Heather Gillbanks ⋅ Houston , TX General Electric ⋅ 26 years experience

There are a number of companies (such as GE, where I work), that have training programs to develop HR professionals. Ours requires a Masters as one of its minimum entry requirements. Our program is called "HRLP" (Human Resources Leadership Program), and is how we recruit the majority of our HR talent. You do a couple of years of "rotations" - typically 6 months each - to get a feel for the various parts of the business (one rotation may be supporting plant staff, while another may be salaried people, for instance).

Aside from a program like that, you could try finding a medium-sized growing company who needs HR help, but currently lacks the talent. Or, start a small consulting business (though that is tough to do without actual experience).

Mike Esqueda ⋅ Chicago , IL Zurich North America ⋅ 3 years experience

Felicia,

WOW! There is a lot of great advice from some very experienced professionals. It looks like you are well on you way in completing your Masters, congrats! I would have to agree with Rolf. In that- larger companies are always looking to add or replace great talent, especially with our economy pick up slowly and the baby boomer generation moving quicker into retirement. But the gap with most Veterans and the corporate indusrty is obviously the work experience. If your passion lies with compliance issues, employee relation, benefits, etc. then I would definitely purse a company with a strong developmental program like the ones Heather and Dave mentioned above, which will more than likely that direct you towards a generalist role with a career path towards maybe a HR Business Partner. But speaking from experience, I have found the recruiting world to very rewarding due to selling opportunities and networking with Top Teir Talent on a daily basis, and exciting in regards of finding out what other professionals do in order to achieve their goals. Plus, it's a great way to really learn the business through the prespective of so many high performing individuals i.e hiring managers, HR Business Partners, and various other counter parts within the company. Finally, I have found recruiting to be a great foot in the door in HR with litlle or no work experience. Recruiting does require some, sales, creativity, strong relationship building, communication skills, and drive....but so does every job! So, I hope this helps- if you have any questions feel free to shoot me an email and I would be more then glad to set up a time to chat.

The best of Luck-

Mike

Corporate Recruiter
Zurich North America
P&C Commercial Insurance Company
mike.esqueda@zurichna.com

Rolf Versluis ⋅ Alpharetta , GA Adcap Network Systems, Inc. ⋅ 21 years experience

As the owner of a small business, I can tell you that the HR specialist we hired had a focus on talent acquisition. Companies are always looking to add good quality employees, and if that is something you can become good at, it is worth it.

Kermit Burley ⋅ Bethlehem , PA Hewlett Packard ⋅ 33 years experience

You will find many options and choices waiting for you in Human Resources. With an advanced degree in a generalist role, you should be able to find a company or companies willing to talk about their career paths. I have known many HR professionals who began their career as a generalist and then concentrated in one field, once they landed that first job. Benefits,Training and Development, Employment Law, Loss Prevention, (yes, some companies have it report into HR), Human Resource Managment, and many other concentrations could interest you. The largest professional organization is The Society for Human Resource Management,
http://www.shrm.org/Pages/default.aspx is a good way to get started. The website is very user-friendly and they can even direct you to local chapters where you can attend meetings, network and get career advice from folks in the fields you want to enter and the area where you currently reside. In addition, their national convention will offer you countless seminars, workshops, events and programs where you can learn more. It is a terrific field and there are also professional certificiations you can achieve that will further advance your career. (PHR, SPHR.)

David Hopley ⋅ Foster Executive Ltd ⋅ 4 years experience

Felicia,
I'm not sure where you are or wished to be based, but my advice would be to get into an Investment Bank, or an large insurance/re-assurance business. Brand on a CV is important. When I retired was fortunate enough to get a position at Goldman Sachs in their Leadership Development department, which is part of HR. Variety of challenges and issues you face and the resources you have available will provide you with an excellent exposure to the world of HR and after that, you can pretty much choose where you want t go next.
By the way, GS is very positive in its support to veterans.
David