Just adding another data point:
I applied late August (didn't note the date).
Received conditional approval September 8. Booked the first available weekend appointment at O'Hare (I live 2+ hours away), which was today, November 3 at 1:40.
Arrived 12:50 and waited about 15 minutes. The process took about 20 minutes, most of which was due to difficulty in getting my fingerprints. The agent was very pleasant and it was clear this step was pro forma. He said I had "bad fingerprints." This, he is true of many women of a certain age who've done a lot of washing, gardening, and typing, all of which describes me. He recommended that I apply hand lotion ~2 hours before the end of an international flight, and that I use it daily. Just passing that on in case it might be helpful.

- applied in late october
- took first available appointment at SFO in early january (seriously, wth?)
- kept checking a couple times a day, caught a late december date
- this morning, bingo, snagged one for this wednesday!
- persistence rewarded :)

I'm sure a thousand people have asked this, but... If enrollment centers like SFO have a 60+ day backlog and don't allow walk-ins, while others centers are empty (Milwaukee, looking at you), why not increase the capacity at SFO? They have a tiny dedicated office with only 3 desks in it. If there's really no other space in all of SFO, what about at a federal building like they do in NYC? Roll-em-out kiosks like they have at the security lines? /grump

Welcome to FT!

When I signed up for GE a 2-3 years ago, it took little time for me to get the conditional approval or to schedule an interview. For my wife, who didn't sign up until earlier this year, it took 1-2 months after the conditional approval to get an appointment in ATL. On the day she went, they had exactly 3 interview slots on their calendar at the offsite CBP office for GE interviews. She asked the officer who did her interview a very similar question and basically said that she had tried getting an appointment at the airport and at the custom's house, to which they replied: "we do have other responsibilities other than doing GE interviews." Since they offer this service, we pay to sign up and then wait for an interview slot which seems extraordinarily inconvenient that the CBP actually does do other things. It's not as simple as just ramping up capacity for GE interviews.

Thanks, jsmith50

No doubt CBP has other duties. However, the GE office at SFO is a dedicated "enrollment" office, with hours listed as all day weekdays, a long day Wednesday and half of Saturday. There are 3 workstations. I asked when I tried to walk in why they didn't have more staff and the officer said, basically, that's how it is and you just have to wait. She was very nice, and spent longer explaining that to me and why she couldn't take walk-ins than she would have enrolling me.

For me as a business owner, reasonably efficient allocation of resources is like breathing air -- automatically done and absolutely essential. Failing that my business asphyxiates. Zero chance anyone at GE or wherever is reading this, or would have power to do anything, I know. One can dream... and grump.

Is Global Entry worthwhile?
 

Global entry is not worth it, so please stop applying and filling up the TSA Pre check lines :p

The TSA PreCheck lines are now such that GE members are probably nowhere close to being a majority in the lines as a whole.

This is unfortunately very true. I have been seeing (as is detailed in multiple threads on FT) TSA workers shifting non PreCheck-cleared pax into the Pre lines lately resulting in much longer waits behind people who have no idea how to move through those lines. I fear this will only increase as Pre begins taking direct applications for access.

It should decrease - if there are more PreCheck passengers, then the lines will be more filled with people who know how to do it, and no need to shift non-precheck people into the line to balance loads.

My understanding from the TSA folks I've questioned about this practice (granted, the explanation is only as good as the source) is that this shifting non-Pre people into the Pre lines is supposedly to increase the randomness to security screening and is, for the time being, a trial program. I've had some TSA folks tell me that it will end as paid Pre memberships increase and others that have said that they think this will continue. I guess only time will tell.

This will still take place even after TSA opens PreCheck as a paid-membership program. PreCheck paid members will have a much higher chance of getting PreCheck LLL outcomes than non-DHS-paid-program members. We are still going to be seeing toddlers getting PreCheck (and LLL outcomes) on their boarding passes/travel records even when those toddlers are not paid members of any DHS programs. "Managed inclusion" will continue to take place according to Pistole's staff.

Increase the randomness? You mean, a non-background-checked person may be randomly selected to not be screened as well? Sounds like TSA logic to me.

Applied: 10/26
Conditional approval: 10/29
Interview and approval 11/5 (PHX)

Really pleasant customs officer - very short interview double-checking basic info. I was reminded I needed to renew my passport and told how to update the info in the system. Quick demo on the kiosk and officer explained all the benefits - like being able to use Nexus lanes and how to put my number in for Pre-check.

Biggest issues - trying to get my fingerprints and some questions about my financial situation as a grad student - showed him a couple financial statements which got me my approval.

Have never known (or heard of) financial issues being of concern to CBP nor would most people have been prepared with financial statements to address those concerns. Did something tip you off ahead of time that you needed that information for them?

I'll admit it was a little strange, but I think the concern was that someone with GE would find it easier to smuggle something into the country or could be bribed to do so.

I think what set it off was that I answered 'student' for occupation and the officer had questions with how I was funded (and my mistake may have been saying I was employed on a semester to semester basis as a TA). As far as the financial documents go, I had my laptop and was able to pull the account page from a mutual fund I have that had my name, address, and balance. I'm not sure if it was that or the fact that questions about my financial situation didn't rattle me.

I'm curious if this is conjecture or confirmed. If confirmed, is there a source on this? I promise I'm not trying to be snarky, I'm genuinely interested because it has tremendously slowed things down in a few airports I've been in within the last couple weeks that had Pre. Many of the TSA folks I've spoken with (including a TSA supervisor this morning at LGA) have been led to believe that it's temporary. In fact, this supervisor implied that it would be ending by December 31 and, without prompting (despite the fact that I had already read your response and was going to ask about it), even referred to Pistole's memorandum from earlier this year referring to it as a "pilot program."