By Larry Dandridge
This is the first article in a series of four on the Department of Defense (DoD) Transition Assistance Program (TAP). The series will cover the DoD and the specific military services’ TAP Programs, as well as the steps Marines must take to transition successfully to civilian life and a new job.
The DoD TAP webpage (https://dodtap.mil/dodtap/app/home) states that DoD TAP is an outcome-based statutory program (10 USC, Ch. 58) that bolsters opportunities, services, and training for transitioning service members in their preparation to meet post-military goals. The mandatory components of TAP apply to all military service members who have at least 180 continuous days of active duty, including National Guard and Reserve members.
Since my last three articles focused on helping veterans avoid homelessness and on how to get help if they are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless, it is appropriate to provide our military and veteran readers and their families with information about DoD TAP and service-specific transition assistance. After all, deciding whether to separate or retire or not from the military, and what career to pursue after separation, is one of the most important decisions a military service member will ever make. TAP can and does help prevent a veteran from becoming homeless.
Therefore, my next three articles for The Island Newswill be about the DoD, Marine Corps, Army, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard TAP Programs.
Veterans can find military service-specific TAP information at the following websites:
Marine Corps
The USMC TAP information is located on the Marine Corps MCCS webpage https://bit.ly/4qRZvra. At that site, you can select your USMC location. For this article’s purpose, I selected the South Carolina Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) and the Marine Corps Recruiting Depot (MCRD).
The Marine and Family Support website explains the USMC (TAPS) Transition Readiness Program and provides information on: (1) Steps to Success, (2) Programs, Resources, & Support, and (3) Upcoming Events that every Marine and Family Member needs to read.
The MCAS Beaufort TAPS Office is located at 40 Elrod Street, Building 596, Room 131, MCAS Beaufort, SC 29904, Phone: 843-228-7353 or 843-218-6670, Email: bfrt_crmc_trs@usmc.mil. The MCRD Parris Island TAPS & ERR office is located at 521 Boulevard De France, Building 283, 2nd Floor, MCRD Parris Island, SC 29905, Phone: 843-228-1967 or 843-228-3112, Email: parr_smb_mcrdpi_crmcpi@usmc.mil.
The USMC TAPS Steps to Success include: (1) Individual Initial Counseling, (2) Pre-Selection Counseling Briefing, (3) Transition Readiness Seminar Courses, (4) Capstone Review, and (5) Commanders’ Verification.
The USMC TAPS Programs, Resources, & Support include: A detailed checklist, documents, and downloads (Getting Started, Direct Affiliation Program, Skill Bridge, Marine for Life Network, and Personal Financial Management) that prepare Marines for success as they begin their transition from military service to civilian life. There is a link to TAP Resources/Documents at https://bit.ly/3Mvj6Q2 that includes:
· A DoD Financial Planning for Transition Guide, (2) DoD Financial Spending Plan, (3) DoD Gap Analysis, (4) DoD Managing Your Transition, (5) DoD Leaders Guide to TAP, (6) DoD MOC Crosswalk, (7) DoD MY Education College Comparison Chart,
· (8) DoD MYT Timeline, (9) DOL Employment Fundamentals of Career Transition (EFCT), (10) Employment Plan Worksheet, (11) DOL Employment Fundamentals of Career Transition (EFCT) Participant Guide,
· (12) DOL Employment Fundamentals of Career Transition (EFCT) Presentation, (13) DOL Employment Track: Employment Workshop (DOL EW) Participant Guide, (14) DOL Employment Track: Employment Workshop (DOL EW) Presentation, (15) DOL Vocational Track: Career and Credential Exploration (C2E) 4.0 Supplement,
· (16) DOL Vocational Track: Career and Credential Exploration (C2E) Participant Guide, (17) DOL Vocational Track: Career and Credential Exploration (C2E) presentation, (18) DOL Vocational Track: Career and Credential Exploration (C2E) Worksheet,
· (19) Education Track: DoD Managing Your (MY) Education Guide, (20) Mental Health for Families Module, (21) Military Terms Course Handout, (22) Other Than Honorable Online Reference Guide, (22) Pre-Separation Brief Resource Guide, Reserve Component Dual Payments Module,
· (23) Reserve Component Dual Payments Module, (24) SBA Boots to Business Virtual Workbook, (25) SBA Business Model Canvas (Strategyzer), (26) Social and Emotional Health Resources Guide, (27) Survivor and Casualty Assistance Resources Guide,
· (28) TAP Interagency Website Guide (TIWG), (29) VA Benefits 101 Guide, (30) VA Benefits and Services Participant Guide, (31) VA Benefits and Services Personal Goals Checklist, (32) VA Benefits for Reserve and National Guard Guide, (33) VA Community Integration Resources(34) VA Disability Compensation Guide, (35) VA Education Benefits Guide, (36) VA Education Benefits for Spouses and Dependent Children, (37) VA Home Loan Guaranty Program,
· (38) VA Life Insurance Benefits Guide, (39) VA Women’s Health Transition Training (and Handbook), (40) Vet Centers Module and Guide.
The Transition Readiness Seminar includes a five-day class that family members are encouraged to attend. Registration is required and can be made by phone at 843-228-2761 or by email at PARR_SMB_MCRDOI_CRMCPI@usmc.mil.
The DoD Pre-separation Brief Resource Guide is an excellent resource for transitioning military members and their families and is found online at https://bit.ly/4cIgtVt.
If you are a Marine or a Marine’s spouse, you need to learn all you can about TPS and how to best prepare for retirement or separation from the US Marine Corps. Completing all the steps in the TAP Program will:
· Greatly help Marines and their families transition successfully from Marine Corps service.
· Significantly help Marines prepare a strong resume, search for available jobs and business opportunities, perform well in job interviews, and secure, find, and land the job they want after retirement or separation, or start the business they desire.
· Reduce the stress of leaving the Marine Corps and starting a new career by finding, interviewing for, and landing the job they want before retirement or separation.
· Introduce them to their local VA-accredited Veterans Service Officer, who will help them enroll (if eligible) in VA healthcare and apply for their hard-earned VA and state benefits, including service-connected disability compensation (if eligible).
Continued next week.
Larry Dandridge is a Vietnam War wounded warrior, a combat and 100% service-connected disabled veteran, an ex-Enlisted Infantryman, an ex-Warrant Officer Pilot, and a retired Lt. Colonel. He is a former Veterans Service Officer, a Patient Adviser at the RHJ VA and Durham VA Medical Centers, a Fisher House Charleston Goodwill Ambassador, and the VP for Veteran Affairs for his local AUSA Chapter, MOPH Chapter, and VFW Post 7383. Larry is also the author of the award-winning Blades of Thunder (Book One) and a contributing freelance writer with the Island News. Contact him at LDandridge@earthlink.net or 843-276-7164.