Coast Guard · AST
As an Aviation Survival Technician, you delivered advanced medical care in the most demanding conditions imaginable—assessing, treating, and stabilizing lives on the line. That experience is a powerful foundation for civilian EMS, emergency management, and clinical careers.
There's no one-to-one civilian crosswalk for AST—the Department of Labor doesn't map a single job title to it. These are the specific civilian roles Aviation Survival Technician experience genuinely maps to: what each pays, what it involves, and why it fits.
$53,180/yr mediantypical $39k–$79k~99K U.S. jobs
★ Bright Outlook — Rapid growth
Typical entry: Associate degree, apprenticeship, or vocational training
Administer basic or advanced emergency medical care and assess injuries and illnesses.
Why it fits: Your Aviation Survival Technician experience maps directly onto the healthcare (clinical) side of this role.
$38,930/yr mediantypical $30k–$59k~167K U.S. jobs
★ Bright Outlook — Rapid growth
Typical entry: Associate degree, apprenticeship, or vocational training
Assess injuries and illnesses and administer basic emergency medical care.
Why it fits: Your Aviation Survival Technician experience maps directly onto the healthcare (clinical) side of this role.
$86,070/yr mediantypical $64k–$133k~3.2M U.S. jobs
★ Bright Outlook — Rapid growth; many openings
Typical entry: Bachelor’s degree typically expected
Assess patient health problems and needs, develop and implement nursing care plans, and maintain medical records.
Why it fits: Your Aviation Survival Technician experience maps directly onto the healthcare (clinical) side of this role.
$130,020/yr mediantypical $86k–$171k~146K U.S. jobs
★ Bright Outlook — Rapid growth
Typical entry: Graduate or professional degree
Provide healthcare services typically performed by a physician, under the supervision of a physician.
Why it fits: Your Aviation Survival Technician experience maps directly onto the healthcare (clinical) side of this role.
$42,000/yr mediantypical $34k–$56k~763K U.S. jobs
★ Bright Outlook — Rapid growth; many openings
Typical entry: Associate degree, apprenticeship, or vocational training
Perform administrative and certain clinical duties under the direction of a physician.
Why it fits: Your Aviation Survival Technician experience maps directly onto the healthcare support side of this role.
$57,120/yr mediantypical $32k–$94k~315K U.S. jobs
Typical entry: Associate degree, apprenticeship, or vocational training
Control and extinguish fires or respond to emergency situations where life, property, or the environment is at risk.
Why it fits: Your Aviation Survival Technician experience maps directly onto the protective & law enforcement side of this role.
$86,070/yr mediantypical $64k–$133k~3.2M U.S. jobs
★ Bright Outlook — Rapid growth; many openings
Typical entry: Bachelor’s degree typically expected
Provide specialized nursing care for patients in critical or coronary care units.
Why it fits: Closely related to your Aviation Survival Technician occupations on the healthcare (clinical) side—a natural next step.
$59,730/yr mediantypical $46k–$78k~630K U.S. jobs
Typical entry: Associate degree, apprenticeship, or vocational training
Care for ill, injured, or convalescing patients or persons with disabilities in hospitals, nursing homes, clinics, private homes, group homes, and similar institutions.
Why it fits: Closely related to your Aviation Survival Technician occupations on the healthcare (clinical) side—a natural next step.
$86,070/yr mediantypical $64k–$133k~3.2M U.S. jobs
★ Bright Outlook — Rapid growth; many openings
Typical entry: Associate degree, apprenticeship, or vocational training
Provide advanced nursing care for patients with acute conditions such as heart attacks, respiratory distress syndrome, or shock.
Why it fits: Closely related to your Aviation Survival Technician occupations on the healthcare (clinical) side—a natural next step.
$59,160/yr mediantypical $37k–$101k~19K U.S. jobs
★ Bright Outlook — Rapid growth
Typical entry: Associate degree, apprenticeship, or vocational training
Assist in operations, under the supervision of surgeons. May, in accordance with state laws, help surgeons to make incisions and close surgical sites, manipulate or remove tissues, implant…
Why it fits: Closely related to your Aviation Survival Technician occupations on the healthcare (clinical) side—a natural next step.
$32,580/yr mediantypical $23k–$46k~12K U.S. jobs
Typical entry: High-school diploma plus short on-the-job training
Drive ambulance or assist ambulance driver in transporting sick, injured, or convalescent persons.
Why it fits: Closely related to your Aviation Survival Technician occupations on the transportation & logistics side—a natural next step.
$66,170/yr mediantypical $37k–$105k~56K U.S. jobs
Typical entry: Associate degree, apprenticeship, or vocational training
Conduct tests on pulmonary or cardiovascular systems of patients for diagnostic, therapeutic, or research purposes.
Why it fits: Closely related to your Aviation Survival Technician occupations on the healthcare (clinical) side—a natural next step.
Roles selected from the O*NET occupations that fit Aviation Survival Technician experience; the Department of Labor doesn't publish a one-to-one crosswalk for this code. Pay is BLS OEWS (May 2023). See the O*NET crosswalk.
Adjacent and stretch fields where your experience gives you a credible starting point.
$53,180/yr medianParamedics (representative)
Why it fits: Advanced field trauma and patient care transfer directly to EMS.
What it takes: State EMT/Paramedic certification (NREMT); some training may transfer.
Explore this route →$57,120/yr medianFirefighters (representative)
Why it fits: Crisis response and rescue coordination map to EOC and rescue roles.
What it takes: FEMA coursework; agency-specific training.
Explore this route →$130,020/yr medianPhysician Assistants (representative)
Why it fits: Deep medical experience is a strong foundation for PA and clinical degrees.
What it takes: Requires accredited PA/clinical education and licensure.
Explore this route →$42,000/yr medianMedical Assistants (representative)
Why it fits: Assessment and treatment experience support clinical support positions.
What it takes: Employer onboarding; licensed roles require licensure.
Explore this route →$57,120/yr medianFirefighters (representative)
Why it fits: Rescue and physical-readiness experience fit fire/rescue services.
What it takes: Academy/EMT; agency standards apply.
Explore this route →Why it fits: Documented medical experience supports federal health roles.
What it takes: Target specialized experience; licensure varies.
Explore this route →Use the level that reflects what you actually did—not rank alone. Two people with the same code and very different experience should not submit the same résumé.
Lead with hands-on tasks, tools, equipment, qualifications, safety discipline, and the conditions in which you performed. Do not inflate supervisory scope.
Add team leadership, training, inspections, work allocation, quality control, readiness, and the people or assets you directly supervised.
Emphasize multi-team operations, schedules, resource forecasting, safety systems, policy enforcement, advising leaders, and organization-level results.
A translated title isn't enough. These four moves turn Aviation Survival Technician experience into evidence a civilian hiring manager can act on.
List the systems, vehicles, equipment, and tools you personally operated as Aviation Survival Technician—plus qualifications, certifications, and the recurring high-stakes tasks you owned.
Coast Guardsmen led, dollar value of equipment you were accountable for, workload, readiness rates, and safety or quality outcomes. Scope beats adjectives.
For any target role, name the license, degree, or software it requires and start now—your GI Bill and credentialing assistance can cover most of it.
Recruiters rarely search “AST.” Search job boards by the equipment, skills, and outcomes above as much as by “Aviation Survival Technician.”
You don't have to make this jump alone. These programs exist specifically to move service members into civilian careers—most are free, and several pay you while you train.
Train or intern with a civilian employer during your last ~180 days on active duty—at full military pay.
Earn a paycheck while you train for a trade or technical role; USMAP can credit the military training you already have.
Corporate fellowships and hiring events that place transitioning service members and military spouses.
Free career training and nationally recognized certifications for service members, veterans, and spouses.
VA-funded high-tech training (IT, cyber, data, software) that does not touch your GI Bill entitlement.
Free local career centers plus certification and state-by-state license finders for any field.
How to use this: Treat these as targets, not limits. Your exact duties depend on your assignments, so lead with what you actually did—and remember that regulated careers require their own license, certification, or degree.