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Job Interviews Finding a Job

We are spouses of active duty military personnel. Many of us have at least a BS/BA degree, but are only able to get entry level positions because moving across the U.S., Europe, and the Far East has made our resumes look like we are unable to get full time employment, and our references almost impossible to contact. How do we get employers to think of us when they seek employees?



This sounds a little like someone discovering gold and then wondering how to get the miners to come. In this extremely tight labor market, employers are constantly searching for untapped pools of highly skilled labor, and when they find such pools, they jump in. In fact, in many areas, military bases as well as military families are already viewed as excellent sources of personnel.

Most military installations have Family Member Employment Assistance Programs and Spouse Employment Assistance Programs, and there typically is a Post Civilian Personnel Office that can be utilized by companies for job listings as well as by military family members for job sources. For those employers and human resources professionals who have somehow missed this gold mine, as they say in the military, "Attention!"

At the same time, you still have to market and sell your labor. Having moved around is not a knockout in these mobile times. Employers can verify your degrees, you can bring letters of reference with you, and there are countless high-level jobs available through newspapers, journals, agencies, and the Internet. With your experience, education, and skills, your entry point in an organization need not be an entry-level job.




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