Is US Air Force Reserve AGR worth it?

I went AGR from active duty and here is my experience. AD really is big moving machine, if you get crushed by it, nobody really cares. I found the guard/reserves is a little closer to home. You don't move around (PCS) a whole lot (you'd have to secure another AGR slot elsewhere) and the people you work with become true friends and more like the family AD likes to portray. On the other hand, if your co-workers aren't so agreeable, your going to have to deal with it, or move on. My thoughts, your move. Good luck, you'll be fine either way. Talk to your family about it.

Is an AGR worth it, that depends on a number of things: is it something you like doing, is it in an area that you want to live, can you make more money as a Capt then your civilian job, and most important, what is the top out grade for the position. If answer to these questions is yes then, it may be worth it. If the position is maxed out as a Capt, then I would say probably not worth doing. The good thing about an AGR is that you are active duty at a given base, which means you don't have to PCS, and if the position is a Maj/LtCol grade max out then I would say yes it is worth doing. The promotion cycle is not difficult, even if the unit uses ROMPA as a personnel management tool. That is still nothing outrageous, just means that you just might be hitting max time in each rank for promotions. If you take the AGR, I would advise that you remember to do a couple things. First learn to write a good OPR because the guard and reserves are notorious for writing poor OPRs, and if you have to meet a ROPMA board then an average/vanilla OPR will get you passed over - the great thing about the guard and reserves is that you have a great deal of input to your OPR, that is your way to manage your career. The second thing is be a team player, a draw back to being at one place for more than 3 years is that mistakes and disputes can come back to haunt you, just because you are not moving on and neither are the people at that base. Which is both a blessing and a curse, a blessing because you make connections and extend the family, and like all families when there is conflict even tho you work through it, it has the strong potential to resurface and cause issues when it time for position moves or position/promotion selection. All in all if you can get an AGR with growth potential it is worth it, because once you make your twenty years your retirement starts when your done where as if you are a traditional you must wait for your retirement till your are 60. - Good Luck

It's the best kept secret in the military. Take the opportunity.

Would you like to Homestead at a location of your choice somewhere and not be subject to further relocations for the remainder of your military career? Would you like to establish a close network of coworkers and friends who will train and deploy with you in the years ahead without having to reestablish a whole new network at every new duty station? Would your spouse like to establish a stable career without having to uproot every three years or so and start all over? Finally, would like your children to finish high school at the same school they began ninth grade and not subject them to having to make new friends every time they move? Then AGR is for you! It's really the best of both worlds, if you find the right unit and location. Depending on your AFSC (Operations vs Support) you'll find a complete world of difference between active duty and Guard/Reserve. The drawbacks vary, but measure for measure, you'll find more individuals satisfied with an AGR position than an active duty slot. I did twenty-three years active duty and ten years ANG, believe me the Guard is way more fun and a wonderful group of people without all the active duty Queep!

I am a retired AGR after serving on AD and as a Traditional Reservist.

First question should be is it a job that I'm interested in doing and in a location compatable with my family. If you accept an AGR position you may be with that unit for a much longer period of time than you would be on AD, so make sure the folks in the unit and their attitudes are compatable with yours. Folks in a Reserve unit don't change very quickly.

Second, AGR means you continue on Active Duty, just in the Reserve Component. You get paid twice a month, get housing allowance, are covered by Tricare etc. That doesn't sound like a lot to someone on AD, but to a Reservist who works mandays, those things are invaluable. For that reason, AGR slots are normally VERY competitve to get. No, you don't get paid extra like a Technician on a Drill Weekend, but you won't find yourself working a normal 8 hour day as a civil servant then working additional shifts as a drilling Reservist.

Promotion opportunities are good - to a point. You will be competing with traditional Reservists for promotion, and since your OPR's will reflect full time work (vs. a part time Reservist) you should have very good paper. On the other hand, you will get to a point where you will have to "move to move up" since promotion as an AGR is tied to a position as well as to a Promotion Board. On AD, AFPC finds a "slot" for you and promotion comes when your number comes up. In the Reserves as an AGR you will need to be selected for promotion and find a slot. PV promotions (which avoid a wait) are contingent on being in a slot for the Promoted Rank, i.e. if you are selected for Major but are already in a Major Slot then you can be promoted quickly (if it's approved).

Yes you can absolutely be deployed, PCSed etc. as an AGR. The A stands for "Active" and you are subject to the whims of the AF - but through the filter of the AF Reserve.

Overall, being an AGR is likely the best position in the Military. Once folks are in "the program" they fight tooth and nail against losing their AGR status. I think that says it all.

Capt (Join to see), I recommend a very serious look at an AGR career. I did four years, RegAF, then ten years as an USAFR IMA, and finished with 16 years as an ANG AGR. I was fortunate to spend all 16 of those AGR years at one station, although I would have had to PCS to be promoted. In both the Reserve and Guard, promotions are dependent upon unit vacancies, not your personal performance. You can be a real burner, but if there is no vacancy available to you compatible for the next grade, you're not going to be promoted.

As a whole, an AGR career very closely parallels an AD career. 7300 days of active duty makes one eligible for the same AD retirement as RegAF.

There are more AGR opportunities in the Guard than in the Reserve, as the Guard is much bigger. As others have pointed out, involuntary PCS within the Guard is limited to within your state. Involuntary PCS for a Reserve AGR is still possible to any Reserve location nationwide.

Several respondents have used the term "technician" as interchangeable with AGR, and that couldn't be further from the truth. The same with those who mention you don't receive retirement benefits until age 60. As I previously mentioned, once you have 7300 days of active duty (note, that is NOT 20 years times 12 months times 30 days a month, which leaves you 100 days short at 7200), you can punch out under the same US Code section as if you stay RegAF.

I'm sure you have looked thoroughly at AFI 36-2132, Volume 2. Once you cross six years of AGR service, you should be good to go for career status. Getting there depends on 1.) your work, 2.) your AFSC (or flexibility to change it), and 3.) the needs of your unit/USAFR.

Good luck!

AGR is the best of both worlds. You put in your 20 or more years and you begin collecting immediately, just like active duty retirees. Additionally, you're able to plant roots. No more rotations. Deployments, sure. But you can archive the term, "PCS." Won't apply to you. I did 23 years active duty but if someone offered me an AGR slot in the guard or reserves, I'd have jumped on it.

You will notice little differences.
PCS? Rare, unless you "apply" for another opening.
Promotion? Must find an AGR position to transfer to, then "apply" for that slot.
Pay and benefits are the same, pcs rare and by choice, must find a funded AGR position opening and transfer for promotion.

I've been trying for the past few minutes to come up with an answer that doesn't sound like I'm being an smart ass NCO mouthing off to an officer because of my retired status and hiding behind internet bravado. Suffiec it to say, after re-reading this, I think I've failed so you'll have to take it on face value that I do not mean to offend but I gotta ask ... What do you mean by "is it worth it?"

Q: Has anyone ever asked you if serving in the USAF was worth it?
Q: How did or how would you answer?

As an AGR in the USAFR, you are subject to all the pros and cons of being in the USAF.
Were you to go into the ANG, then you would you not have to worry about being PCS'd outside the confines of your state.

Bottom line: If you want to know if it's more of a benefit for you than a service to the country, then perhaps the civilian sector might provide a more advantageous situation that will benefit you. You've served your 8 years which is more than the majority of Americans have and I thank you for your service Capt (Join to see).

AGR positions are difficult to get. If it's where you want to be you should go for it. Once you get into the AGR system you should be able to ride it to retirement.