u/LePouletPourpre

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!