Military Transition Resumes:
Emphasizing Transferable Skills

Before composing a resume, search job sites or scan classifieds in newspapers to determine what qualifications are most sought-after in the field you are targeting. Once you have pinpointed these valuable qualifications, you can then match your military duties to private-sector daily tasks.

Let's say a U.S. Navy legal officer has the following qualifications:

• Selected to fill Staff Judge Advocate's billet, a position normally filled by an attorney.
• Managed command legal department's daily functions.
• Advised on all matters pertaining to the administration of command legal matters.
• Conducted investigations and non-judicial punishment cases, interviewed witnesses, gathered evidence, prepared cases for court-martial, and prepared all pretrial and post-trial actions.
• Managed administrative discharge process and served as recorder on over 20 administrative discharge boards, presenting government’s case, preparing record, and shepardizing cases through final separation of service members.
• Served as collateral duty Total Quality (TQL) Coordinator and quality advisor. As advisor to Executive Steering Committee, developed TQL training program, personally conducting TQL training for over 370 civilian and military personnel.
• Provided legal assistance services to command personnel: resolved issues including landlord-tenant problems, discriminatory practices, and delinquent debts.
• Prepared powers of attorney, affidavits, and other various legal documents.
• Supervised staff of three legal clerks.

Suppose this officer came across an opening at a private-sector legal firm with the following requirements: staff supervision, office management, knowledge of real estate law, collections, investigations, and case preparation. To relate his military duties to this private firm's search — and demonstrate what he can contribute — he could insert the following bullet points into his resume:

• Supervised staff of three legal clerks.
• Managed command legal department's daily functions.
• Resolved legal issues including landlord-tenant problems and discriminatory practices.
• Knowledgeable about delinquent-debt resolution.
• Conducted investigations.
• Prepared cases for court-martial and all pretrial and post-trial actions.

Although military experience may seem far removed from work in the private sector, there are numerous transferable skills. The below characteristics can be exhibited in a special "Skills" section with appropriate examples from your military experience.

Ability to take direction
This is especially important if you’re entering the private sector for the very first time. You must be able to listen carefully and follow all the policies of the company. Providing a list of successfully completed activities that were under the direction of a superior officer provides ample evidence.

Leadership
The ability to direct and inspire staff is as critical in the private sector as it is in the military. You should note exact numbers of staff members who were under your authority and describe any improvements made in productivity. Promotions or awards for leadership, especially if they were frequent, should be mentioned in the opening summary. This shows that you have the ability to take on additional responsibilities, can delegate authority, and can be trusted to get the job done.

Punctuality
Military operations have timetables that can be showcased in a private sector resume to indicate outstanding time-management skills. Provide beginning and ending dates of the operation, the challenges faced to meet that deadline, and the action taken for on-time (or early) completion.

Teamwork
All hiring managers want employees who work well with others. Since military operations rely on the group, you can easily emphasize that you worked in cooperation with your peers.

Transferable skills
Many occupational skills learned in the military are of use in the civilian world. For example: nursing and healthcare, mechanics, computer programming, and police and security work. When a military job is similar to a civilian position, it's important to stress similar experiences that will convince the hiring manager that you know what to expect and how to successfully complete the job.

Security clearance
Holding high-level security clearance while in the military should certainly be showcased in the Qualifications Summary, as it indicates trustworthiness and integrity.

Awards, commendations, and medals
Outstanding service that was recognized by the military should always be listed, because hiring managers often consider past accomplishments highly indicative of future excellence.