[wallabee4]

Hello! I am looking desperately for someone who maybe works in transitioning veterans into civilian lines of work. I have an EOD (bomb disposal) fellow who has 20+ years experience in Army EOD, protected the President, travelled to foreign (hostile) lands, top security clearances, and hands-on skills and management (team leader) who has also worked many years with private contractor EOD work stateside and abroad. Now physical limitations say he must get out of this line of work. BUT: to where/what do his skills transfer? I need specifics not generalizties. Or even entrepreneur ideas. He also has good computer skills in MCSE that he picked up on his own about 6 years ago. Serious need here. Please help! Don't suggest TSa jobs, everybody applies and none seem to ever get filled. Also, don't suggest corporate security. Again, corporations really do not 'get' that they need security no matter what the threat. And he is not in NYC. He is in small-town mid-America.

[Fr_Chuck]

First I will disagree, there are major security companies that have everything from swat teams to fast response teams, but I am sure what ever physical limitation is effecting him now, will effect him for that.

There are places like small colleges that would look at people like that for capt or ast chief positions for their police or security forces. I had a friend come out of the military, right into one of Atlantas smaller colleges as a Capt in the police force.

Alslo I see many people coming out of the military that goes into various sales positions.

Also the military has non military people who contract as recruiters, that may be a possible position.

[wallabee4]

By the way, I forgot to add: he has no college degree. And he is 46 ('Over the hill' for any fed jobs)

Thanks for your input, but what I was hoping for was someone who works in this sort of veterans transition career thing and has the insight/skills to see 'into' what makes him an EOD tech so that he can then view those skills (in other words skills OTHER than the obvious can take bombs apart and put my life in harm's way kind of skills) as applicable to another career. He's having a really tough time seeing what ,marketable skills he has in the ordinary workforce (ie.e jobs that exists for anybody available in any town/or entrepreneurial related, not stuff that still shoehorns him into security and danger) Kind of like, if he hadn't gone into EOD, what else could he have done? This is a major crisis in this country as he is not alone. The highly trained top secutity bomb techs are left to work contract to contract like a bunch of nomads and find little in the way of job security/job satisfaction or homelife stability. Unfortunately these were once boys out of high school with raw determination and bravery who wanted to serve their country in a major way. Police/security/demolition/bomb work is what he wants OUT of. You might say he's grown up and now regrets his career choice and the military led him to believe there'd be work out there beyond EOD. There doesn't seem to be. Nor does anyone train these vets to understand their skills and how they go from top echelon of responsibilities to... what?

Nobody in civilian jobs looks at these guys as managers, although they've oftentimes managed entire haz mat situations and coordinated efforts of several branches of govt/security/military. I did identify that he and most EOD guys have a great ability to TEACH. But how do you get around needing a teaching certificate? Where can you find teaching jobs that aren't actually school teachers? And what the heck can they teach other than EOD? I can't seemt o figure out how the skills translate.

The vet help hasn't been much good.

[sirgrogan]

Forensics - Experienced in evidence protection and cataloging
Security Manager - Specialized in the classification, storage and dissimination of classified material
Management - Provides expectations, training, direction, feedback to employees to meet company objectives
Inventory Specialist - Experienced in inventory, inspection, repair, ordering, restocking materials
Data Processing - Familiar with office data processing equipment and knowledgeable in records maintenance
Operations Specialist - Forecast work load requirements and garner proper personnel/equipment for completion
Instructor - Develops training scenerios and presentations for a wide variety of audiences