Transition assistance, including employment and job training services, was established to help such service members make suitable educational and career choices as they readjusted to civilian life. DOL spent about $5 million in fiscal year 2001 to provide about 3,200 workshops, in addition to the funding spent on transition assistance by the military branches shown in table 1. The Transition Commission examined pre- separation counseling and transition assistance program workshops as part of its work. Transition Assistance Varies in Key Ways Across the Military Branches

Each branch of the military provides the required pre-separation counseling and offers workshops focusing on employment assistance and veterans’ benefits, although not all service members participate. The military branches have considerable flexibility in designing their programs, allowing them to vary the content as well as the delivery of their programs. Service Members Experience Differences in Content, Delivery, and Access to Transition Services

Because the military experiences of the members in each branch are different, some branches tailor the content of transition services to better meet the needs of their service members. Evaluating the effectiveness of these services is complicated by data inadequacies and methodological difficulties. Two studies conducted about 10 years ago found limited impact of transition assistance on employment.
What GAO Found

Since its inception, the Transition Assistance Program has served more than one million separating and retiring military personnel through the coordinated efforts of the Departments of Defense, Transportation, Labor (DOL), and Veterans Affairs. In fiscal year 2001, the military branches and DOL spent $47.5 million to provide transition assistance to 222,000 separating and retiring service members. Although each branch provides required preparation counseling and offers transition assistance workshops to help service members transition to civilian life, not all eligible service members receive transition assistance. Because they have considerable flexibility in designing their programs, transition assistance varies in content and delivery across the military branches. In addition, service members experienced differences in access to transition assistance depending on their unique circumstances. Isolating the impact of transition assistance on employment, education, and other outcomes is difficult because of data inadequacies and methodological challenges.