Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I realize that for some it might be their goal to stay in a specific field, however I the military member is stationed overseas, the spouse may not have the luxury of having a good job selection.
We have looked at some overseas jobs, but we have not been offered something we both want.
Education was a popular employment, Dept of Defense School Systems.
For beachy9 and her husband, good luck with your careers and be flexible. There are advantages to overseas assignments, those are the times my family really cherished, 25+ years later...
Rich
It's true, spouses don't always have the luxury of a good job selection but I can only see it getting better (in terms of job selection) compared to where I am at now! Seriously, job pickings are slim stateside as well depending on where you're at.
But the period of getting your MA and researching options is pretty exciting, so I say have fun with it and good luck as well.
I am a soon to be militray wife. My husband just joined the Army and will be leaving for Basic next month and then DLI after that. I plan to move with him once he gets to CA. I was wondering what you do for careers and what careers you find to be most portable. I have a Bachelors degree in social work and am currently in a MSW program, however, I'm not sure this degree will be that portable or lucrative enough to support us. I have also been thinking about speech language pathology or nursing. I have taken some SLP courses but it would still take me 3 years to complete. Same thing for nursing, I would need to do about 1 yr of prereqs and then apply to an accelerated BSN program. I am 26 and have no children. Any advice on career opportunities in these 3 fields as an army wife would be greatly appreciated!!
Continue your MSW program. Then, obtain certifications (or whatever they're called) in substance abuse, support group therapy (codependency), domestic violence, etc. The army has a lot of members who need help in these areas. You can always get a job on base or even in a small town, should you get orders to one.
EDnurse, thank you for your response. I have considered this, however in order to work on base (if they have openings) a social worker must be a LCSW which requires 3,000 hours of supervision. It may be difficult to find someone who will supservise you and then obtain the needed hours of supervision due to moving (it is very difficult to transfer hours within states). Usually you have to pay someone to provide supervision which can be daunting on a social workers salary. Additionally, every state has different education requirements, supervision hours, etc and the LCSW licensing test would have to be taken again at every new state. Not to say this can't be done, but it will be extremely difficult for a new MSW to obtain all this while moving. I am just trying to determine what would be the most flexible within states and still provide an adequate income. I know I can't predict the future and just need to choose one path or another, but hopefully I can at least make a smart decision based on the options.
We are hoping for Germany for the next PCS and I tell you, if we get it, I'll be willing to work at the commissary
Actually, I meant that the wives of the retired military worked high up in the GS system and the retired military guys were working at the commissary!
If you get an overseas tour to a large base, you will have no problem getting into the GS system. It's easier to get into the GS system when you're overseas than it is to try and start stateside. There's a few reasons for this...mainly because there is not a pool of permanent residents nearby that hold those GS jobs. In Germany, they depend on their active duty military and a number of Germans, then a huge number of rotating military spouses to keep the base running. The jobs aren't enormously satisfying, but they are a great way to get your foot in the door. Secretaries, Child Development workers, a few lower GS jobs in personnel, some low-end jobs at the hospital, etc. Again...for me it was something to do and some extra money so we could actually travel around Europe. As it turned out, I found that I enjoyed working as a commander's secretary and kept that job for almost 10 years. It wasn't what I wanted to do at the beginning, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.
EDnurse, thank you for your response. I have considered this, however in order to work on base (if they have openings) a social worker must be a LCSW which requires 3,000 hours of supervision. It may be difficult to find someone who will supservise you and then obtain the needed hours of supervision due to moving (it is very difficult to transfer hours within states). Usually you have to pay someone to provide supervision which can be daunting on a social workers salary. Additionally, every state has different education requirements, supervision hours, etc and the LCSW licensing test would have to be taken again at every new state. Not to say this can't be done, but it will be extremely difficult for a new MSW to obtain all this while moving. I am just trying to determine what would be the most flexible within states and still provide an adequate income. I know I can't predict the future and just need to choose one path or another, but hopefully I can at least make a smart decision based on the options.
Wow okay, I had no idea on all of that...honestly, my best guess would be to stick with nursing then, or speech language pathology. You'll always find a job with nursing, and I can imagine the odds are good for speech language pathology. Good luck.
The3Ds, don't foget the employment opportunities at Anthony's World's Greasiest Pizza...
Ugh so gross!!! I'd rather work at the CDC changing poopy pants!
I knew someone who worked at BK on base for a year so she could get the preference for GS jobs that comes with working NAF for a year. I am not really sure how she paid for childcare doing that, though.
The3Ds, don't foget the employment opportunities at Anthony's World's Greasiest Pizza...
Ahhh...Anthony's. It gives me heartburn just thinking about that place...Robin Hood sandwiches too.
My husband and I were just talking about how much we miss the Donner Kebab place at Ramstein. I'm not sure why a big chunk of meat spinning around all day, being shaved off and falling into grease, then loaded with sauce, lettuce and onions can taste so good, but lately I am just craving one of those!
BTW, food service workers and SOME CDC employees are under NAF. I had a college degree so was able to get into GS service pretty easily. There were a lot of secretarial jobs that were GS-4 and were pretty easy to get without a degree (though you had to have some office skills).
Thanks for your replies. I have a college degree as well and have worked for county and state govt agencies. Is it easier for people with a degree and previous govt exprience to get into the GS system? I have heard that it is extremely hard and can take years, however, I do not know the background of the peolple who are saying this.
I have heard that it is extremely hard and can take years
Stateside, yes. OCONUS - much easier to get into the system.
In Iceland, there were always tons of openings. What there was not a lot of was childcare openings. Single parent and Dual Military people even had trouble getting spots. I don't know if that is an issue at many overseas bases or just that one.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
