Preparing Service Members for the Transition from Military to Civilian Life

Challenge

As Service Members prepare to leave the military, they are offered training that is designed to help ensure the transition from military to civilian life is a successful one. That training has traditionally included briefings on the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and other benefits and services, as well as practical guidance and life skills that contribute to Veterans’ ability to thrive in the civilian world. To ensure the continued relevance and value of the transition support services, VA called upon a team to reframe the Transition Assistance Program (TAP) briefing experience.

Solution

The project team (which included Booz Allen Hamilton) redesigned the course based on the findings from a study of Veterans who took the TAP training within the last five years. The findings indicated that separating Service Members needed experiential and engaging learning opportunities to absorb key concepts. With these findings in mind, the team revised the briefing according to adult learning theory best practices. The newly‐created VA benefits briefing now includes interactive group activities, question and answer sections, and videos for use in case study exercises. 

The team conducted evaluations at pilot test locations at Miramar in San Diego, California and Fort Hood in Killeen, Texas to further improve the briefing materials and format.

Result

The new VA benefits briefing is now being used nationwide. More than 300,000 current active duty Service Members are expected to receive the VA benefits briefing over the next few years.

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