless (once you're done with your initial training) you end up in a job that requires you to work more to stay current.

Just food for thought.

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