Veteran careers at Moody’s

It’s important to provide detail on the transferable skills you’ve developed over your military career. Civilians may find it hard to identify and comprehend the skills you’ve developed; therefore, by detailing and showcasing them concisely, recruiters and hiring managers will be able to envision you succeeding in the role much more easily.

Not many civilians are aware of military jargon, therefore translating this language to something any recruiter or hiring manager understands could improve your chances of getting an interview. Take your time to consider alternative phrases and replace any jargon with commonly used terms to avoid confusion. In a similar way avoid using acronyms and abbreviations.

It is a fantastic honor to receive an award and recommendation, and you should be extremely proud of your accomplishments. However, stating your achievements may not be enough for civilian understanding. Take time to explain what your award represents; for example, that it represents bravery or self-sacrifice.

It’s important to quantify your achievements with numbers and percentages. Using numbers allows the assessor to visualize your success, level of responsibility and efficiency. If you’ve led a platoon of 25, make sure you explicitly detail this information as in civilian terms it means that you’ve led a team of 25 which is by no means a small feat and could be vital for your desired role.

There are several Military Skills Translators online that use titles and occupational codes to determine where military skills fit into a civilian work environment. A Military Skills Translator can help you identify how to communicate your skills to civilian employers and see job titles and keywords to use on civilian job boards. Using a Military Skills Translator as a first step during your job search may save you time and uncertainty.

Prepare properly for your interviews and ensure you go the extra mile. Conduct lots of research on the role, division, market, and interviewers. An excellent way to prepare is creating scripts and practicing your interview technique. Practice speaking out loud as it may feel strange at first using civilian terminology, when your brain naturally reverts to military jargon. Try to think about your use of language, such as terminology and length of answers, as well as your posture, attire, and questions to ask toward the end of your meeting.