I had the awesome chance to attend MOAA’s Spouse Symposium last week. Maybe you saw my live tweeting and Instagramming! It was pretty epic, I’ve got to say. My live tweeting, of course! Just kidding. The symposium was amazing.
Military spouses are notoriously underemployed, and it’s easy to get discouraged. Heck, after just a month of being a military spouse, I felt discouraged about my career. I can’t imagine what it must feel like after multiple moves and deployments. Increasingly, more agencies and businesses are trying to make it easier for military spouses to become employed and stay employed. There are so many obstacles for maintaining a successful career, but it can be done.
The whole time I was at the symposium, I was trying to soak up as much information as I could to bring back to you! There are some truly fantastic programs out there– it’s time for you to get connected to them!
Veterans Career Transition Program
My Career Spark
Simply put, My Career Spark is a resume builder for military spouses. It’s created and maintained by Hiring Our Heroes, Toyota, and Blue Star Families. You can build your resume, set and track career goals, read up on interview prep, and refine your job search.[Tweet ” My Career Spark is a resume builder for military spouses. @JoMyGosh”]
SECO
SECO stands for Spouse Education and Career Opportunities and is run through Military OneSource. This is a fantastic go-to source. There are tons of resources– articles, programs, and other links. You can also access MySECO, a personal career portal. SECO offers comprehensive career counseling and can help guide you through tricky problems like certification and licensing issues. They can also help with career coaching, child care referrals, transportation options, job application and resume assistance, and education counseling.
[Tweet “SECO offers comprehensive career counseling and can help guide you through tricky problems like certification and licensing issues. @JoMyGosh”]
Military Spouse Employment Partnership
[Tweet “MSEP links Fortune 500 Plus companies that are committed to hiring military spouses. @JoMyGosh”]
If you ever have the chance to attend a MOAA Spouse Symposium, go. It’s not only an incredible networking event, it’s exceptionally informative. There honestly was not a moment of the symposium that I felt was wasted or that I felt could have been done better. Just all around awesomeness.
PS. Career stuff as a military spouse can be frustrating.
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