What are You Waiting For?

I welcomed my transition with open arms. The Air Force found me medically disabled, therefore, my career was cut short. At my date of separation, I had nine and a half years TAFMS. With four years of contracting experience, an MBA, and 30 percent disability, I was able to land a civil service position with the DoD.

I tinkered with the possibility of working in the public sector. However,"headhunters" left a bad taste in my mouth. When I was enlisted, my credentials didn't fit the mold of those job placement agencies for newly separated military members. A warning to those enlisted members that were as fortunate as me: you will be discriminated against based on the rank you carried on active duty. I specifically hid my rank on resumes I posted on those job-search websites. I wanted employers to see me for my accomplishments as an individual. In no way did I bloat my facts or lie. I simply replaced titles that easily could be stereotyped by ignorant recruiters.

I received numerous calls from headhunters selling me their position. After 15 mins of qualification chit-chat, the discussion of rank always came up. The mood of the conversation changed completely and I was transferred from the "officer recruiter" to the "enlisted recruiter." We're talking corporate, mind you. I couldn't believe the bigotry coming from these transition military assistance recruiters. Typically these recruiters were ex-junior officers infatuated with what rank I "left with."

The civil service system is better equipped to acquire ex-enlisted professionals that have extracurricular credentials above and beyond what the military required of them. Federal service better understands those career fields where the lines between officer/enlisted were blurred.

The civil service resume can be a daunting task. The Transition Assistance Program (TAP) is ill-fitted when it comes to resume-writing for federal resumes. Sorry to say, you're on your own. Simple advice would be to keep it technical as possible and include everything. Use the USAJOBS resume system, although you will most likely need to develop a resume for each organization you apply for. At least you will have a core resume that can (hopefully) pull over to whatever system you end up using.

Now I am swimming in a sea of veteran benefits. Fight for your rights. Does a VA program/benefit needs updating? Write your congressman or governor. Don't give up the fight. You will feel overwhelmed and hopeless but don't let up. This is coming from an OEF veteran, who (supposedly) has priority over non-OIF/OEF veterans. It has taken six months since submitting my rating package through the "Prior to Discharge Program" offered by the branches of service.

I'm thankful that my case went so smoothly -- aside from the VA and corporate career experience. I wish everyone the best in their transition. It's a challenging choice in the current economic recession. However, if everyone failed to separate due to fear of a bear economy, every seven years there would be a massive number of re-enlistments. Look back at history, the economy is cyclical. One will always find an excuse to stay in uniform. If you have the experience/education, what are you waiting for? Good luck!

(Submitted by Lakin Lankford)

Comments

[Floyd Burgoz]

Greetings Mr. Lankford, I agree that a lot of corporate headhunters out in the civilian world are very pro officer. I have also run into this phenom. Since most of them are former junior officers they must believe in all their glory that they were the actual back bone of the military components or military in general. I have avoided this by illustrating my industry skills in my profession. Their is no getting away from actual hands on experience and the responsibility of core assets as an enlisted member. I have also been successful by influence and candid discussions in regards to actual job performance and percentages in cost savings all the way up to Brigade levels. This is for sure a hit when you start implementing figures of an annual budget versus cost savings and how it was achieved. The ball is then put in their court. If they are not interested at this point which is not often then it is better to move on no matter how much you want the job. It shows that all they are looking for is a golf club full of brass and ash.

Respectfully,

Floyd D. Burgoz

[Dennis J. Vieira]

I am a Pre Persian Gulf War era veteran. I graduated from college and entered the U.S. Navy as an enlisted man. Unfortunately things didn't work out and I was given a medical discharge after serving only 2 and a half years. I only achieved the rank of E-3 Seamen. Though I passed the PO-3 written exam, I was told since I was a non-designated striker without a rating I couldn't get promoted. It
was at the time the Montgomery G.I. Bill was revoked, so I don't receive full G.I. Bill benefits, I as well was deemed to have a pre-existing condition so I couldn't get Veteran's compensation either.

On top of these barriers, I too found out the hard way of the prejudice against veteran's of enlisted rank. Some employers ascribe to a belief that veterans of low enlisted ranking, belong to the category of workers who are "marginally employable". It's not fair!

[Justin Henderson]

Lankin,
Just a quick heads up about being "transferred" to the enlisted recruiter. I work at the Nation's largest Military based placement company, Bradley-Morris, and am also a former Enlisted Marine with a degree. We also split up our recruiters and candidates by officer and enlisted. We break them down even further by location and MOS. The only reason for this is to stay organized and have people that specialize in your background market you to clients. Bottom line is if you are the right person for the job, you will be presented to the company. Now that being said, I can't speak for other recruiting firms. I just want people to hopefully understand that our job is to find you the best opportunity available with our clients. I hope this helps some people better understand our process. Feel free to contact me at jhenderso@bradley-morris.com with any questions or comments. YOu can also find me on LinkedIn at http://www.linkedin.com/in/jhendersonbmi.
Regards,
Justin

[Justin Henderson]

Lankin,
Just a quick heads up about being "transferred" to the enlisted recruiter. I work at the Natioon's largest Military based placement company, Bradley-Morris, and am also a former Enlisted Marine witha degree. We also split up our recruiters and candidates by officer and enlisted. We break them down even further by location and MOS. The only reason for this is to stay organized and have people that specialize in your background market you to clients. Bottom line is if you are the right person for the job, you will be presented to the company. Now that being said, I can't speak for other recruiting firms. I just want people to hopefully understand that our job is to find you the best opportunity available with our clients. I hope this helps some people better understand our process. Feel free to contact me at jhenderso@bradley-morris.com with any questions or comments. YOu can also find me on LinkedIn at http://www.linkedin.com/in/jhendersonbmi.
Regards,
Justin