How to Fill Out and Submit NGB Form 34-1: AGR Position Application

NGB Form 34-1 is the application you submit to compete for an Active Guard Reserve position in the Army or Air National Guard. Download the current fillable PDF from the National Guard Bureau Publications and Forms Library at ngbpmc.ng.mil, complete every block, gather the supporting records the job announcement lists, and submit the whole packet as a single PDF before the announcement closes.¹ AGR positions authorized under 32 USC 502(f) put you on Full-Time National Guard Duty with active-duty pay, housing allowance, and Tricare while you remain in your state’s Guard.

Confirm You’re Eligible Before You Start

National Guard Regulation 600-5 sets the floor for who can apply. If you don’t meet these baseline rules, the packet is wasted effort.

You must be able to complete a three-year initial tour before your mandatory removal date based on age or years of service.²
Enlisted soldiers at sergeant or below must hold a grade within two grades of what the position requires. Staff sergeants and above must also hold the Military Occupational Specialty in the announcement (or one in its normal progression) and be within one or two grades of the required rank.³
You’re ineligible if you’ve been relieved for cause from any duty position in the 36 months before your scheduled entry date. Officers who received a referred evaluation report in the same window are also barred, and anyone currently flagged under a suspension of favorable personnel actions cannot apply.³
Enlisted soldiers currently ineligible for reenlistment or extension under NGR 600-200 cannot enter the program unless the disqualification is waivable.³
A misdemeanor domestic violence conviction is a hard stop. Federal law under 18 USC 922 prohibits anyone convicted of such a crime from possessing firearms or ammunition, and nearly every AGR position requires a service weapon.⁴

Every job announcement can add requirements on top of the regulation. Read it fully before you start typing — a position may demand a specific ASI, security clearance, or completed military schooling that NGR 600-5 itself doesn’t mention.

Filling Out the Form Section by Section

The form is a fillable PDF. Enter your full legal name, including your complete middle name rather than an initial. Air Guard applicants use their Duty AFSC where the form asks for SSI/MOS.

Section I — Education and Special Qualifications

List every military course you have completed: Basic Leadership Course, Advanced Leader Course, technical training, specialty qualifications. Use exact course titles and graduation dates because the board will cross-reference your entries against your official personnel file.

Civilian education is limited to accredited colleges and universities. For each school, enter the institution’s name and location, hours completed, course titles, and dates attended, and check the box for quarter or semester credits. If your entries exceed the space provided, the form itself tells you to attach separate sheets.⁵ Order official transcripts early; they typically cost $7 to $20 per school.

Section III — Military History

Enter present and past assignments using the standard abbreviations: AD for Active Duty, AGR for Active Guard/Reserve, NG for National Guard, USAR for Army Reserve. Include the duty MOS or AFSC for each entry. Don’t skip short tours or temporary duty. This section is where the board first reads your career trajectory.

Section IV — Background Questions

Section IV runs yes/no questions on disciplinary actions, pending charges, and other potentially disqualifying events. If you answer “yes” to any question other than items 9 and 17, you must write out an explanation in Section VI. Skipping the explanation, or trying to omit a reportable event, will get the packet bounced.⁶

Privacy Act Statement and Signature

Sign the Privacy Act Statement. An unsigned form is one of the most common reasons packets are rejected, and the Human Resources Office will not chase you for the signature.⁶

Documents That Go With the Form

The 34-1 is the front page of a larger packet. NGR 600-5 requires the following at a minimum, and the announcement can add more:

The completed and signed NGB Form 34-1.
Your Individual Medical Readiness record dated within the last 12 months.
Letters of recommendation, OERs, or NCOERs as specified in the announcement. If the announcement asks for three evaluations and you only have two, include a memorandum or character statement explaining the gap.
Your Enlisted Record Brief or Officer Record Brief.
A statement of all active service: a current Retirement Points Accounting Management Statement (NGB Form 23B), DD Form 214 for prior active-duty periods, DD Form 220, or DD Form 1506.³

For any period of active duty over 90 days where you can’t produce a DD Form 214, attach a written explanation for each missing document. Same rule if your IMR is older than 12 months: a memorandum may be accepted, but silence will not.⁶

Medical Readiness and Fitness Test

AGR soldiers must be medically deployable worldwide, and the board verifies this through your IMR status and your fitness test scorecard.

Your IMR status lives in the Medical Protection System and covers immunizations, periodic health assessments, and dental classification. For dental, you need to be Class 1 or Class 2. Class 3 or 4 makes you non-deployable and will sink the application.⁷ Book the dentist early.

Your packet must include a passing scorecard on the current DA Form 705-TEST. The Army Fitness Test has five events: three-repetition maximum deadlift, hand-release push-ups, sprint-drag-carry, plank, and a two-mile run. Minimum passing score is 60 points per event, at least 300 total.⁸

Timing matters. Drilling Guard members and federal technicians need a passing test within 12 months of the announcement’s closing date. If you’re already on AGR orders and applying for a different position, the window shrinks to six months.⁶

How to Submit the Packet

The Job Opportunity Announcement spells out where and how to submit. Most states require the entire packet scanned into a single PDF, either uploaded to the state HRO portal or emailed to a designated address in the announcement.⁹ Some announcements require a specific file name, commonly the announcement number followed by your last name.

Scan at 200 to 300 DPI so the file reads clearly without ballooning in size. Order the pages to match the announcement’s checklist. If a checklist form is provided, complete it and place it as the first page of your PDF. And build the packet early: have a peer review it, because a second reader will catch the unsigned block or missing memo that you’ve stopped seeing.

What Trips Packets Up

HROs screen for administrative completeness before anything reaches the selection board. The rejections that happen most often are the ones that were easiest to prevent:

An unsigned NGB Form 34-1 or unsigned Privacy Act Statement.
Missing unit endorsement memorandums, including the no-flag letter and security clearance verification. These letters should be dated within 60 days of the announcement’s close date.
An expired fitness scorecard or an IMR older than 12 months.
A “yes” answer in Section IV with no explanation in Section VI, or an omitted reportable event.
Fewer NCOERs or OERs than the announcement requires, with no memorandum explaining the shortfall.
ASVAB or AFSC scores below the position’s minimum.⁶

No HRO accepts additional documents after the announcement closes. Everything goes in before the deadline or not at all.

After You Submit

The HRO generally sends an electronic confirmation of receipt after the submission deadline passes. Your packet moves through an administrative screening first, checking rank range, valid fitness test, complete documents, and no disqualifying flags. Packets that clear screening go to a selection board for competitive review of qualifications, experience, and evaluations. The board process usually takes several weeks. Finalists are contacted to schedule an interview, and selected candidates receive formal notification and coordinate an entry date onto AGR orders.

1
National Guard Bureau Publications and Forms Library. National Guard Bureau Forms
2
U.S. Army Reserve. Active Guard Reserve (AGR)
3
National Guard Bureau. National Guard Regulation 600-5 – The Active Guard Reserve (AGR) Program
4
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts
5
National Guard. Application for Active Guard/Reserve (AGR) Position
6
Missouri National Guard. Frequently Asked Questions – Filling Out an Application for a Title 32 AGR Position
7
U.S. Air Force. Dental IMR – Understanding Dental Classes
8
U.S. Army. Army Fitness Test and Requirements
9
Arkansas National Guard. Army AGR