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Old 12-24-2007, 09:06 AM
 
6 posts, read 14,921 times
Reputation: 10

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Dec 08, I finally retire from the military. I'm going to ask a very very broad question so please hit me from any angle. I haven't retired before so I am not an expert so anything is good.
- Description: I will be 38, trained to be a computer guy but I am NOT geeky. I am knowledgeable but a better job would be management. Realisticly(sp), I would classify myself as a manager of the geeks. Finally, I will finish my degree so I think I'm prepared for the job market.
- What does the San Antonio job market look like? What jobs promote the best? I qualify for a vast majority of career fields which is a nice feeling but is also very confusing. I would like a job that allows sufficient growth, decent pay and some job satisfaction. The goal would be a minimum of 50K a year because we have one pay check coming in the house for next 4 yrs while my wife works on her career. What is your opinion on which career path I should take.
- I have 3 kids 14 through 8, where are the best areas to live? I've been reading numerous posts and there is alot of anger towards the property tax so I am pretty much prepared for that burden, (I will try to take as the price for freedom).
Of course, I attended numerous websites and garnered some great info. But I think it's better to hear it from the average Joe and Sally who can really give me some great insight. Again, I will take ANY information, any 2 cents. Any bit of information would make my family transition to the civilian world that much smoother. Thanks for the time!
Thanks and I will see you soon!
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Old 12-24-2007, 09:51 AM
 
1,276 posts, read 3,811,020 times
Reputation: 700
There's a lot of IT type jobs with the government. Check out USAJobs if you're interested in that area. Also, the NSA is working on some property and will have approximately 3,000 employees. Most of those I'm sure are going to come from other NSA sites, but I'm sure there will be some jobs where they will hire from outside.

There's also numerous data centers being built...one for Microsoft and I think there's one for one of the hospitals too. I'm sure someone else on here can confirm that. And with every new business/operation that comes here and opens up, there will be jobs in your field.

I personally think the job market is pretty good here.

My DH is active duty with 22 years in. Looking at retirement in a year or so. We love San Antonio and are happy with the area we live, but are starting to get tired of all the traffic (we leave near 151 and Potranco). There are a lot of good areas to live. Property taxes...well I know there's been a lot of anger about that, but being a military brat (and now spouse) myself, I know that there are always worse places.

Northside Independent School District is a large district. My daughter attends Stevens HS and my son attends Murnin ES. No complaints so far. Although I think the teaching emphasizes too much on teaching that darn TAKS test, I hear it's like that in other districts too.

Where to live? Well that really depends on you. My suggestion is to rent for a little bit, find your job, and then look at housing depending on what kind of a commute you want to get yourself in to. A lot of folks like Alamo Ranch and we'd love to move out there but I'm sure in 3-4 years it's going to be traffic jammed like everything else. Trophy Ridge at 1604 and Potranco is another one that gets good reviews on here.
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Old 12-24-2007, 11:23 AM
 
Location: San Antonio, TX
8,399 posts, read 22,887,776 times
Reputation: 4435
I too came to San Antonio two years ago for my final assignment in the USAF. We were stationed here prior and knew this is where we wanted to retire. I stayed within my same organization as a contractor, just switched offices.

First question is whether you have a security clearance. If you do, great, that dramatically increases your chances of a job with the government. If you don't then the chances drop somewhat. Most of the IT jobs with the military here are on Security Hill, and you will need a clearance for them, and if you don't have one it takes a while. Better to have it beforehand.

Secondly, I will guess you are a SNCO and as you stated, you have not completed your degree. As such, picking up a managerial job isn't very likely. There are loads of retired officers and SNCOs in town so the competition is tough, and many have not only undergrad degrees but grad degrees as well. I have a masters in MIS and I don't even work in the computer/comms career field. I am working on a second masters in strat intel, where I do work. So as you can see it is a flooded market for managers. And don't count on NSA, there were folks in my TAP class over two years ago who planned to go work for them. Well, here it is two years later and they are still not up and operating (although I have noticed some work being done at that location). And when I submitted my resume with them (I worked for NSA before, and the recruiter said I qualified for two hiring areas), I learned they have a ton of resumes for this location. Even with my quals I am not excepting a call from them, if it happens, great; but if it doesn't I am still covered. Big lesson there, always have a backup plan!

As for places to live, the north, northwest and western parts of town are all good choices. The NISD and NEISD are both great school districts. And right now I see it as being a buyer's market, so you will have an advantage there. San Antonio hasn't been hit as hard as the rest of the country with the housing slump, actually a lot of people are moving here because of the decent market. But that also means the great deals that used to exist are getting rarer. When we were first stationed here in 1999, we got a nice new 2400 sq ft house for somewhere around $119K (the actual figure escapes me at the moment), when we returned in 2005 we got a new 3200 sq ft house from same builder for $240K (albeit with a lot of upgrades). Housing is a strong investment here, and a lot of people try to squeeze the most out of their housing dollar as it will most likely provide a good return down the road. It may slow a bit, but for the most part it is a safe bet.

Expect a lot of stress during your transition, we all go through it but we all survive and you will too. Work hard on your resume, do your research and set reasonable expectations. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions or even want me to look over your resume. Oh, and if you are thinking about a GS position, they are a lot tougher to get than a lot of people think. You would be better off taking a contractor job in the time being. You will be hired on a lot quicker and it is a lot easier to find a better job when you are working versus looking when you don't have a job.

Cheers! M2
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Old 12-24-2007, 04:49 PM
 
1,276 posts, read 3,811,020 times
Reputation: 700
Quote:
Originally Posted by majormadmax View Post
Oh, and if you are thinking about a GS position, they are a lot tougher to get than a lot of people think. You would be better off taking a contractor job in the time being.
Cheers! M2
I guess that really depends on the field you're in. I've read quite a few articles lately that talk about a huge amount of GS workers retiring in the next 5 years and not having much to come in behind them to take jobs. I do agree it has got tougher over the last few years and to take another job if you have hopes of getting your foot in the door with GS. As a military spouse with prior civil service time, it took me a year to get back in the door. It took a friend of mine (same situation) 18 months. But then again, we are both admin and there's a lot of competition...mostly from people trying to get their foot in the door to move up and on to better things.

Quote:
Originally Posted by majormadmax View Post
...it is a lot easier to find a better job when you are working versus looking when you don't have a job.

Cheers! M2
Definitely great advice...it's always easier to find a job when you have one.
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Old 12-25-2007, 11:28 AM
 
592 posts, read 2,017,659 times
Reputation: 143
the healthcare industry also is hirng it people sine we are switching over to computers
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