If you’ve served in the military, you probably have a long list of accomplishments to include on your resume. But those acronym-rich descriptions can require some translating to make sense to civilian hiring managers.
On Monday, recruiters from Northrop-Grumman were at the CSULB College of Engineering to help veterans present their military experience in a way that stands out for hiring managers going through stacks of resumes.
“The resume workshop for veterans offered tips on how to translate a military background to a civilian-friendly resume,” said Eddie Jimenez, a Northrop Grumman university relations specialist. “The idea is to help them create better resumes.”
Jimenez said Northrop Grumman has a commitment to hiring veterans. Company recruiters try to connect with military personnel finishing up their enlistments, as well as veterans completing their college degrees.
“They understand. Veterans might have already worked on our products, and they have valuable life experience. Usually it turns out to be a good match,” said Jimenez.
Anthony Quartucy, an electrical engineering senior, said the workshop was helpful for explaining how to apply military experience such as supervising to civilian job openings. “It’s always good to fine-tune your resume,” said Quartucy, who was previously responsible for 40 fellow Marines and 16 aircraft.
He enlisted right out of high school, and credits the Marines for giving him “the tools he needed to succeed.” Quartucy has 13 years of aviation experience, including working on the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter at Lockheed Martin. He’s also the father of two children, ages 9 and 5.
More than 100 of the College’s nearly 5,000 students are former military personnel. Northrop Grumman funds a veterans study room so they can study together.
“The study room has helped,” said electrical engineering senior Darrell Blunt, who helped organize the resume workshop. “I’m going to miss that room.”
Blunt has accepted an offer to work at Northrop Grumman’s Redondo Beach facility as a systems engineer. He said he admires the company because he saw how its products and services helped save lives.
Blunt said the veterans are a close-knit group, not only due to their military backgrounds, but to the difficulty of earning an engineering degree. He said he’s almost as close to the veterans he’s met at school as to those he met while in the Air Force and Army.
“We’re always looking out for each other. You make lifelong connections, not just friendships,” he said.
Engineering is known as a challenging major even for those fresh out of high school. Add marriage and parenthood, and the stress levels skyrocket. Blunt is the father of a teenager, as well as two toddlers. His wife is a business owner, so was able to juggle her schedule so Blunt could complete his classes. “Finishing an engineering degree is hard, but finishing an engineering degree with kids is a nightmare,” he said.