Melinda Figueroa ⋅ Harrisonburg, VA Cargill ⋅ 10 years experience

We would love to also be able to consider you. Please visit ichoosecargill.com for more information and opportunities in the food industry worldwide. Wish you the best.

Tom Cal, CFA ⋅ San Francisco, CA Army Veteran, Investment Manager ⋅ 25 years experience

Eric,
You have taken a great step coming here. I have many suggestions. Here are a few:

* Request a mentor from ACP's "one-on-one" mentoring program. The more you can tell ACP about your goals, the better ACP can match you with a mentor. (http://acp-usa.org/Mentoring_Program)

* Extensively utilize your college's career planning center, alumni clubs, alumni network and other resources as one of your primary career-development and job-search resources. They owe it to you. They should be able to help with a wide range of services, including resume writing and career coaching. Please let us know if they are not helpful.

* Know that there is an abundance of generosity and many resources out there for Veterans, and even a few more for members of the Special Forces and Special Operations communities, such as alumni networks. As a Special Forces and Green Beret soldier (and possibly an Army Ranger?), you have accomplished more than many others ever will. You are part of an elite community, and also have access to alumni networks and other members of those communities. You are part of one of the most elite community in the world, and I expect you to experience much success and to be able to ache whatever goals you set for yourself. Be sure to join appropriate associations and alumni organizations, and reach out for advice, assistance and networking.

(Are you also an Army Ranger? If yes, I'd also include that information in your introduction. Many will be impressed. Several of my very best officers and NCO's were Army Rangers.)

* Reach out to GallantFew.org. Karl Monger does good work and serves all Veterans, and especially Special Forces, Special Operations and Rangers. He can help you get connected to those communities and also provide some good advice and a Veteran mentor.

* In your introduction, consider editing and rephrasing "junior enlisted" to "Non-Commissioned Officer and Assistant Manager".

(This military to civilian "title translator:" can be a useful tool. I would however avoid using the "CEO or Chairman terms.
http://travisafrc.com/storage/afm_uploads/TAP/Military%20to%20Civilian%20Terms.pdf#! )

* Goals: Dream big. I encourage you to dream big, and to not be bashful at identifying your dream career or dream jobs. What are 2 or 3 dream careers and dream jobs?

* Go to a job-aggregation site such as indeed.com, and find some "dream jobs" you'd like to have in 5-10 years. Don't worry if you are not qualified. Thinking and dreaming about where you want to be in 5 years can serve as a constructive tool for deciding what you'll do in the next 1-2 years.

* Goals - industry and roles: You have provided some good information on your background and goals. Please elaborate and tell us more about why you want to pursue a career within Finance and/or Strategic/Management Consulting. (As I read that, I realize that these are almost to the letter the exact goals I expressed when I graduated college in 1991. To be honest, for me, these were very general goals, and really meant that I was flexible and adaptable, and also somewhat unsure of what I wanted to do. That is OK - sometimes you just start doing something and then go from there, that's how it worked out for me.)

* Goals - geographic: What are your geographic preferences and requirements?

* Plan: begin to think about, read about and to craft a "personal, ongoing, agile and comprehensive career development and job search plan". I can provide the sections I suggest you include, and you can also read more here:
https://www.google.com/search?q=career+development+plan

* Networking Plan: your plan should include a substantial section that discusses your networking plan. How will you reach out to people you know and ask for assistance? How will you meet new people?
https://www.google.com/search?q=networking+plan

* As part of your personal networking plan, think about "Force Multipliers" such as professional associations and other groups you can utilize.

* The southwest Ohio or other local chapters of the "Strategic and Competitive Intelligence" professionals" (SCIP.org) might be a potentially useful way for you to learn and to meet new people (network). I encourage you to reach out to SCIP by email and phone, introduce yourself and seek advice and a mentor. I have been in contact with SCIP and have attended a meeting, and they seem very Veteran friendly and helpful.
https://www.scip.org

see also : "Force-Multipliers: Which professional organizations, trade groups and/or certifications align with your career goals? Let us know"

http://www.linkedin.com/groupItem?view=&gid=4466143&type=member&item=5799688601138638849&qid=8e956f86-9a89-4051-adce-92a19fcaa3bd&goback=%2Egde_4466143_member_5800648677559119875%2Egna_4466143%2Egmr_4466143%2Egde_4466143_member_5803606834841403394%2Egmr_4466143

* Add the URL for your LinkedIn (LI) profile to your ACP profile so people can review your LI profile and resume (you can embed a resume into your LI profile), connect with you and assist with networking, etc.

* Utilize LInkedIn as a networking tool. Join relevant groups, including the "Veteran Mentor Network" and take advantage of the free LInkedIn Job Seeker subscription for Veterans. There are Veterans from all over the world in the group, and some of our non-US. members may be helpful if you are interested in exploring international careers. (As with anything on the Internet, avoid disclosing information you don't; want everyone and anyone to know.)
http://www.linkedin.com/groups/LI-Job-Seeker-Subscription-5131140/about

* OK, probably enough for now. Please make this interactive, and please come back and share the beginning or rough draft of your plan. We can then proceed from there. Constructive feedback is appreciated and helps us learn.

David Ingram ⋅ Garland, TX AT&T ⋅ 20 years experience

Eric,
AT&T recognizes the extra value a veteran brings and has an military hiring program for folks like you. http://att-veterans.jobs/
Chris Norton, who you can find in the directory here is dedicated to this program.

Good Luck,
David Ingram

Mike Esqueda ⋅ Chicago, IL Zurich North America ⋅ 3 years experience

Eric,

I would research some key compnaies that have solid training programs and inquire when they will be hirng for those classes. Companies ususally hire large to medium size classes once or twice a year. Most companies also have a hard requirement of a accumulative GPA of 3.0 or above for those programs. I know my company, Zurich North America has a fairly strong finance program as well as our competitors- AIG, Travelers, and I think Liberty Muatual. All of which have strong reputatble programs. Additionaly, I think a Commercial based Corporation would be a great match for your International Degree as most of these Companies are Global Corporations. If you have any interest in Zurich's Finance programs please feel free to give me a call. One final Note- I would follow the company's that your interested in on LinkedIn as well.

Mike Esqueda
Talent Acquisition
Corporate Recruiter
Office Number 847-605-6136
Work cell- 224-532-6134

Kelly Thrasher ⋅ Denver, PA Accolade ⋅ 20 years experience

Eric,

I am a veteran (actually 11 years active and now 15 years USAR). Please send me your resume. No promises but Prudential is hiring just about everything and our retirement services and annuities businesses are doing very well and looking for quality people. I just got done with another hiring event in Philly where we saw some great candidates. Also shameless plug but look at what we have posted.

Eric Hitchens ⋅ Columbus, OH U.S. Army, Staff Sergeant ⋅ 5 years served

Thank you for the responses Eric and Misty--I will definitely be incorporating the tips you mentioned throughout my employment search.

Yes, I too was excited about the Veteran internships however I have only found two companies that offer such initiates: JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs. Unfortunately, the latter of which has already closed its application period.

Misty Decker ⋅ Rhinebeck, NY IBM ⋅ 23 years experience

Eric,
I'm in the computer industry so it may be different in finance, but all of our internships require the candidate to be enrolled in a University. And we also have positions labeled "new hire" positions that require the candidate to have graduated no less than 6 months prior to starting he job. If it's been longer than that since you graduated with your degree, you could only compete for "experienced professional" postions.

I like the idea of Veteran internships so that would be fabulous if you could find one.
And I also agree with Travis' suggestion of networking with people currently in the industry and especially the companies you're interested in. The conversation should lead to you asking "I really want to work there. What is the best way for me to do that?" Open ended questions often lead to the best answers. If you asked "how can I qualify for an internship" might prevent your advisor from suggesting other alternatives.

Good luck,
Misty

Travis D. ⋅ Arlington, VA U.S. Army, Staff Sergeant ⋅ 9 years served

Eric,

Both industries are very network centric. Going on that alone, I recommend looking at Linkedin profiles and reaching out to Veterans working in those fields. While difficult, you can land an analyst position without being a freshly minted graduate.

Research job duties and day-in-life of a X write-ups to learn more about the different careers. You will quickly learn the difference between types of consulting and the many degrees of finance positions; i.e. investment banking vs corporate finance vs wealth management to name a few.

I was in your position last year and currently in a full-time MBA program. Feel free to PM me, I can provide more insight into the recruiting process, I am looking into similar areas for my summer internship. Depending on what you are looking for exactly, some companies have Veteran internships.

Regards,
Travis