u/LePouletPourpre

Very interesting analysis!

Retired during this past year. 22 years TIS. Maxed out O3E. Here are some unsolicited advice and observations so far.

1. The tax hit is REAL. I was a Washington State resident, so I was not paying income tax my entire time in service. Retired in a different state that has income tax. My new job pays $30K more than my O3E salary (including BAH). If not for my VA disability (80%) and military pension, I would be breaking even.
2. All those people who told you to call them immediately after you retire for a job? Don't trust them. Look after yourself first and foremost. Put yourself out there early and shop around. Practice salary and benefits negotiation! It is a very awkward feeling but remember the recruiter's goal is to get you in for as cheap as possible. Don't except the first offer. If you have a clearance, you are worth more than you think.
3. If you have been avoiding medical, STOP. Get EVERYTHING documented. Especially during the last few months of service. Does your leg hurt in the winter? Get it documented. Do you get heartburn sometimes? Get it documented. Do you snore badly at night? Get it documented. If that leg pain progressively gets worse 3, 5, or 10 years later and you decide to file a claim with the VA, you can point back to that documentation. (This is just an example. I am not telling you to make shit up to get a higher rating).

3.5 Don't be afraid to see behavior health. I put that off for 21 years because I was afraid of either losing my clearance or getting med boarded out. I am in a much better place now for doing so and regret not going sooner.

4. My final day of service on terminal brought me mixed emotions. I received my last LES and felt both liberated and terrified. That deposit on the 1st and 15th has been there for a majority of my adult life.

5. In my case, I am home A LOT more. I work 40 hours a week, Mon-Fri, 9-5. Before I was working 50-60 hours a week and away from home for days, weeks or months at a time. It was a HUGE adjustment for both myself and my family and not always in a positive way. My wife is awesome. I love my wife. But her and my kids had a routine. And it took some time for all of us to figure out how to assimilate into that routine.

Good luck out there.

I have a current Tier 5 (TS/SCI) from my former contract position, which was originally obtained while on Active Duty. I was enrolled in the Continuous Vetting program while there. I jumped over to a new position that only requires secret access, and I was read out before starting the new role.

Does my Tier 5 still expire in 2 years, or do I remain eligible through the Continuous Vetting program even though I only require a secret?

Thanks!

Just did my BDD. VSO said ED claim comes in a separate check. Can someone explain?

MCPO Welch was a good person. He played a very critical part in facilitating the move from DOT to DHS.

65 years old is way too young. RIP shipmate.

I completed a 6 month Skillbridge program with a midsized defense contractor about 5 weeks ago. I am not going to name the firm because it is not the point.

My background: 20 years as an Officer. Nearly all of it in Cyber/IT/Intel with the exception of 18 months at NPS for a graduate school program and 2 years doing staff tour.

Onboarding was smooth. Skillbridge recruiter asked if I would be interested in working with the RMF team to support various systems in the ATO process, draft up technical documentation and document work in eMASS. Not an issue. I ran several systems through the accreditation process during my career. I was happy to just be a cog in the machine for once and not have to worry about all the military drama that comes with being in uniform.

The entire time, my supervisors and managers were telling me what an incredible asset I was to the team, and they cannot wait to have me onboard in a full time position. Towards the end, they asked if I would be interested in moving over into a Senior Cyber Analysis role. I loved the work, the environment and the people I worked with. Because of this, I was not looking for a job post Skillbridge. In a perfect world, the place you are doing Skillbrige would offer you a job. I had a few friends do Skillbridge at different places and that is exactly how it worked out.

So, it should be the same for me, right?

Last day. Management took me out to lunch, went back to the office, turned in my IT equipment (laptop/phone) and my badge. I was told a recruiter would be calling me soon to discuss my official offer.

Crickets for 2 weeks. Finally contacted the recruiter to see what was going on. "None of the teams simply have a position for you right now. But we are writing you up a great letter of recommendation for wherever you apply in the future."

The fuck? What went wrong?

Full stress mode. Yes. I have enough in savings to cover myself for a while, but that is not how I envisioned it working out. I went on Linkedin and started hitting up all my contacts. Landed an offer from another firm the following week. Crises averted.

Long story short. Don't put your eggs in the Skillbridge basket. Start reaching out and applying for jobs 30 days prior to the end of the program. Look out for yourself.

Former Coastie on Artemis III crew. GL shipmate!