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Get A SMART Start On Your Education

Are you thinking about what’s next after the military? Planning your transition and reintegration can be daunting, but there are some steps you can take to make the process less stressful and increase your chances of a successful civilian life.

Getting A SMART Start On Your Education: Step-by-Step

Practically speaking, planning a career change is not unlike planning a military mission; it takes clearly defined objectives, strategic, logistic, and tactical planning – not to mention lots of support, rules of engagement, and an exit plan. The first step is to determine your objective – what you want to achieve in your post-military career. Whatever career choice you make, chances are it is going to require a degree, certification, or Licensure – in other words, you’re likely going back to school.

Earning a degree requires dedication, planning, time, and a significant financial investment. Thankfully, the time and cost can be significantly reduced by utilizing your military education benefits and the GI Bill.

Like a military mission, the first step to planning your education is to clearly define your objective. As a famous NY Yankees player and coach used to say, “If you don’t know where you are going, you might wind up someplace else.”

SMART Goals

I have personally helped hundreds of service members and veterans focus their goals by using the process known as “SMART” goal setting, which is an acronym for making your goals: Specific, Measurable. Action Oriented, Realistic, and Time-Driven.

• SPECIFIC: Your goals must be clear, focused, concise, and well-defined. Using general terms leads to mission creep (costing you extra time and money). Keep your goals as detailed as you can.
• MEASURABLE: Your goal needs specific time frames, dates, dollar amounts, and number of credits, among other details, to ensure your success. Think of it as setting a course with no way to check your progress; even the slightest error can throw you way off your course (again, costing you time and money).
• ACTION ORIENTED: Your goal must require action, not reaction. Actively working to achieve your goals ensures your success.
• REALISTIC: Your goals must be practical, achievable, and credible. You have to believe your goals can be reached or you could lose your motivation when the inevitable difficulties pop up.
• TIME DRIVEN: Your goals must clearly define a starting point, lay out a timeline, and include an ending point.

Your goals can also be broken down into smaller, more manageable objectives.

• SHORT-TERM (completed in the next six to 12 months)
• MEDIUM-TERM (within one to five years)
• LONG-TERM (within the next five to 10 years)

More Tips for Successful Goal Setting

• Write your goals down in down in positive terms. Research indicates that using negative terms can negatively impact your success.
• Post your goals where you will see and read them regularly.
• Be flexible, circumstances change, often outside of your control – be willing to adjust fire as needed.

SMART Goal Example

Here’s a SMART goal-setting example to help you achieve your degree.

Starting next semester, I will take 12 units per semester and utilize a combination of CLEP exams, ACE college credits, Military Tuition assistance, and the GI Bill to save time and money, completing my bachelor’s degree in science in three years.

Learn more about finding the right college or university and how to use your military and VA benefits to earn your degree.

LESSONS LEARNED SERIES:

• Getting the Most Out of Your GI Bill
• GI Bill Eligibility Certification Process
• Dealing With GI Bill Glitches
• The Reality of College Credit for Military Service

 

RELATED:

• Get a SMART Start On Your Education
• GI Bill Eligibility Certificate (COE)
• Yellow Ribbon Program Explained