Air Force

Actually, even if you show that you have someone 24/7 to be with the children, Air Force regulations prohibit a single parent from enlisting. They also state anyone with more than 2 dependents is prohibited. They always put the dependents first.

A woman I know had enlisted when she had a 4 yr old. But she was married and her husband was home. Her husband was killed in a car accident a few years later. She received an honorary dependent discharge or something like that since she was then a single parent and requested discharge so she could raise her son.

I'm sure there are several factors:

1) who will watch them during the day while you are at work and in training?
2) who will care for them during deployment which can last for months or a year
3) who will take custody of them, God forbid, if you are killed in the line of duty.

If you are a single parent, those issues are bigger than if you are married.

Ask for the enlistment regulations. If you are having trouble finding the right office, your Congress(wo)man's office is always a good resource. They can't advocate FOR you, but they can help direct you with regard to any federal agency or armed service.

Edited to Add:
I'm sure that standard employment regulations for businesses don't necessarily apply to the military. So using comments from typical HR or job sites like Monster is apples and oranges.

I found this from July 2013:
http://www.af.mil/News/ArticleDisplay/tabid/223/Article/4...

Do more research on "dependent care plan/US Military" and things like that.

Hmm...

You would need someone to watch the kiddos 24/7 due to the likelihood of deployment to some area that you are not able to have family members come with you.

I would suggest that you seek someone to care for your kinder in any case...based on this question.

Just saying!

I think you are a mom now and not free to join the service. I think if you sit down and talk to a recruiter and tell them your plan they might have more information but I was under the impression that once you have kids they come first unless you were already in the service when you had kids.

I do know ladies who have children that serve but I am not sure when they had them, before or after.

Please understand that it's super hard on your kids when you are gone for long periods of time. You can also die and they'll be alone without you. Of course life is uncertain and it's no guarantee you'll be around either way.

I'd think long and hard once you find out if there is any way.

Who would be watching them when you are deployed? You could be out of the state's for years. I don't know Air Force regulations. I do know that a prolonged separations from mom will negatively affect children, especially if the caretaker is not a part of their life now and won't continue to be a part of their life after you return. They would feel you're giving them away. Feels like that to me, a stranger.

Having someone to care for them is just a part of your decision to enlist. Sounds like their father is not involved so they've already lost one parent. Now you're making plans for them to lose you. You really need to consider many factors that are perhaps more important than having someone take care of them. You are responsible for their well being. Physical care is just one part of that responsibility.

Any branch of the service will require you to have a detailed and reasonable plan for your children. Famity is important in the armed forces. They want soldiers focused on their job. When a parent is worried about their family, their focus is on the family.

I suggest the Air Force recruiter is the only one who can answer your question. Did they not explain that to you when you talked with them?

I know that their are many more regulations than concern for child care. The recruiter will give you written material to help you plan.

I believe it is illegal for them to ask whether you have kids at all. Who are 'they'?

http://career-advice.monster.com/job-interview/interview-...

i'm glad the air force has high enough standards that they turn down someone who has 3 kids but hasn't so much as planned ahead to consider their care.
but it's a moot point, isn't it, because L. is almost certainly a troll.
khairete
S.

If that is what you really want to do, you probably want to let them know who it is that would take care of your children.