My significant other is in the military, I am currently finishing school to be a civil engineer. I'm afraid that I won't be able to keep a job, because of relocating. I don't want my degree to go to waste. I have have career goals and I don't want to give them up entirely.

Do others have the same problems? Does anyone have a successful career like what I want and there spouse in the military? Or am I going to have to change my goals? Examples.

I'm going to show my absolute ignorance on this and ask "what does a civil engineer do?" The answer to that really determines how things will work with someone in the military.

Occupations that easily transfer and usually have openings are teachers, day care workers, accountants, nurses and doctors. Others that don't would be like wind energy engineers, presidential speech writers or forest rangers. Those occupations, albeit a bit on the fringe of normal occupatins, would be rather limited in the locations that they could be trnasferred to.

So, back to the question of what does a civil engineer do (which I honestly don't know), is this the type of occupation that is available in many locations or do you have to be near large cities? The other variable that you have to throw in there is what branch your significant other is serving in. The Army seems to have a lot of bases that are in the middle of nowhere, which makes sense since they shoot things a lot, where as the Navy has lots of bases near major metropolitan areas. This could have an impact on your ability to get a job in your field. Two of the Army's largest bases are Ft. Stewart and Ft. Hood. Neither Killeen, TX nor Hinesville, GA is a hot bed of industry so jobs close to the base are not easy to come by.

A civil engineer designs bridges, roads buildings, those sort of things. Work for DOT's of private firms (I'd prefer a private firm if that helps). I get that question a lot.
My significant other is serving in the Marines also.

The good thing for you is that just about everywhere has roads that need to be designed, built and upgraded. I would think that major metropolitan areas would have more need for a civil engineer than more rural areas.

The down side is that many of the Marine Corps bases are in less populated areas, probably for the same reason as Army bases, they shoot things and blow up things and that doesn't fit in well in urban areas. I did a google for "Marine Corps bases" and got a Wiki site listing them. There are a few in bigger areas, MCRD in San Diego (not a likely first duty station), Quantico, Arlington and Washington in the D.C. area and MCAS Miramar in San Diego. The remainder (13 out of 18, not counting satellite installations and detachments) are in smaller areas like Twenty-nine Palms in CA and Camp Lejeune in Jacksonville, SC.

There are about 40 locations in the U.S. where Marines are stationed. I suggest you google the bases and see where they are. Of course, you won't know until he graduates from training where he will be stationed so you will be up in the air for a while.

As to whether you will be able to get positions as a civil engineer, I think you would have to make that determination based on where you see that the bases are.

Good luck whichever way it turns out for you.

If you want to be a civil engineer, then GO FOR IT. It's absolutely essential that you choose a profession that suits you. Over the long run, building a career in a field you love will be far more rewarding and open more doors.
I wouldn't worry about merging it with the military right now. You're not there yet. Get your grades, get into A GOOD graduate school, find the perfect internship, get the support and understanding of your soldier and believe me --things will work out. Sure, there might be some patches that are rough, but civil engineering is a great field.

You can have a career and be a military spouse also. I have a career as a paralegal. There are jobs in the legal field everywhere. Although, tough at times when relocating often, it is doable. You just have to be determined and persistent. Salary wizards on the internet can help you determine an average salary in various parts of the USA. Sometimes, employers are discouraged by frequent job hopping d/t relocating, but most are becoming more flexible with that. The important part is how you "sell" yourself in a job interview.

I would personally recommend following your "gut dreams". "Gut dreams" are those dreams that are at the top of your list and you want to do them no matter what... Those dreams that if you are forced to wait for them very long, you feel a panic coming over you. And no matter where life takes you, YOU make your dreams come true. Do whatever it takes to make those things happen for you.

There are military wives out there who are Civil Engineers. I did a web search for them and found a story about one of them that seemed pretty interesting. And hey, even if you're not in a very populated area, perhaps you could do some minor traveling to your job...and if that didn't work out, maybe you guys could work it out to where you live off base in a more populated area and work when he's busy being out of the country. There are so many options. Don't give up on your dreams until you've explored all options. Hope that helps.

Thanks these were all really helpful, and the voices I needed to hear.

OP, I definitely encourage you to pursue your own career. Have you thought of getting a GS/govt position? Its definitely an option, and there always seems to be engineer-type job openings EVERYWHERE we have been stationed. Good luck to you!