Identify and highlight your transferable skills
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.
Translate military titles to civilian equivalents
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.
Consider your career achievements
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.
Let your numbers do the talking
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.
Use a Military Skills Translator
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 to succeed
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.