Total VeteranMilitary CV Translation Tools: The Free Official Options in the UK and US
Government and charity tools in both countries already map military jobs to civilian ones. Here is what each does, how to use it, and how to turn the output into CV lines.
- The O*NET Military Crosswalk matches any US branch code or title to civilian occupations; an Army 11B search returns 30 matches.
- DoD COOL links military jobs to civilian credentials and shows which are approved for GI Bill payment.
- UK leavers get CTP support from up to two years before discharge to two years after, depending on length of service.
- The Forces Employment Charity supports UK veterans of any rank or length of service, for life.
- CTP guidance: two pages, last ten years, plain language, one or two achievements per year in a job.
The free, official tools that translate a military job into civilian terms are the O*NET Military Crosswalk and My Next Move for Veterans (both US Department of Labor), DoD COOL for credentials, and, in the UK, the Career Transition Partnership (CTP) and the Forces Employment Charity. The US tools work from your job code. The UK offer works mainly through advisers and published CV guidance. This guide shows what each tool does, how to use it, and how to turn its output into CV lines a civilian recruiter will read.
The tools at a glance
| Tool | Country | What it does | Who can use it | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| O*NET Military Crosswalk | US | Matches a military code or title to civilian occupations, each with a full O*NET profile of tasks, skills and outlook | Anyone | Free |
| My Next Move for Veterans | US | Simpler front end to the same data: enter your code or title and get suggested civilian careers | Anyone | Free |
| DoD COOL | US | Links each military job to civilian licences and certifications; shows which credentials are approved for GI Bill payment | Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard and DoD civilians | Free |
| Military OneSource resume guidance | US | Explains how to use your VMET record and points to Hiring Our Heroes' Resume Engine | Service members, veterans and families | Free |
| LinkedIn Premium for the US military community | US | 12 months of Premium, redeemed through Hire Heroes USA, Student Veterans of America or Hiring Our Heroes | US service members in transition, US veterans and spouses | Free, one time |
| Career Transition Partnership | UK | MOD resettlement service: workshops, one-to-one advice, training, employment fairs, digital platform and jobs portal | UK Armed Forces leavers, scaled by length of service | Free |
| Forces Employment Charity | UK | Employment advisers, CV and interview support, mentoring through MyForcesEmployment, specialist programmes such as TechVets | Service leavers, veterans, reservists, spouses and partners, any rank or length of service | Free |
US: how to use the O*NET Military Crosswalk
The Military Crosswalk Search on O*NET OnLine covers the Air Force (AFSC), Army (MOS), Coast Guard and Navy (ratings), Marine Corps (MOS) and Space Force (SFSC). The steps are short:
- Choose your branch from the drop-down list.
- Type your code (for example 11B) or a title or keyword (for example "logistics specialist").
- Open each matched civilian occupation and read its tasks, skills, education and wage sections.
- Copy the task and skill wording that matches what you actually did. That wording becomes your CV vocabulary.
Three real searches, run in October 2026, show what to expect:
| Search | Sample of civilian matches returned |
|---|---|
| Army 11B, Infantryman | 30 matches, including Training and Development Specialists, Emergency Management Directors, First-Line Supervisors of Office and Administrative Support Workers, Firefighters, and Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers |
| Navy LS, Logistics Specialist | 29 matches, including Logisticians, Purchasing Managers, Administrative Services Managers, Financial Managers and Accountants and Auditors |
| Army 92Y, Unit Supply Specialist | 172 matches, from Purchasing Managers and Logisticians to Pharmacy Technicians and Aircraft Mechanics |
The 92Y result makes the main point: the crosswalk casts a wide net. Treat it as a long list to filter. Keep the occupations whose task lists match your real daily work, then use those O*NET profiles as the source of your keywords.
US: DoD COOL for credentials
DoD COOL (Credentialing Opportunities On-Line) gives each service its own site. It shows how your military job relates to civilian occupations and to the licences and certifications that match it, and it identifies credentials approved for payment through the GI Bill. On a CV, a named civilian certification does more translation work than any paragraph of description, because a recruiter recognises it on sight. Use COOL to find the one or two credentials closest to your job and list them, or list them as "in progress" once you have booked the exam.
Turn this into a plan
Work through your CV, interviews and network with a Total Veteran coach and a small cohort making the same move.
US: VMET, Resume Engine and LinkedIn
Military OneSource recommends starting with your Verification of Military Experience and Training (VMET), the Department of Defense record of the training and skills you gained in service. It also points to Resume Engine from Hiring Our Heroes, which converts military records into a civilian-friendly resume draft. Its advice on wording is specific: replace phrases such as "officer in charge" with "managed", remove acronyms, and quantify results.
LinkedIn's veterans programme offers 12 months of free Premium to US veterans, transitioning US service members and their spouses. You claim it by taking part in career services with one of its nonprofit partners: Hire Heroes USA, Student Veterans of America or Hiring Our Heroes. The offer is limited to the US Armed Forces community, so UK veterans are not eligible.
UK: Career Transition Partnership
The Career Transition Partnership is the MOD's resettlement service, delivered with Reed in Partnership. Your entitlement depends on length of service:
| Programme | Who it is for | When you can use it |
|---|---|---|
| Core Resettlement Programme | More than six years' service | From two years before discharge to two years after |
| Employment Support Programme | Four to six years' service | Up to two years after discharge |
| CTP Future Horizons | Leavers with under four years' service | Up to two years after discharge |
| CTP Assist | Personnel on Recovery Duties and others facing significant additional challenges | Regardless of time served, with a flexible, longer timeline if required |
CTP lists vacancies on its RightJob site and publishes CV guidance, set out in an article co-written with NEBOSH. The core rules: no more than two pages, focus on roughly the last ten years, explain military terms in plain language, keep job headings simple (HM Forces, job title, years), use one or two achievements for every year in a job, and back each key strength with a result using the CAR method (Challenge, Action, Result). It also suggests checking your CV against the job advert with a word-cloud tool such as TagCrowd. The full background on entitlements is in our guide to the Career Transition Partnership.
UK: Forces Employment Charity
The Forces Employment Charity offers life-long employment support to service leavers, veterans, reservists, spouses and partners "regardless of circumstance, rank, length of service, or reason for leaving the military". Its advisers review CVs and prepare you for interviews, and its MyForcesEmployment platform matches members aged 18 and over with volunteer industry mentors. Specialist programmes include TechVets, the Military Women Programme, the Families Programme and an Executive Programme. Phone: 0121 262 3058. This is the best UK route if your CTP entitlement has expired.
A translation table you can use today
The equivalents below are starting points. Choose the one that matches the scale of what you did, and add the numbers. The first four rows follow the examples published by Quest Online. The rest are our suggested equivalents.
| Military term | Civilian equivalent on a CV |
|---|---|
| Section Commander | Team Leader or Supervisor |
| Officer Commanding (OC), Company Commander | Operations Manager or Department Head |
| Quartermaster | Logistics or Supply Chain Manager |
| NCO | Supervisor or mid-level manager |
| Chief Petty Officer, Senior NCO | Senior Supervisor or Operations Manager |
| Leading Petty Officer, Section 2IC | Team Lead or Deputy Team Leader |
| Chief Clerk | Office Manager (HR, finance and administration) |
| Watchkeeper, Duty Officer | Shift Supervisor or Control Room Manager |
| Orders, OPORD | Operating plan or project brief |
| SITREP | Status report |
| Equipment account, kit inventory | Asset register |
| Exercise | Large-scale training event or simulation |
| EVAL, FITREP, SJAR, OJAR | Annual performance review |
| Collateral duty, secondary duty | Additional responsibility |
| TDY, TAD, detachment | Temporary assignment or business travel |
Example bullet rewrites
These are illustrative examples written for this guide. They show the pattern: plain verb, scale, result.
| Military wording | Civilian rewrite |
|---|---|
| Section Commander, [battalion]. Responsible for the training, welfare and discipline of 8 soldiers on Op [name]. | Led and trained a team of 8 on a six-month overseas deployment; responsible for performance, wellbeing and conduct, with no lost-time safety incidents. |
| LPO for Supply Division. Maintained OPTAR and ran inventory of 1,200 line items IAW NAVSUP instructions. | Team lead for an 11-person supply team; managed an annual operating budget and a 1,200-item inventory to audit standard. |
| Ran the Ops Room as Duty Watchkeeper during a NATO exercise. | Shift supervisor in a 24-hour control room during a multinational training event, coordinating information flow between 5 organisations. |
| Chief Clerk, responsible for JPA admin for the unit. | Office manager for a 400-person organisation; ran HR, pay and personnel records on an enterprise HR system. |
Replace the numbers with your own. If you cannot state a figure accurately, describe the scale in words ("a regional team", "a fleet of vehicles") and keep it honest.
A simple workflow
- Pull your records: VMET in the US; in the UK, your appraisal reports, course certificates and resettlement paperwork.
- Run your code through the O*NET crosswalk (UK leavers can search by the closest US title or keyword) and shortlist three occupations.
- Check DoD COOL for a matching credential, or ask your CTP or Forces Employment Charity adviser which civilian qualification closes the gap.
- Draft the CV using the translation table and the CAR method, two pages maximum.
- Compare it with three real job adverts and adjust the keywords.
- Get a human review from a CTP adviser, a Forces Employment Charity adviser or, in the US, Hire Heroes USA.
If you are unsure which direction to aim for before you write, the free WEAPONS self-assessment helps you map your strengths first.
What to do this week
- Run your job code through the O*NET Military Crosswalk and shortlist three civilian occupations.
- Copy task and skill wording from those O*NET profiles into a keyword list.
- Check DoD COOL or ask a CTP adviser which civilian credential matches your role.
- Rewrite your top five military achievements using the translation table and the CAR method.
- Book a CV review with your CTP adviser, the Forces Employment Charity or Hire Heroes USA.
Questions people ask
Is there a military skills translator for UK veterans?
How do I use the O*NET military crosswalk?
Can UK veterans get free LinkedIn Premium?
How long should a service leaver CV be?
- US Department of Labor, O*NET OnLine, "Military Crosswalk Search" (accessed October 2026). https://www.onetonline.org/crosswalk/MOC/
- US Department of Labor, "My Next Move for Veterans" (accessed October 2026). https://www.mynextmove.org/vets/
- US Department of Defense, "Credentialing Opportunities On-Line (COOL)" (accessed October 2026). https://www.cool.osd.mil
- Military OneSource, "How to Write a Resume" (accessed October 2026). https://militaryonesource.mil/education-employment/for-service-members/how-to-write-a-resume
- LinkedIn Social Impact, "Veterans" (accessed October 2026). https://socialimpact.linkedin.com/programs/veterans
- GOV.UK, "Career Transition Partnership" guidance (accessed October 2026). https://www.gov.uk/guidance/career-transition-partnership
- NEBOSH, "Writing a CV as a Service Leaver with Career Transition Partnership". https://nebosh.org.uk/our-news-and-events/our-news/writing-a-cv-as-a-service-leaver-with-career-transition
- Forces Employment Charity, homepage and services (accessed October 2026). https://www.forcesemployment.org.uk/
- Quest Online, "Translating your military service into a standout CV" (accessed October 2026). https://www.questonline.co.uk/cv-writing
- US Office of Personnel Management, "Agency Guidance on the Two-Page Limit on Resume Length" (2025). https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/hiring-information/merit-hiring-plan-resources/agency-guidance-on-the-two-page-limit-on-resume-length
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