Coast Guard Transition Assistance Program

History was made in May 2022 when Admiral Linda Fagan was tapped to be the next Commandant of the Coast Guard, making her the first woman to lead a branch of the military. While the Department of Homeland Security’s sole military branch continues to make progress in recruiting and retaining women, all “Coasties” will someday make their exit from the military. But the first stop they’ll make will be at the Coast Guard Transition Assistance Program.

Today, the best military to civilian resume writing service professionals at Empire Resume will discuss:

What is the Coast Guard Transition Assistance Program (TAP)
Transition Assistance Seminar
Shortcomings of Coast Guard TAP: Resume Writing Mistakes
How Empire Resume Helps “Coasties” Combat TAP’s Mishaps

What is the Coast Guard Transition Assistance Program?

For anyone progressing through Coast Guard ranks, Coast Guard TAP prepares service members separating or retiring from the Coast Guard for their transition to civilian life.

Like the other branches of the military, the transition program is mandatory. Service members begin the final TAP process between 12 and 24 months but no later than 90 days prior to separation.

TAP consists of the following components: (1) Pre-separation Counseling and (2) the Transition Seminar, encompassing the Transition Goals, Plans, and Success (GPS) core curriculum. If members are unable to attend seminars in person, Coast Guard TAP can be completed online.

According to Commandant Instruction 1900.2B, transition services are programs that provide career-related information and services (e.g., resume assistance, employment search, and interviewing techniques) through a variety of means such as local training, one-on-one assistance with a Transition/Relocation Manager (TRM), and online resources. These services are available to all separating and retiring members.

Transition Assistance Seminar

A major part of the Transition Assistance Program for the Coast Guard is its Transition Assistance Seminar.

This is a seminar that is held regionally throughout the Coast Guard and coordinated by TRMs. The seminars contain information such as interviewing techniques, resume writing, job search techniques, and veteran benefits.

Each Transition/Relocation Manager (TRM) can assist active-duty members in scheduling a Transition Assistance Seminar. This mandatory seminar is intended to assist transitioning active-duty members in preparing for the civilian job market and prepare members with Career Readiness Standards.

These seminars cover such topics as:

Each seminar will also familiarize the member with the benefits they may be entitled to. Spouses are highly encouraged to attend.

Shortcomings of Coast Guard TAP: Resume Writing Mistakes

Separating from the Coast Guard is hard.

As the separation date nears, “Coasties” find themselves overwhelmed with uncertainty. Coupled with stress and being unprepared for civilian life feels like a dark cloud hanging over them, even after they’ve completed the Transition Assistance Program.

Coast Guard TAP misses the mark on the reality Coast Guard Veterans face once they are out of the military. They have to cross so many employment barriers, particularly the resume writing mistakes learned during TAPs such as:

Keyword stuffing
List of awards
Resume objectives

Using the shady technique of excessively inserting keywords on resumes do nothing to make a resume stand out. Merely listing awards do not highlight accomplishments, nor does it quantify achievements. Finally, a resume objective outdates the resume and destroys chances of getting an interview. Hiring managers are aware the objective is to find a job in a certain area, interview, and accept an offer.

A military-to-civilian resume is a formal document that showcases and highlights relevant, transferable military experience to civilian jobs. Like a traditional resume, it serves as a marketing tool that “sells” a transitioning Coast Guard member’s skills to help land an interview.

At Empire Resume, we believe a marketable military-to-civilian resume is what will get a military member’s foot in the door.

The resume needs to be written in such a way that beats the applicant tracking system, otherwise, it will be rejected. There is a huge possibility that a manager will never review a military-to-civilian resume as 75% of resumes are never read by a human.

Why?

The Applicant Tracking System (ATS) is a resume scanning software that sends, what it believes to be, the most qualified candidates to a recruiter. Think of the ATS as the middleman. The software serves as a gatekeeper to hiring managers.

Before a hiring authority even lays eyes on a resume, it must pass the ATS test first.

For more insight on resume writing, check out the following articles by Empire Resume, specifically for the military:

Empire Resume Helps “Coasties” Combat TAP’s Mishaps

As an Air Force Veteran, my experience with TAP was very forgettable. It provided little benefit to help me with my job search.

During my tenure as a certified professional resume writer, I’ve seen many resumes from military members transitioning into the civilian working world. I’m always amazed at the number of low-quality resumes that come across my desk from fellow service members who just completed Transition Assistance Programs.

Empire Resume has helped thousands of Veterans achieve career success and we know we can do the same for you. Here’s how we help Coast Guard members combat TAP’s mishaps:

Your transition from the military is the start of a new journey. Be sure to start it on the right foot.

Stop by and let us honor you with a $25 military discount. We’ll even perform a free resume review to see if your TAP-generated resume is civilian-ready and will help you position yourself as a viable candidate in today’s workforce using the latest and greatest developments in the career industry.

The Empire Resume team works to expertly transform Coast Guard experience, skills, and achievements into a compelling military to civilian resume that generates results. We guarantee it.

Dr. Phillip Gold is President/CEO of Empire Resume and has vast experience writing resumes for both professionals and service members transitioning from the military into civilian roles. He served as a Captain in the U.S. Air Force and was responsible for leading nuclear missile security. Phillip is a Certified Professional Resume Writer and holds a BA in Communications from The Ohio State University, an MS in Instructional Technology, an MBA in Finance, and a Ph.D. in Finance.

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