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5 Things to Consider When Hiring Veterans

To educate and provide resources for hiring managers, the Northwestern Medicine Champion Network Veterans Chapter and Talent Acquisition teams share five things you should know and consider when hiring veterans.

1. Know that transitioning is difficult.

After exiting the military, 75% of veterans do not have job security or guaranteed work. Two-thirds of post-9/11 veterans indicated difficulty in transitioning from military to civilian life. And consistently, U.S. military veterans rate “finding a job” as their greatest challenge during the transition process.*

2. Learn about unfamiliar jargon, codes and terms on resumes.

Having a baseline understanding of some military jargon can improve your ability to correctly analyze experience on a resume. Some common themes you may see include:

  • Branch of service
    • The United States military has six branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, Marine Corps and Coast Guard.
    • Most branches have reserve components, including the Army Reserve, Army National Guard, Air Force Reserve, Air National Guard, Coast Guard Reserve, Marine Corps Reserve and Navy Reserve. Those serving in a reserve branch may still have a civilian occupation.
  • Pay grade and rank
    • Pay grade is an administrative label primarily used for financial purposes. However, because this system is widely used in the military, some veterans continue to use this information on a resume.
    • All branches use some form of alpha-numeric system codes:
      • E for Enlisted
      • W for Warrant Officer
      • O for Commissioned Officer
      • 1 to 10 scale, where the higher numbers indicate a higher pay grade
    • Rank is a leadership and operational label, which is more useful to translating skills and understanding experience from a resume.

  • Military Occupational Specialty (MOS)
    • You may encounter MOS or an alphanumeric code in place of a job title. This term will help you understand specific job responsibilities the veteran has had and what skills they will bring to your organization.
    • Some examples:
  • Army: 68W – Combat Medic Specialist; 25 Bravo – Information Security Specialist
  • Air Force: 4A0X1S – Health Services Management
  • Navy: L03A (8404) – Field Medical Technician
  • Marines: 3432 – Finance Technician
  • Coast Guard: HR – Human Resources; MED – Medical Administration
  • Space Force: 13S – Space Operations Officer; 518 – Targeting Analyst

“My advice to hiring managers when encountering jargon or other military verbiage on resumes is to give a little grace to the candidate, especially if they are a recently transitioned veteran,” says Mike Diakoumis, manager, Talent Development, and chair of the Champion Network Veterans Chapter. “If you see some alphanumeric language, try your best to peel back the onion through Google or by asking clarifying questions, rather than immediately ruling the candidate out.”

3. Understand classifications of service.

Familiarize yourself with these classifications of service:

  • Active-duty: Full-time military service
  • Reservist: Typically serve(d) part time in the military; may continue to participate in part-time military work while seeking a full-time, permanent position.
  • Veteran: Discharged from military service
  • Retired veteran: Served 20 years or more in the military

After reviewing military experience on a resume through a new lens, you may want to move forward with the candidate and invite them to an interview.

4. During the interview, ask questions to learn more, and clarify unfamiliar words and phrases.

Do:

  • Be curious about service-related skills.
    • “Can you tell me about your military education and training?”
  • Stick to behavior-based questions.
    • “What skills did you gain in the military that will help you in this role?”
    • “This job requires a lot of teamwork; can you tell me a story about a time where you had to work with a team to overcome a problem?”
  • Ask clarifying questions.
    • “Can you tell me what this phrase on your resume means?”
    • “How do you think that experience will help you be successful you in this role?”
  • Let the candidate shine.
    • “Can you tell me about the training pipeline for your position in the military?”
    • “I see you went through a selection process. Can you tell me about that?”

Don’t ask about:

  • Combat or deployment experiences
    • “Did you see any combat?”
    • “Were you ever deployed?”
  • Discharge from service
    • “What kind of discharge did you receive; was it honorable?”
  • Injuries sustained during service
    • “Did you ever get hurt while training?”
    • “Did anything bad ever happen to you?”
  • Future military obligations
    • “Is your unit going to be deployed soon?”
  • Mental health
    • “Do you have PTSD?”
    • “Are you seeing a psychiatrist?”
  • Documentation
    • “Can you give us a copy of your DD-214 discharge paperwork?”

“It’s important to understand why some of these questions are ‘off limits,’” says Julia Musso, Talent Acquisition professional. “It’s not just sensitivity; it’s also against the law.”

Avoid leading questions that uncover information about race, national origin, religion, marital status, sex, parental status, age, political affiliation, disability status and other personal information.

  • The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) prohibits employers from discrimination based on present, past and future military service.
  • The Americans With Disabilities Act states it is illegal for employers to discriminate against qualified candidates based on physical or mental disabilities, which includes disabilities sustained in military service.

“We want the candidate to feel comfortable and confident about their experience,” says Musso. “Focus on the skills, experiences and takeaways learned from military jobs. Ask questions to let the candidate explain, in their own terms, how the skills they gained from military experience can translate to your open role.”

5. Learn more from employment resources for veterans.

Visit these websites:

Interested in working at Northwestern Medicine? Apply today at jobs.nm.org.

*Statistics provided by Pew Research, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, Veterans of Foreign Wars, and the United States Government Accountability Office (U.S. GAO).