Special duties offer chance to expand AF experience Published Oct. 8, 2013 By Airman 1st Class Jason Wiese 90th Missile Wing Public Affairs F.E. WARREN AIR FORCE BASE, Wyo. -- Each Airman enters the operational Air Force with a specific Air Force specialty. However, not all jobs in the Air Force fall under the duties performed by a specific AFSC. Special duty assignments allow Airmen to leave their usual career field for a time and take on a new job, one that can give them new insight into the Air Force and allows them to bring a fresh perspective back to their AFSC when they return, said Master Sgt. Clayton Schoepflin, 90th Force Support Squadron First Term Airmen Center superintendent. In addition to running the FTAC, Schoepflin is the 90th Missile Wing's career assistance advisor, which is a special duty. There are many special duty assignments in need of Airmen to fill them, Schoepflin said. One of the best ways to learn about what duties are out there is to get active around base -- get active in the Airmen's Council, LEAD 5/6 or Top 3 and any base organizations. Airmen can apply for some special duties, like facility manager or military training leader positions, on the Equal Plus section of the Air Force Portal. To apply for other special duties, such as military training instructor and recruiter assignments, Airmen must contact their agencies directly, he said. "In a nutshell, the three most important things when trying to get into a special duty are timing, qualifications and desire," Schoepflin said. Airmen looking to apply for a special duty should consider whether the timing is right for them to join the special duty, both in terms of when the special duty position needs to be filled and in terms of where the Airmen are in their careers, Schoepflin said. One qualification Airmen need for most special duties is high enlisted performance report scores. Enlisted performance reports are critical in determining who is qualified for particular special duty assignments, he said. Most special duty application reviewers will request an applicant's three most recent EPRs when considering them for the position. Some special duties will require applicants to submit a target resumé to be considered. Target resumés detail where applicants have been in their careers and what skills they have that will be relevant to the special duty to which they apply, he said. Airmen should only apply for a special duty assignment if they have the qualifications and desire to do the job, he said. For this reason, Airmen applying for special duty assignments should research the positions they are interested in so they know what the job entails. The base career assistance advisor is a good resource to help find information about various special duties. The amount of competition for different special duties varies by assignment, he said. Some, such as the overseas base postal workers position, are much more competitive than others, such as the MTI and first sergeant positions. Factors such as perceived difficulty of an assignment and fear of failure in an unfamiliar duty position affect how many Airmen apply for an assignment. "People don't want to leave their comfort zone," he said. Those not interested in or not qualified for available special duties can still take assignments outside their normal career field that are not officially listed as special duties. "There are other duties out there, not listed as special duties per se, that still give you a breadth of experience outside your normal job," he said. For instance, exercise evaluation team directors and commander's executives fill an Air Force need, exist outside any normal Air Force Specialty and give Airmen experience with duties they usually would not perform -- all benefits of special duty assignments, just without the official designation of "special duty," he said. "I encourage people to get out there and try to do at least one special duty in their career," he said. "The wealth of information you bring back to your organization when it's done is invaluable."