Veterans & Military Service

Military personnel are more likely to be exposed to significant traumatic events than the general population. Although they are trained for the rigors of battle, this cannot always prepare them for the psychological effects experienced in a combat environment. HARD STRUCK follows the story of a combat soldier as he navigates through combat operations and the effects it has on him and his team as they transition back into society. Dealing with the effects of complex PTSD, the story highlights the issues veterans face day to day and highlights the importance of mate ship when overcoming combat stress and mental health struggles.

All the things you need to know when you're putting the military in your rear view  In Military Transition For Dummies, you'll talk a walk through how to transition from active military service to civilian life as smoothly and easily as possible. You'll discover how to make the nuts-and-bolts changes to reach your potential in your new lifestyle. From finding a job you love to navigating educational opportunities and keeping yourself mentally strong, this vital book shows you how to:  Find your next career, including how to write an effective resume and conduct a thorough job search  Protect your mental and physical well-being by seeking out and accessing the supports you want and need  Manage your money and make the financial adjustments that are necessary for succeeding in the civilian world  Perfect for active service members who are expecting to transition out of the military in the near future, Military Transition For Dummies is also ideal for anyone who's recently left the service and hopes to make the most of their new life. 

Service members find that transitioning from active duty into the civilian sector can be abrupt, with mission demands leaving little time to prepare for new careers. Transitioning without guidance, resources, and proven strategies has left thousands of veterans sitting on the sidelines of civilian employment. Business is a diverse field, with many subcategories to pursue and many routes available to fulfill career goals and achieve success. Designed to help personalize the experience while guiding readers through the breadth of available options, those interested in pursuing a career within the business realm or as a business owner will find Boots to Business to be a valuable reference guide. Whether new to a career field or pursuing a civilian career similar to the occupational specialty you held in the military, this book offers helpful information for planning, preparing, and executing your transition.

Kevin "Dauber" Lacz is a former Navy SEAL sniper, breacher, combat medic and co-author of The Veteran's WORK Book. When Lacz read The WORK Book, by Bill Hobbs, he immediately realized the need for a version for veterans transitioning out of the military and into a new civilian career. ​ Lacz shared, "Veterans with military experience can be valuable assets in the business world. In addition to job skills, they have experience leading, being led, and performing under pressure. However, it's necessary for veterans to learn how to function in their new environment." ​ This book is unlike any other book on the market: ​ -Shows readers how to plan for and transition to the right career -Teaches readers how to create a strong personal brand -Offers keen insights on creating an effective resume, preparing for interviews, and negotiating with companies -Facilitates immediate process application through worksheets that accompany text -Can be read in less than two hours and applied immediately

Learn proven processes for finding, applying for, and landing U.S. Government jobs.

Providing a compelling look at veterans' policy, this book describes why the Republican party is considered the party for veterans despite the fact that Congressional Democrats are responsible for a greater number of policy initiatives. The United States is home to 21 million veterans, and Veterans' Affairs is the second-largest federal department, with a budget exceeding $119 billion. Many veterans, however, remain underserved. Republicans are seen as veterans' champions, and they send the majority of Congressional constituent communications on veterans' issues, yet they are lead sponsors on only 37 percent of bills considered by the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee. What accounts for this discrepancy? Drawing on thousands of e-newsletters sent from Congress to constituents, Congress and U.S. Veterans: From the GI Bill to the VA Crisis argues that the distribution of veterans across districts and the Republican Party is based on government spending, which pulls Republican legislators in opposite directions. This eye-opening book offers a history of veterans' programs, highlights legislative leaders and the most pressing policy areas for reform, identifies the issues most often discussed by members of Congress from each party, points out which congresspeople have acted on veterans' issues and which have not, and offers an analysis of veteran population distribution and legislative policy preferences.

Spotlights the challenges faced by our increasing cadre of military women when their service ends and they become civilians. Combining research with narrative, this book exposes common threads of lived experience and reviews the latest data on military women and their healthy reintegration into civilian society. Female veterans share their stories of seeking to be seen in a culture where they don't quite fit and their struggles to find community and friendship. Some fought during the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, as the first women in combat in American history. How and where, for example, does a female combat Marine find her tribe once she leaves the service? Through the stories of these courageous yet entirely human women, readers learn about the experiences of a new and often forgotten generation of veterans; about the challenges surrounding family and career choices that millions of American women face; and ultimately, about sacrifice, resiliency, loss, and love. This book will inform readers with an interest in female veterans and women's health and mental health issues, as well as researchers, students, and professionals working in fields encompassing women's psychology, health, and social work.

With the passage of the Post-9/11 GI Bill in 2008, more than 1.4 million service members and their families became eligible for higher education benefits, and veterans from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan enrolled in colleges and universities in record numbers. The first wave of research about these new student veterans focused primarily on describing their characteristics and the transition from military service to civilian life and the college campus. This new edited collection presents findings from the second wave of research about student veterans, with a focus on data-driven evidence of academic success factors, including persistence, retention, degree completion, and employment after college. An invaluable resource for educators poised to enter the next phase of supporting military-connected college students.

After completing military service, veterans can have a difficult time finding employment when returning to civilian life. Out of Uniform, Second Edition is designed to help all transitioning military personnel, regardless of service, branch, rank, rating, time in service, time in grade, or specialty. Although all service members share common denominators, each individual brings something unique to the job market. Not only does this book cover the basics--search techniques, networking, interview preparation, résumés, negotiation, and a new chapter on social media--it also offers guidance on topics that are often overlooked, specifically the central issues of self-knowledge, interviewing empathy, and the power of questions. In addition to the technical guidance, readers will also discover important information in the anecdotes based on the experiences of soldiers, sailors, air force personnel, and marines. Out of Uniform, Second Edition is an invaluable resource for veterans who want to make the most out of their civilian career opportunities.  

Military veterans have had some of the most intensive leadership training available. Many return to their communities seeking to apply what they have learned. Those who enter the world of public affairs--where colleagues are increasingly less likely to have served in the military--may encounter a popular misconception: that military leadership is all about exercising authority and giving orders. In fact military leadership is based on interpersonal dynamics, often learned through trying circumstances. Effective management of civil emergencies--as shown by 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina--calls for the same official demeanor, decisiveness and trustworthiness as does combat. Good leadership is fundamentally the same in ordinary day-to-day challenges as well. This book describes how the principles and methods of military leadership are effective for public service. Instructors considering this book for use in a course may request an examination copy here.