What experience is required to apply through the FAA’s Previous Experience hiring pathway?

The FAA’s published minimum requirements for an Air Traffic Control Specialist applicant under the Previous Experience hiring pathway state that an applicant must:
· Be a United States citizen;
· Be age 35 or younger on the closing date of the application period;
· Pass a medical examination;
· Pass a security investigation;
· Speak English clearly enough to be understood over communications equipment;
· Be willing to relocate to an FAA facility based on agency staffing needs; and
· Have at least 52 consecutive weeks of air traffic control experience involving the full-time active separation of air traffic after receiving an air traffic rating and/or facility rating, obtained within five years of applying, while serving at an FAA air traffic control facility; a civilian or military Department of Defense facility, including a National Guard facility; or a tower operating under contract with the FAA under 49 U.S.C. Section 47124.
Facility-rating requirement: Under 14 CFR Section 65.39, an applicant for a facility rating at an air traffic control tower generally must have satisfactorily served for at least six months either at that tower without a facility rating or as a rated tower operator at a different tower. The regulation also provides a separate provision for members of the U.S. Armed Forces.
What this means: Earning a Control Tower Operator Certificate and facility rating is an important milestone, but it does not by itself satisfy the FAA’s 52-week Previous Experience requirement. Based on the FAA’s published hiring language, the applicant must also complete 52 consecutive weeks of qualifying, full-time air traffic control experience after receiving the applicable rating.
The published requirement does not expressly state that transferring facilities automatically restarts the 52-week period. However, because eligibility depends on the applicant’s specific work history and the FAA’s review of the application, Advanced ATC recommends remaining at the initial rated facility until completing at least 52 consecutive weeks of qualifying experience after earning the facility rating and CTO Certificate. This is an Advanced ATC recommendation intended to reduce uncertainty and help maximize eligibility; the FAA makes all final eligibility determinations.