Military life can be unpredictable. Military spouses often face challenges with unemployment and underemployment when their families relocate to new duty stations.

The Military Friendly® Spouse Employers survey identifies and honors organizations that demonstrate a comprehensive and meaningful commitment to supporting military spouses in their careers.

General Dynamics Mission Systems is proud to be part of a great group of companies that create sustainable and meaningful workplaces for the military community.

Carrie Tilley is a seasoned and proud military spouse of more than 20 years, a mother, and a proud General Dynamics Mission Systems engineer. She met her spouse at a Naval Reserve Officer Training Course freshmen orientation at Ohio State University in 1999.

Married in August 2003, the proud Ohio State Buckeye wrapped up school in 2004 and Carrie’s journey balancing life as a US Navy military spouse began.

“Looking for work as a military spouse can be stressful. Right out of college it took me a year to find my first engineering job,” said Carrie.

“I spent just shy of two years at a small electronics company as an industrial engineer. I did enjoy the job, but I really wanted to work for a company that really supported the military.”

Rachel Hawthorne is a part of Learning and Organizational Development at General Dynamics Mission Systems.

Her husband recently transitioned from active-duty Navy to full-time, active Navy Reserves. He is an instructor pilot and teaches flight students to fly the T-6 Texan II at NAS Corpus Christi.

They have moved, internationally, three times in just a handful of years. Rachel was able to move her career alongside the relocation requirements the military had put on her family.

Moving is stressful whether you are a military family or not. Her family recently moved from San Diego to Corpus Christi, Texas.

While every mover worries about lost or broken items and finding a new home, military spouses also have the additional worry of keeping their job.

“These were stressors with prior scenarios, and that move was quite a process. At the time, I was a couple months pregnant with my first child, so having to coordinate a move, looking for a house, and packing up our entire life took a toll on me physically, more so than previous moves,” said Rachel.