Job-hunting is daunting for everyone, but it can be especially burdensome for veterans transitioning to civilian life. Fortunately, Ohio’s academic libraries and institutions have made significant strides to make this process an easier one for military service members. This includes access to job-searching resources, continuing education materials and professional consulting services. Many university and local libraries have programs specifically tailored to veterans. Here are a few examples of what programs are available:
University of Toledo Military Service Members’ Resource Guide
The Military and Veterans Affairs office at the University of Toledo partnered with library services on campus to better serve the student veteran population. To help them reintegrate into an academic setting, they created a library resource guide for military service members. While the content is heavily focused on academics, it also includes information on health services, benefits explanations and additional contact information for a wealth of resources. Maintained online, it continues to be updated and refined by a U.S. Navy veteran and the university’s library liaison for veterans and military science students.
Ohio State University’s Student-Veteran Community Advocate
Ohio State’s Student-Veteran Community Advocate program places students in an office, department or college, including the library, for a year. The office gains an appreciation of issues that military-connected students face, and the student acts as a liaison to the greater veteran community as to what services are available to veterans and what could be developed. The student receives a scholarship for his or her efforts, and the office receives programming dollars to be allocated for veterans’ issues and programs. Advocates in the library offices have produced a research video, library guides, a veterans’ website and book-signing sessions.
Bowling Green State University’s Military and Veteran Orientation Sessions
Last summer, Bowling Green State University’s Office of Nontraditional and Military Student Services invited Jerome Library staff to become part of their mandatory military and veteran orientation sessions. At these sessions, library staff connect with student veterans and inform them about the services offered by the library. Each new military and veteran student receives a complimentary copy of The Strategic Student Veteran: Successfully Transitioning from the Military to College Academics by David Cass. The effort has effectively raised library services awareness within BGSU’s military and veteran population, while raising awareness of military issues for the library staff.
Outside of universities, most any local library provides Internet access, where one can browse multiple job websites. A great place to start is ohiomeansjobs.com, which includes a comprehensive section for veterans. Here, veterans can map military skills to help build a resume, learn how a code or title can translate to careers in Ohio and view Ohio’s Veterans Resources Guide.
All of OhioLINK’s 121-member institutions are required to provide an avenue for accessing OhioLINK’s online resources to any Ohio citizen. This allows anyone to visit the closest OhioLINK member library and search the online collections, including research databases, eJournals and eBooks. This could open avenues to career resources such as eBooks on interviewing or a skills brush-up in a chosen career path. Visit your local OhioLINK library for specific details on use. You can also sign up for a State Library of Ohio card online, providing full access to OhioLINK’s entire suite of borrowing resources.
