Female Veterans: Getting Your Ducks in a Row

I’m always impressed with female veterans getting ready for military transition. As the transition master coach for Military.com’s Veteran Employment Project, I see how you start your transition plan early – sometimes two or three years ahead of the curve. You research all the options out there. You get your ducks in a row.

The Cold Realization of Civilian Hiring

Then you dive into the civilian world. Instead of the reward for good planning and accessing veteran transition resources, so many female veterans get something markedly less than expected. That makes no sense.

After serving in the same occupation at the same pay with the same level of success as male veterans, wouldn’t you think women should have the same transition experience?

There Is a Difference

It isn’t that the difference in the unemployment rate is huge. According to an April 2022 report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, among Gulf War-era II veterans, the unemployment rate for women was only 4.9%, while the unemployment rate for men was 4.6%. Both were lower than the rate for non-veterans (5.3%).

When it comes to earnings, female veterans on average earn more than their non-veteran counterparts, but less than their male veteran peers.

The difference between male and female veterans is in the world and how they perceive women who served in the military: They don’t get it.

Now I do hear from employers who are actively, eagerly, even pointedly seeking female veterans. Yet the women themselves tell me that when they get to an interview, the actual hiring manager can’t seem to understand why you are there.

Just like for male veterans, the interviewer gets squinty over how your skills as a veteran would qualify you to do a job at their company. Then you insist on being a woman, too? It is like there is a wrinkle in the space/time continuum, and the world is knocked off its axis by your very existence.

I swear to you every time I hear a variation of this story from a female veteran, my eyes roll straight back into my head for at least half an hour. That makes driving difficult.

So in the interest of traffic safety – and your personal happily ever after – I have identified the top four skills that female veterans need to make their transition come to life as planned, and I’m going to share them with you in our newest transition master class for female veterans.

Free Transition Master Class for Female Veterans

So sign up for our FREE 60-minute Master Class for Female Veterans on Thursday, Aug. 25, at 4 p.m. EST. We will not be teaching the basics. You know those already. Instead, we will share the tactical skills women need to make employers see how you are the perfect choice. You will learn:

1. How to make employers understand your career in four sentences or less.
2. How to activate the one magic person in your network who can make job offers appear like no other.
3. How to get the elusive benefit female veterans mention more than any other. (No, it’s not a chocolate fountain in the lobby.)
4. How to negotiate your salary so you can be sure you are paid what you are worth.

You already have a to-do list for your transition. You just need those hidden skills that will get your transition plan to take flight.

Jacey Eckhart is Military.com’s transition master coach. She is a certified professional career coach and military sociologist who helps military members get their first civilian job by offering career-level Master Classes through our Veteran Employment Project and on her website SeniorMilitaryTransition.com. Reach her at Jacey.Eckhart@Monster.com.

Learn More About the Veteran Employment Project

To get more tips on how to make a successful military transition, sign up for one of our many FREE Military Transition Master Classes today. You can view previous classes in our video library. Questions for Jacey? Visit our Facebook page.