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By Brad Miller, TheMilitaryGuide.org

Brad Miller is a Marine Corps veteran who comes from a military family with a long tradition of service. He and his brother created The Military Guide as a “straight shooters handbook” to provide helpful resources to service men and women at every stage of their military careers – from those first timid steps into the recruiter’s office to walking proudly off base with a DD-214 as a newly minted veteran and beyond.

 

Leaving the service and adapting to civilian life requires a significant number of changes, not the least of which is finding a job. If you’ve been in the military for a while, re-entering the job market can seem overwhelming and disheartening. Searching for jobs today requires diligence and patience and the willingness to continue trying after multiple attempts – especially if you’re having trouble translating your military skill set into a civilian resumé.

Writing a resume is not easy, but it’s necessary once you leave the military. The best way to approach this task is to find a job posting that interests you and then sit down and write some questions that you would ask if you were interviewing someone for that job. Removing yourself from the situation can open up some creativity and help you put down on paper everything you can take with you into the civilian job market.

Working with a Certified Professional Resume Writer (CPRW) can also be helpful, to ensure that you’re presenting what are your most marketable assets, on the page, in a way that is most appealing to current employers in the civilian job sector.  Take a look at what a CPRW can do for you: https://www.americanrecruiters.com/hk-resume-svcs/

Certain fields lend themselves especially well to individuals with a military background, such as aircraft maintenance, security, personal training, and more. Below are some of the “hot jobs” best-suited for vets, and the qualifications for them — plus steps you can take toward finding a fulfilling career after the military.

 

Skills Assessments

While the job description for a military position may not translate automatically to that of a civilian job, you often can focus on skills instead of titles. If you worked in logistics in the military, you are probably an exceptional project manager — a position in very high demand. Leadership ability is also a hot commodity in the business world, as well as the ability to complete detailed tasks in a timely manner. Someone whose military career involved maintenance and repair can translate those skills into self-directed problem-solving. What’s important is that you’re able to get to the heart of what made you successful in the military and ensure that those skills shine on your civilian resumé and cover letters.

1. Aircraft Technicians

There is an ongoing shortage of individuals with specialized mechanical knowledge, such as experience working with aircraft. According to the FAA website, there are some steps that candidates need to take before they can enter the workforce as a qualified airline mechanic:

  • Be a minimum of 18 years of age, and able to write and speak English fluently
  • Pass written, oral and practical examinations on the topic
  • Have a minimum of 18 months of practical experience with airframes or power plants

Alternatively, a candidate can graduate from an FAA-approved Aviation Maintenance Technician school.  Aircraft technicians are highly-paid technical workers, and there’s a great deal of demand for this type of expertise.

2. Private Security or Law Enforcement

Keeping communities safe is an objective familiar to many former military members. Law enforcement or security careers are a top option for individuals as they leave the military with valuable traits including a respect for rules, and often, weapons and combat training.

While it’s difficult to outline a full set of standards for the diversified field of private-sector security positions, general requirements to become a police officer include the ability to pass an agility test, structured oral interviews, and a background check, medical examinations, and a drug screening — plus meeting basic employment standards and completing training at a police academy.

Unarmed security guards for private firms are subject to fewer requirements, but generally, applicants must have a high school diploma, submit an application and pass a background check. Additional licensing requirements apply for armed guards, but they also vary depending on the organization.

3. Personal Trainer / Fitness Professional

In today’s gig economy, becoming a fitness professional or personal trainer is a flexible option that appeals to many individuals leaving the military. Not only does this path offer a way to maintain your own personal fitness, but also being able to help motivate others can come naturally to individuals who have experience in a leadership position.

Becoming a certified personal trainer does require some additional education around topics such as sports medicine and anatomy. This helps prepare individuals for working within the limitations of the human body and discerning how best to help each individual reach their health and fitness goals. Certification is available from a variety of different organizations, including the American College of Sports Medicine and the International Sports Sciences Association.

4. Security Systems Tech / Cybersecurity Analyst

Working as a cybersecurity consultant provides you with an exceptional opportunity to help organizations stay safe online. This career choice is one of the hottest around, as security threats to data and information technology infrastructures grow by the day. Businesses lose billions of dollars every year due to cybersecurity incidents, making it crucial to have the right people on board protecting their assets. Becoming a security systems tech or cybersecurity analyst starts with determining which direction you could take your future career. The majority of cybersecurity job requirements currently start with a degree in computer science or related fields, as well as several years of experience as a technology professional. Many organizations offer training and financial aid to help veterans get certified and get to work.

5. Construction Supervisor / Heavy Equipment Operator

The military builds and demolishes on a scale that no other organization can match. Military careers in construction allow veterans to quickly transition into lucrative careers as a heavy equipment operator or construction supervisor. A firm grasp of driving large equipment and working with teams helps you get started, while there are some additional qualifications and testing required for individuals who plan to operate heavy machinery as a civilian. A solid understanding of load balancing, physics, mechanics, and the calculation of appropriate loads are also necessary skills.

6. Logistics and Operations Manager

In the age of Amazon, businesses of all sizes are looking for ways to improve efficiency, slash operating costs, and quickly route merchandise to customers. Highly structured military experience often makes good candidates for logistics, fulfillment, or operations work, where the main objective is to make sure clients enjoy a positive experience with your brand.

Any military work you’ve done in managing the flow of supplies and equipment or navigating complex chains of command can help you get hired faster than those with no experience, but additional qualifications are usually required to walk this career path. In some cases, two-year degrees are a possibility, shortening the time frame needed to walk into a successful and profitable job. Some organizations request that you have 5-10 years of experience in a similar business or a master’s degree in business before you’re able to qualify for higher level positions.

Although aspects of the job transition can be daunting — for instance, if you don’t have the required years of experience in a particular field — the process can be smoothed when you focus on your military experience and analyze carefully how it can translate into a civilian position. While these certainly aren’t the only careers that welcome veterans re-entering the workforce, they are currently in high demand and will allow you to most easily translate your military skills and abilities into civilian work.

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