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1026 articles to help with your military transition
Expert guides covering VA disability claims, C&P exam preparation, military-to-civilian career transitions, retirement planning, state veteran benefits, and more. Written for active duty service members, reservists, and retirees navigating life after the military. Browse by category or search for topics specific to your transition.
SCRA and MCA fee waivers make premium credit cards essentially free for active duty military. Here are the top credit cards for military members and how to maximize the benefits.
CRDP restores retired pay offset for veterans with 50%+ VA ratings. Here's who qualifies, how much you receive, and how CRDP differs from CRSC.
Apply for VR&E step by step: VA.gov vs VAF 28-1900, the documents you need, the entitlement decision under 38 CFR 21.51, and the travel pay most veterans miss.
Branch-specific regulations, time-in-service requirements, and approval-authority levels for DoD SkillBridge, Army MILPER 25-116, Navy NAVADMIN 064/23, USMC MARADMIN 280/24, AFI 36-2671 (effective 31 Mar 2026), USCG COMDTINST 1040.7A. What to present, who approves, and why commands deny.
Leverage SkillBridge to gain civilian internship experience while still in military. Step-by-step guide to applying, selecting programs, and maximizing the benefit.
You don't have to do anything with your TSP when you separate, but you have options. Here's what happens to your TSP after military separation and how to decide what to do.
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Most service members start SkillBridge planning 60 days out and lose. The winners start 12 months before separation. Month-by-month checklist covering reg review, command pre-conditioning, applications, BDD VA claim, and arrival, with branch-specific submission deadlines.
The DoD SkillBridge partner directory has 3,000+ approved companies. Most are noise. Here's the top-tier list by industry, defense, big tech, finance, federal contractors, logistics, healthcare, trades, with verified hire rates where available.
Your command can deny SkillBridge for any reason. Here's what to do next: terminal leave + civilian job (5 USC 5534a), PTDY, HOH Corporate Fellowship as backup, VR&E Chapter 31, GI Bill timing, and starting a federal job during terminal leave. Branch-by-branch tier rules, statute cites, and program eligibility.
Full active-duty pay continues during SkillBridge. BAH stays at your PDS rate (not the internship city). Most special pays stop. Bonuses are unwritten. The DoD instruction forbidding employer pay, plus FY2026 rates and every gray-area answered.
DoD SkillBridge eligibility for Reserve and Guard members on Title 10 / Title 32 active orders. The 180-day continuous-AD requirement, REFRAD timing, ANG TAG approval requirement, AGR rules, and what happens when your mob orders end mid-internship. Branch-by-branch with regulation cites.
What top SkillBridge employers, Microsoft MSSA, Amazon AWS, Northrop Grumman, Booz Allen, Hiring Our Heroes, actually look for in a resume. Format, length, MOS translation, ATS keyword strategy for cleared talent, plus branch-specific submission requirements (AFVEC, Navy, Army).
Convert your SkillBridge internship into a federal civilian GS job. Hiring authorities, VRA, 30% Disabled, Schedule A, Direct Hire, explained with statutory cites. Why the typical timeline is offer-during-internship, EOD day-after-separation. OPM data on time-to-hire, dual-compensation rules, and which agencies run their own SkillBridge.
Three different DoD programs that veterans confuse constantly. SkillBridge gets you a civilian job tryout. Branch CSP is the regulatory framework that authorizes it. DoD COOL pays for civilian certifications. Side-by-side comparison + branch-specific URLs.
The financing veteran founders actually qualify for: SBA loans, lender programs, and startup options. What each funds, who qualifies, and how to apply.
VR&E eligibility splits at 20%, vets at 20%+ need standard Employment Handicap; vets at 10% need Serious Employment Handicap. The two-10s-round-to-20 trick, the pre-discharge memorandum rating path for severely injured service members, and what evidence flips a 10% denial.
VR&E pays full tuition + tools + subsistence for trade schools, no Post-9/11 cap, no $1,000/yr book limit, no MHA step-down on apprenticeships. FY2026 rates, which trades approve fastest, the union apprenticeship paths via Helmets to Hardhats, and the journeyman-wage cap that beats GI Bill math.
VR&E can fund your startup, equipment, training, and capital, if you qualify. Who's eligible, what VA pays for, and the TDIU trap to avoid.
The full VR&E Chapter 31 pay chart for 2026: $812.84/mo full-time single up to $1,188.15 with two dependents, plus how the BAH-equivalent election pays 2-4x more.
VR&E and SkillBridge solve different problems and aren't mutually exclusive. The optimal path for service-connected vets: SkillBridge during final 180 days, then VR&E post-separation. Why doing them in the wrong order costs you BAH, entitlement, or career velocity.