Veterans and Work Resources
Making the transition to the civilian workforce
Families and Work Institute’s VET Award Winners
Top employers hiring and supporting veterans and their families.
GOVERNMENT RESOURCES
Troops to Teachers
Troops to Teachers is a U.S. Department of Education and Department of Defense program that helps eligible military personnel begin a new career as teachers in public schools.
Department of Defense and Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve
This Department of Defense organization promotes cooperation and understanding between Guard and Reserve members and their civilian employers, and acts as a liaison between them. (See more information under “Employment Resources“)
Department of Labor: One Stop Career Centers
One-Stop Career Centers are designed to provide a full range of assistance to job seekers under one roof. Established under the Workforce Investment Act, the centers offer training referrals, career counseling, job listings and similar employment-related services. Customers can visit a center in person or connect to the center’s information through PC or kiosk remote access.
Department of Labor: Women’s Bureau
The Women’s Bureau has a special focus on the difficulties faced by homeless female veterans in finding jobs and getting access to services. The Bureau has conducted a series of interviews with formerly and currently homeless female veterans, and currently hosts their findings on their Website. The Bureau has also recently produced a new documentary on assisting female veterans, which can be viewed on YouTube. Additionally, the Bureau has publishedTrauma-Informed Care for Women Veterans Experiencing Homelessness: a Guide for Service Providers, a resource intended to help readers understand the experiences and needs of female veterans and provide resources for staff training and education. According to the guide, 81% to 93% of female veterans have been exposed to some type of trauma, and servicewomen face a high risk of sexual harassment during their military careers. In order to address the unique needs of these women, the guide contains a wealth of information and advice on supporting women veterans, especially homeless veterans, and providing trauma-informed cared in homeless service settings.
Department of Veterans Affairs
The Department of Veteran Affairs website hosts a huge amount of information about benefits and services including Disability, Education and Training, Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment, Home Loan Guaranty, Dependant and Survivor Benefits, Medical Treatment, Life Insurance and Burial Benefits. Browse the website for more information. With such a range of information, the handy site navigator and brief summary of benefits with contact information are also useful.
Home Loan Guarantee Program
The VA offers a variety of home loan guaranty programs for Active Duty Servicemembers, Veterans, and National Guard, Reserve members and eligible surviving spouses.
It also provides other housing-related programs to help the military community buy, build, repair, retain, or adapt a home for personal occupancy.
VA Home Loans are provided by private lenders, such as banks and mortgage companies. VA guarantees a portion of the loan, enabling the lender to provide more favorable terms. The VA Home Loan Program was started in 1944 by the US Government to help past and present service members finance their homes. Since its inception, the VA Loan program has helped place more than 20 million veterans and their families into an affordable home financing situation through its distinct advantages over traditional mortgages.
Joining Forces
Joining Forces is a comprehensive national initiative to mobilize all sectors of society to give our service members and their families the opportunities and support they have earned. The First Lady and Dr. Jill Biden have met with military families, learned about their successes and challenges, and made it their priority to support them.
National Guard Association of the United States
The association includes nearly 45,000 current or former Guard officers. It was created in 1878 to provide unified National Guard representation in Washington. In their first productive meeting after Reconstruction, militia officers from the North and South formed the association with the goal of obtaining better equipment and training by petitioning Congress for more resources. Today, 132 years later, NGAUS has the same mission. With the successful votes in both the House and Senate in December 2011 for the fiscal 2012 national defense authorization bill, the National Guard is one presidential signature away from a permanent and official seat on the Joint Chiefs of Staff. By overwhelming votes, both chambers of Congress passed the bill which contains legislation that elevates the chief of the National Guard Bureau to the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Navy Credentialing Opportunities Online (COOL)
The Navy COOL program provides Navy service members with information about civilian license and certification requirements, and identifies licenses and certifications that are relevant to Navy ratings, jobs and duties. The program teaches service members how to fill the gaps between their Navy training and experience and civilian credentialing requirements, and provides information about resources available to service members that can help them gain civilian job credentials.
Office of the Secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs Hero2Hired (H2H) Program
A comprehensive job portal for all service members which encompasses the former “Employer Partnership of the Armed Forces (EPAF)” job portal.
Veterans Affairs One-The-Job Training and Apprenticeship
Advance your employment prospects by learning a trade or skill through participation in VA on-the-job training or apprenticeships. These programs typically involve entering into a training contract for a specific period of time with an employer or union. At the end of the training period, a job certification is issued or journeyman status achieved. Most Veterans receive a salary from the employer or union during training. As your skills increase, so may your salary. GI Bill payments are issued monthly after VA receives certification of hours worked from your employer or union.
Tax Credits – Returning Heroes
President Obama signed a new Returning Heroes Tax Credit into law on November 21, 2001 for firms that hire unemployed veterans (maximum credit of $2,400 for every short-term unemployed hire and $4,800 for every long-term unemployed hire).
Tax Credits – Wounded Warriors
President Obama signed the Wounded Warriors Tax Credit into law on November 21, 2011 that will increase the existing tax credit for firms that hire veterans with service-connected disabilities who have been unemployed long-term (maximum credit of $9,600 per veteran) and continue the existing credit for all other veterans with a service-connected disability (maximum credit of $4,800).
U.S. Chamber of Commerce: National Veterans Employment Advisory Council
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce will create a private sector National Veterans Employment Advisory Council (VEAC), which will be comprised of 25 of America’s biggest employers, representing every major industry and sector, to promote veteran hiring, reporting measures and mentorship. They will also call on their federation of 2,500 state and local chambers and industry associations and more than three million businesses to significantly expand the scale and scope of their nationwide hiring campaign to several hundred additional cities in 2012 and beyond.
Veterans Opportunity to Work (VOW) to Hire Heroes Act of 2011
Veterans with a service-connected disability may qualify for up to one-year of additional Vocational and Rehabilitation and Employment Benefits.
Veterans who are at least 35 years old but no older than 60 can receive up to 12 months of retraining assistance with the Veteran Retraining Assistance Program(VRAP).
VetSuccess
VetSuccess contains resources for veterans and their families during and after their transition into the workforce. The website has a series of interactive maps with state-by-state lists of resources for veterans looking for work, interested in going to college, in need of assistance with daily living, as well as resources for family members.
Women Veterans Health Care
Every VA Medical Center nationwide now has a Women Veterans Program Manager whose job is to advise and advocate for women veterans. Any woman veteran seeking medical care or advice can contact their nearest VA Medical Center and ask for the Women Veterans Program Manager.
EMPLOYMENT RESOURCES
100,000 Jobs Mission
The 100,000 Jobs Mission is dedicated to helping 100,000 transitioning service members find work with leading U.S. companies by 2020.
Search for job postings by keyword and location from the main page.
Explore career paths or take a career assessment.
Members of the 100,000 Jobs Mission include AT&T, Iron Mountain, Verizon, Broadridge, Chase, Cisco, ManTech, JPMorganChase & Co., Well Point, Modis, NCR, Cushman & Wakefield, Delta, EMC, T&M and UHS.
Join the 100,000 Jobs Mission Facebook group to show support.
America’s Heroes at Work
This U.S. Department of Labor project offers resources to help veterans with traumatic brain injury and PTSD succeed in the workplace.
America’s Heroes at Work offers links and information about traumatic brain injury and PTSD symptoms and treatment, disability-related workplace accommodation, and resources for transitioning service members and their families.
Veterans may also be interested in reading success stories from other veterans.
Career One Stop
This all-purpose career resource site offers this page of resources for transitioning military:
Find resources at careeronestop.org. Veterans can match their military service to civilian occupations with the Military to Civilian Occupation Translator.
Learn more about certifications and licenses, and how military experience may translate into credentials for getting certified.
At the Military Transition Portal, veterans can find links to resources that offer help with the transition to civilian life, writing a resume, finding state resources for veterans, and getting disability and injury resources.
Veterans can nominate their employers for a Patriot Award.
Find more information about the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) with useful tips for veterans on approaching the subject with employers, a way for to update the Civilian Employer Information database and information about USERRA training.
Veterans can get help resolving conflicts with their civilian employers by filling out a request for assistance.
Freedom Award
This Website is the online home of the Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award, the highest recognition given by the U.S. Government to employers for their support of Guard and Reserve employees.
The Freedom Award can only be received via nomination by Guard and Reserve members. Members can nominate their employers here.
View current and past recipients of the Freedom Award here.
G.I. Jobs
The G.I. Jobs Website provides a list of top 100 military-friendly employers. Read the list here and see their method for determining military friendliness here.
HireVeterans.com
This Website offers resources to help employers hire military veterans.
Search jobs from web developer to truck driver to engineer by keyword, category, and location, post a resume, and receive job postings by e-mail.
Find job fairs and career events, and view jobs posted by member companies such as Verizon, STS, General Mills, Mount Sinai Medical Center, Westar Energy, and more.
News posts with information about topics from security clearances to resume writing are available on the site’s main page.
Job Accommodation Network
This Website offers resources to help employers offer appropriate accommodation to their disabled employees, including this page on veterans with PTSD.
The Network offers free consulting services and provides information to job seekers.
Kauffman FastTrac for Entrepreneurs
A project started by the Kauffman Foundation, FastTrac is designed to help veteran entrepreneurs who want to start their own businesses. Through affiliates across the country, Kauffman FastTrac delivers courses to veterans to equip them with the information necessary to launch a business. Though part of a larger program for any budding entrepreneurs, certain FastTrac classes are reserved exclusively for veterans and a military ID card or Form DD-214 are required to apply.
Military Officers Association of America (MOAA)
MOAA is a resource for veterans including blogs and news on health and careers. The MOAA career resources are for both those seeking work and employers and include career fairs, resume critiques, transition lectures, career consulting, networking contacts, interview practice, and more.
Partnership for Youth Success
The Partnership for Youth Success is a U.S. Army-run program that pairs new recruits with partner companies, so that jobs will be open to those recruits when their service is complete.
The Partnership for Youth Success matches industry job needs with the skills a qualified enlisting youth will gain over their term of service. At the end of the recruit’s term, they will coordinate the job application and interview process with the chosen PaYS company, as well as receiving transition aid from the Army Career and Alumni Program.
View a list of partners here. Partners include a broad range of companies, such as Amtrak, American National Insurance Company, New Jersey Nets Basketball and the New York State Police, among many others.
Browse careers and industries here.
RecruitMilitary.com
This veteran-owned Website offers solutions to help employers hire transitioning military.
Registered members can search job postings and register for Opportunity Expos at cities across the country, where veterans can meet employers in industries from retail to business management to IT.
The site also offers help with resume writing, cover letters and thank-you letters.
Education resources are also available, including information about the financial aid offered under the new GI Bill and help searching for military scholarships and schools.
Also available are back issues of RecruitMilitary.com’s Search & Employ magazine, a civilian job guide for military veterans containing job opportunities, advice on transitioning to civilian life and other advice.
Teach for America
In November of 2012, Teach for America launched the You Served for America, Now Teach for America in an effort to get more veterans to join the corps. “This program enables America’s new greatest generation of veterans to continue to serve their country after coming home from war. Teach for America is giving veterans the well-deserved opportunity to transition into meaningful careers in the civilian workforce,” said Paul Rieckhoff, the founder and CEO of the nonprofit, nonpartisan Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America. “Teaching in schools across America, I know our new veterans will prove to be great role models for thousands of young Americans.” Since 2009, the number of veterans in the corps has quadrupled.
U.S. Military Pipeline
This Website offers career resources for veterans, their employers and their families.
Search for careers by keyword and military occupation, or browse career paths by industry.
Join a community of other jobseekers in various fields.
Get advice on finding jobs, creating a resume, interviewing and continuing education.
VA Mortgage Center
This Website helps veterans use their VA benefits to find affordable home loans.
The VA Mortgage Center is dedicated to helping veterans find home loans. They can put veterans in contact with a VA loan specialist, refinance their existing home loans, and get veterans pre-qualified for a loan. (All of these services are accessible from the main page.)
VetFriends.com
This site helps military veterans reconnect with fellow veterans, find jobs, and keep up with military news.
Veterans can search military members by name or search military units. A discussion board is also available, as is access to military records from the U.S. Government. VetFriends.com has a variety of military photos, jokes, lingo and other resources as well as information from military pay charts to veteran-recommended books.
Find businesses that employee or are owned by veterans in VetFriends.com’s veteran business directory.
Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment VetSuccess Program
This Department of Veteran’s Affairs-sponsored program helps veterans with service-related disabilities prepare for, find, and keep jobs.
The Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment VetSuccess program provides rehabilitation evaluations to help veterans determine their abilities, skills and interests for employment as well as vocational counseling and other employment help. Veterans can also find information about who is eligible for the program and program services like rehabilitation plans.
Warriors to Work
The Wounded Warrior Project runs the Warriors to Work Website to help veterans find work. It also offers resources to help employers recruit and retain veterans.
Register to use Wounded Warrior Project’s resume builder.
Apply to a Transition Training Academy program to learn new career skills.
Veterans can also explore the project’s resource link list.
Browse job posting, internship opportunities and training opportunities.
To fill out the required contact form and get started, look here.
EDUCATION RESOURCES
CollegeSscholarships.org
Collegescholarships.org offers this page of information about scholarships available to veterans.
FinAid.com
FinAid.com has information about veterans’ education benefits, loans, scholarships, savings and military aid. The site offers calculators, information about filling out financial aid forms and an overview of how military benefits fit into the overall financial aid picture.
The GI Bill
The official GI Bill Website offers educational resources to veterans. Their resources can help veterans choose a school and compare programs. They offerfree educational and vocational counseling services and can help veterans find out whether they are eligible for benefits and apply for them online.
Military.com
Military.com has information about the Veterans Educational Assistance Program as well as education FAQs and advice for getting a degree. They also offer advice about how to get and manage money for educational programs. Their career translator can be found here.
Military Times Edge
Military Times Edge offers advice and resources to help veterans get their degrees. Veterans can find information and advice about using the GI Bill and Tuition Assistance get information about degree choices and find strategies and tips for college success.
The Online Education Database
The Online Education Database offers information on all types of online programs and degrees. They offer a listing of veteran college grants and information about other specialty grants.
Student Veterans of America
The Student Veterans of America offers this list of chapter locations. They also offer a list of resources, including guides on federal benefits for veterans, how veterans can start an SVA chapter at their university, and guides on transitioning from military life to college life. More information can be found at theSVA blog.
OTHER RESOURCES
American Legion
The American Legion is a nonpartisan, not-for-profit organization helping veterans get involved in their communities through service. The American Legion also connects veterans to federal jobs through its Avue Central Resource. It have a search for jobs and provides veterans with career tools such as tutorials on resume building and interview skills. There are also more resources through Avue Central.
AMVETS
This is a multi-faceted resource for veterans. Not only does it list educational opportunities and scholarships available for veterans, but AMVETS also sponsors career centers all over the United States. Here you can find contact information for these career centers and find out how they can specifically help veterans find a job.
Amy Dombro
Amy Dombro has written a soon-to-be-released textbook, Serving Military Families in the 21st Century, in collaboration with other authors. She had written a previous series of books in 2009 for the Zero to Three organization on how to support children affected by military parents’ deployment, injury and death.
Be A Hero Hire A Hero
This initiative was launched by Hire Disability Solutions, LLC in order to provide meaningful employment opportunities for unemployed veterans. Recent invents include a virtual career fair for veterans. For more information about the project’s consulting services, employment opportunities, and career fairs, contact: info@hireds.com.
Business and Professional Women’s Foundation and Joining Forces
The Joining Forces for Women Veterans Mentorship Program is intended to enable women mentors to tap their own experiences in the workplace to help veterans and military spouses successfully enter the civilian workforce, positioning their military expertise and skills for long-term career stability and success.
BusinessFinancing.org
In the world of finance there are many different options available to businesses of all sizes and types. The overall goal of business financing is to raise the capital to meet your business’s current needs. Those needs can range from equipment purchases to renovations, all of which will help your business to grow further in its industry. Next is to get this capital at the least cost for your business to ensure you will be able to meet the repayment obligation.
Helmets to Hardhats
This organization assists Military, Reservists and Guard transition from active duty to careers in the construction industry. They offer advise, resume preparation support and an apprenticeship program amongst other services. H2H is a Web-based program that requires online registration and provides career postings. To participate in H2H, visit the program’s website at www.helmetstohardhats.org and click the “Get Started” button to create and activate your profile. Once your profile is activated, you can browse hundreds of career and training opportunities and forward your profile to career providers electronically from the H2H site. If you have questions about a career in the Trades, don’t see the career you’re interested in or have questions about the application process, call H2H at 866-741-6210.
iRelaunch
iRelaunch co-founder Carol Fishman Cohen wrote a report, The Special Case of Military Spouses Returning to Work After a Career Break, with thoughts and suggestions about military spouses returning to work. Ms. Cohen was also a presenter at the National Military Spouse Network Summit on November 2, 2011, where she spoke about return-to-work strategies for military spouses.
SCORE
SCORE will provide an array of free and discounted offers to help veterans and their family members with their business needs. These offers span from discounted incorporation services to free software and free assistance by certified accountants. They also will offer scholarships for their “Simple Steps for Starting Your Business” workshop series or an equivalent workshop available through any of their 350 chapters nationwide.
The Robin Hood Foundation Veterans Initiative
The Robin Hood Foundation Veterans Initiative was created to help veterans living in poverty in New York City obtain housing, health care, jobs, education, legal assistance and micro-financing. Robin Hood has made a commitment to lift every single homeless veteran off the streets and move them into transitional or permanent housing. The Foundation has set up a Veterans Advisory Board to help lead this Veterans Initiative. It will focus on finding and developing the most effective poverty-fighting models to help returning veterans and their families.
Troops to Energy Jobs
Troops to Energy Jobs provides veterans with a roadmap for entry into highly skilled utility and engineering occupations within the energy industry. They have virtual career coaches to help veterans. Jobs in the energy sector provide competitive compensation and professional growth opportunities. This website offers resources for schooling, applying, and preparing for an energy career. American Electric Power, APS, Dominion, PG&E Corporation, and Southern Company have become Troops to Energy Jobs partners, and the eventual goal of the initiative is to expand beyond these pilot companies to the entire industry. More information about the initiative can be found at the Center for Energy Workforce Development Website.
USD Veterans Clinic
The Law School and the University of San Diego offers free legal services and advice to veterans and military family members who have disputes over use of GI Bill funds, whether it be with predatory lenders or for-profit educational institutions.
The Work First Foundation
The Work First Foundation sponsors a variety of programs, including an Employment and Support Services program for veterans and their families.
Zero to Three
Zero to Three focuses on increasing awareness and collaboration in the military community so that parents and childcare professionals can better care for children of military families. The organization has produced a Duty to Care training series (offered free of charge to helping professionals) on the needs of very young children in military families who are facing complicated deployments and reunifications. At the 26th National Training Institute on December 8, 2011, Zero to Three presented a special Pre-Institute: Military and Civilian Partnerships: Extending the Bridge to Meet the Short-and-Long-Term Needs of Military Families and Their Young Children.