Air Force Officer Training School Officer Training School ( OTS ) is a United States Air Force commissioning program located at Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery , Alabama . It is the current " de facto " officer candidate school ( OCS ) program for the U . S . Air Force , analogous to the OCS programs operated by the other branches of the U . S . armed forces . Overview . OTS is a part of Jeanne M . Holm Center for Officer Accession and Citizen Development , formerly the Air Force Officer Accession and Training Schools ( AFOATS ) . Named for the late Major General Jeanne M . Holm , the Holm Center falls under Air University ( AU ) , which , in turn , falls under the Air Education and Training Command ( AETC ) , an Air Force major command ( MAJCOM ) . In addition to OTS , the Holm Center also has oversight responsibilities for the Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps ( AFROTC ) pre - commissioning program on U . S . colleges and universities , the Air Force Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps ( AFJROTC ) citizen development program in U . S . high schools , and the entire Civil Air Patrol , both its senior member program as the U . S . Air Force Auxiliary , focused search and rescue and other emergency services and disaster support , and its citizen development and aerospace education cadet program ( similar to the AFJROTC cadet program ) via its HQ CAP - USAF activity . The current Commander of the Holm Center ( Holm / CC ) is Brigadier General Robert D . Thomas , and the current Commandant of OTS ( OTS / CC ) is Colonel Scott M . Lockwood . During peacetime , OTS is usually the smallest commissioning source in the USAF , producing fewer officers per year than AFROTC and the United States Air Force Academy ( USAFA ) . Given its shorter lead time for officer production ( 10 weeks versus the typically 4 - year pre - commissioning process for USAFA and AFROTC cadets ) , it is the commissioning source used to balance out USAF officer manning as deemed necessary by the Air Force . The number of officers commissioned through OTS fluctuates wildly as their numbers are largely influenced by the amount of graduating cadets through the Academy and AFROTC , as well as being the first place the Air Force cuts when they have a surplus of cadets through the other two sources . Given this reality , OTS has often surpassed USAFA officer production during wartime periods such as during the Vietnam War in the 1960s and early 1970s or the Reagan defense buildup of the 1980s . Conversely , OTS can be hard to get into during years of contraction within the national defense establishment in general and the Air Force in particular , such as the mid and late 1970s following the end of the Vietnam War and associated USAF force structure reductions or the post - Cold War era and its associated defense reductions of the early and mid - 1990s . During these periods of contractions , OTS produces few officers , making selection for the OTS program particularly difficult and competitive for college graduates , especially those with no prior enlisted service , particularly USAF enlisted service . . Structure . OTS is divided into two subset programs . Basic Officer Training ( BOT ) is the more traditional 9 - 10 week pre - commissioning program for non - prior service college graduates , as well as active duty enlisted , Air Force Reserve enlisted , Air National Guard enlisted and former enlisted personnel with college degrees at the baccalaureate level degree or higher who wish to become Air Force officers . BOT serves all active and reserve component line officers except judge advocates . Commissioned Officer Training ( COT ) is a 5 - week program , primarily focused on terminal degreed professionals ( i . e . , doctors , lawyers , chaplains ) directly accessed into the USAF officer ranks for specific staff corps programs . COT serves all active , reserve and air national guard non - line officers and judge advocates . Interested applicants for OTS typically contact Air Force recruiters . Recruiters will screen candidates , provide application details and schedule applicants for the Air Force Officer Qualifying Test ( AFOQT ) . The AFOQT covers numerous test batteries assessing math , verbal , and analytical skills , as well as measuring pilot and navigator / combat systems officer potential for those applicants aspiring to be aeronautically rated officers . To have a reasonable chance at acceptance , either AFOQT scores , college GPA , or previous pilot skills ( either as a civilian pilot and / or as a U . S . Army warrant officer / Army Aviator ) must be noteworthy , although the selection process strives to employ a composite or " whole person " approach . Applicants will be given an opportunity to apply for Air Force career fields that correspond with the applicants ' expertise and / or desires and will be interviewed by active Air Force officers as well as receive a military medical examination for flying or non - flying duty as appropriate . Applicants will then be screened by a centralized , periodic , OTS Selection Board conducted by the Air Force Recruiting Service , a component of the Air Education and Training Command . Applicants will be notified of acceptance or rejection by their recruiter pending release of the board results . Selectees for OTS will subsequently enlist in the Air Force Reserve via the Delayed Enlistment Program and will be assigned an OTS class date . BOT is highly competitive , with recent boards ( circa 2010 - 2012 ) having selection rates below twenty percent . Basic Officer Training . Per Air Force Instruction ( AFI ) 36 - 2013 , personnel attending BOT must have a baccalaureate level degree or higher in either technical or non - technical fields . Technical fields may include any ABET accredited Engineering degree and other fields in high demand by the Air Force . Non - technical degrees are more common , and therefore applying with a degree in such a field is very competitive . Applicants can apply for rated or non - rated positions . Rated positions are flying related — Pilot , Combat Systems Officer , or Air Battle Manager . Non - rated fall into 2 categories : non - rated operations , such as Space & Missiles , Intelligence or Weather , and non - rated support , such as Aircraft Maintenance , Logistics , Civil Engineer , Security Forces , or Communications . Areas of instruction include military customs and courtesies , military history , leadership , field exercises , drill and ceremonies , small arms training , and combatives . The first five weeks of training are geared toward orienting the Officer Trainee ( OT ) with Air Force standards . The focus is on physical training , drill and ceremonies , and standardization . OTs will be expected to work with their fellow flight and squadron members to accomplish specific tasks as required by their Flight Commander and OT upperclassmen . They will also attend multiple classes in an academic environment . During these five weeks a trainee is called a lower classman . The final four weeks of training focus on developing the Upper Class as leaders and mentors for a new group of underclassmen . During the final weeks of training the trainees attend field training exercises , projects , small arms training , and building team skills by overcoming challenges in a simulated deployment environment . To graduate , OTs must meet or exceed physical standards , academic standards , and military bearing standards . Military bearing includes the ability to write and brief , lead the flight , and perform duties within the OT Wing . Upon graduation , OTS graduates receive Reserve commissions as Second Lieutenant s in the United States Air Force , either in pay grade O - 1 , or O - 1E if prior enlisted for 4 years and 1 day or more in any branch of the U . S . armed forces . With the exception of those OTS graduates proffered as direct entry accessions into the Air Force Reserve Command ( AFRC ) or the Air National Guard ( ANG ) , OTS graduates may eventually apply for augmentation of their commissions to the Regular Air Force , typically following three to five years of active duty service . Commissioned Officer Training . COT is a 5 - week course for professionals who have received a direct commission . Typically , these officers have degrees , such as M . Div . , M . D . , D . O . , O . D . , D . D . S . , D . M . D . , Pharm . D . , Ph . D . , Psy . D . , B . S . N . , MSW or J . D . in the case of chaplains , physicians , optometrists , dentists , pharmacists , psychologists , nurses , social workers , and lawyers , respectively . They often enter at an advanced rank , such as First Lieutenant ( O - 2 ) and sometimes as Captain ( O - 3 ) in compensation for their high level of education , and in some cases , experience . Officers can be commissioned up to the rank of Colonel ( O - 6 ) if they possess the level of experience necessary . With the exception of those officers previously commissioned as line officers through USAFA , AFROTC , and the BOT program of OTS , or the Air Force Nurse program of AFROTC , most chaplain s , judge advocate general ( i . e . , lawyers ) , and medical personnel go through COT . Commissioned Officer Training ( COT ) is responsible for developing medical , legal , and chaplain personnel into professional officers by instilling character , knowledge , and motivation essential to serve in the United States Air Force . The 23rd Training Squadron ( 23 TRS ) provides a 31 - training day Commissioned Officer Training course to instill leadership and officership skills in newly commissioned medical officers , judge advocates , and chaplains . The 23 TRS also conducts a 13 - training day Reserve Commissioned Officer Training ( RCOT ) program for hard - to - recruit medical officers in the Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard . Air National Guard Officer Training / Academy of Military Science . The Academy of Military Science ( AMS ) is a detachment of the Air National Guard Readiness Center . Originally located at McGhee - Tyson Air National Guard Base in Knoxville , Tennessee , AMS relocated to Maxwell AFB in 2009 , and embedded itself into OTS . AMS is a six - week program designed to train and commission second lieutenants to fulfill Air National Guard ( ANG ) requirements . AMS was established in 1971 and has commissioned more than 14 , 500 officers . AMS production numbers have varied over the years , peaking at 569 in 2003 . Currently , AMS has the capacity to produce 500 second lieutenants a year with a surge capacity of 560 . The AMS program covers the same subject areas as BOT and COT and also provides students education in ANG heritage and their role as Citizen Airmen , as the majority of AMS students are prior - enlisted Air National Guard members and many may also have civilian careers . The training program is accomplished in six weeks in order to support civilian employers by educating the Citizen Airman in the most efficient and effective way possible . There are four AMS classes per fiscal year . Once AMS trainees successfully complete all OTS graduation requirements , they receive the oath of office and are commissioned as second lieutenants in the ANG with both state and federal responsibilities . Most of these new lieutenants attend follow - on training after OTS . Training specialties include pilot , combat systems officer ( formerly known as navigator ) , air battle management , space and missile operations , cyber operations , and several support career fields . The length of this training varies according to the specialty . The History of OTS . When the Aviation Cadet ( AvCad ) Program proved insufficient to meet wartime commissioned officer requirements , the United States Army Air Forces established the Officer Candidate School ( OCS ) on 23 February 1942 at Miami Beach , Florida , its mission being to train and commission members from the enlisted ranks . OCS moved to the San Antonio Aviation Cadet Center ( now Lackland AFB ) in 1944 and gained the additional mission of training officers directly from civilian status in September 1951 . OTS was organized at Lackland AFB , Texas in November 1959 , with the first OTS class ( 60 - A ) composed of 89 officer trainees , including 11 women , who graduated and were commissioned as 2nd Lieutenants on 9 February 1960 . The number of OTS graduates has varied over the years , from 323 the first year to a high of 7 , 894 officers in 1967 . With the establishment of OTS , Air Force OCS closed its doors and conducted its last graduation in June 1963 . Concurrently , the Air Force also commenced a phaseout of its long - standing Aviation Cadet ( AvCad ) Program at Lackland AFB . Unlike OTS , AvCad was limited to pilot and navigator candidates . In addition , AvCads had to successfully complete either undergraduate pilot training or undergraduate navigator training before they could be commissioned as Second Lieutenants . The last AvCad pilot was commissioned in October 1961 at the former Reese AFB , Texas and the last AvCad navigator was commissioned in March 1965 at the former James Connally AFB , Texas . OTS then became the sole organization for training future Air Force officers at Lackland AFB . On 1 July 1993 , Air Training Command ( ATC ) merged with Air University ( AU ) to form the new Air Education and Training Command ( AETC ) , with Air University becoming a direct reporting unit ( DRU ) under AETC . OTS , which was formerly under ATC , and Air Force ROTC , which was formerly under AU , were then realigned under both AETC and AU . Until 22 September 1993 , Officer Training School was located on the Medina Annex of Lackland AFB , Texas , graduating Class 93 - 06 on that date . During the spring and summer of 1993 , OTS gradually relocated to Maxwell AFB , Alabama , commencing operations in interim facilities on 25 September 1993 . Historically , Air Force ROTC had been headed by a major general or brigadier general , while OTS had been headed by a colonel . In February 1997 , in an effort to reduce duplication of effort and streamline administrative and reporting procedures within AU , Air Force ROTC and Officer Training School realigned under a newly created umbrella organization , Air Force Officer Accession and Training Schools ( AFOATS ) . Under this restructuring , OTS and AFROTC were placed under the leadership of individual colonels , while general officer oversight for both OTS and AFROTC , representing three - quarters of Air Force officer production , was placed under one command , the AFOATS commander , a brigadier general . In the late 1990s , a $ 52 million military construction ( MILCON ) project commenced to build a new , dedicated OTS campus at Maxwell AFB to replace the interim facilities initially occupied in late 1993 . The majority of this MILCON project was completed in 2001 and all projects relating to the new - " cum " - current OTS campus were completed by 2004 .