The authors examined the relationship among enlisted service members' military occupations, personal characteristics, and civilian employment outcomes over the first three years after they separated from active duty. They used detailed empirical analysis of more than 1 million service records, matched to employment and earnings after separation. The data encompass all separations from the armed forces from 2002 through 2010.

Navigating a Big Transition

Military Service Members' Earnings and Employment After Active-Duty Service

Charles A. Goldman, Jeremy Boback, Robert Bozick, Drew M. Anderson

ResearchPublished Nov 10, 2021

Cover: Navigating a Big Transition
Download PDF
Additional Downloads

Includes Appendix D Excel Files

Improving enlisted service member transitions from active duty to civilian life calls for better information about how service members fare in their transitions. The authors examined the relationship among enlisted service members' military occupations, personal characteristics, and civilian employment outcomes over the first three years after separation from active duty. They used detailed empirical analysis of more than 1 million service records, matched to employment and earnings after separation. The data encompass all separations from the armed forces from 2002 through 2010.

Earnings varied markedly in relation to the former service member's military occupation. Individuals who worked in intelligence and information systems consistently appeared in the high tier of post-service earnings. Those who worked in combat arms, medical, supply, and transportation were generally in the moderate or low tier of post-service earnings. These gaps point to military occupations that might need additional support to develop marketable skills, either during the whole of service members' military careers or around the time of transition.

Higher levels of education achieved at the time of separation were associated with greater earnings after separation. Separations after poor conduct or substance abuse were associated with lower earnings. Deployment during service had mixed association with post-service earnings, depending on service, gender, and length of service.

Service members in most military occupations had lower earnings after leaving the service compared with their final year of active duty. This finding emphasizes the importance of building marketable skills for service members and supporting their transitions into the civilian labor force.

Key Findings

  • Post-service earnings were frequently lower than active-duty earnings, showing that transition support is generally needed.
  • Civilian earnings varied widely across service members transitioning from different military occupations.
  • Intelligence and information systems Military Occupational Codes (MOCs) consistently appeared in the high tier of first-year earnings after separation across all four services.
  • Combat arms, medical, supply, and transportation MOCs were generally in the moderate or low tier of first-year earnings after separation; these occupations could benefit from targeted support.
  • Earnings grew on average from the first to second to third years after separation, with the relative gap between MOCs narrowing somewhat.
  • Individuals with higher levels of education and more favorable separation codes had higher earnings after separation.

Topics

Document Details

Citation

RAND Style Manual
Goldman, Charles A., Jeremy Boback, Robert Bozick, and Drew M. Anderson, Navigating a Big Transition: Military Service Members' Earnings and Employment After Active-Duty Service, RAND Corporation, RR-A361-1, 2021. As of September 11, 2024: https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA361-1.html
Chicago Manual of Style
Goldman, Charles A., Jeremy Boback, Robert Bozick, and Drew M. Anderson, Navigating a Big Transition: Military Service Members' Earnings and Employment After Active-Duty Service. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 2021. https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA361-1.html.
BibTeX RIS

Research conducted by

This research was sponsored by Force Education and Training within the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness (Readiness) and conducted within the Forces and Resources Policy Center of the RAND National Security Research Division (NSRD).

This publication is part of the RAND research report series. Research reports present research findings and objective analysis that address the challenges facing the public and private sectors. All RAND research reports undergo rigorous peer review to ensure high standards for research quality and objectivity.

This document and trademark(s) contained herein are protected by law. This representation of RAND intellectual property is provided for noncommercial use only. Unauthorized posting of this publication online is prohibited; linking directly to this product page is encouraged. Permission is required from RAND to reproduce, or reuse in another form, any of its research documents for commercial purposes. For information on reprint and reuse permissions, please visit www.rand.org/pubs/permissions.

RAND is a nonprofit institution that helps improve policy and decisionmaking through research and analysis. RAND's publications do not necessarily reflect the opinions of its research clients and sponsors.