Shifting from Active Duty to Veteran Status - How Community Supported Pat Shaffer After Leaving the Military

We are honored to share Pat Shaffer's story as he exemplifies the power of community and supporting First Gen students who are veterans. Patrick S. continues to give back to the veteran community and is intentional in ensuring other veterans have support when navigating life's challenges. Pat talked about his concern for the vulnerability of veterans in higher education, as he thinks many underestimate the value they bring to the table.?Pat can be found working for 微软 as a Product Manager. He received his MBA from 美国康奈尔大学 , but his story begins much earlier...

Pat was raised in a military family. Both of his parents were United States Air Force officers, and he stated that he knew he would follow the family tradition and join the military himself one day. After watching?Saving Private Ryan, Pat was amazed at the sacrifice displayed to bring one man home. It was then that he knew he desired to serve the United States.

His military career started while he was still in high school. He joined the Army National Guard and then entered the 美国军队 . He would spend 13 and a half years working for the military, 8 of those years as an officer. He attended?West Point Academy?for 4 years then joined a Bomb Squad. He shared the impact these 4 years had on his life, as he entered the team as the highest-ranking official on his first day. This threw him into various leadership roles and helped shape him into the leader he is today.

After his time with the Bomb Squad, Pat shifted to supply chain management. Here he admitted that his role was not as exciting as it previously had been, but he was given far more significant leadership opportunities. One of these was when he managed the logistics of the Nuclear Incident training - managing millions of dollars and coordinating an event for over 6,000 people. Due to other events, the person typically leading the event was on a different mission, so Pat stepped up. He may have lacked the typical experience, but he exceeded expectations in running the logistics.

Due to injuries from jumping out of planes, Pat left the military and decided to receive his MBA. He just completed his program this year, graduating from 美国康奈尔大学 . It was at Cornell where Pat began to really see the widespread challenges veterans are facing in higher education.

Pat helped lead the Association of Veterans at Cornell. He was inspired to support this group because of the help he received when entering Cornell. He attended the?Johnson Military Preview?event at Cornell before becoming a graduate student. At this event he received guidance from others on resume building, writing essays for graduate school applications, and tips for success in education. Pat reflected on how he luckily had experienced 4 years at Westpoint, so he had a higher education background. However, he was surrounded by many veterans who had not been in school since high school and were now navigating the college application process. Those who were First Gen students were facing even more challenges as they lacked mentors and people to call upon for help.

When asking Pat what stood out as some of the most significant challenges in transitioning from the military lifestyle to a civilian lifestyle, he shared how isolating it can feel. It is not easy leaving the military and it can be very difficult to understand the subtle cues civilians use. Pat commented on how in the Army he received very direct feedback, what would be considered hurtful or rude to many people with no military experience. He found it challenging to understand the more passive and subtle comments related to feedback or improvement. Not only did this make it difficult to relate to others, but Pat shared how his whole world perspective had shifted while in the military. He has been faced with numerous situations in his life where he could not quit or give up, many of which were extremely difficult. These experiences have shaped Pat and all veterans in ways that most civilians cannot understand. Pat shared how it can feel quite isolating and confusing navigating the world as a veteran.

To those who have left the military, or are considering leaving, and are pursuing higher education, know how capable you are. Pat talked about his own challenges in graduate school and how many questions of doubt flooded his thoughts. He had shifted from a community in which humility and self-deprecation were normal, two traits that were not helping him succeed in his studies. He faced a lot of doubt, but he also discovered how capable he was along the way.

Today, Pat shares some advice with those who are leaving the military or those who are veterans. He has found that to navigate and succeed in the civilian lifestyle, it is important to shift the "we" mentality prevalent in the military, to an "I" mentality. When applying to schools or jobs, most people want to know about what YOU did to exceed expectations, not what a whole group did. He also wanted to remind everyone of the widespread, communal support found in the veteran community. In his words, "anything that could be done has been done by a veteran, and any veteran unwilling to support another veteran is near impossible to find".

As you embrace changes and transition into new positions, seek a community that understands and can support you. There are numerous veteran resources and groups that are designed to aid in all phases of life. We encourage our veterans reading this to join a local group and reach out to other veterans to continue strengthening your community.

To those who have served in our military, we thank you and honor you. Happy Veteran's Day!