Empowering Military Spouse Education & Employment

From the Expert

Q: How can online education and the flexibility of learning from anywhere help with the issues discussed in this guide?

A: Historically, the military has done a great job of offering these types of benefits to service members through the GI Bill, online learning and physical campuses on-post or on-base. However, for a while, similar opportunities for spouses were not as easy to come by. Luckily, we've seen this change in a big way recently. Flexible learning and employment options are a huge game-changer for military spouses and offer an opportunity to really take off in a new career at your own pace. Online learning is ideal for a military spouse, particularly one who might be juggling responsibilities at home and childcare while their spouse is deployed. And, of course, the ability to be enrolled in a “virtual” campus makes it easy to continue your coursework even if your family moves to a new base hundreds of miles away. The same goes for flexible work positions, we're seeing more and more military spouses pursue full- or part-time positions that allow them to work remotely.

Additionally, if you are interested in starting a new career that might not require you to go back to school, there are many opportunities for military spouses to learn on-the-job through military-friendly training programs which are offered in a variety of industries. For instance, the MilHousing Network is a great organization that helps spouses pursue careers in real estate to help other military families make sense of the home buying and moving process. The Spouse and Education section of Military One Source also provides extensive lists of job opportunities and resources.

Q: What advice do you have for these individuals?

A: The biggest piece of advice I give to my fellow military spouses who are considering going back to school is to be honest with yourself and realistic about whether your current lifestyle is suited to this type of commitment. Remember that embarking on a new education or career path is an investment and involves your entire family. Discuss your options and interests with your family and assess your current situation to identify areas where others in the family may need to step up and take over some responsibilities while you are studying.

Once you've determined that you and your family are ready to take this step, create a dedicated plan for your studying and course requirements and hold yourself accountable to it! Find what works best for your family's schedule. This might mean declaring two nights a week “study nights” when you will stay up later after young children are asleep to complete assignments. If your spouse is local, perhaps they can change their schedule and come home earlier a few evenings to handle household chores while you study. Seek out help from friends and local family members, if needed. Perhaps every other weekend a friend watches your children on Sunday afternoon so you can work in a quiet house. And don't forget about tapping into your resources! As I shared, there are more options than ever available to military spouses, both in-person and online. Many bases offer counseling and seminars to help spouses at all steps of the process, including the USO's Pathfinder Program. Become familiar with the online military spouse community as well, you never know when you'll encounter a spouse living on the other side of the country who went through a similar situation who can offer advice. Organizations like SpouseLink offer a tremendous amount of online resources as well as chances to connect with other spouses in Facebook groups and message boards.

Q: How can spouses who are members of the military best support their partner during this process?

A: The serving spouse should play a big role in this process and they must start by understanding their spouse's goals and the responsibilities that will come with pursuing a degree. In addition to understanding how to support their spouse emotionally as they take a big step in their career, the serving spouse may need to take on additional responsibilities at home, if they are local. This is where communication becomes even more important. Ask the right questions to understand about how your spouse's studies and workload might impact home life and find out how you can help alleviate this stress before it becomes a problem that impacts the family. This is where the schedule can also be a big help in avoiding surprises. It can be as simple as asking your spouse them something like “What major assignments or deadlines do you have this month and what can I do to help.” Showing a willingness to take simple tasks such as shopping, laundry and transporting children to activities can go a long way!

Q: What questions should a military spouse ask a potential college/employer when figuring out their next steps?

A: Logistical questions are often the most important. If you've received a scholarship or if your education is being sponsored by an employer, ask if there is a certain timeframe you need to complete your studies by as this will impact your study schedule. Since most military spouses chose to enroll as part-time students, ask if there is a minimum or maximum course load you need to adhere to and be careful to not bite off more than you can chew! Since military life can be unpredictable, ask what your options are for taking a break from your studies, if needed and how this might affect your scholarship or timeframe to avoid surprises.

If you are meeting with a potential employer, particularly one who might not be familiar with military lifestyle, be honest about your concerns and any special circumstances that may impact your work to see how they might be able to accommodate. Fortunately, more and more employers are understanding about working parents and willing to offer flexible hours and occasional remote work when you need to attend to family obligations. Once again, to avoid any unpleasant surprises, it's always important to ask what the company policy is during the interview process to make sure the position will be a good fit for both you and the company.

Q: Why is it important to have this conversation around ensuring spouses receive access to education and employment?

A: Today, more options are available to military spouses seeking higher education and careers that ever before, which is incredibly exciting! But we still have a lot of work to do and it's important to keep up the momentum by continuing these conversations to raise awareness among not only military spouses but the nation as a whole. We're already seeing this increased awareness pay off in a big way, with new legislation introduced to aid military spouses in finding employment and tackling debt and major companies, such as Microsoft, exploring partnerships with military bases to help educate spouses on lucrative career paths in science and technology. Initiatives like these are just the beginning and will spark additional discussions around military spouse education and employment that have the potential to empower hundreds of thousands of spouses around the country.