96H Career Guide
96H: Ground Surveillance Systems Operator
Career transition guide for Army Ground Surveillance Systems Operator (96H)
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Top civilian roles for 96H veterans, with average salary and market demand data.
Intelligence Analyst
Skills to develop:
Geospatial Analyst
Skills to develop:
Surveillance Systems Technician
Skills to develop:
Emergency Management Specialist
Skills to develop:
Private Investigator
Skills to develop:
Salary estimates from VWC career data
Hidden Strengths
Cognitive skills your 96H training built — and where they transfer.
Situational Awareness
As a 96H, you constantly maintained a high degree of situational awareness by monitoring ground targets and aircraft, integrating data from multiple sources (radar, SIGINT, imagery), and understanding the operational environment to provide timely intelligence to commanders.
This translates to the ability to quickly grasp complex situations, understand the relationships between different elements, and anticipate potential problems or opportunities, making you adept at understanding market trends, competitive landscapes, or project risks.
Pattern Recognition
You honed your pattern recognition skills by analyzing MTI, SAR, and imagery data to identify and track enemy targets. You learned to discern subtle anomalies and connect seemingly unrelated pieces of information to form a comprehensive picture of enemy activity.
This skill allows you to identify trends, anomalies, and relationships in data, which is critical for tasks like fraud detection, market analysis, or quality control.
Rapid Prioritization
In a fast-paced tactical environment, you had to quickly prioritize incoming information and disseminate intelligence to the appropriate consumers. This required you to rapidly assess the importance and urgency of different tasks and allocate resources accordingly.
This translates to the ability to quickly assess competing priorities, make critical decisions under pressure, and manage your time effectively in demanding situations. You're great at triage and keeping things moving forward.
Team Synchronization
Supervising CGS shift operations and coordinating with other intelligence collectors and consumers required seamless team synchronization. You ensured everyone was working towards the same goals and that information flowed smoothly between different elements.
This is the ability to orchestrate the efforts of multiple individuals or teams to achieve a common objective. You excel at communication, coordination, and conflict resolution, ensuring that everyone is on the same page and working together effectively.
After-Action Analysis
Your role involved assessing training at all levels and providing feedback to commanders, and ensuring adherence to command policies. You have a strong grasp of how to evaluate the effectiveness of operations and implement improvements based on lessons learned.
This skill translates directly to your ability to review projects, identify areas for improvement, and implement changes to enhance future performance. You're skilled at identifying root causes of problems and developing effective solutions.
Non-Obvious Career Matches
Financial Analyst
SOC 13-2051You've been analyzing complex data sets to identify patterns and trends, a key skill for financial analysts who need to interpret market data, assess investment risks, and make informed recommendations.
Logistics Manager
SOC 11-3071Your experience in deploying and re-deploying the CGS in tactical environments, along with managing resources and coordinating operations, directly translates to the skills required for logistics management, where you'd optimize supply chains and ensure efficient delivery of goods.
Business Intelligence Analyst
SOC 15-2051You've been gathering and analyzing intelligence from various sources to support decision-making. As a business intelligence analyst, you'd use similar skills to analyze market trends, competitor activities, and customer behavior to provide insights that drive business strategy.
Emergency Management Specialist
SOC 11-9161You've been managing security requirements and ensuring operational readiness, skills that are crucial for emergency management specialists who need to plan for and respond to disasters and other emergencies.
Training & Education Equivalencies
Ground Surveillance Systems Operator Course, Fort Huachuca, Arizona
Topics Covered
- •JSTARS Radar Imagery Analysis
- •Imagery Interpretation (EO/IR)
- •Moving Target Indicator (MTI) Analysis
- •Signals Intelligence (SIGINT) Correlation
- •Communications Intelligence (COMINT) Analysis
- •Geospatial Intelligence (GEOINT) Techniques
- •Intelligence Reporting Procedures
- •Ground Surveillance System (GSS) Maintenance
Certification Pathways
Partial Coverage
Requires study of intelligence community policies, legal frameworks, and specific analytical methodologies not covered in detail in the 96H role. The CIP focuses more broadly on the intelligence lifecycle and dissemination.
Requires additional study on network security, cryptography, and risk management, as the 96H role primarily focuses on intelligence analysis and target tracking.
Requires focused study on advanced geospatial analysis techniques, data visualization, and specific software applications used in the civilian sector. The 96H role provides a solid foundation, but lacks in-depth geospatial expertise.
Recommended Next Certifications
Technical Systems Translation
Military systems you've used and their civilian equivalents for your resume.
| Military System | Civilian Equivalent |
|---|---|
| Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System (JSTARS) | Airborne ground surveillance radar systems used in civilian search and rescue and disaster management |
| Common Ground System (CGS) | Geospatial data analysis platforms (e.g., ESRI ArcGIS) for intelligence analysis |
| Motion Target Indicator (MTI) | Video motion detection (VMD) software used in security and surveillance systems |
| Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) | Remote sensing data processing software for environmental monitoring and resource management |
| Tactical Data Network (TDN) | Private cloud infrastructure for secure data transfer and storage |
| Joint Tactical Terminal/Joint Tactical Terminal-Integrated Broadcast Service (JTT/JTT-IBS) | Satellite communication systems for data broadcasting and dissemination |
| Single Integrated Imagery and Intelligence System (SIIS) | Cloud-based image and video analysis platforms with AI/ML capabilities |
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