Were you prepared for your transition? Did you already have a job/career lined up?

2015-11-08T12:25:23-05:00

Response by SPC William Del Valle made Nov 8 at 2015 12:26 PM

2015-11-08T12:26:41-05:00

I didn't even have a place to live, I was forced to move back to my mothers house.

Response by CPT Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 8 at 2015 7:22 PM

2015-11-08T19:22:40-05:00

No, and some people thought I was crazy for separating without a job on the other side. When I separated from active duty, I applied and got accepted to a university. That's right - I didn't even have an acceptance to a university lined up (which, in hindsight, was extremely foolish). Throughout undergrad, I (mostly) didn't work thanks to the generous post-9/11 GI bill and various combinations of grants, scholarships, and loans.

I know that when servicemembers think about transition, it invariably becomes a discussion about the struggle to put food on the table. Consider that transition is an opportunity to reinvent yourself through education. I don't mean those classes you took on the side for an EPR or NCOER bullet at [insert online college here]. I'm meaning a real-deal education that's so rigorous that it's largely incompatible with being on active duty.

If your AFSC or MOS isn't translating, or the job market is looking a little scarce, think about it.