Resources abound offering advice for veterans transitioning to the civilian workforce after military service. Scores of articles have been published addressing the difficulties military veterans experience finding jobs after leaving the service. Such difficulties related to veteran transitions are further evidenced by the prevalence of so many supporting organizations offering transition assistance to veterans, such as Hiring Our Heroes, Veterati, FourBlock, Vetwork, and the Department of Veterans Affairs. Various reasons have been advanced as to why veteran transitions can be problematic. A popular reason is the difficulty of translating military experience into civilian speak on resumes. Another common concern is a belief that veterans are too accustomed to rigid organizational structures and they might struggle integrating into civilian workforce cultures. Another rationale, likely less common, is anti-military sentiment, some of which may be a holdover from the Vietnam War era, particularly within academia. LIMFACs, is a common military acronym meaning limiting factors. Let's examine less discussed LIMFACs in the associated literature, especially reduced salary and pay cuts, which can play into veterans' decisions about accepting certain jobs post-military service. This article emphasizes post-secondary institutions as part of the conversation, and it calls for bolstered efforts to employ more military veterans.

LIMFAC #1 Pay Cuts

Facing pay cuts when transitioning out of the military is an experience some veterans will face and it can factor into veterans' employment considerations. An otherwise enticing job may be disregarded if it means a veteran won't be able to afford the cost of living. Some veterans may scoff at a job with a lower salary, seeing it as a demotion or downgrade. On the other side, a potential rationale civilian hiring officials may have for paying veterans less is a stereotype that military members are so deeply ingrained in the profession of arms, lower pay should be expected out-the-gate due to the steep learning curve facing them in new civilian roles. Civilian agencies may try to reason that because some veterans receive pensions and other benefits, they can get by with paying veterans lower compensation. It is even possible civilian hiring officials may generalize that military members are lower rung employees due to stories about military members needing government support, such as "food stamps," to supplement their low pay. Many military members who previously held professional roles, such as physicians or scientists, will profess they could be earning a great deal more money on the outside. What these professionals may not realize is they could be at a disadvantage after military service when competing against civilian peers who "grew up" in the civilian industry and are more familiar with it. With less than one percent of the U.S. population currently serving in the military, it is understandable misconceptions will prevail in the civilian community about servicemembers and veterans.

Pay cuts can be a harsh reality for veterans in rural areas. Concern about rural veterans was so great the Veterans Health Administration's Office of Rural Health was established by Congress in 2006 "to conduct, coordinate, promote, and disseminate research on issues that affect the nearly five million Veterans who reside in rural communities." Many people, especially rural veterans, join the military to escape lower socioeconomic conditions in their local communities. Those veterans who return to such lower cost of living areas for various reasons such as family reunification, may return to lower paying jobs than they were accustomed to in the service. Depending on a veteran's prior military rank, they often leave military service making a decent federal wage to return to rural communities where jobs for equivalent work pay much less. This is a trend observed in higher education where salaries are often lower anyway.

LIMFAC #2 Military Employment Ready Employers

It is easy to find higher education institutions that tout military-friendly cultures on their websites, but it takes little time for veterans to discover these schools are not always military employment ready. This is particularly the case for job-seeking military veterans who quickly realize institutional boasts about military-friendliness are targeted at GI Bill® students and not veterans pursuing employment. A December 2024 HigherEdJobs.com search within the state of Missouri (which is not alone) for jobs categorized as "military friendly" generated a respectable 95 opportunities; however, the jobs were all offered by a single university. While that one institution should be saluted, it is obvious room for improvement exists when it comes to hiring veterans into higher education. It should also be noted remote, work-from-home opportunities have dwindled, too, compounding the problem for veterans.

LIMFAC #3 Terminal Degrees

Unless a prior military job seeker is a highly sought after general or admiral interested in a higher education career instead of defense contracting, it can be difficult for other veterans to break into higher education roles similar to what they were doing and earning before leaving the service. A senior field grade officer making well into the six figures could readily succeed in many academic director level positions, but they might find some of these positions pay a meager annual salary for a seasoned professional and leader, depending on the institution and its location. For hiring officials unfamiliar with the military, many veterans have extensive senior leadership experience and are otherwise over-qualified for some positions, but the lack of a terminal degree becomes a LIMFAC. The highly mobile nature of so many military professions makes getting a quality terminal degree difficult. Compared to a terminal degree from a brick-and-mortar school, an online terminal degree (even the gold standard Ph.D.), competes better for academic staff roles than for faculty roles. More often, schools require previous experience within the higher education sphere; however, some schools now, to bolster slouching recruitment numbers, have learned to cast a wider net for their open positions, requiring higher education experience or 'experience in a field commensurate with the requirements and expectations for the role.'

Possible Solutions

Solutions to the LIMFACs identified above can be found on both the side of veterans, as well as academia. Veterans in some cases need to be patient during the job search and temper expectations. Rushing into a job without doing adequate homework to ensure a good fit is rarely advisable. During their military service, many veterans accomplished tremendous feats and are highly decorated. Veterans sometimes, therefore, expect civilian hiring officials to roll out the red carpet for them with the false belief that hiring such veterans is a no-brainer. Unfortunately, it rarely works out that way. Veterans need to tailor their experience to the job they are seeking instead of leaving civilian hiring officials to figure it out. Veterans must demonstrate how they can add value to the organization with which they are seeking employment consideration. Just as the military would not take the average joe off the street and expect that person to excel in a high-level position, veterans need to understand the same principles apply in the civilian sector. Despite the large numbers of personnel and huge budgets veterans have often managed during their prior military careers, other civilian applicants who already paid their dues possess more experience and understanding within particular industries, generally making them more attractive candidates. Veterans are advised to work within their networks, too, when seeking post-military employment. Find other veterans who went before them to work in higher education, for instance, and pick their brains for career advice. These same network contacts may also have job leads to consider. Veterans are called to follow their hearts and even swallow their pride sometimes. Veterans who really want to work in academia and can afford starting at lower pay, in some instances, can embrace the thought of starting anew in an important career field they are passionate about, realizing the money will follow later if they remain dedicated and persistent once on-the-job. Veterans are encouraged to use the veteran services office or representative on campus to get involved since these resources might know other key contacts or have job leads.

Civilian industries are invited to live up to their military-friendly status by becoming more military ready in their employment and recruiting efforts. Various industries are heavily represented at military-related job fairs and career transition webinars happening weekly across the country. It is less common to see HR representatives from higher education attending these events. As the strength of online programs has greatly improved over the years, schools should consider more veterans for faculty and executive staff roles instead of pigeonholing them to lower rung jobs for which they are overqualified. The broad experience veterans bring to the table, often including remarkable international experience, can provide a rare, different, valuable, and enriching perspective not always available to students and staff. Civilian industries should scrub their position descriptions to determine whether hiring candidates with terminal degrees is a matter of institutional tradition or whether someone with 20 years of professional leadership experience and a master's degree could be just as suiting. Some of the solutions contributed in this article may require expending additional resources, which can be challenging when budgets are tight; however, costs can potentially be offset through grants, sponsorships, partnerships, DoD SkillBridge, and scholarships by the many external military and veteran supporting individuals and organizations, both public and private.

Veterans are a highly skilled, globally experienced, professional subset of the population. Many of these veterans, after serving their country, are ready to refocus their service toward their local communities. Unfortunately, many are barred entry into these local jobs due to the LIMFACs identified. Civilian institutions, including academia, have not fully realized or completely understand these factors. Increased efforts from the veteran community, as well as critical dedicated organizations, can advance awareness. The robust hiring pool of veterans has much to offer, and institutions are encouraged to explore new and different ways to tap into such a tremendous resource. Civilian agencies are called to go beyond military friendliness and become military ready in their hiring efforts. By applying the solutions and ideas recommended above, a win-win situation can be generated for veterans and civilian industries alike.

Article Topics

Job Search Advice Military Friendly Institutions Women Veterans Working as a Veteran in HigherEd Workplace Inclusion

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