Im 25 aiming for ANG/AFRC Heavies

[FloridaExport]

Hey everybody and happy new year, as the title says just looking to get an idea of where I stand and how I can improve. 

Goal: Any heavy Units on the West Coast or North East

Age: 25

GPA/College: 3.4/International Relations

LORs: Current AF reserve fighter pilot, Retired Col. ANG fighter pilot instructor

Flight Hours: Organizing with my cousin who owns a plane to start working towards PPL and join my local aero club to get flight hours up.

Extracurricular: Golf, tennis, gym and surfing

Volunteer Experience: I am looking to volunteer as a firefighter in my area or in an organization that helps veterans. 

Work Experience: I worked as a teacher in Spain for 8 months, helped my family business with their marketing for 6 months while also working as a delivery driver, worked sales for a software company but had to leave after 9 months due to unforeseen circumstances, and started a small marketing agency in November of 2023 to support myself while I was in Spain for the past 7 months to improve my Spanish.

I omitted AFOQT and PCSM scores as I haven't taken them yet but assuming that I had solid scores I would like to know my chances with the information I have presented
(I also passed a 1st class flight physical if that matters). I am looking to enlist in the reserves in hopes that the squadron can see the work ethic I possess and select me for a UPT slot. I have seen a trend on this forum saying that Guard/Reserve units like to hire from within. 

What I am looking for is the following:

1. How does my current resume look and what areas can I improve to make myself stand out when it's time to apply?
2. Is there an AFSC in the reserves where I can almost certainly work with pilots/operations officers in a professional capacity?
3. While enlisted how can I show ambition to be a leader besides attending drill weekends i.e. volunteer opportunities, leadership workshops etc.
4. Any other tips, links, and resources would be appreciated. 

Happy New Year's and thank you,

Alex

 

 

[ryleypav]

1. Resume looks decent. Actually do some volunteering. What you listed is what you plan to do. You haven't done any of it, so its not relevant. Being a volunteer fireman is good, but its a good amount of training just an fyi. Study and take your tests. Those are a big piece of your resume and application. Can't really judge much without them. Expand more on your marketing firm. That could be potentially interesting and shows commitment to a long term goal. Maybe. 

2. Yes there are plenty. Crew chief's, AFE, HARM/SARM, Crew Comm, Intel, etc. But do you want to fly or do you want to enlist? You can do both, but enlisting will significantly extend the time it takes you to get to a pilot slot. And you're already 25. Enlisting in the reserves/guard can be a decently long process itself, not to mention going to basic and tech school and MEST back at your unit. We're talking years potentially. If you want to fly, try to get picked up by a unit to fly. Are you ok with staying enlisted if you never get picked up? 

3. Be good at your job. Don't be focused on getting a pilot slot that you suck at your job. The enlisted guys we hire from our base are studs and get the job done. 

4. Get you're PPL. Its basically the barrier to entry these days. Not a hard requirement everywhere (some units it is) but thats the way it goes these days. There are so many people applying to guard/reserve units, that it was the next barrier to be put up for selection. It shows commitment to aviation. This website is a pretty good resource. I dont necessarily believe the paid products you can get from a different site are worth it, but I'm sure others would disagree.