what jobs and education choieces do army wives have?

Question

My fiance is leaving in january for basic training in the army. we are going to be getting married sometime after his training and i plan to live with him on the army bases. i'm wondering what kind of jobs i could get moving around all the time and going base to base. i wanted to go to college and become a teacher but i'm not sure if i'd be able to have the opportunity if i am living on the bases. does the army offer jobs for army wives? also, do we live in an apartment or a house? i really don't know much about any of this so i'm trying to learn as much as i can.

Answer 1

As a military wife you can work in a local bank, you can get your degree (either through a correspondence class like University of Maryland or in the local schools, just understand that some of your credits won't transfer from school to school), you can teach, especially at military schools, you can get a job at the Commissary, PX, or Shoppette (all military stores of one sort or another). You can offer child care out of your home, you just have to be registered on post if you live on post.

As far as housing is concerned, it will depend on where you're stationed what sort of housing you will get. Sometimes it's a townhouse type situation, sometimes an apartment (that's usually overseas) and if you're lucky, you might get a house, but it's not very likely, especially if your fiance is enlisted, not an officer.

I hope some of this info helps, and good luck! :-)

Answer 2

As a military spouse you will get spousal preference for certain jobs on base. Either working for the federeal governemnt (GS pay scale) or working for at the Exchange. Once your spouse gets transfrerred you will of course have to reapply, but should have an easier time getting a job since you will already be in the system.

Your base will have an Education Center, where you can find out all about the local Colleges and its programs.

Once you guys are at your first duty station, you will be able to apply for housing. Most likely there will be a bit of a wait, and you might have to rent an apartment off base for a few months. Depending on your husbands rank and your family size you will either qualify for a condo type unit or a house.

Good luck with everything and please thank your DH for his service! The military lifestyle can be quite exciting. Don't let anyone discourage you, it really is what YOU make it.

:)

Answer 3

You can do anything that you could do otherwise. It may be a little harder because you will move a lot and have to change jobs a lot but other than that there are no restrictions. There are some jobs working for the Army, and military spouses do get some sort of preference in those. However, if you want to teach that's not a bad choice. I am in my last semester as a special education major. Most of the people in my classes are Army wives. Go to school for whatever you want to be, the rest will work itself out.

As far as the housing, it all depends on where you live. Some of it is apartments, some townhomes, some duplexes. Most places have a combination of all of those. We lived on post at our last duty station - it was an 8-plex of townhomes and we shared a carport with our neighbor. Most places have a pretty long waiting list to get into housing, so you may have to find your own place to live. If you do, the Army will pay you Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) based on your husband's rank and the cost of living where he is stationed. Depending on his rank and where he is stationed, you may only be able to afford an apartment, or you may be able to rent a single family home. (Just keep in mind that if you live off post you are also responsible for your utilities, and it's best to be sure your BAH will cover that too!) There are pros and cons to living in military housing versus your own house. Right now we live in a home we bought, but we are looking to sell it soon and move into military housing as soon as they offer us something. It all depends on personal preference - I like living on post, DH does not. Once you find out where he is going to be stationed, go to www.armyonestop.com - you can find lots of information about housing at every duty station there.

Good luck with everything. It's a lot to learn when you become an Army wife but you'll pick up on it fast.

Answer 4

Hi, I'm a Army wife I'm 24 and I've been married 5 years. As far a finding a job there is a company call AAFES and you can go through them to get jobs working in the stores on base go to aafes.com and check it out. As for going to college, I would recommend going for something that you can do any were like teaching or nursing, because depending on your fiances job you can do a lot of traveling.
As far as housing it depends on your fiances/husbands rank. As soon as you guys get to your first duty station find the housing office and apply. I currently live on base and I have a very nice 2 bedroom town home. I hope everything works out for you.

Answer 5

each branch does not have specific jobs just for enlisted members wives, you have to apply just like every other person...if you are living on a base and just want a job to make some money, apply at the commisary, the PX, the banks or any of the office buildings there...sometimes they do like to take active duty members wives before civilians...

every branch has an educational office...there are schools that they offer to do distance learning where the majority of your class work is done at home...i have been on some bases where you can take math and english classes for free...

as far as moving all the time, if you apply for a job outside of the base, dont tell them that your husband is active duty, first of all, its none of their business and secondly, they may choose someone else over you because they know that there is a chance that you can be moving...i have learned that over the years...i applied for some jobs and didnt understand why i wasnt getting hired and i was more qualified than anyone else...its because i told them my husband was in the military...so they assume that one day you could be here and the next you could be moving...

each base is different, i lived on a base in Connecticut, they provided military housing...it was a set of townhouses, with 6 houses connected together...they were crappy houses from the 60's...when we got stationed in Seattle, there wasnt a base close enough with military housing, so we rented an apartment, your hubby will receive BAH, thats money you get to pay your rent....

there is alot to learn, and things will vary from each base you move too...just try to learn about everything and dont be afraid to go to the base and go to the fleet and family support center, they will try to help you out with everything....

also, when we were in connecticut, there was a 12 month waiting list to get into military housing, you dont get special preference if you have a family or not, if you are 20th on the list, then there are 19 other people infront of you and you just have to wait your turn....the poster above me is wrong, base housing isnt neccessarily just for officers...there are different sub-divisions for enlisted and officers...so everyone gets a fair shot at a house

Answer 6

Just because you will be a military wife, does not put you in a different category from civilians regarding work. When you find a job, you simply need to advise the hiring person that your husband is in the military. That way, it is noted, so if you learn you have 2 weeks to quit your job, pack and move, it's no big deal. The same with school. Most colleges accept other colleges' grades. You will just need to transfer credits if you haven't gotten your degree yet in education. As for housing, if your husband is enlisted, that is entirely up to you because you won't get base housing. Base housing is generally reserved only for officers. Now, somewhere down the line, if your husband goes to OCS (Officer Candidate School), then getting base housing would be an option, but just remember, even base housing is limited and I'm not sure how it is handled. Remember, too, you might not be able to always travel with your husband, especially if he goes somewhere like Iraq, for example. You would be left behind at what ever base he is shipped out from. My husband and I were both enlisted, so we rented a mobile home in the town adjacent to the base.

Good luck!

Answer 7

it's been a while since I have been in, but some things don't change...your housing will vary from post to post, depending on his rank, avalablity and whether you are on or off post. You can rent anything off-post that fits your budget, but on-post housing will most likely be duplex, quad, or apartment style. As long as your stateside, there genrally is some form of higher education avalible for both you and your fiance, overseas you would have to talk to the education office to find out what is avalible. the army also provides employment asistance for spouces. I would also suggest asking his commander or first sargent about 'wifes' clubs, they can help point you in the right direction where ever he gets stationed. My sister's husband was Air force, and she got a nursing degree(LPN)

Answer 8

Consider a course in medical transcription, this can be done from home. Also consider online Education.

Carefully check out acreditation (sp?).

What housing is avialable to you will depend on your husbands rank and assignment.

Just spitballing here, but try searching Army Wives into a search engine. I like Ask.com (they let you preview the page).

Answer 9

no not really( one stop shopping for scholarships and info. website) However each base has an education office that you can utilize. as for your spouse transferring bennies: Currently only a couple of Army MOSs can participate. they must be at least an E5 and re enlist for another 4 years and can only transfer a portion of their benefit to a spouse.

Answer 10

Speak to your fiance's recruiter. He'll be happy to discuss your options, and maybe even make some suggestions. It's important to him that your fiance is happy with his decision, and he knows that your happiness will have a lot to do with that.