1720 Career Guide
1720: Foreign Area Officer (FAO) Candidate
Career transition guide for Navy Foreign Area Officer (FAO) Candidate (1720)
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Real industry tech roles your 1720 background maps to — picked from BLS-anchored occupations using your training, cognitive skills, and systems experience.
Security Engineer
Security
Your experience with secure communication networks (JWICS, AMHS) and intelligence resources translates well to security engineering. Your training in national security strategy and defense policy provides a strong foundation for understanding security threats and risk management. You know how to deal with adversarial threats.
Typical stack:
Data Analyst
Data
Your regional studies and resource optimization training can be applied to data analysis, where you'll assess market trends, manage data resources, and identify areas for improvement. Your experience with databases and intelligence resources also provides a solid foundation.
Typical stack:
Technical Program Manager
Product
Your negotiation and cross-cultural communication skills, combined with resource optimization and after-action analysis experience, make you a strong candidate for technical program management. Managing complex projects, optimizing resource allocation, and evaluating performance are all skills honed in your FAO training.
Typical stack:
Computer Systems Analyst
Customer / Field
Your familiarity with systems like GCCS-M and NITES shows experience with complex information systems. Your ability to assess situations, optimize resources, and analyze data is valuable in analyzing and improving computer systems for organizations.
Typical stack:
Skills You Already Have
Concrete bridges from 1720 experience to tech-industry practice.
- Situational Awareness→ Assessing market trends and emerging risks
- Adversarial Thinking→ Analyzing competitors' strategies
- Resource Optimization→ Project and budget management
- After-Action Analysis→ Evaluating project performance and implementing improvements
- Experience with JWICS and AMHS→ Understanding secure communication networks
Skills to Learn
The concrete gap to bridge — specific to the roles above, not generic.
How VWC fits
Vets Who Code accelerates the parts we teach — software engineering fundamentals, web development, AI tooling. For everything else above, the path is doable independently with the resources we link to.
See VWC ProgramsCivilian Career Pathways
Top civilian roles for 1720 veterans, with average salary and market demand data.
International Business Development Manager
Skills to develop:
Intelligence Analyst
Skills to develop:
Political Risk Analyst
Skills to develop:
International Aid/Development Worker
Skills to develop:
Foreign Affairs Officer (Government)
Skills to develop:
Salary estimates from VWC career data
Hidden Strengths
Cognitive skills your 1720 training built — and where they transfer.
Situational Awareness
As a Foreign Area Officer in training, you're immersed in understanding complex geopolitical landscapes, cultural nuances, and potential threats within a specific region. You learn to constantly monitor and interpret information from diverse sources to anticipate events and understand their implications.
This translates to a keen ability to assess market trends, competitive intelligence, and emerging risks in the business world. You can quickly grasp the dynamics of an environment and anticipate potential challenges or opportunities.
Adversarial Thinking
Foreign Area Officer training requires you to think critically about potential adversaries, their motivations, and strategies. You learn to anticipate their actions and develop countermeasures.
This skill is valuable in competitive business environments. You can analyze competitors' strategies, anticipate their moves, and develop effective counter-strategies to maintain a competitive edge.
Resource Optimization
Even in training, Foreign Area Officers learn about the allocation of resources (personnel, equipment, funding) within their area of responsibility. You understand how to maximize the effectiveness of available resources to achieve strategic goals.
This translates directly to project management, where efficient allocation of resources, budget management, and personnel management are crucial to achieve optimal outcomes.
After-Action Analysis
Following exercises and simulations, Foreign Area Officers participate in thorough after-action reviews to identify lessons learned, improve strategies, and refine their understanding of complex situations.
This analytical approach is invaluable in business. You can evaluate project performance, identify areas for improvement, and implement changes to optimize future outcomes.
Non-Obvious Career Matches
Market Research Analyst
SOC 19-3022.00You've been trained to analyze complex situations, anticipate adversarial actions, and understand cultural nuances. This translates directly to the skills needed to research consumer behavior, identify market trends, and develop effective marketing strategies. You're adept at gathering information from diverse sources and drawing meaningful insights.
Political Risk Analyst
SOC 19-3099.00You've been trained to assess complex geopolitical landscapes, understand potential threats, and develop strategies for mitigating risk. This background makes you exceptionally well-suited to analyze political and economic risks for businesses operating in international markets. You can provide valuable insights to help companies make informed decisions and manage their exposure to risk.
International Trade Specialist
SOC 13-2072.00You've developed a deep understanding of international relations, cultural differences, and geopolitical dynamics. You can leverage this knowledge to assist businesses in navigating the complexities of international trade, identifying new market opportunities, and ensuring compliance with trade regulations.
Training & Education Equivalencies
Foreign Area Officer Program, Naval Postgraduate School and various locations worldwide
Topics Covered
- •Language Acquisition (Target Region)
- •Regional Studies (Political, Economic, Social, Cultural)
- •International Relations Theory
- •National Security Strategy
- •Negotiation and Cross-Cultural Communication
- •Defense Policy and Resource Management
- •In-Region Practicum/Immersion
Certification Pathways
Partial Coverage
Requires study of specific international trade regulations, finance, and marketing principles. Focus on practical application of trade laws and cross-cultural business communication.
Requires understanding of the PMBOK guide, formal project management methodologies, and practical experience leading projects. Focus on the five process groups and ten knowledge areas.
Recommended Next Certifications
Technical Systems Translation
Military systems you've used and their civilian equivalents for your resume.
| Military System | Civilian Equivalent |
|---|---|
| Defense Language Aptitude Battery (DLAB) | Foreign language aptitude tests (e.g., for translation or interpretation roles) |
| Joint Worldwide Intelligence Communications System (JWICS) | Secure communication networks (e.g., encrypted messaging platforms, VPNs) |
| Global Command and Control System – Maritime (GCCS-M) | Maritime domain awareness platforms (e.g., vessel tracking and monitoring software) |
| Navy Integrated Tactical Environmental Subsystem (NITES) | Geospatial intelligence and weather analysis software (e.g., ESRI ArcGIS with weather data integration) |
| Automated Message Handling System (AMHS) | Secure document management and communication systems (e.g., secure file sharing platforms with audit trails) |
| Various country-specific databases and intelligence resources | International business intelligence platforms (e.g., market research databases, political risk analysis tools) |
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