In an article entitled, Careers in IT – One GI’s Journey, Capicik uses a true story of one  military job seeker’s transition into the IT career field to illustrate what it takes to be successful.  He makes the following points which, in my opinion, can be applied to any career field:

You don’t always know what career path to pursue. Hopefully these articles will help you with that. Also, if you aren’t happy in your job, you will likely look elsewhere or not be successful in your current position.

Most people face a number of obstacles in becoming successful. Whether it is time, money, motivation, or luck, with the right attitude and persistence there is usually a way.

Utilize your military benefits. If you are active-duty make sure you use as much of the TA money made available to you as possible (currently, that’s $4,500 per year). If you are a veteran, use those GI Bill benefits before they run out.

A career field is full of interesting and diverse paths. In this GI’s case, he successfully went from a military networking setting to a small business IT venture to an investment firm finally to an international power management company.

A degree and certifications are key to providing valid credentials. This GI set himself apart and established worthy credentials to companies that, as he said to me, “didn’t know me from Adam.” His education showed a commitment to standards and achieving hard goals.

View the entire article. Keep up with new articles as they come out at the American Sentinel University blog. And regardless of the career field you are transitioning into, target your military resume by incorporating industry jargon, understanding the needs of potential employers, and communicating how you can best meet those needs.  For professional military resume writing assistance from military resume writers, please visit www.MilitaryResumes.com.

The definition of a resume has evolved.  The chronological “obituaries” of years gone by simply won’t cut it today’s troubled economy and saturated job market.  Hiring authorities quickly want to know how you can impact their organization specifically and with which results.  Block offers the following definition of a resume to reflect this shift in mentality:

“Resume: a self-marketing document, prepared for potential employers or organizations, that effectively communicates one’s ability to produce significant results and meet specific performance goals and objectives better than other qualified candidates.”

So how does one transform their military resume to follow suit?  Block goes on to list the three of the most important resume guidelines; guidelines that our military resume writers strictly abide by at Military Resumes.

#1: Make Your Case in 15-20 Seconds:

Recent studies suggest hiring authorities spend 15-20 seconds reviewing a military resume.  In this brief window of opportunity, a military job seeker must showcase their value to grab the reader’s attention and entice them to read on.  Your resume should sing your praises from across the desk and shout, “I’m deserving of a closer look!”  (For assistance with creating a headline and showcase for your military resume from a professional military resume writer, please visist www.MilitaryResumes.com.)

#2: Remember Who You Are Writing the Resume For:

Your intended audience, in most cases, is a stranger.  Would you want to read a stranger’s biography?  At Military Resumes, our military resume writers aim to understand what potential employers are looking for in a military job seeker and clearly convey that information through a military resume.  Take the time to understand the needs of a prospective employer and then communicate, on your military resume, how you can best meet those needs.  Tell hiring managers how you can contribute to their organizational goals and never trust them to infer.

#3: Resumes Without Achievements are Like Report Cards without Grades:

Simply sitting through a Calculus class in high school would have been easy; but you would not have expected the resulting F on your report card to get you into college.  So you worked hard for that A, a telltale marker of above average performance, knowing that colleges only admit the best of the best.  We’ve all heard that the best predictor of future performance is past performance.  It’s not only what you did, but the results you achieved that determine your employability.  The military job seeker is modest by nature.  But don’t be afraid to toot your own horn… or let a professional military resume writer toot it for you.  List accomplishments that make you standout from the crowd.  Let your military resume be your best advocate.

“Hello Joe.  I am getting out of the military soon… Are you hiring?”

The only thing more awkward than answering this question is having to reply “no” to it.  So consider asking for a reference instead:

“Hello Joe.  I am preparing for a post-military career change and would love to use you as a reference.”

With any luck, Joe would be honored to have been selected as a reference and happy to do a good deed.  Because he now has an invested interest in your military transition,  he might even ask you for a copy of your military resume and begin to actively look for job opportunities on your behalf.

We advise our clients at MilitaryResumes.com that networking should be a main component of an effective military job search strategy.  Networking is a highly effective method of getting military resumes noticed and uncovering the “hidden” job market.  But use your network wisely by asking for references, not jobs.  And remember that a reference should know you well, be trustworthy, and have a copy of your military resume to refer to if called upon.

• Does the critic have specific resume knowledge?

It’s always a good idea to have a certified professional resume writer, particularly one with military experience, write and/or review your military resume. (For more information on professional military resume writing, visit www.MilitaryResumes.com.) But if this isn’t a viable option for you, consider eliciting the help of an on-base transition program such as ACAP or TAP. Ask a counselor who works with transitioning military job seekers on a daily basis if they have formal resume training and, if so, is it up-to-date? The art of resume writing is constantly evolving. Be wary of anyone who suggests representing your experience in a functional format. To me, this suggests outdated resume training.

Seek the advice of members of the corporate world who routinely evaluate resumes and make hiring decisions. This group of critics will shed light on portions of your military resume that may not make sense to the average civilian. For targeting purposes, ask them what they are looking for in a resume. But bear in mind that this group can have a tendency to suggest watering down your military experience almost to the point of being inconsequential.

Finally, look to a recently transitioned friend or coworker with a military background similar to yours. Ask them how long it took them to find a job and what role their resume played in landing them their follow-on career. While some network during their military careers to the point of simply stepping into another job, others go about their post-military career searches with a more traditional approach. Seek out a person with not only a similar military background, but a similar job search strategy as well. Look at their resume. Ask them what worked for them and what didn’t. Are there pitfalls you can avoid?

• What are the critic’s intentions?

Through MilitaryResumes.com, I recently had the opportunity to work with a senior Army officer who has spent many hard-earned years at the Pentagon. I asked him to share feedback on his resume with me from his colleagues. One colleague insisted that he should list exactly who he dealt with in his policy-making initiatives. A marketable concept (developing national policy through collaborative efforts with theatre-level commanders, members of Congress, and top government officials) quickly morphed into an off-putting string of acronyms (CENTCOM, OSD, etc). But because this client had no interest in using his resume to secure a position with the federal government or a DoD contractor, this superfluous information, especially in the form of acronyms, would only confuse his intended audience. Subconsciously, our peers and bosses tend to read a resume as if they were looking for someone to replace themselves. So asking, “What are the critic’s intentions?” whether they be conscious or subconscious, is imperative.

• Are the critic’s comments sincere?

If someone is offering constructive criticism from the heart, listen carefully. Criticism should never be sarcastic. Does the critic genuinely want to see you do well? Be wary of unsolicited advice. Unsolicited advice can come in the form of a contentious coworker. It can arrive via email in the form of a canned resume critique from a company seeking to profit by playing into the insecurities of many job seekers with resumes posted on the Internet. And above all, trust your gut. Because nobody wants to see you succeed more than you do.

One of Military Resumes’ most frequently asked questions is, “how do I determine my veteran’s preference points?” This article aims to answer that question in summary. For the most comprehensive explanation and additional qualifiers, please visit the Office of Personnel Management’s website on veteran’s preference at http://www.usajobs.opm.gov/ei3.asp.

By law, veterans who are disabled or who served on active duty in the Armed Forces during certain specified time periods or in military campaigns are entitled to preference over non-veterans in appointments to federal jobs.

Each federal application package is rated and receives a numerical score based on qualification factors. A minimum score is required for consideration and referral. Let’s say that the minimum passing examination score or rating for a certain job is set at 60. A veteran with a score of 60 based on her examination or rating alone may not be as competitive as a civilian with a score of 65. However, because this veteran has 10 veteran’s preference points, she actually has a score of 70 and thus is more competitive than her civilian counterpart.

Here is how to determine your veteran’s preference points:

5-POINT PREFERENCE (TP)
5 points are added to the passing examination score or rating of a veteran who served:

-During a war.

-For more than 180 consecutive days, other than for training, any part of which occurred after January 31, 1955 and before October 15, 1976.

-During the Gulf War from August 2, 1990 through January 2, 1992.

-For more than 180 consecutive days, other than for training, any part of which occurred during the period beginning September 11, 2001 and ending on the date prescribed as the last day of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

-In a campaign or expedition for which a campaign medal has been authorized. Any Armed Forces Expeditionary medal or campaign badge, including El Salvador, Lebanon, Grenada, Panama, Southwest Asia, Somalia, and Haiti, qualifies for preference.

10-POINT COMPENSABLE DISABILITY PREFERENCE (CP)
10 points are added to the passing examination score or rating of a veteran who served at anytime and who has a compensable service-connected disability rating of at least 10 percent but less than 30 percent.

10-POINT 30 PERCENT COMPENSABLE DISABILITY PREFERENCE (CPS)
10 points are added to the passing examination score or rating of a veteran who served at anytime and who has a compensable service-connected disability rating of 30 percent or more.

10-POINT DISABILITY PREFERENCE (XP)
10 points are added to the passing examination score or rating of a veteran who served at anytime and has a present service-connected disability or is receiving compensation, disability retirement benefits, or pension from the military or the Department of Veterans Affairs but does not qualify as a CP or CPS; or a veteran who received a Purple Heart.

FEDERAL HIRING PREFERENCE FOR MILITARY SPOUSES
Under guidelines recently issued by the Administration, an estimated 250,000 spouses per year will be eligible for streamlined application processes when applying to work at federal agencies that elect to use a new hiring authority that took effect this month. Spouses who are relocating because of their service member’s new assignment, some physically disabled military spouses, and unmarried survivors of service members killed in action will soon be able to bypass some of the red tape involved in applying for federal jobs.

Additional information on veteran’s preference is located at http://www.opm.gov/veterans/index.asp.

According to Jackson, the Partnership’s survey identified 11,549 positions that will need to be filled by 2012 – the year almost 30 percent of the IT workforce of the 35 agencies polled will be eligible for retirement. The average age of IT employees at these agencies is 48. The survey defines IT positions as those related to systems analysis, security, application software, data management, and network services. Of note to the military job seeker, the Department of Defense will need 1,408 new recruits for its 5,746-strong IT workforce, from which 1,892 employees will be eligible for retirement by 2012.

IT continues to be a popular career field for retired military job seekers who held IT positions while serving in the military, as well as part-time or unemployed veterans in pursuit of an advanced education. At MilitaryResumes.com, we advise many of our IT-experienced customers to research and apply for federal job opportunities. (For more information on professional military resumes and federal resume writing services and federal job search advice for veterans, please visit www.MilitaryResumes.com. To research federal IT job openings, visit www.usajobs.gov.)

Also keep in mind that, according to Jackson, many contractors are complaining about the government encroaching on its IT talent pool. This, combined with the fact that some companies are attempting to save money by investing in cheaper Internet marketing methods, shifting costly and time-consuming paperwork into database-driven electronic filing systems, etc., may lead to an even greater demand for IT professionals outside of the government.

If you are preparing to make the military transition and have an IT background, consider the federal government for your next career. If you don’t have an IT background, now looks like a good time to pursue one. Your military resume will thank you.

The agency with the largest increase in job openings is the Department of Veteran Affairs, which is expected to hire more than 48,000 new workers by 2012 in an effort to provide medical care for returning service members fighting wars on two fronts.

The second largest need is for security and protection workers, with the Partnership for Public Service predicting 52,000 new hires. That is followed by compliance and enforcement officers (31,000), legal jobs (24,000) and administrative positions (17,000).

In an economy where new job openings are hard to come by, the federal government’s push to fill “mission critical” positions that mesh well with many military backgrounds should not be overlooked by military job seekers. Understand the rights afforded to you by your veteran’s preference, network with civil service employees, familiarize yourself with www.usajobs.gov, and prepare a properly key-worded military-to-federal resume. (For professional military federal resume writing assistance and federal job search advice, visit www.MilitaryResumes.com.) With some research and a plan, you can land a job with the federal government.

According to their website, Construction Management Schools is an unbiased site dedicated to providing students who are considering enrolling in a construction management school with information regarding available on-line and campus-based schools, salary expectations, industry news, etc.  The construction management industry continues to demand strong leaders and managers and many transitioning military job seekers find this career field to be a great fit for their military backgrounds.

Hanson offers funny, real-life responses heard by various hiring managers from around the country, such as “brownies“ and “I am bipolar.” If your military resume is good enough to land you an interview, do yourself a favor and prepare to discuss your weaknesses well in advance to avoid on-the-spot answers like the aforementioned. Practice your response by running it by your friends and family and solicit their gut reactions.

One popular method of overcoming the “most dreaded” interview question is to flip a weakness into a strength. However, as Hanson explains, there is a tendency to over do it when using this method. “I am so well-loved around the workplace that it is hard to get honest feedback and constructive criticism from my coworkers” is likely to illicit a silent groan from a seasoned interviewer. A better approach is to pick a weakness that won’t obstruct your job performance (for example, fear of public speaking might work for an accountant but not for a teacher) and then describe the steps that you have taken to recognize and overcome your challenge. Your goal should be to demonstrate self-reflection, innovation, and problem-solving skills.

Based on my experience at www.MilitaryResumes.com, working with hundreds of transitioning military job seekers and writing a military resume for them, I’ve noticed that military job seekers are generally modest. If talking about your accomplishments makes you just as uncomfortable as discussing your weaknesses, prepare a response to the interview question: “What’s your biggest strength?” Anticipating key interview questions and preparing accordingly can go a long way in helping you to land your next job.

Consider the benefits:

• Volunteering looks great on a military resume. It compensates for gaps in your work history while you are transitioning from the military into a civilian career. It shows potential employers passion for work without regards to reward and diversifies and expands your experience beyond the military. It also shows initiative in that you have not been idle during the military job search process.
• Volunteering increases networking contacts. It allows you to put in face time with community leaders – people who have the contacts you are seeking and who may be willing to recommend you or have the power to employ you themselves.
• Volunteering is excellent for self-esteem. The military to civilian job search can be emotionally and mentally taxing. Volunteering makes you feel connected and appreciated. Military job seekers with high self-esteem tend to market themselves more effectively and interview well.
• Volunteering can also help you determine if you’re seeking employment in the right field. Many transitioning military job seekers have a difficult time finding their niche outside of the armed services. Volunteering can give you enough exposure to a line of work to help you make the right career decisions.

Select volunteer activities you’ll enjoy. www.volunteermatch.org is a great website that allows you to search for volunteer opportunities by keyword (e.g. mentoring, veterans, environment, etc.) or location. Think outside of the box! Offer to assist non-profits with projects such as designing brochures, organizing fundraisers, or building a website. List this experience on your military resume in a creative way. (For professional military resume writing services, visit www.MilitaryResumes.com.) Then at your next interview, show off samples of your work being used in the real-world.

The more you volunteer, the more people you’ll bring into your networking circle. Just be sure to do enough quality work for each organization so they get to know you, and that you are gaining knowledge from the experience. Solicit feedback from the organization you’re volunteering with about your job-search process. And let people at all levels within the organization know you’re looking for full-time work. You never know who will have the contact you need to land a job.

Use volunteering to establish credentials, gain real-world experience, and broaden your circle of contacts. Studies have shown that volunteering can be a direct route to employment, so add this profitable tool to your military to civilian job search strategy kit.