I’m in the Air Force right now and will be getting out in September 2004 after four years of service. I’m going to school part time and hope to have an AS in Office Management by the time I’m honorably discharged. I would have spent 2 years working in the base gym and in 2 years of working at the front desk in the base hotel. I was wondering if anyone out there would be able to advise me as to what type of job I would be most qualified for about how much these jobs pay on average.
Speaking from my experience,service duties accounted for zero in my quest for post service employment. (I was an AT in the Navy).
Assuming you’re in your early 20s,you’re like the majority of your fellow citizens that have no promises from a company getting out of a 4 year degree program.
Seems like entrylevel in the hotel field may get you started.And esp.in the Bush economy,you’ll be lucky to land one of those.
<unsolicited opinion> If you get thru the first 4 years without undue mental anguish ( I couldn’t),I’d suggest reupping and pursue whatever field you’re in now for the duration.
Most 40 yr olds would probably switch situations in a heatbeat for a retired serviceman’s pension/benefits at that age to pursue a passion.
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spent 2 years working in the base gym and in 2 years of working at the front desk in the base hotel
The next question would be what were your duties? Did you do bookeeping? Guest Relations? IT? Answering that really depends on what they made you “qualified for”.
Based on what you said I can say that certainly a 2yr AS, whatever else it gives you, gives you only two more years to get a full 4 yr degree-- many many intern/management/entry level programs at big companies would like to see that with your service experience.
Reading that seemed a bit pissy - not meant that way. Here are Hilton’s job openings, you you are probably qualified for some of thier stuff right now. You can also see pay (which varies wildly by area and so will make the OP very hard to answer)
http://profiles.hospitalityonline.com/203461/jobs.html
Did 4 years as a super secret squirrel Arabic linguist/electronic warfare kid. I’m an insurance fiend now, and LOVING it. I don’t speak Arabic anymore, except incedentally; I don’t intercept, translate and jam enemy radio, not even incedentally, and I haven’t done a pushup in 7 years (and it shows).
I’ll concur that service experience per se hasn’t been a whole lotta help except as a conversation piece (which DOES have value in the employment market).
The 4 year degree is more important now than it has ever been, especially with doctorate-level people bagging your groceries.
But cereal, you’re qualified for nearly any professional/paraprofessional job you can think of. I can tell you that financial services jobs (sales, administrative as well as trainer positions) don’t seem to care too much about what your education has been, just that it exists. A BA will be necessary at some point, but many employers will/would offer financial assitance to that end. I can also say that military bearing freaks non military types out of the pool, and they can smell it a mile off no matter how careful you are. I’m doing alright now, but only because I chanced upon a retired-Marine-turned-Insurance-Agent (I was Army) who could see me for what I was. Took me 9 months to find a job and that was in 1996.
Good thing about military background that is often overlooked by employers as well as Vets, is the difficult-to-teach quality of flexibility.
Reup is a good choice–pick an MOS that interests you, a change can do you good and will only make you a more interesting person.
If you ETS, your best bet is to hook up with a veteran of any service–doesn’t really matter in what field. A living can be made in more jobs than you EVER thought of. Offhand I’d say you’re gonna get entry level–approx $20-$25k, so head for a place you’ve always wanted to live in and start yourself a life. Best wishes. Happy VD!