Personalized Career and Education Guidance for Military Spouses
We may all be military spouses, but that does not mean we all have the same career goals, expectations or even the same experiences within the military community.
Have you visited your military installation’s career or education centers only to find that you need more specialized, tailored guidance and resources? Or, are you a future military spouse who cannot take advantage of the military resources but would like guidance on how to manage the military lifestyle with your personal goals? We may all be military spouses (or future spouses), but I realize that we are all not the same. For this reason, we should not all receive the same exact career advice. Much like we get personalized exercise training plans at the gym, which are based on our personal goals and current fitness level, we must receive career and education counseling that is tailored to our professional goals and current career situation. A one-size-fits-all approach will not work for the majority of us, which is why tailored career counseling is so important for military spouses to fulfill their dreams.
While most military spouses are active in the workforce, we often support our servicemember’s career at the expense of our own career progression due to obstacles brought about by military life. The unemployment rates for military spouses tend to be higher than those for our civilian counterparts, and many military spouses perceive their relationship to a military member as having an unfavorable effect on job opportunities and the pursuit of ever finding a fulfilling career.
As the majority of military families relocate every 5 years or less, a recent survey showed that many military spouses feel they are discriminated against when trying to build their careers due to frequent relocations. Continual moving, deployment rotations and training schedules can make it seem impossible to achieve your own career goals while a military spouse. It is, however, possible to develop a truly fulfilling, portable career for yourself while your spouse serves in the military.
They key to a rewarding, portable career is finding the resources available to us as military spouses and utilizing them! Some of the available opportunities are hard to find and are often overlooked, but they do exist. I have spent hours researching these resources, contacting military supporters in the workforce and in education to determine the best opportunities for spouses.
