We get it. It’s hard to not think of what you did as an active-duty servicemember and not think of acronyms. But, employers don’t understand the alphabet soup or even some of the more straightforward sounding skills and tasks you gained and completed while on active duty. Translating those skills is key! Don’t forget your collateral duties!

Helpful Resources:

• MyNextMove for Veterans

• O*Net Military Crosswalk

• CalCareers Military Skills Translator

• Translating Collateral Duties

Everyone’s first question is about the resume. How long? How far back? Resumes are a summary of your skills and experiences providing a snapshot of your employment history and experience. Often the first thing you work on during a job search, there’s more to it than just listing your former jobs.

• Use Action Words to describe your experiences.

• Include classroom, volunteer and work experiences on a resume as it relates to your new career.

Build your network! It’s true now just as much as ever that it’s not just what you know, but who you know. Networking is the key to connecting with the hidden job market. In the digital age, tools like LinkedIn can connect you to virtually anyone and more opportunities are shared with you.

Did you know that Active Duty, Veterans, Military Spouses and Military Caregivers all can receive a free LinkedIn Premium account? Premium accounts allow for additional data insights, additional InMail opportunities for networking and access to LinkedIn Learning where you can reskill, upskill and receive digital badges for your new skills.

• Free Premium for Active Duty, Veterans, Military Spouses and Military Caregivers

Apply to Micro-Internships and gain experience and potential mentors. You’ll build your network and help shape companies’ future outcomes by doing valuable work!

Your Professional Brand is what potential employers and your network see. With a focus on the digital space, pay particular attention to your social media presence (both personal and professional), usernames, photos and shares. Lock your personal profiles down, but don’t count on a potential employer not being able to see your photos and shares. Use a professional-sounding email, grab a professional headshot and keep your business casual mullet for Zoom.

• Conduct a search audit: Google yourself and see what the top hits are. Ensure that the first item that pops up is what you want viewers to see.

• Headshots: Portraits for Patriots provides free headshots for active duty, national guard/reservists, veterans and military spouses with a photographer who is local to them

• Business/Interview Attire: Save a Suit

• Consider building an ePortfolio to showcase your work and skills. This living document shows not only what you can do, but where you started and how you’ve grown. Learn more about the whys and what employers think about ePortfolios here.

Mentorships can give you the extra opportunities you didn’t know existed. Seasoned professionals can guide you using their own experiences and resources as a guide. Active Duty, Veterans and Military Spouses can benefit from a mentor through free resources.

• American Corporate Partners

• Veterati

• Military spouse programs like AMPLIFY

• The Law: Veterans and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

• Understanding your Employment Rights Under the ADA: Guide for Veterans

• Connecting Needs to Accommodations: Ask Jan

• GGU’s Office of Accessible Education: Golden Gate University seeks to ensure that its programs and services are fully accessible to students with special needs.

• VIDEO: Academic Accommodations and How They Translate to the Workforce