More Than 14K Military Jobs Made Available To Female Soldiers

In April, Pentagon officials announced that more than 14,000 jobs within the Army will soon be available to female soldiers.

At one time, some of these jobs were off-limits because they were considered too dangerous.

Female soldiers are not allowed to fight in combat, but it’s the Female Engagement Team at Fort Bliss, Texas, that is training soldiers for positions closer to the front lines in Afghanistan.

Currently, about 40 soldiers are part of the FET.

“Our mission is to go to Afghanistan and go out and establish contact, primarily women and children, in order to build rapport with the local nationals,” said Cpt. Kelly Hasselman, commander of the FET.

The soldiers will also be a part of special operations units that include jobs in tank mechanics and intel positions.

“It opens up for the positions that it really doesn’t make any sense for women not to be involved in,” said Hasselman.

Recently, Fort Bliss officials posted on its Facebook page, asking for any female soldiers on-post interested in the FET.

“I’m excited because I get to do something that I’ve signed up for,” said Pfc. Jessica Burke.

Burke has been a combat medic in training for the past two years.

Hasselman said the soldiers on the FET are taking these positions to better support their units, especially when interacting with Afghan women.

There is no increase in pay for the jobs the soldiers will take.

“It does give more opportunities and positions for women to fill, which only increases the experiences to make them a more all-around qualified soldier for positions of greater responsibility later on down the road,” said CPT Hasselman.

Currently, our nation’s armed forces have about 200,000 women on active duty.