Announcing Class No. 4, Certified Federal Job Search Trainers

All U.S. Coast Guard Transition Managers are trained in New Approach to Federal Job Search Training for Veterans and Spouses - "Ten Steps to a Federal Job"

Front Row: Jennifer Rechsteiner,Transition Assistance Program Manager, Coast Guard Headquarters, Washington D.C.;

Second row, left to right: Shirley Caban, Honolulu, HI; Shirley Kuppinger, St. Louis, MO; June Konochuck, Boston, MA; Betsy Longenbaugh, Juneau, AK; Kathryn Troutman, Author and Trainer, Ten Steps to a Federal Job, Baltimore, MD; CJ Johnson, Alameda, CA; Madeline Lawson, Kodiak, AK; Theresa Henry, Cleveland, OH; Liz Waters, U.S. Navy Spouse Employment Manager, Biloxi, MS

Back row, left to right: Norm Sagawa, San Pedro, CA; Rodney Whaley, Washington, DC; David Hydock, Juneau, AK; Anne Patterson, Portsmouth, VA; Sarah Jones-Pereira, Miami, FL; Bob Casale, New Orleans, LA; Dave Sweeney, Seattle, WA; Debbie Bower, Kodiak, AK;

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Baltimore, MD--

(Baltimore, MD - July 18, 2003) - In Biloxi, Miss., U. S. Coast Guard Transition Managers learned a new technique for helping military retirees and separatees and their spouses find and apply for federal jobs. Approximately 80 percent of the Veterans would be interested in federal jobs because of the popular Veteran's Preference points received for hiring, and the repeal of the double income law. Previously, veterans would lose their military retirement if they worked for the government. Now a retiring veteran after 20 years service can begin a new career and a new retirement by beginning a federal career.

The challenge for U.S. Coast Guard Transition Managers and Career Counselors is that their members are spread over long distances, from Guam to Alaska to Cuba. These dedicated career professionals advise military separatees and retirees and spouses in career management, resume writing, federal job searches, and relocation planning for U.S. Coast Guard members and families per year. They travel extensively to their bases and work with jobseekers through email and by telephone. When they travel on-site to a base, they will now provide small and large group orientations and courses in Federal job search process.

Veterans receive valuable training and experience in the military, hold Top Secret and other clearances and are sought after to work in Homeland Security and other agencies where they can use their training, teamwork and emergency preparedness training.

But the challenge is always how to help the veterans and their spouses find and apply for these desirable federal jobs. Approximately 75% of veterans have never applied for a job before. They began their military career directly out of high school or college. The training given for career development and job search following the military service, includes a four-day Transition Assistance Program developed by the Department of Labor, includes this program does not include detailed instructions on the Federal job search, which is unique from private industry job searches.

The Federal government has close to 40,000 jobs open each day and with the extra points given to veterans, the job search for a Federal job is now a priority. The government is also the most stable workplace in the U.S. at this point. The Defense contractors are hiring, but the career potential, longevity of jobs and benefits are not equal to the benefits and career stability of the Federal government.

The U.S. Coast Guard Transition Managers oversee an area of up to 7 states, providing small group and one-on-one counseling on job search and career decision-making. This new program, Ten Steps to a Federal Job, is a systematic way to explain "how a person can find federal job listings, interpret and understand the job announcement, and how to apply correctly."

• Transition counselors from Alaska will be using the Ten Step curriculum to advise USCG members on how to find the job titles, how to determine which job title is correct for their skills and experience, and how to determine their "grade level" for a successful federal job search.

  In Juneau, AK, Transition Manager Betsy Longenbaugh will present the Ten Step curriculum to counselors at the local job center. Then, working with these counselors, she plans to offer a program in seeking Federal and state employment.

  "When the job center here learned I had this training, they were anxious to receive it themselves, because assisting workers in a Federal search has been such a frustrating process for the counselors," said Longenbaugh. "As state capital, Juneau is also home to several Federal agencies, so this training is especially welcome here."

• Counselors from Alabama will introduce small 3-hour training orientations on overall federal job search - the jobs available, where they are, how to apply, then offer individual break-out sessions, edits and critiques of federal written drafts.

  The Ten Step formula will be helpful for spouses who would like to gain civil service employment. So when their spouses relocate to another base, they have the opportunity to gain another position in the civil service, building their own retirement plan and keeping skills and career goals up-to-date.

  Civil Service jobs are clearly the most desirable for spouses at military bases because of the ease of applying for and obtaining new positions at new bases wherever they travel. Spouses learn how to translate volunteer experience into experience that will help the applicant qualify for positions and higher grades.

  Since the interest in Federal employment has increased so dramatically in the last year, it is critical that the transition counselors are able to advise in small groups as well as individually.

ABOUT THE FJST CERTIFICATION PROGRAM:

The Federal Job Search Trainer Certification is provided to Transition Managers and Career Counselors following a two-day training, writing a Federal application, teaching the pro bono courses to two non-work related organizations. The training program goal is to train more successful Federal job seekers in a long and daunting process. The jobs are clearly available if the applicants can make it through the Federal recruitment and selection process.

Career Counselors, Transition Managers and Job Developers are licensed and certified to use Kathryn Troutman's successful Ten Steps to a Federal Job Program in their career transition centers. The flexible job-search system can be taught in a ninety-minute orientation, one-day to two-day programs to help jobseekers find and apply successfully for Federal jobs.

In addition to teaching the trainer curriculum, the Federal job information helps career counselors provide quality one-on-one counseling and advisement services for jobseekers, military personnel transitioning, spouses searching for civil service positions on military bases, and civil servants who attend training programs.

Federal Job Search Training programs will be announced within months in the Career Centers listed above to help jobseekers land high-quality, well-paying jobs. The Federal job search is a complex process, but Kathryn Troutman's Ten Steps makes the training and learning process more approachable and less intimidating.

Trainers are certified to teach a colorful Ten Step PowerPoint presentation, using handouts and trainer's curriculum to lead job searchers into a structured federal job search campaign.

Information about the Trainer's Certification program and dates for next courses taught by author and curriculum developer, Kathryn Troutman can be found at www.resume-place.com - go to Workshops and Certification Programs.