Spouse Tip of the Week - Do You Want or Need Education or Training for Portable Career Employment?
Source: Military Community and Family Policy (MC&FP) Weekly eNewsletter
It's easy. Funding is available. Schools and employers are ready. To get started, call Military OneSource to speak with a Spouse Education and Career Opportunities (SECO) Counselor ((800) 342-9647) to help make the connections you need to reach your work-life goals, starting today!
Set up a telephone appointment with a SECO counselor to discuss:
- Career Exploration. Find out what work are you best suited for. Talk about the "fastest tracks" to employment. Learn about the job prospects and salary ranges for various occupations and vocations in different parts of the country – places where you will most likely be stationed. Then, make your own career decisions. SECO counselors can help.
- Education and Training. SECO counselors can help you choose a school and program of study that will lead to a degree, license, or credential needed for portable career employment. They are aware that research shows that for every level of education you have, you will earn a significantly higher salary once employed. Also, to advance along portable career ladders, you will need more education and training.
- Financial Assistance to Help Pay for School. The Department of Defense's MyCAA Career Advancement Accounts provide up to $4,000 of financial assistance directly to schools to help pay for education and training if you are pursuing an associate’s degree, license, or credential leading to portable career employment. Eligible spouses must be married to active duty members in pay grades E1-E5, W1-W2, or O1-O2. SECO counselors can also help spouses find other sources of financial assistance, including federal grants, loans, consumer awareness tools to evaluate and compare college financial aid packages, and transfer of the Post-9/11 Education Benefits earned by your service member (available to all pay grades). If you want to go to school to further your career and incoming earning capacity, you can do it. SECO counselors can help.
- Career Readiness. Do you need help getting ready for a job search and entering the workforce? Could you use some new ideas or assistance with your resume, interview skills, job applications, job search, choosing a wardrobe, child care, or transportation? SECO counselors can provide assistance, coaching and resources to help you make and implement successful career transition plans.
- Career Connections. Once you're ready to launch a job search, you'll want to find military friendly employers with current job openings, starting with these: MSEPJobs portal (Fortune 500 Plus employers) and USAJobs (federal employers). These employers are actively recruiting, hiring, retaining, and promoting military spouses. SECO counselors can also guide you to job fairs scheduled by US and local Chambers of Commerce and military affiliated organizations in nearby communities where employers are prepared to interview and hire spouses and veterans on the spot.
So, make a New Year's Resolution for 2012:
Go back to school to get the education and training you need for career success. The Department of Defense and military friendly employers are standing by to help. Call (800) 342-9647 today.
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