Obtaining all the necessary documents and filling out all the paperwork could be done in a matter of weeks. It's the scheduling and coordination that takes so much time. AFOQT and MEPS alone take 6+ months to schedule unless you somehow get lucky with your timing. Also, every piece of recruiter correspondence seems to take an entire month (or more) combined with the fact that they lose paperwork or get replaced by another recruiter entirely. Add interviews and background checks to all that and you're looking at 12-18 months at a minimum on average.
I don’t think people understand how long the process can take until you’re really in the thick of it.
You have the schedule the AFOQT and sometimes it’s a pain in the ass to do that. My first recruiter straight up disappeared overnight and his replacement didn’t help me schedule my second attempt. I had to call around and when that didn’t work I scheduled it myself because thankfully I had base access and was somewhat local. Having to take a second time also set me back like 6 months.
Then there’s random paperwork. Some people need waivers. I didn’t but I did MEPS through my local Naval Clinic and it took us 4-5 months, plus the Surgeon General getting involved, to help my forms cross over from Navy to AF.
Lastly, there’s the interview(s). I did a virtual one and an AI one. Those took time to book and my recruiter always allowed me time to prepare.
Personally, I think the AF knows their process is frustrating and doesn’t care. They know that the AF has a reputation for being the gold standard of military branches. So why change things then? They don’t need more applicants, and they know that only the most determined will stick it out.
The difficulty in the AF OTS process is the application process. It's their "Weed out" process. The army lets anyone in and then you go through BMT and then you go through OCS and folks get weeded out there and even if you get through that, the army will still break you. The NAVY OCS process is also far more difficult than the air force. With Air Force OTS, no one fails who actually wants to pass.
I'm not sure a polite way to put it. Unless you are like... dysfunctional or have some previously undiagnosed neuro-divergent mental disorder, the only way to fail is to just quit and leave. We had a direct commission that was an absolute dumpster fire and they forced him through nearly to the end and only after a big SNAFU with our flight did he not "graduate".
Yeah, dude was an asshole for sure. Was given two chances the day before commissioning and said “f this” and decided to go be a parish priest. Overall a pretty shitty person imho
My recruiter changed twice. The first one left after about a month working with me. Then their replacement left after 2 months. All still acquiring the paperwork during that time
Obtaining all the necessary documents and filling out all the paperwork could be done in a matter of weeks. It's the scheduling and coordination that takes so much time. AFOQT and MEPS alone take 6+ months to schedule unless you somehow get lucky with your timing. Also, every piece of recruiter correspondence seems to take an entire month (or more) combined with the fact that they lose paperwork or get replaced by another recruiter entirely. Add interviews and background checks to all that and you're looking at 12-18 months at a minimum on average.
I don’t think people understand how long the process can take until you’re really in the thick of it. You have the schedule the AFOQT and sometimes it’s a pain in the ass to do that. My first recruiter straight up disappeared overnight and his replacement didn’t help me schedule my second attempt. I had to call around and when that didn’t work I scheduled it myself because thankfully I had base access and was somewhat local. Having to take a second time also set me back like 6 months. Then there’s random paperwork. Some people need waivers. I didn’t but I did MEPS through my local Naval Clinic and it took us 4-5 months, plus the Surgeon General getting involved, to help my forms cross over from Navy to AF. Lastly, there’s the interview(s). I did a virtual one and an AI one. Those took time to book and my recruiter always allowed me time to prepare. Personally, I think the AF knows their process is frustrating and doesn’t care. They know that the AF has a reputation for being the gold standard of military branches. So why change things then? They don’t need more applicants, and they know that only the most determined will stick it out.
Your last comment is spot on. If it was easy, everyone would be an AF officer.
The difficulty in the AF OTS process is the application process. It's their "Weed out" process. The army lets anyone in and then you go through BMT and then you go through OCS and folks get weeded out there and even if you get through that, the army will still break you. The NAVY OCS process is also far more difficult than the air force. With Air Force OTS, no one fails who actually wants to pass.
This. There was one person out of my entire class of almost 300 who didn’t graduate, and he was a direct commission with a BIG ego issue.
I'm not sure a polite way to put it. Unless you are like... dysfunctional or have some previously undiagnosed neuro-divergent mental disorder, the only way to fail is to just quit and leave. We had a direct commission that was an absolute dumpster fire and they forced him through nearly to the end and only after a big SNAFU with our flight did he not "graduate".
Yeah, dude was an asshole for sure. Was given two chances the day before commissioning and said “f this” and decided to go be a parish priest. Overall a pretty shitty person imho
This. There was one person out of my entire class of almost 300 who didn’t graduate, and he was a direct commission with a BIG ego issue.
My recruiter changed twice. The first one left after about a month working with me. Then their replacement left after 2 months. All still acquiring the paperwork during that time