If you are interested in enrolling into a community college of the air force in the United States, this blog post has been designed to assist you through the process.
The United States military ensures that their forces acquire one skill or the other in a field of their choice. So, if you do want to join the US air force straight from high school you must attend a college and earn a degree at a four-year university, college, or community college to earn either a bachelor’s or an associate degree.
Even as military personnel whose job is to defend the country and its people, you must still acquire some knowledge and if you feel like earning a bachelor’s degree is too much work and too long, you can enroll in the community college of the air force. Specifically for those interested in becoming air and space force personnel.
The United States has a community college specifically for air force enlisted personnel known as the Community College of the Air Force (CCAF). The CCAF is a worldwide multi-campus community college established to meet the educational needs of the United States Air and Space Force enlisted personnel. When you join the US air force, you are automatically enrolled in the Community College of the Air Force.
The college offers a two-year Associate of Applied Science (AAS) degree in association with Air University, it serves over 300,000 active, guard, and reserve enlisted personnel, making CCAF the world’s largest community college system. The college awards more than 22,000 associate in applied science degrees from 71 degree programs annually.
The Community College of the Air Force was established in 1972, located in Maxwell, United States, and affiliated with Air University. The college got its accreditation from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.
In the academic aspect of the school, the program merges the technical education offered by Air Force schools with a core of general education from regionally accredited civilian institutions, and management education from the Air Force or civilian sources. The community college of the air force provides Associate of Applied Science degrees in five broad career areas;
- Aircraft and missile maintenance
- Allied health
- Electronics and telecommunications
- Logistics and resources
- Public and support services
Within these five broad areas, the community college of the air force offers 67 specific degree programs. Through a unique combination of on-duty and voluntary off-duty courses, you will work toward your associate degree in applied science. College credits are earned just by learning and doing your job while you also gain invaluable experience to help kick start your career.
Specific degree programs in each specialty area are designed to give students the theoretical foundation they need to succeed as technical experts and competent supervisors in their industries. The CCAF’s main purpose is to allow airmen to work toward and eventually receive an Associate Degree in their Air Force or Space Force specialty with the least amount of disturbance from PCS, TDY, and shift employment.
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How do I get a CCAF degree?
To get the CCAF degree you must have at least 16 semester hours of resident coursework completed in a CCAF affiliated school to graduate.
Is the Air Force community college free?
Yes, the community college of the air force is tuition-free.
How to Join Community College of the Air Force
The community college of the air force isn’t for civilians but for people who want to join the military, so, applying to this institution means you want to enlist into the air force. In fact, once you have applied for admission into the school and accepted, you are automatically enlisted in the US Air Force.
Enlisting for the air force automatically makes you apply for the school at the same time and there are a couple of requirements that you must meet which have been stated below.
- Be between 17 and 39 years of age
- Be a citizen or legal, permanent resident of the United States.
- Have a high school diploma, GED with at least 15 college credits, or GED
These are the basic requirements and the very first step to meet before going on to meet the following standards:
Aptitude Testing
Before joining the Air Force, you must pass the Armed Forces Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB), which covers four areas that are crucial to the mission: arithmetic reasoning, word knowledge, paragraph comprehension, and mathematical knowledge.
This test determines if you have the mental ability to withstand the demands of the Air Force and identifies your talents, allowing you to choose the vocations that are most suited for your future success.
Physical and Mental Screening
Your recruiter will schedule an appointment for you at a nearby Military Entrance Processing Station (MEPS) to examine your physical and moral standards as set forth by the Air Force, the Department of Defense, and federal law once you have completed the ASVAB. When you apply for the Air Force profession through MEPS, you will give your jobs counselor a list of all the jobs and aptitude areas you are qualified for and willing to train for.
Depending on the current needs, you may be assigned to one of the professions you indicated an interest in, or to one that best suits your skills and the force’s objective.
Preparing for BMT
This is the final stage for enlisting into the air force, it is at this stage that you will enter the Delayed Entry Program (DEP) after passing all of the qualifying qualifications and tests and being officially accepted into the Air Force basic military training (BMT). Working on your physical conditioning to prepare for the challenges of BMT is a smart option during this period.
This is how to join the community college of the air force, it is unique and different from applying into a civilian college.
Community College of the Air Force Degrees
The community college of the air force offers the Associate of Applied Science degrees in five career areas which are:
- Allied Health
- Public and Service Support Services
- Logistics and Resources
- Electronic and Telecommunications
- Aircraft and Missile Maintenance
Within these five career areas are 67 specific degree programs and they are associated with Air University.
Community College of the Air Force Address
The community college of the air force is located at 100 South Turner Blvd, Max-Gunter AFB, Alabama 36114-3011
All the details you need to enroll into the community college of the air force have been provided in this article, the link to the website is also provided for further details and applications.