Finding a Job Post Military Life
by Carol Fishman Cohen, Co-founder, iRelaunch, Co-author, Back on the Career Track

In my conversations with military spouses, career concerns tend to fall into two categories;

• Maintaining career continuity while a spouse is on active duty,and
• Conducting a job search for a "permanent" role once the spouse's active duty is over.

A few years ago, I explored the challenges faced by military spouses in maintaining career continuity and examined in detail the career paths of two military spouses who successfully navigated this terrain.  Now I want to focus on getting hired once a spouse's active duty has come to an end. The strategies are not that different from those used by non-military spouses who are returning to work after long career breaks:

• Figure out what you want to do. This may seem obvious but you need to figure out whether your interests and skills have changed (or not) while you have been on career break.
• Consider going back to school - not necessarily for a full degree - but for a class or two, or for a certificate program on a very specific topic. Look for classes and programs that include a "field study" or "capstone project" because the field study or project is a legitimate separate entry on your resume (besides the course). Even more important, it's excellent conversation material in an interview or when speaking with someone in your field.
• Build a LinkedIn Profile.LinkedIn has excellent free resources on how to set up a profile and use LinkedIn to reconnect with people. Military Spouse Karen Golden, now Deputy Director, Military Family Issues, Government Relations, for the Military Officers Association of America, was out of the paid work force for a total of 11 years.Look how effectively she uses LinkedIn to describe experience gained both as a volunteer and in paid roles in the "Summary" section of her LinkedIn profile:
  • "Military services program administrator and case manager with more than 15 years experience with a background, and expertise, in military community programming, family advocacy, education, public policy, social services, and information and referral. Proven record of developing and presenting programs focusing on pre-deployment, educational, financial, and emergency personal readiness service needs to military personnel and their families. Superior capacity to thrive under pressure in fast-pace environments, provide confidential case management, effectively manage program operations, and develop and cultivate relationships with key audiences, including various community groups, committees, and public officials to further the organization's mission."
  • Karen's reference to "confidential case management"describedpart of her responsibilities when she was a Volunteer Caseworker for the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society. The lesson is to keep track of substantive volunteer work during the active duty years with an eye toward how these volunteer experiences will help qualify you for paid work in your chosen field later on.Which brings me to...
• Pursue "Strategic Volunteer Work" and learn when to say NO.
  • Strategic Volunteer work refers to volunteer opportunities that are in line with your career goals. In addition to Karen Golden's example above, military spouse Christina Crawford spent an entire year volunteering for Army Emergency Relief and Army Community Service at Fort Lewis where her husband was stationed. Army Emergency Relief ultimately employed her as a budget counselor, helping families figure out how to pay their bills, and assisting with credit counseling and bankruptcy filings.
  • This Blue Star Families Making Volunteerism Work for You is a great guide to making military spouse volunteer roles "resume ready."
  • By learn when to say "NO," I mean that people will continue to ask you to head up events you have run successfully in the past. Unless you plan to go into fundraising, or event planning, you should say no to these volunteer opportunities. Explain you are now in full job search mode and are only taking on volunteer opportunities related to your chosen field.

Remember people's view of you is frozen in time. Even if your sense of self has diminished over time, when you get back in touch with people from the past you will find they will remember you as you were when you worked or went to school together. It's a great confidence boost to hear people from the past speak enthusiastically about your interest in returning to work.

 

Carol Fishman Cohen is a globally recognized expert on career-reentry strategy.  She isthe co-author of the "Bible of career reentry" Back on the Career Track: A Guide for Stay-at-Home Moms Who Want to Return to Work and the co-founder of iRelaunch(http://www.irelaunch.com/" href="http://www.irelaunch.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">www.iRelaunch.com), a company connecting professionals returning to work after a career break with employers interested in this talent pool. iRelaunch has reached over 12,000 people through more than 180 return to work programs and presentations. Over 200 return-to-work success stories are documented on the iRelaunch.com website. Carol has studied and written about military spouse career continuity issues since 2008.Check out iRelaunch.com for tools and resources for returning to work, and note the special section for military spouses.

 

Have a question about your career track for Carol?  Ask here your question/answer may be printed in a future issue.