Military--degrees that help for OTS

Discussion in 'General Distance Learning Discussions' started by armywife, Jun 24, 2003.

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  1. armywife

    armywife New Member

    My husband is enlisted Army and my brother in law is enlisted Air Force. Both have an interest in obtaining a degree so they can get accepted to OTS and move up to officer, however my brother in law has heard that only certain degrees are accepted . My brother in law has a degree in Forestry from NC State but it is considered a non technical degree and therefore the Air Force will not accept him for this reason.

    Has anyone had experience in getting an online degree that is favorably looked at for OTS admittance? If so, where through and what degree? At this point the subject doesn't matter, nor does the school. My husband and brother in law are just looking for the best route to move up the ladder.

    I am curious if the fast tracks like Excelsior/TESU/CO are acceptable for this. My husband has been taking classes in computer science through E Army U but nothing that leads to a degree at this point.
     
  2. Charles

    Charles New Member

    Holly,

    It would be best for your husband and brother to review the Army and Air Force instructions which govern the program of interest. Questions would best be answered by the (headquarters) office that manages the specific program.

    According to the AMU website:

    "Officer Training School (OTS)
    USAF Headquarters recently clarified their policy with regard to applicable credits toward Officer Training School. As a result of a petition by AMU, on behalf of a student applying to OTS, credits and degrees from nationally accredited schools are now accepted toward the qualifications."

    http://www.apus.edu/AMU/navigation/visitor_center/accreditation/accreditation.asp

    Were I to consider going to the "dark side", I would consult with my chain of command and the point of contact for the particular program. AMU, if it is indeed viewed as being equal with other colleges, would be worth considering.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Jun 24, 2003
  3. Mike Albrecht

    Mike Albrecht New Member

    The Army and Navy only say "accredited" which usually menas recognized by the US Dept of Education. The Air Force is more specific and says:
    Eligibility Requirements
    "To apply for OTS, you are required to be either a graduate of a regionally accredited college or university or a college senior.."

    Also if you are aplying for a specifc MOS (i.e. Engineer) an undergraduate degree in that field is often a requiste.

    Note: Infantry and Marines are more lienient.
     
  4. Old interservice joke Joke:

    Question: What do you call a marine who can read and write?

    Ans: "Colonel" :D

     
  5. armywife

    armywife New Member

    Ok...I can relate to the comment about going to the "dark side"......my husband has reservations about going officer even if he had multiple degrees under his belt.

    So many years of being enlisted, living on the cruddy side of post and being looked down upon by a certain number of officer's wives (not all but more than half)...it does make you not even want to cross the fence.
     
  6. decimon

    decimon Well-Known Member

    That was OCS (Officer Candidate School) back when I was in the Army.

    My DI made that real simple for me when I asked his opinion. He said that I could do my time as an officer or as an enlisted man. Ya do the time either way.

    That would best be answered by looking, if possible, at which degrees are held by current officers. Maybe he knows of some superior who'll give him a straight answer.


    That's everywhere. There are always bigger dogs.

    And there's no less respected rank than Second Lieutenant. And if he some day made General they'd likely send him to the Pentagon where you trip over Generals. It's a Rodney Dangerfield world.

    There's a price to pay either way. If you folk want this for the benefits then do it. But find out exactly what they are looking for in an officer. It's more than a degree.
     
  7. armywife

    armywife New Member

    I think there are quite a few ranks less respected than 2nd Liet. Try Private,Specialist and even SGT.

    My husband is a SSGT now, E-6, 10 years in and we are just now getting some respect...of course we are still relegated to the cruddy side of housing segregated as usual with officers on one side of the base and enlisted on the other...lest anyone forget that we are the peons.

    The officer's wife is a breed all her own.
     
  8. Jallen2

    Jallen2 New Member

    Army and Airforce OTS/OCS is two different breeds.

    To meet the current boards for the Air Force you MUST have a technical degree. A list of what is considered technical degrees is below. It is important to note that the degree must be the one mentioned. For example, a Computer Science degree must be a computer science degree NOT Computer Information Systems or Business Information Systems. A good web site to visit is www.airforceots.com . As always in the government and DoD community the college or university attended to receive the degree matters very little.

    Technical Degrees According to the Air Force
    ARCHITECTURE
    CHEMISTRY
    COMPUTER SCIENCE
    COMPUTER ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGY
    ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGY
    ELECTRONIC ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGY (NOTE: TECHNOLOGY DEGREES ARE NOT ELIGIBLE FOR ENGINEERING AFSC, BUT ARE TARGETED FOR 33S1).
    THE FOLLOWING DEGREES QUALIFY TO MEET A CRITICAL TECHNICAL PROGRAM:
    ATMOSPHERE SCIENCE (ABET ACCREDITED)
    ENGINEERING DEGREES (ALL ENGINEERING DEGREES THAT ARE ABET ACCREDITED)
    MATH
    PHYSICS
    METEOROLOGY (ABET ACCREDITED)
    WEATHER TECHNICIANS (1W0) WITH A NON-TECHNICAL BACHELORS DEGREE AND A WEATHER COMMUNITY COLLEGE OF THE AF DEGREE, OR A NON-TECHNICAL BACHELOR DEGREE WITH A MINIMUM OF A FIVE SKILL LEVEL WITH FORCASTER TRAINING AND EXPERIENCE

    p.s. The reason why I have all this useless information is because I'm enlisted in the Air Force and submitted my application for OTS the very board that they changed the policy regarding not accepting any non-technical degrees. Oh well!
     
  9. decimon

    decimon Well-Known Member

    The Army has changed since the '60s. Then a 2nd was a young, single, "ninety day wonder." My offer was based on test scores and passing the little "tests" they throw you in Basic. Don't know what they seek now in an officer but it would behoove the hubby to find out if he's not sure.
     
  10. Hille

    Hille Active Member

    TESC

    Hello, Would a BS in Applied Science Emergency Management work? I think you can spin this at TESC. FEMA credits would fall into upper level if I remember correctly. Hille
     
  11. decimon

    decimon Well-Known Member

    Lots of info here.

    And they have a bulletin board.

    If that part about having no more than ten years of "Federal Service" (can be waived) is correct then I'd think he'd have to make his move soon.
     
  12. armywife

    armywife New Member

    Thanks so much! That is very helpful!! I really appreciate it!
     
  13. me again

    me again Well-Known Member

    Being a private is worse. :rolleyes:

    I've been a private and a lieutenant; and being a lieutenant was a lot better. ;)

    And yes, there is a lot of snobbery in the Army. It's a different world in there.
     
  14. Gary Rients

    Gary Rients New Member

    Funny, when my dad was stationed at Fort Wainwright in the early '70s we had to live in enlisted housing for a while since the officer housing was all full (my dad was a Cpt. at the time). My parents didn't seem to mind much, but I remember my mom having some problems with the enlisted wives not wanting to talk to her, and she's a very friendly type of person so it bothered her. I guess it goes both ways, eh?
     
  15. melrog

    melrog New Member

    Greetings,

    As one who was commissioned through Air Force ROTC, I have to say don't necessarily focus purely on OTS. I know the Air Force has a few programs where they will pay for the last year of school, or allow an early release from active duty to finish a degree and then receive a commission through the ROTC program -- even a bit more flexibility in majors if I remember correctly. The programs I am thinking of are Airman Scholarship and Commissioning Program (ASCP), Professional Officer Course-Early Release Program (POC-ERP), and Airman Education and Commissioning Program (AECP) (probably the best one since you remain on active duty with all pay and benefits in addition to a full scholarship depending on the school. Of course, each one is different with the different benefits, etc. Probably the best place to look would be at the different service's commssioning sources (OTS, ROTC, etc) and see what meets your needs and desires.

    As for concerns of starting over as a brand new 2LT, I have many friends who took that path and have loved it since (they liked it even more when they started to make rank and actually got a better pay check and a bit more respect). I can think of only one who didn't like it because he had to work quite a bit harder, instead of working on F-16 electronic systems, he was now in charge of about 60 other troops in aircraft maintenance and all the trouble that 60 18 year olds can get into on a weekly basis.

    Jon
     
  16. decimon

    decimon Well-Known Member

    I'm curious as to when you were/are/whatever in. I was told that a 2nd lieutenant (presumed infantry) had a combat life expectancy of six seconds. Unsaid was which side was likely to inflict the mortal wound.

    That rank, IMO, is thankless and hapless. They're expected to lead with nothing to guide but some book learnin'. Not a good thing for the infantry. Not, at least, in the conveyor belt replacement context of a major conflict.

    When I was in (years '66 thru '68) I said it was like the real world but exaggerated.
     
  17. armywife

    armywife New Member


    Well if she spent any amount of time in the Army life I think she knows the answer to why no one would talk to her. If you touch a hot stove and get burned, would you do it again? Well if you're an enlisted wife...YES...you will touch many hot stoves and continue to get burned until you finally learn. I have been an enlisted wife for 10 years and in those 10 years I have been snubbed by all but 3 officer's wives. I tread very lightly when I meet an officer's wife NOT becuase it is my natural nature but because I learned. This is because of the way they make it. It sure isn't my set of rules. They have actual rules about these things still. People don't realize that there is massive discrimination in the military between enlisted and officer. What I love is when an officer's wife who has a high school diploma looks down on me because my husband doesn't have a college degree. because that is the ONLY difference between my husband and her husband. First of all, I have never understood why we need to judge people based on that piece of paper. Second, why is anyone judging ME based on what my husband has or hasn't done? Third, I have a college degree and have since before we got married....yet they are looking down on ME and they don't even have a degree. A lot of them do but a good handful don't. The irony.....well the answer to this problem is...don't live on base....live where people don't stamp your rank on the door and force you to live on the *other* side of base.....ok ...rant over....can you tell I have an attitude about this? ....10 years of snobbery will do that to you.
     
  18. Bruce

    Bruce Moderator

    Any 2nd Lieutenant with half of a brain will let his platoon sergeant run the platoon.

    I had my share of 2LT's, and the worse by far were the West Point grads. We called them "ring-bangers", as almost every one of them had a nervous habit of tapping that huge, gaudy USMA ring on the nearest hard surface.


    Bruce
     
  19. Gary Rients

    Gary Rients New Member

    Have you considered that by readily embracing such stereotypes you are contributing to the perpetuation of this culture? I think the bizarre social environment is the main reason that my father left the military. He has an interesting story about having to tell a superior officer that my mother would not be attending any of his wife's tea parties. :rolleyes: My parents are anything but elitist, and no, neither of them has a college degree.

    BTW, here you are judged upon your own words, not upon what your husband has or has not done. Maybe you should take a minute to step back and try to take an outsider's perspective, then reread what you are writing. From my perspective your words seem pretty hypocritical. It's sort of like a racist complaining about racism. If your husband does become an officer then you'll get a chance to experience things from a different side. Maybe I'm just off base here (;)), and if so I apologize in advance.
     
  20. me again

    me again Well-Known Member

    Enlisted vs. Commissioned

    I got out in 1991.

    Since I served in both the enlisted ranks and in the commissioned ranks, I saw both sides of the issue. There were many NCOs who hated officers. I could never understand the hatred, the gossip and the backstabbing. And the officers never knew about the hatred (from the specific individuals).

    And in responce to your comment, I’ve heard horror stories about how bad second lieutenants are treated. They are supposedly mocked and ridiculed. However, my experience was just the opposite. I was treated with a great deal of respect

    The enlisted basic-school was physically rigorous and the students were demeaned. The officer basic-school was a gentleman’s course and the students were treated with an enormous amount of respect. The two schools are totally different in philosophies.

    I have also seen and experienced the snobbery that exists within the officer corps. While that statement alone may set off fireworks, it is a fact of life, unless you wish to wear blinders. :rolleyes: My experience stems from my childhood as a military brat to my own enlisted/commissioned tour and to my fathers final assignment as a commanding general (he was issued a butler who ranged in rank from E-5 to E-7). Some of the NCOs resented being a butler while others enjoyed it. Yep, the military is a strange world. It's our last vestage of the feudal system which was carried over from the European military model. :rolleyes:
     

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