Like many other servicemembers, you may have difficulty translating your military experience into the language of civilian employers. Here's what you should do.

First, use your DD Form 2586, "Verification of Military Experience and Training," which you will receive at least 120 days prior to separation, as a starting point for considering how your military experience and training translate into equivalent civilian occupations.

From this list identify those items that relate to the types of civilian work you are interested in pursuing. Then document your experiences - both within and outside the military - that relate to this item.

If you feel you need some assistance, contact your local ACAP, TAMP, CRMC, or TAP office and ask to meet with a career counselor. They will help you.

Second, examine the official U.S. Department of Defense publication entitled Military Careers. This is an excellent guide to understanding nearly 200 military occupations within the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard and their relevance to the civilian work world.

Each occupation is described according to a template consisting of the following sections: Work Environment, Physical Demands, Helpful Attributes, Training Provided, Opportunities, and Civilian Counterparts.

The Civilian Counterparts section should be especially helpful in that it describes those civilian occupations that require similar duties and training for the military occupation under consideration. In addition, you will learn about the types of civilian companies and organizations associated with each occupation.

At the end of Military Careers you will find "DOT (Dictionary of Occupational Titles) Code Index." Use this index to identify the corresponding civilian occupations specific to your background.

Third, one of the easiest ways to identify the civilian equivalent to your military skills is to visit various online military skills translators. Several military-to-civilian career transition websites include online military skills translators related to your Military Occupational Code (MOC). Just enter your MOC and these websites will generate descriptions of civilian jobs.

Most of these sites are linked to the U.S. Department of Labor's popular military occupational translator:

http://online.onetcenter.org/crosswalk

Websites with useful military skills and occupations translators include:

Six-Step Translation Process

Take your general knowledge of the translation process and apply it to your particular situation by following this six-step approach:

STEP 1: On a clean sheet of paper, write down your military assignments in reverse chronological order. Under each assignment, describe what you did in detail.

Across from each skill, describe how you applied the skill to accomplish a given task or project. Where possible, accentuate the content-specific (as opposed to transferable) skills or knowledge you applied in the performance of your military duties.

Don't worry at this point about using military-specific terms or acronyms.

STEP 2: Based on the job-seeking research you have performed to date, make a list of the required skills or experience in which prospective employers in your chosen civilian career field have interest.

Here is where your informational interviewing and other networking activities pay dividends. Because you have thoroughly researched those civilian occupations, you will know the types of skills, knowledge, and experience that hiring managers seek.

If such is not the case, you might consider doing some additional research, perhaps by contacting an association in the desired industry, to better understand the language and skills relevant to individuals working in your chosen career field.

STEP 3: On another page, list your military skills in the left column and the needed civilian skills in the right. Now compare the items on these two lists. Can you connect any of the items on the first list to those on the second?

If not, is it a problem of semantics (different words but similar meanings) or is it the case that you simply do not currently have the skills required?

If the latter, you might consider obtaining additional training or schooling either on a part or full time basis. (Don't forget to explore the education benefits connected with your military service!)

STEP 4: Once you match items in the left and right columns, return to the detailed experience chronology you created in Step 1.

For those military skills that relate to the civilian occupations in which you are interested, carefully revise your documented skills and experience by incorporating appropriate civilian expressions that relate to what you did in the military. Your objective is to accurately restate your military experience using language that civilian hiring managers will understand.

Wherever you used military acronyms or unique expressions in Step 1, consider how you can restate the information in a more industry-relevant way without losing the meaning or impact of your experience.

STEP 5: Show this revised version to civilian friends and colleagues who are currently working in your employment field(s) of interest. Ask them to objectively critique your write-up and evaluate whether it conveys your qualifications in terms relevant to their industry.

When they are done, don't forget to send them a thank-you note expressing your appreciation for the time and effort expended on your behalf. Such thoughtfulness will keep you remembered in a positive way.

STEP 6: Continually refine this document by incorporating the comments received in the previous step. The finished document should clearly and accurately portray your qualifications in terms appropriate to your targeted industry. Keep this document since it will provide key data for developing the critical WORK HISTORY section on your resume.

If you follow my skills translation advice on pages 9-11, you should be able to translate your military experience into civilian terms and clearly communicate what it is you are prepared to offer civilian employers!

Source: The above is taken from Carl S. Savino and Ronald L. Krannich, Military-to-Civilian Resumes and Letters, pp. 81-83 (Impact Publications, 2007).

SOURCE: Adapted from Ron Krannich, Ph.D., The Military to Civilian Transition Pocket Guide (Manassas Park: Impact Publications), pages 9-11. Copyright 2009. All rights reserved. Copying strictly forbidden.