How DANTES Kuder Journey Helps Military Families Plan College Degrees
The transition from military to civilian life brings uncertainty. Frequent moves and the requirements of the Department of Defense often put the career or education goals of a spouse on hold, and when the time comes to look toward post-military college, families need a starting point.
>> Find VA-approved schools with the College Recon School Finder tool.
How DANTES Kuder Journey Helps Military Families Plan College Degrees
Kuder Journey is designed to help military families through this process. Funded by the Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Education Support, or DANTES, Kuder Journey is a career and education planning system.
The Kuder Journey platform centers on three research-based assessments that identify what a person likes to do, what they are confident doing, and what they value in a work environment. After a 20-minute survey, users receive a plan connecting their strengths to specific civilian career options and the military-friendly degree programs required to enter those fields.
According to the official site, the program offers:
- Free self-assessments
- Self-paced education assistance
- Career counseling assistance
- Employment tools
- Help building job search skills
- Help build a civilian resume
- Interview practice
- Employer research
- A public e-portfolio
- Lifetime access to e-portfolios, personal assessments, and other documents
Planning the Right Degree
One of the greatest challenges for military families is translating military experience into a college major. A service member might feel they must stick to what they did in the military, such as logistics, even if they no longer enjoy it. Kuder Journey encourages users to look beyond the past and focus on the future.
Once the assessments are complete, the platform provides occupations that match the user’s preferences. From there, the platform shows specific college majors. If a spouse has an interest in health care, for example, the tool helps them find military-friendly accredited programs.
>> Find VA-approved schools with the College Recon School Finder tool.
Tools for the Transition
Education is a stepping stone to a new career, and Kuder Journey includes features that support the entire professional development lifecycle. It offers a resume builder that translates military jargon into terms that civilian hiring managers understand.
The platform includes an e-Portfolio where users store assessment results, education plans, resumes, and cover letters. These are available “for life.” Even after the service member leaves the military, the family can access these records to update their plans as they progress through school and into the workforce.
How to Access the Program
Kuder Journey is available free to members of the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard, as well as members of the National Guard and Reserve components. Military spouses are also authorized to use the system, with most spouses finding these tools via the My Career Advancement Account portal or by creating an account tied to their sponsor’s eligibility.
Visit the official DANTES Kuder Journey portal. Select “Log In” or “Sign Up” and choose your status as an active duty, Guard, or Reserve member. Spouses should register through the My Career Advancement Account (MyCAA) portal to ensure they link to the correct funding and verify eligibility during setup, which requires a military email and/or sponsor information.
Learn more or sign up at the Kuder Journey official site.
>> Find VA-approved schools with the College Recon School Finder tool.
About the author
Joe Wallace is a 13-year veteran of the United States Air Force and a former reporter/editor for Air Force Television News and the Pentagon Channel. His freelance work includes contract work for Motorola, VALoans.com, and Credit Karma. He is co-founder of Dim Art House in Springfield, Illinois, and spends his non-writing time as an abstract painter, independent publisher, and occasional filmmaker.
