Enlisted service members' transition into the civilian world of work: a cognitive information processing approach

Career Development Quarterly, March, 2008 by Elysia V. Clemens, Amy S. Milsom

The expanded self-knowledge domain can serve as a guide for the exploration and development of occupational knowledge. Much like interpreting a set of interest, value, and skill assessments, walking through the DD Form 214 with an enlisted service member can begin to yield occupational areas for further exploration. Subsequently, inventories might be used as means for further self-knowledge exploration and for the identification of additional careers for potential pursuit (Zunker & Norris, 1998). An understanding of interests, values, and skill-based aptitude can steer occupational exploration, directing the processes of schema generalization and schema specialization.

Once enlisted service members enter the career decision-making domain and engage in the CASVE cycle, identifying resources available to veterans might be useful. Career counselors should familiarize themselves with national and local career-related resources available to veterans. Career counselors might also consider directing enlisted service members toward employers who actively recruit veterans or programs that place veterans in civilian jobs.

A variety of resources are available for enlisted service members in transition. The Department of Defense hosts a job search Web site (www.jobbankinfo.org) that is associated with the U.S. Department of Labor America's Job Bank and is designed for service members in transition (CareerOneStop, n.d.). Similarly, Military.com, launched in November 2005, draws upon the resources of Monster.com and provides comprehensive job search resources to connect enlisted service personnel to veterans in the civilian workforce (Military.com, n.d.). Job fairs designed for military personnel or military personnel who hold security clearances might be particularly useful. Corporate Gray Online is one Web site that provides free information on military job fairs throughout the nation (Corporate Gray, n.d.). An example of a program supporting soldiers' transitions is Troops to Teachers. The North Carolina Troops to Teachers program facilitates the transition from service person to educator and provides funding to support service members' continuing education toward teacher licensure (Public Schools of North Carolina, n.d.).

Conclusion

The significant number of enlisted service members in transition from the U.S. military to the civilian sector illustrates a need for career counselors to develop an awareness of the needs and the strengths of this unique population. Career counselors do not need to be experts on the military in order to be effective with this population, but they do need to possess awareness of the wealth of resources available to them and to the enlisted service members. By actively engaging their clients and encouraging them to share their stories, describe their skills, and discuss their experiences in the military, career counselors can effectively help clients further develop their self- and occupational knowledge. Career counselors can then help their clients to consolidate what they know and to make career decisions in the civilian world.