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When Sgt. 1st Class Joe Bruehler retired from the Army in 1995, he never imagined he’d become a program manager for one of the world’s largest defense contractors.

He’d gone to work as a dispatcher for an Illinois trucking company after 20 years in the Transportation Corps. Five months later, he moved to another trucking company, this time as a rating specialist. He also re-established contact with an old Army acquaintance, who passed Bruehler’s résumé along to a retired general on his way to work for defense giant General Dynamics.

Within weeks, Bruehler worked there, too.

Lacking a bachelor’s degree, he got hired thanks to a combination of military experience and ingenuity in co-creating a software development program for use at one of his trucking-industry jobs.

Starting out at General Dynamics as a functional analyst, he has progressed over a nine-year period to program manager.

Demand for qualified employees continues to grow in a number of rapidly expanding technical fields. General Dynamics and companies like it are looking for people leaving the military to fill those positions.

But civilian technical jobs — while plentiful at every skill level — may not be for everyone.

Hiring professionals say people planning to enter a technical career should do so with their eyes wide open. Careful forethought and preparation are critical to success in this rewarding but challenging field.

“It’s very important to hit the market well-versed,” said Julie Caines, staffing consultant for Microsoft.

To that end, experts recommend the following:

Get educated before you get out

Caines, who coordinates hiring for Microsoft’s public sector services team, suggests getting your education, training or certification before you leave uniform.

And proper training and certification are critical to commanding a higher salary, said Evan Lesser, founder and director of the Web site ClearanceJobs.com.

However, Bruehler reminds job-seekers that in hiring for technical positions, rarely are there absolutes.

“Push, push, push to get your bachelor’s degree prior to your departure from the military,” he said. “But if you don’t finish it, don’t let that stop you from applying for a job that says you need one. You can always get turned down, but it’s better than not applying and finding out you could have had [the job].”

Do your homework

While you’re studying for a degree or certification, Caines said you should also make time to research the job market.

She recommends newspapers, technology magazines and company Web sites as good resources for learning about the technology field and getting a feel for job titles.

Further, “if you have a company you are going to target, start learning what they are about,” she said.

Network, network, network

Once you get a feel for what you want to do — and even where you might like to work — start networking.

Tell everyone you know that you’re going to be looking for a job.

“We rely on employee referrals heavily,” said Tony Sawyers, recruiting manager for General Dynamics Information Technology. “We put a lot of effort into hiring the best and the brightest so they can bring their friends.”

And finally:

If you have a clearance, maintain it

“It’s definitely a leg up to have a clearance,” Lesser said. “Companies are willing to take on someone without [all the necessary] skills and train them, if they have that clearance.”

At Microsoft, Caines said, “Clearance is highly desirable. Cleared folks are hard to come by.”

TOP PAY IN HIGH-GROWTH CAREERS

These technical careers fall within the “very high” salary range of $43,605 or more, according to the Labor Department’s report on the fastest-growing occupations from 2004 to 2014.

• Forensic science technician

• Network systems and data communications analyst

• Computer software engineer, applications

• Computer software engineer, systems software

• Network and computer systems administrator

• Computer systems analyst

• Biomedical engineer

• Environmental engineer

• Hydrologist

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics

(Originally published Aug. 6, 2007)