Doug Hill ⋅ Kearneysville, WV PC Construction ⋅ 20 years experience

Tauris,

There are good answers for you on here. Look at my profile and you will see I am a retired Master-at-Arms so I may know a little about OTH discharges. Regardless, I know a little about getting a job. I see someone advised you to broaden your options and don't be limited to government jobs. I went for years dreaming of getting that consulting job for a government contract. I got that job making 6 figures. In short, it taught me a lesson. The government job has absolutely NO security or stability. I did a great job, exceeded my deliverables and after 14 monhs I watched the contracts for 176 contractors get chopped by email in one day because Congress didn't release some funds. The other advice given on this forum was to find what you like to do. That is excellent advice. And I will tell you what many vets with the "bad" discharge told me they did...be honest with your prospective employer and explain the situation. I think on most applications there is that section especially for that explanation. And your OTH is an "administrative" discharge and you can put it down like that IF you must put down the character of the discharge. And here is something I learned from working in the State Employment Agency, An application screens you OUT and your resume gets you back in. I have yet to fill out an application BEFORE I was hired by review of my resume. Find a mentor that can help you show your military skills and qualifications in terms better understood by a civilian hiring manager. And I just want to say that the military weight standards are ridiculous. For example, I went to a law enforcement school and one of my class members was "fat" by the measurements. He had to do extra fitness training every day for the 10 week course. And on graduation day he was awarded two certificates. One for completion of the "fat boy" program. The other award was for setting the highest marks in the Physical Fitness Test (PFT). The sailor had been weight lifting since he dropped from the womb and this gave him "out of spec" neck and waist measurements. The man was made out of muscle and bone. He had he body fat of a marathon runner. But the refusal of the Navy to pull out and see the light put this sailor into an embarrassing position. We are fortunate he decided to wear the US Navy Master-at-Arms badge. Good Luck!

Drew Schildwächter ⋅ Wilmington, NC Salesforce ⋅ 8 years experience

Tauris: I think John has a good point. You have a lot of options and while your OTH may limit you in some cases, it may not limit you in the cases that matter.

Ideally, start with what you like to do, compare that against what you're good at, and then find a job that sits at the intersection of those two things. Practically, you may need to do other work in the meantime to pay the bills.

To answer your question: OTH means that most gov't jobs (local, state, and federal) will not consider you. You could potentially pursue a change in your discharge status in time, but for now it's a big obstacle to gov't jobs.

I'd be glad to talk to you about your specific case if you would like, and help get you to the right people.

Best of luck.

John Green ⋅ Cary, NC Information Technology ⋅ 40 years experience

Hi Tauris -

What you need is a job, and you should not limit yourself to government work. Try looking outside government for gainful employment doing something you can put your heart into. A wise man once said, do something you love and you wont work a day in your life.

Government jobs can be less rewarding than the private sector. In the private sector, you can be rewarded for the value you bring. If you bring more value, your reward can be much greater.

Look at these salary guides to help you choose a career path :

https://www.roberthalf.com/workplace-research/salary-guides

Hope this helps.
JG