If you are a veteran over 50 with decades of military experience and an active security clearance, defense contractors are not just willing to hire you — they are actively looking for you. The defense industry has a persistent shortage of cleared professionals, and senior veterans with deep institutional knowledge, leadership experience, and active clearances represent exactly the talent pool that companies like Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Northrop Grumman, and dozens of mid-tier contractors cannot find enough of. Age is not a disadvantage in this industry — it is an asset, because the work requires judgment, experience, and domain expertise that only comes from years of service.

While the broader job market sometimes undervalues experience in favor of youth, the defense contracting world operates differently. Programs require people who understand military operations from the inside, who can speak the language of their government customers, and who already hold the clearances that take 6-18 months and tens of thousands of dollars to obtain for new hires. Your military career gave you all of that, and this guide will show you how to leverage it into a defense contractor career that values what you bring to the table.

Why Defense Contractors Actively Recruit Senior Veterans

The defense industry faces a unique hiring challenge that works in your favor. Government contracts require specific security clearance levels, and contractors cannot simply train someone off the street to fill these roles — the clearance investigation process alone can take over a year. When a contractor wins a new contract and needs to staff up quickly, they need people who already hold active clearances. Senior veterans who maintained their clearances through retirement or recent separation are immediate candidates because they eliminate the single biggest hiring bottleneck in the industry.

Beyond clearances, defense contractors value senior veterans because their government customers trust people who have lived the mission. A retired O-5 who spent 20 years in acquisitions understands the Federal Acquisition Regulation not because they read about it, but because they lived it. A retired E-8 who managed maintenance operations for a fleet of aircraft brings operational expertise that no classroom can replicate. Contractors sell their government clients on the quality of their workforce, and senior military veterans with deep experience are the strongest proof of that quality. Your security clearance alone has significant market value, but combined with decades of experience, you become exactly the candidate contractors compete to hire.

Understanding Your Clearance Advantage

Your security clearance is not just a checkbox on a job application — it is a tangible financial asset that directly affects a contractor''s ability to win and execute work. Obtaining a new Secret clearance costs a contractor roughly $3,000-$15,000 and takes 3-6 months. A new Top Secret clearance can cost $15,000-$50,000 and take 9-15 months. A TS/SCI with polygraph can take over 18 months. When you walk into a defense contractor interview with an active clearance, you are saving that company months of delay and thousands of dollars — and they know it.

However, clearances do not last forever after separation. Your clearance remains in the system for 24 months after you leave government service, during which a contractor can "pick it up" and reinstate it relatively quickly. After 24 months without a cleared position, you may need a full reinvestigation. This means timing matters — if you are retiring or separating and plan to pursue defense contractor work, starting your job search before your separation date gives you the strongest negotiating position because your clearance is fully current and active.

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How to Write a Defense Contractor Resume as a Senior Veteran

Writing a resume for defense contractors is different from writing one for the general civilian market. Contractors want to see your military experience translated into terms their business development teams can use when pitching you to government clients, but they also want to see that you understand the contractor side of the business. Your defense contractor resume needs specific elements that prove you can bridge the gap between military operations and contractor delivery.

Notice the difference — the contractor version includes specific systems (GCSS-Army), measurable outcomes (98.3% readiness), and language that connects military performance to contract deliverables (CLIN performance metrics). Defense contractor hiring managers want to see that you can quantify your impact and that you understand how military performance translates to contract execution. Include the specific systems, platforms, and programs you worked with — these are often directly referenced in contract requirements and help recruiters match you to open positions.

For senior veterans, your resume should emphasize leadership scope, program management experience, and customer relationship management. If you worked directly with contractors during your military career — evaluating proposals, managing CORs, overseeing contractor performance — highlight that experience prominently. It shows you understand both sides of the government-contractor relationship, which is exactly what companies need in senior roles.

Top Defense Contractors Hiring Senior Veterans

The defense industry is massive, and opportunities exist well beyond the "Big 5" primes. Here are the categories of contractors that actively recruit senior veterans and the types of roles they typically fill:

Prime contractors like Lockheed Martin, Raytheon/RTX, Northrop Grumman, Boeing Defense, and General Dynamics hire senior veterans for program management, systems engineering, business development, and technical leadership roles. These companies have dedicated veteran recruiting programs and often have veteran hiring goals built into their corporate strategies. They also offer competitive benefits including retirement matching and veteran-specific transition support programs.

Mid-tier contractors like SAIC, Leidos, Booz Allen Hamilton, CACI, and ManTech are often even more aggressive about hiring senior veterans because they compete for contracts partly by demonstrating the quality of their cleared workforce. A retired Colonel or Master Chief on a proposal team adds immediate credibility with the government evaluation board. Mid-tier contractors frequently offer more direct customer interaction and less corporate bureaucracy than the primes, which appeals to many senior veterans.

Small and specialized contractors are worth investigating because they often offer senior veterans the most responsibility and the fastest path to leadership. Companies with 50-500 employees that specialize in niche defense areas — cyber operations, special operations support, naval engineering, intelligence analysis — need experienced people who can operate independently and bring clients through the door. These firms may offer equity, profit-sharing, or rapid advancement that larger contractors cannot match.

Where to Find Defense Contractor Jobs

Defense contractor job searches work differently from conventional job searches. Many positions are not posted publicly — they are filled through referrals, networking, and direct recruiting. Here is where senior veterans should focus their search:

ClearanceJobs.com is the largest job board specifically for cleared professionals. If you have an active clearance, create a profile here immediately. Recruiters actively search ClearanceJobs for candidates with specific clearance levels and experience areas. LinkedIn is essential — defense contractor recruiters live on LinkedIn, and your profile should highlight your clearance status (say "Active TS/SCI" — never reveal specific details about your work). Join veteran-specific groups and defense industry groups where job postings are shared regularly. Use BMR''s resume builder to create a properly formatted resume, then optimize your LinkedIn profile to match.

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Industry conferences and job fairs like AUSA, Sea-Air-Space, and AFCEA events are where defense contractors actively recruit. As a senior veteran, these events give you face-to-face time with hiring managers and business development leads — the people who actually decide who gets hired, not just HR screeners. Direct company career pages are worth checking weekly for the specific contractors you are targeting, and do not overlook USAJobs.gov for government civilian positions that pair well with contractor roles if you want to stay in the same mission space but on the government side.

Browse openings: Search veteran-friendly job postings on the BMR Job Board.