Air Force Enlisted Job Categories and ASVAB Scores

For job qualification, the Air Force takes individual Armed Forces Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) scores, and re-computes them into four composite scores for Air Force Aptitude Areas.

The four composite score (aptitude) areas are General, Administrative, Mechanical, and Electric/Electronic.

All Air Force enlisted jobs fall into one (or sometimes two) of these categories, and individuals must achieve a qualifying composite score to be eligible for the job.

General Category
The Air Force offers two enlistment options for new recruits. The first one is "guaranteed job," where the applicant has a specific job guaranteed in their enlistment contract. The second option is the "guaranteed aptitude area," where applicants are guaranteed to receive a job in a specific aptitude area, but won't actually find out what the job is until they are in basic training. But the recruit will have a general idea as to what area he/she will be learning at the beginning of their military career immediately after Basic Military Training (BMT).

The Air Force divides their AFSCs (enlisted jobs) into the following overall categories:

• Operations
• Maintenance & Logistics
• Support
• Medical & Dental
• Legal & Chaplain
• Finance & Contracting
• Special Investigations

A recruit will be told what area of skills they will be learning, but will have more specific information than the seven categories above. Some of these jobs are categorized general mainly due to the challenging nature of the training and education. There are no "guarantees" for instance for Air Force Special Warfare as the recruit has to qualify and pass extensive assessment and selection training to become a member of pararescue or combat control for instance. The following jobs are a few that fall into the "General" aptitude area.

• 1A0X1- IN-FLIGHT REFUELING (G-53)
• 1A1X1C-FLIGHT ENGINEER (G-55)
• 1C1X1-AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL (G-53)
• 1C2X1-COMBAT CONTROL (G-43)

Administrative Category

Administrative Airmen make the Air Force work like clockwork. This type of support is mission critical. Administration Airmen are responsible for coordinating and managing a variety of mission critical tasks as well as typical base activities. Administration Airmen work directly with directors and leaders to help with their daily workload with regards to personnel, logistics, and general administration of the Air Force command structure. From human resources, personnel management, scheduling, arranging travel and preparing official documents, these administrative airmen keep the Air Force moving. The following jobs are a few that fall into the "Administrative" aptitude area.

3D0X1 Information Management
3S0X1 Personnel
3S1X1 Military Equal Opportunity

Mechanical Category

Being mechanically inclined will serve you well in the Air Force. The airplanes, jets, helicopters, ground vehicles all require constant maintenance and repair. Keeping assets working is mission critical and the mechanic is the support that makes this happen day in and day out. Making sure emergency recovery equipment is fully operations 100% of the time saves lives. Fixing problems and using technical orders to diagnose and solve maintenance problems on air frame and engine related systems. Understanding inspection, maintenance, and repair equipment and manuals is what is tested each day in this career field. The following jobs are a few that fall into the "Mechanical" aptitude area.

2A5X2- HELICOPTER MAINTENANCE (M-51)
2A6X1 (B)- AEROSPACE PROPULSION (M-51)
2A6X2- AEROSPACE GROUND EQUIPMENT (M-44/E-33)
2A6X5- AIRCRAFT HYDRAULIC SYSTEMS (M-51)

Electric/Electronic Category

Every Air Force base and installation around the world, every plane, helicopter, computer requires electricity or electronic systems to operate the way they are supposed to. The Airmen responsible for installing, repairing and maintaining this electrical network, Electrical Systems specialists ensure that the primary source of energy is always available. From space command communicating with our satellites to hospitals operating lifesaving equipment, every Air Force function depends on this crucial service provided by these specialists. The following jobs are a few that fall into the "Electric / Electronic" aptitude area.

1A3X1-AIRBORNE COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEMS (E-67)
1A7X1-AERIAL GUNNER (M-45/E-56)
2A5X3-BOMBER AVIONICS SYSTEMS (E-67)
2A6X2-AEROSPACE GROUND EQUIPMENT (M-44/E-33)

Finding a place in the Air Force requires a desire to serve in any of these above categories. However, the academic, technical, electrical, and mechanical understanding is also required if you are going to be effective in any of the category of Air Force Specialty Codes.