Merit Launches Career Skills Program for Veterans

New initiative seeks to help veterans navigate the job search and connect to opportunities commensurate with their skills and experience

Merit, the first universal verified identity ecosystem, today announced the launch of its Career Skills Program for Veterans (CSP) to help veterans connect with job opportunities that are commensurate with their expertise and skills. Merit designed the online eight-part, skills-focused program to support organizations such as Soldier For Life — Transition Assistance Program (TAP) and the U.S. Department of Defense SkillBridge program.

The transition from military service to civilian life can be challenging, and many veterans struggle to secure employment opportunities in line with their unique skill set. Veterans are often overlooked for positions because their experience in leadership, project management, and more, was gained in a different context than an office and doesn’t fit into the traditional recruiting framework. Merit created this program to provide tactical ways for veterans to showcase their extremely valuable skills to potential employers and discuss their abilities in the context of a civilian career.

“Merit is committed to helping people get to work faster and more efficiently by matching their verified skills to in-demand jobs while empowering them to use their achievements to shape their future,” said Jacob Orrin, Merit COO and co-founder. “Veterans leave military service with a wide variety of expertise and technical skills, but often there is a significant gap between these abilities and the jobs they end up in. The CSP initiative that Merit is running will help address this disconnect by giving veterans a way to navigate the challenges of job searching while showcasing their abilities in a way that civilian employers can relate to. It’s an honor to support TAP, SkillBridge, and other organizations to open up new opportunities for veterans that are in line with their valuable experience.”

The CSP is open to all retiring service members, veterans and their family members from any career field or location. Each program consists of eight one-hour online classes focused on resume building, business communication, salary negotiation, and more. The curriculum allows for mentorship from teachers, partner companies, and other volunteers. In addition, each participant will be formally paired with a mentor from Merit or a partner company.

“Service members who are transitioning from their military career to the civilian workforce can truly benefit from Merit’s eight-week webinar series,” said Shannon Johnson, career skills program installation administrator at Fort Knox U.S. Army Garrison. “Through the webinars, service members and their spouses have the opportunity to take advantage of a program that provides job placement preparation skills training, and provides valuable information on how to be more marketable in the civilian workforce. I applaud Merit for creating a great program to assist service members and their spouses.”

Ahead of the program’s launch, Merit also recognized four Leadership Command Teams for both their support in bringing the program to fruition and for endorsing retiring service members for the program: United States Army Recruiting Command Sergeant Major Tabitha Gavia and United States Army Recruiting Commander Major General Frank Muth, Seattle Medical Recruiting Company Commander Michael Lozano, 2nd Medical Recruiting Battalion Executive Officer Richard Cameron and Command Sergeant Major Corey Coubal, and 6th Medical Recruiting Battalion Commander Kenneth Lutz and Command Sergeant Major James Stevens.

To learn more about the Merit CSP or to register for an upcoming program, please visit merits.com/careers.