Rate Tinker AFB

General Discussion for SMART Scholarship Recipients
Legolas

Rate Tinker AFB

Post by Legolas »

Also got offered by Tinker AFB and wanted to ask how people's experiences were there? And any recommendations as to where to stay, visit, eat, etc.

TinkerScholarPhase2

Re: Rate Tinker AFB

Post by TinkerScholarPhase2 »

Congrats! Phase 2 Tinker Scholar here. If I had to rate my Tinker experience, I would rank it a 7/10.

The bad: Like any federal employment, communication can be slow. There was an issue with the 2019 intern security process not being started on time, so we didn’t have much to do for the first month or so. Tinker also has a history of switching around departments from what you’re assigned when you get your award, to your internship, to the group you’re hired into. This technically isn’t supposed to happen, and hopefully won’t moving forward. I don’t believe these bumps in the road are unique to Tinker as a SMART SF.

The good: Tinker has a lot of different groups and departments all supporting the supply chain and/or maintenance of aircrafts. Individual experience can vary greatly depending on what group and job series you’re in, and what your educational background is. Mechanical/aerospace, electrical and industrial engineering as well as computer science seem to be the most common majors for Tinker awardees. Majority undergrad; I was the only grad student my award year. I personally have a weird educational background, but I now work as an ops research analyst and I love it. Super similar to my grad research & interests as a data scientist.

To better understand what you will be doing, ASK QUESTIONS ON YOUR SITE VISIT. Ask what your group does, how it relates to other groups on base and other Air Force Bases in the AFMC. Ask what a typical day looks like, what the educational backgrounds of your future coworkers are, what projects they have enjoyed the most or are proudest of. Some offices will even “walk the wall” for visitors so you can see their projects. They already have selected you- this is YOUR time to interview and select them before committing to the full award.

As far as Oklahoma goes, I came from a big east coast city so it was a bit of an adjustment but I love the low cost of living! I like Scissortail Park (esp the farmer’s market and outdoor roller skating arena), the Bricktown area and the Plaza District. I recommend getting Braum’s ice cream (local chain, so good) and if you’re looking for steak, Cattlemen’s is OKC famous. I stayed at the Hampton Inn and Suites near base for my site visit, it’s very close to base and a nice hotel. For my internship I stayed in the Home2 Suites also right across from the base on a weekly rate, but I would recommend checking out sublets or dorms from the local universities (OCityU, OCentralU, OU) for a cheaper option. You will definitely need a car out here, but I can bike around downtown on weekends easily.

TL;DR- Tinker is a good SF, especially if you’re looking to start a federal career, and Oklahoma City isn’t as lame as I thought it would be lol

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