NG/AR and finding civilian job

atreen

5-Year Member
Joined
Jun 22, 2013
Messages
24
Hey all,

I am wondering if any of you have experience or advice finding a civilian job when planning on commissioning in the AR or NG.

Specifically,
1) Should I look for jobs during BOLC? Is there time to look for jobs during BOLC?
2) Should I try to land a job before BOLC? And risk getting on the bad side of the employer when I have to leave for BOLC less than a year into the job?
3)Do I put being in the NG/AR on my resume? Or mention it at all during interviews?

I really want to go reserves, but I am extremely :frown: worried about potentially not finding or losing jobs because of being in the Reserves.
 
You want to start looking for a job junior or senior year. Go to the career fairs at your school, use the campus career center, and look into Pays (ask your ROO about Pays). You want to be upfront with your potential employer about your service obligation. Companies that hire military know what they are getting and know you are coming to them with a value added. In return, they are usually willing to allow you to go to your training. You definitely don't want to keep it a secret. You want to look for a company that is going to hire you because you have military experience vs one that is hesitant because of your obligation. I can't think of one of my recent graduates that had any problem landing a job, most before they even graduated.
 
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My advice as owner of a recruiting agency.

Start your search as early as you can. Do not put it off. Its about networking and learning at this stage. The biggest problem young people has is they are looking for a "job". In other words they don't know what they want to do and are looking for someone to tell them. Not saying you, just a general observation from my experience. Its also a reasonable thing not to know, but you need to spend some time discovering what you want to do and just as importantly why you can do it and bring value to the organization that will employ you. Remember, they are in business to make money, or for a non-profit, use money efficiently.

My advice is to spend some time on the internet looking at Job titles, industries, functions that you are interested in. Make notes of the terminology they use, what companies are hiring, what the titles are. Don't get put off by requirements at this point. You can easily do this before BOLC.

Your initial goal.
Have 1-3 functions you are interested in
Have the skills you possess that will benefit that company
Have a long list of Companies that are in the industry/location you are interested.

Use www.indeed.com to research jobs, whose hiring, locations, titles
Use www.Linkedin.com to find who people that work at those companies

I would not refuse an interview prior to BOLC. However I would be honest about your future commitment at the interview.

As for the resume. Tough one. Depending on the job you seek and the industry it might not be a big deal. However the truth is there are hiring mangers that will not want you because of Reserves and there are some that will love it.

My advise to my son at this point is to leave it off the resume. The goal is to get the interview not to be paper screened. Now if ROTC is one of your strengths then leave it on. Your goal is to get an interview first.

So the net of my advice. Start now.

Good Luck
 
Its about networking and learning at this stage.
+1

Networking can make a huge difference, whether it be for co-ops, internships, or jobs.

I think some people fail to see the bigger picture of networking sometimes. It's not who you know, but rather the people who you know, know (who they know).
 
http://www.armypays.com/
This program is a partnership of businesses that are military friendly and looking to hire soldiers.
I have also seen way too many college students not take advantage of the resources on their campus. It's never too early to wander around a career fair that is being held on your campus. Freshmen and sophomores can find out who is interested in the students that are graduating from their school.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=75g1hjNJmZE
 
What are the suggestions for a cadet who wants to go active? Should they apply for jobs, interview, etc? If so when? Then what do they do if they are chosen for active?

In other words, Plan A active with a mechanical engineering degree. What do ya'll recommend for plan B? Any suggestions would be beneficial.
 
go to the career fairs sophomore and junior year, and be prepared to kick it into high gear once you get back from camp and know about where you fall on the OML. You should have some idea whether you should be worried or not. If you are a meche you should be pretty marketable and should be able to get some interviews by the end of your senior year. Also give the PaYs program a look.
 
this subject is familiar to my cadet. who is actually no longer a cadet due to a medical change in condition that is disqualifying (another story).

Here are some obstacles that need to be cleared/removed/dealt with:

- Internships are the primary way that professional services companies select their future college graduate employees.

The summer internship prior to Sr. year is the big one. That's of course when LDAC occurs. Even if a rising Sr. knows they are going to select Guard/Reserves, how can they secure a summer Internship at an Accounting/Marketing/Financial Services/Telecom/Insurance company?

This leaves the summer prior to Jr. year. Our cadet used that summer to study a critical foreign language outside the U.S. She could have instead focused on a Summer Internship, but at that point wasn't sure about Guard/Reserves and made an investment in a skill that would be valuable in case she went Active.

Bottom line is that the summer prior to Jr. year is the golden summer for AROTC cadets to secure a formal Summer Internship. Failing this, the cadet is faced with securing employment in competition with an very large pool of "free agents", this is, Seniors who did not Intern at the company they're interviewing for.

The job market out there is still brutal for college seniors, and the odds are tough. I have a relative who runs an 80 employee company in the fashion jewelry industry. When he posts for job openings for an "Assistant" on Craig's List, her gets 300 responses within one day. Graduates of Oxford, Wellesley, Notre Dame, and other prestigious schools... a $12.00 per hour position. These are typically students who majored in English, Sociology, History, Philosophy, etc. "Soft majors". Companies do hire "Soft Major" college seniors, but often it is out of their Summer Intern pool.

- Uncertainty among hiring managers about whether a Reserve Officer or National Guard Officer will have enough scheduling flexibility to be a good hire.

As the Recruiter above noted, some hiring managers will find that RESERVES subject disqualifying for them, and others will actually want to assist the applicant as much as they can. And it is a REAL concern in the new flexible Army. Reserve officers have a really good chance of being called up to Active duty in peacetime, and that can even be for humanitarian projects. The way the Army looks at Reserve Officers has changed recently from "only in case of an officer shortfall in a major conflict", to "an HR resource that can and should be tapped into regularly to achieve efficiency".

OP -- every college graduate faces a tough job market. Since you will have a couple of hurdles that most graduates don't, get started much earlier. If you are looking for a career in a Professional Services type of company, then treat the summer prior to Junior year in the way that most students treat the summer before Senior year.

If anybody from Cadet Command is reading this -- it would be helpful if students who have already decided they plan to go Guard/Reserves could petition CC for an LDAC reporting date that could possibly accommodate a civilian Summer Internship... that is, in January of their Jr. year the cadet could lock down a first or last report date at LDAC that the summer Internship coordinators at companies could work around. Right now, the uncertainty of LDAC reporting dates pretty much knocks out the entire summer.
 
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If anybody from Cadet Command is reading this -- it would be helpful if students who have already decided they plan to go Guard/Reserves could petition CC for an LDAC reporting date that could possibly accommodate a civilian Summer Internship... that is, in January of their Jr. year the cadet could lock down a first or last report date at LDAC that the summer Internship coordinators at companies could work around. Right now, the uncertainty of LDAC reporting dates pretty much knocks out the entire summer.

LDAC reporting dates are up to the ROTC Battalion, not Cadet Command. The Battalion should be able to work with a Cadet that has an internship lined up. At Clarkson, Cadets in the school of business get "professional experience" credit for attending LDAC...There are also other times during the year that Cadets can get a short internship in. There are also Army ROTC internships that can be applied for.
 
I've been in your position. Use ROTC to set you apart from the rest of your peers looking for jobs. It provides unique experiences. My resume states the following. Tailor it to fit your needs AND THE TRUTH.
Planned weekly battalion training to develop 100 future United States Army officers
Led up to sixty cadets through tactical leadership exercises
Collaborated with a team of peers and Army Cadre to successfully accomplish mission essential tasks

Find an employer that appreciates the NG/USAR because that'll make your life a whole lot easier. I landed a job with a gov agency and the interviewers asked me about BOLC and they weren't worried about it.
 
Thanks for the advice, I will check out the resources mentioned.

Also, I was wondering if cadets (MS3 and MS4) are employed by the US Gov.? Some job applications asks you to answer whether you are a government employee.
 
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