Okay, so lets talk about planning and timing. If you know that you are going to retire, I recommend you do the TAP(ACAP) program 2 years out. I did not do this, I did this 5 months out. My circumstances were of my own choosing in order to be eligible for a specific opening, but is not without risk. Another program I recently attended was Afterburner, sponsored by USAA. This is a great program to take for better defining your goals and putting a plan in place. I'm almost done reading Down Range by James D. Murphy and William M. Duke. The book is a good read and will put you in the right mind set to get going with your plan. It comes free with the USAA sponsored program but it is not very much on Amazon if you don't want to wait.
Now your thinking that 2 years out is unrealistic and also has risks associated with telling someone you are planning to retire. Once that cat is out of the bag, you know you will be in another category. So let's compromise and say 9 months out. There are a lot of VA processes and out-processing that you do not want to interfere with preparing for your transition plan. I have redone my resume completely 4 times since December. Every course you attend will assist in fine tuning what you need. I'm not going to lie, it is frustrating. Early on, I read a comment that said it is not about what you like it is about what is needed by the job posting. So, I recently learned the lines I used to separate my topic areas may have caused my resume to be completely kicked back by the applicant Tracking System, not good. I now have a simple format that gets all the required items in 2 pages. I started with 5 pages in November that I thought were all crucial; they were not.
Not much else for an end of the week posting. In summary, educate yourself in the planning process, to include resumes, so you can start to backward plan for you timeline. It is the old adage, preparing to plan. In the Army speak, that would be gather your tools/resources.
Now your thinking that 2 years out is unrealistic and also has risks associated with telling someone you are planning to retire. Once that cat is out of the bag, you know you will be in another category. So let's compromise and say 9 months out. There are a lot of VA processes and out-processing that you do not want to interfere with preparing for your transition plan. I have redone my resume completely 4 times since December. Every course you attend will assist in fine tuning what you need. I'm not going to lie, it is frustrating. Early on, I read a comment that said it is not about what you like it is about what is needed by the job posting. So, I recently learned the lines I used to separate my topic areas may have caused my resume to be completely kicked back by the applicant Tracking System, not good. I now have a simple format that gets all the required items in 2 pages. I started with 5 pages in November that I thought were all crucial; they were not.
Not much else for an end of the week posting. In summary, educate yourself in the planning process, to include resumes, so you can start to backward plan for you timeline. It is the old adage, preparing to plan. In the Army speak, that would be gather your tools/resources.
Transition
Job/Skill Training
Job Fairs
Posted >1 y ago
This is a duplicate discussion and the contents have been merged with the original discussion. Click below to see more on this topic...
For all those preparing to transition and those already there, I will address two topics in this post. First, it is important to find out where you don't want to work and second, State applications for Texas.
Over the last month, I attended the Incident Commander Position Specific Course and the Basic Instructor Skills Course. I'm interested in continuing my education in emergency management and there are multiple free courses available through preparing Texas. The added benefit of attending these courses is the networking opportunities. I was able to network with other students from multiple agencies. My interaction with these professionals allowed me to gain an insight into the agencies where they are members. So, I would recommend you consider how you can attend a conference, training, or other event where you can meet the professionals in your desired field. I was able to eliminate an agency from consideration that I had intended to pursue. Most statistics say that your first job right after you transition will likely not be a long term position. That being said, this has allowed me to avoid accepting a job where I am not a fit.
The second topic is the dreaded State application. In my TAP training, it was emphasized not to leave blanks and to fully fill out any application forms, but the majority of the focus was on the resume. Folks, the resume is not even considered for State applications in Texas. It is all in the application. That application is then reviewed by a computer or an entry level worker with no knowledge about the job. They are looking for the specific language in the job posting. If your application does not match these key search terms, you will not be considered. We did discuss this in TAP but mainly as it related to the resume. These are clearly valid points for your resume, but you also must have this information in the application. So, if the posting says you need basic understanding of computer software, that needs to be in the application. If you have a Masters in Computer Science but your application does not include the must have terminology, you might be passed by. Working Texas provides a training session specifically for State applications that I would recommend you attend. I've been told by Texas recruiters that there is a perception that State agencies only hire within, but the reality is that they know what to put on the application.
Happy hunting and I hope you find the career you are looking for.
Over the last month, I attended the Incident Commander Position Specific Course and the Basic Instructor Skills Course. I'm interested in continuing my education in emergency management and there are multiple free courses available through preparing Texas. The added benefit of attending these courses is the networking opportunities. I was able to network with other students from multiple agencies. My interaction with these professionals allowed me to gain an insight into the agencies where they are members. So, I would recommend you consider how you can attend a conference, training, or other event where you can meet the professionals in your desired field. I was able to eliminate an agency from consideration that I had intended to pursue. Most statistics say that your first job right after you transition will likely not be a long term position. That being said, this has allowed me to avoid accepting a job where I am not a fit.
The second topic is the dreaded State application. In my TAP training, it was emphasized not to leave blanks and to fully fill out any application forms, but the majority of the focus was on the resume. Folks, the resume is not even considered for State applications in Texas. It is all in the application. That application is then reviewed by a computer or an entry level worker with no knowledge about the job. They are looking for the specific language in the job posting. If your application does not match these key search terms, you will not be considered. We did discuss this in TAP but mainly as it related to the resume. These are clearly valid points for your resume, but you also must have this information in the application. So, if the posting says you need basic understanding of computer software, that needs to be in the application. If you have a Masters in Computer Science but your application does not include the must have terminology, you might be passed by. Working Texas provides a training session specifically for State applications that I would recommend you attend. I've been told by Texas recruiters that there is a perception that State agencies only hire within, but the reality is that they know what to put on the application.
Happy hunting and I hope you find the career you are looking for.
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