{"id":32556,"date":"2024-02-14T20:22:36","date_gmt":"2024-02-14T20:22:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/uncategorized\/2024\/02\/14\/space-force-mulls-8-year-active-duty-enlistments-for-new-recruits\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T21:21:38","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T21:21:38","slug":"space-force-mulls-8-year-active-duty-enlistments-for-new-recruits","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/space\/2024\/02\/14\/space-force-mulls-8-year-active-duty-enlistments-for-new-recruits\/","title":{"rendered":"Space Force mulls 8-year active duty enlistments for new recruits"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><i>This story was updated Feb. 21 to reflect that, if offered, eight-year active duty enlistment contracts would not be mandatory for new enlistees.<\/i><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Space Force is considering giving prospective guardians the option to enlist for an initial term of eight years on active duty \u2014 twice as long as first-term troops usually sign up for \u2014 in a bid to build a more stable workforce to span the coming decades.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It\u2019s one change to personnel policies now under consideration as the Space Force looks to break typical military molds and craft a workforce that meets its unique needs as the Pentagon\u2019s newest and smallest branch.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/your-military\/2024\/01\/16\/congress-approves-space-force-part-timers-but-still-no-space-guard\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/7284412.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Congress approves Space Force part-timers, but still no Space Guard<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">A new Space Force structure approved in the 2024 defense policy law may create more flexibility for troops.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI know eight years is a big commitment to make if you\u2019re 20 years old, 21 years old,\u201d Chief Master Sergeant of the Space Force John Bentivegna told Air Force Times Jan. 11. \u201cBut let me explain to you \u2026 the training you\u2019ll get, the opportunities you\u2019re going to get, the experience you\u2019ll have \u2014 it takes time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">All enlisted troops across the armed forces are already required to agree to at least eight years in uniform. But most serve out a four- or six-year term on active duty before spending the remaining time in the individual ready reserve \u2014 a pool of former active duty, National Guard and Reserve troops who can still be called up in an emergency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Instead, the Space Force could ask guardians to spend their entire enlistment on active duty. Once those eight years are up, they would be off the hook \u2014 with no commitment to the individual ready reserve.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a statement emailed after publication, Bentivegna clarified that the idea would not be mandatory for new enlistees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIf offered, in addition to 4- and 6-year enlistments, 8-year enlistment options would be voluntary and tied to a potential incentive bonus,\u201d he said. \u201cThe Space Force is carefully considering the impact of voluntary extended enlistment contracts; we have proposed a third-party study on the impact of this concept.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Bentivegna hopes that a new set of policies, which will allow guardians to toggle between full-time and part-time service while remaining on active duty, can offer the enlisted force more flexibility while keeping them in uniform longer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The idea is on the table because the Space Force, established in 2019, has discovered that its enlisted recruits skew older \u2014 averaging 22 years old \u2014 and are more educated than those of the other services. Rather than joining the military straight out of high school, 40% of those recruits enlist after earning an associate\u2019s, bachelor\u2019s or master\u2019s degree, the service said last month.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Space Force also handles a niche set of highly technical missions, like cyber operations, electronic warfare and space-based intelligence, using an enlisted workforce of more than 4,000 people. All enlisted guardians must pass the background checks and polygraphs needed to receive a top secret\/secure compartmented information clearance as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Because its recruits come in with more skill, and because the force is so small, the service doesn\u2019t want to lose that expertise \u2014 or the money and time it takes to train guardians in those fields \u2014 after just four years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The service will also explore how to structure re-enlistment bonuses and other incentives to avoid losing them to lucrative jobs in the space and cyber industries once the eight years are up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cA guardian\u2019s journey doesn\u2019t end at the traditional four- or six-year mark, which enables the service to build the technical depth and expertise we need for great power competition,\u201d Bentivegna said in a follow-up email from a spokesperson Jan. 30. \u201cWe are working to enrich their experience through technical training schools, fully qualified promotion policies, bonuses and [reimagining] our professional military education.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Speaking at the Air and Space Forces Association\u2019s Air Warfare Symposium on Wednesday, Bentivegna noted that the U.S. also needs to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/news\/your-military\/2024\/02\/02\/enlisted-leaders-urge-lawmakers-to-fully-fund-troop-housing-allowance\/\" target=\"_blank\">reform military pay and benefits<\/a> to make service more enticing and sustainable for those who do opt into years in uniform.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThat model that we\u2019re looking at may be just a little outdated. What is the value proposition of service? It\u2019s changed,\u201d he said. \u201cI think that\u2019s the goodness of the dialogue we\u2019ve had.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It\u2019s unclear whether asking prospects to join the Space Force for nearly a decade would make a dent in the service\u2019s recruitment efforts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">More than 4,000 people sought to enlist in the Space Force in 2023, the service told Congress in January. But just a fraction make it into the limited number of available billets. The service plans to recruit nearly 700 new enlisted guardians in fiscal year 2024.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That\u2019s a sliver of what the other armed forces aim to bring in throughout the year. For instance, the Air Force hopes to sign up 25,900 new active duty enlisted airmen by the end of September.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<iframe width=\"315\" height=\"560\"\nsrc=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/I0t2-kTpfC8\"\ntitle=\"YouTube video player\"\nframeborder=\"0\"\nallow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\"\nallowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Todd Harrison, a military space expert at the American Enterprise Institute, warned the Space Force to do its homework before settling on major changes to career models.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He worries an eight-year commitment could make it harder for the Space Force to compete for talent with private industry and the other armed forces, if recruits see the contract as a long time to be locked into military service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Harrison also questioned whether high performers, who may have other options to consider, would be attracted to an eight-year commitment. He suggested the Space Force track the correlation between how people feel about longer enlistments and how well they score on the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery, an entrance exam that determines which jobs a recruit is qualified to hold.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cLook before you leap,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>It\u2019s unclear whether asking prospects to join the Space Force for nearly a decade would make a dent in the service\u2019s booming recruitment efforts.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":72322,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":23,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":[]},"categories":[76,29,23],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3484],"class_list":["post-32556","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-air-warfare-symposium","category-digital-show-dailies","category-space"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"MFWVUZOUNNAWPFOE7DPZNK64AA","arc_canonical_url":"\/news\/your-air-force\/2024\/02\/14\/space-force-mulls-8-year-active-duty-enlistments-for-new-recruits\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.0 (Yoast SEO v28.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Space Force mulls 8-year active duty enlistments for new recruits - Defense News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"It\u2019s unclear whether asking prospects to join the Space Force for nearly a decade would make a dent in the service\u2019s booming recruitment efforts.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Space Force mulls 8-year active duty enlistments for new recruits\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"It\u2019s unclear whether asking prospects to join the Space Force for nearly a decade would make a dent in the service\u2019s booming recruitment efforts.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/space\/2024\/02\/14\/space-force-mulls-8-year-active-duty-enlistments-for-new-recruits\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Defense News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-02-14T20:22:36+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-08-07T21:21:38+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Rachel S. 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