Anyone ever deal with overseas jobs with the company Vectrus?

They've just sent me the attached job description for a "Systems Administrator 1" position in Kuwait. I'm curious as to how much a government contract with them would pay, as I've heard good things about the monetary potential of taking such jobs.

Systems Administrator I.pdf

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wtrwlkr

Congrats! As for working conditions, it really just depends on your job. Very few positions are working outside. My current position, to be honest, is fairly monotonous and slow. The upside to that is that I have plenty of time to cert up (unfortunately I don't take advantage of it as I should sometimes).

joelsfood

That was my experience in Kuwait too. I also didn't take advantage of it way I shoudl have.

I did get in a lot of gym time at MWR and a LOT of reading (Project Gutenberg kept me sane there)

JWSPCR83

Hello,

Does anyone know what Vectrus is paying for Sys Admin I position in Kuwait? Thanks!

xocity

Not sure about Kuwait, I think the Danger/hazard pay is like 10% as apposed to Afghanistan which is like 25%. If thats the case, the pay would be between 75k-95k ish. Assuming its close to the same hourly rate / hours per week as Afghanistan.
Hopefully someone can shine in a little more im just speculating.

Got a question for anyone. I did my physical and dental yesterday. Dentist says i have to do some a "deep cleaning" i think its just a play to get me to pay 1k and hold this job over my head. Doc says im good but gotta wait on blood work to come back. Anyone know how long it takes to get the all clear from the medical side of things? I'm just impatient -_- lol.

wtrwlkr

If I remember correctly, about a week or so? Sorry to hear about the dentist. If he tries to hold it over you maybe you can see if you can get a second opinion.

joelsfood

You can look up the standard Department of State Allowances (hardship and danger upswing) on this site

https://aoprals.state.gov/Web920/location.asp?menu_id=95

cms819

How long does it usually take to get a response from them after you had applied from their website?

xocity

I got mine the same day. I applied at like 7am ish and got a response by 1pm ish

Nyblizzard

Since starting this thread earlier in the year, I've been following your progress alongside all of you. I am now in a better position myself for really considering this opportunity. I've reached out to them and have scheduled a phone interview for the near future. I don't see much of a discussion about this and I know it'll depend on your job duties.... but is the work fulfilling? By that I mean will the work challenge and prepare you for better opportunities stateside? The value of a clearance goes without saying, but how about the on the job experience?

I am really interested in hearing from people who have worked abroad in this manner, and how it's been for them once they got back (if they have)

joelsfood

It really depends on the particular position, team, and what you yourself make of it. I was a network admin, and for plenty of people on the team, it amounted to basically provisioning phones or troubleshooting bad cabling.

For those of us who were actually interested though, there were several more experienced guys on the team who did the actual network designs, improvements, and so on, and there was plenty of opportunity to work with them and learn and make something of it.

So basically, it's just like any other job.

It's what you make of it

Fulcrum45

After my technical interview I've been given a tentative job offer with Vectrus for Afghanistan contingent upon me passing medical/ dental, Security Clearance checks and getting a basic Microsoft Cert. The only thing that concerns me at this point is that the offer letter said there were other candidates vying for this position and that it would go to whomever got their paperwork in first. Is this common or is it a tactic to get my butt moving? Its stressful enough tip-toeing around work getting all this done before I can give my two weeks, let alone knowing that I'm ALSO racing people for the job. I guess I would feel pretty jaded if I gave up studying for my Security+ cert and devote time and effort to a MS cert (that I don't really want) only to find out I didn't get the job after all. Anyone else get verbiage like this in their offer letter?

wtrwlkr

Yep. My offer letter said the same thing. Just get your cert, pass your clearances and you'll be fine.

jeromelongj

I want to apply but this clearance is taking forever. 4 months into it and they have interviewed 1 person... It's the life of a government employee though haha

Fulcrum45

Ugh, I've heard about Clearance purgatory- it seems to be a real place. I'm hoping that since mine only has to be a Secret level and that I've had one before will mean that it wont take quite as long. There are nightmare stories about people being granted an interim clearance only to find that it was revoked later on in the process (and left jobless at that). Maybe its a good thing you're waiting before you apply

Fulcrum45

Looks like I'm well on my way. I've cleared Dental and have my paperwork turned in for my clearance. The only thing now is to pass MTA 98-365, pass my physical and get my clearance. Its damn hard to tip toe around work while trying to accommodate such a disjointed schedule. I've scheduled my exam, my physical and my finger prints (for the clearance I reckon) to be done on the same day! Not sure how I pulled that off but it may fly.

xocity

I got my info back from Occu-Med. Have like 4 things to do -_-. Lose some weight and dental are the main ones. Usually they give 5 days to do this but I asked for 2 months....gotta get a dentist that can clean me and I need to lose like 10 lbs. Not too bad but the dentist thing is going to cost like 1k to fix since i dont have dental insurance and they dont cover it.

Sucks but , regardless i need to get it done, job or no job. Atleast they paid for all my tests. (notbad)

Fulcrum45

Are they willing to extend time for things like that and still hold a position for you? Or do they just fill you into a job slot when it opens up? I think the medical cannot be older than 90 days so be careful with your timeline all the same. Also, don't feel bad. I already know I'm going to pop hot for the PPD test. That will most likely require chest x-rays to prove I don't have TB but I'm concerned what more I'll have to do to be cleared. I imagine I was exposed to it in Iraq but who knows, the Army just shuffled me on through the post deployment process and I never received any paperwork clearing me of it.

xocity

I did get a positive test for it , but had an xray and it was cleared up. They draw like 4 tubes of blood and have you piss in a cup. They will check blood pressure, and make you turn your head and cough. Took like 2 hours with wait times and stuff. Just an annoying process.

They then go through everything, and see you a long ass list of things to fix.

Fulcrum45

Oh no, this sounds like MEPS all over again, lol. I go next Tuesday. So many "what-if's" in this process its maddening.

Deathgomper

Fulcrum45 wrote: »

Are they willing to extend time for things like that and still hold a position for you? Or do they just fill you into a job slot when it opens up? I think the medical cannot be older than 90 days so be careful with your timeline all the same. Also, don't feel bad. I already know I'm going to pop hot for the PPD test. That will most likely require chest x-rays to prove I don't have TB but I'm concerned what more I'll have to do to be cleared. I imagine I was exposed to it in Iraq but who knows, the Army just shuffled me on through the post deployment process and I never received any paperwork clearing me of it.

My issue was cholesterol. So basically I would start watching what you eat and do some daily exercise (which is what I did). Don't forget that the doctors on base will look at all of your paperwork, so if you have any labs done or anything like that, ALWAYS go to the hospital afterward and get a copy of any results. My doctor didn't fax in my blood work in after I got my cholesterol levels down and when I got to CRC and that was all the doctors cared about. Luckily I had my results to provide for the medical record that you will create when you get there. Vectrus was ITT Exelis when I went through to Afghan in 2012.

SaSkiller

Question, I had one offer from overseas the vase pay was low, but they claimed that the additional pay and what not would total out to 100+k. Is this usually the case? Can I trust those kind of offers?

xocity

They are ususally contract jobs at like 25/hour but at 50 hours a week with O.T. pay and 25% increase for hazard and 25% increase for Danger pay, so hit like 100k+ per year.

joelsfood

I think I posted the details before, but xocity is right, or half of it, at least.

You'll get base pay, it'll be 50-60 hours per week, then upswing (varies by country, link for that is here in the thread too). Then if memory serves, there's a signing bonus, a 6mo bonus and a final 12 mo bonus. All of that together will add up to 125k or similar. If you stay out of the coutnry at least 334 days out of 365, you'll also have a lessened tax load. If you come back early though, you'll owe taxes on all of that at full self-employed type rate. I would recommend that you have them withold taxes if you think there's any chance of you coming back early. Or even if not.

Jason.pringle

I had a co-worker who applied and received an email reply the next day. From what I been seeing/hearing that's pretty standard. The opportunity is very ideal for my situation. Got my security plus, windows 7, TS clearance, BS degree in CS and 4 years working in IT. Sallie Mae been kicking my butt and this job could change the odds in my favor. I applied 3 days ago and still haven't heard a reply. Just an automated email saying they will review my resume and such. Should I be stressing out about this?I applied for the pc tech and sys admin positions in Afghanistan. Should I apply for help desk position (I hate help desk jobs), should I apply for Kuwait positions too. I'm super anxious right now maybe I just need to calm down and chill. Lol

Fulcrum45

Deathgomper wrote: »

My issue was cholesterol. So basically I would start watching what you eat and do some daily exercise (which is what I did). Don't forget that the doctors on base will look at all of your paperwork, so if you have any labs done or anything like that, ALWAYS go to the hospital afterward and get a copy of any results. My doctor didn't fax in my blood work in after I got my cholesterol levels down and when I got to CRC and that was all the doctors cared about. Luckily I had my results to provide for the medical record that you will create when you get there. Vectrus was ITT Exelis when I went through to Afghan in 2012.

Cholesterol is my main concern also. I had a physical just under a year ago and my numbers were high- passable, but high. I'm just hoping I haven't increased those numbers at all. I have lost about 15 lbs since then and have been watching what I consume for most of this year so maybe it'll all check out. I'll find out Tuesday. Appreciate the insight.

xocity

Got dropped out. They gave me 2 weeks to do 5 things, I asked them for a month or 2 since it wouldnt be physically possible for me to do it but they couldnt do it. Basically I need to get my stuff together and call them when its done and see if there is a position available.

Good Luck to everyone.

joelsfood

Xocity, get the thigns knocked out and reach out to them again. I was able to get out there like 4 (6?) weeks after the start and they still had the position. So don't give up on it if it's really something you want to try

xocity

Ima get my stuff taken care of regardless. I have some health things I need to address regardless of the job. Just gonna get it done asap and send it back and get that job!

Thanks for the motivation.

:Eye of the tiger song plays in the background:

Deathgomper

joelsfood wrote: »

Xocity, get the thigns knocked out and reach out to them again. I was able to get out there like 4 (6?) weeks after the start and they still had the position. So don't give up on it if it's really something you want to try

Exactly, you have to remember that people are coming and going from these overseas contract jobs constantly. The recruiter is probably getting a commission for everyone that makes it to CRC within a certain time frame. Heck they used to give you $500 if you could deploy within 17 days from signing or something like that. Some of the job postings are never taken down just because they are always filling them. For instance the Afghan Network Admin. REQ # was still the same (and never removed) two years after I applied for it.

Here is another piece of advice for any of you that get to CRC. If you haven't been cleared to fly yet, don't go out drinking and pigging out with your new friends. If something comes up in your medical record that doesn't sit well with the doctor they will make you redo labs. A couple of guys in our group had worse numbers and got held back because they figured they were good before their medical record was rubber stamped. If your paperwork is stamped and you have time....well, let's just say it is going to be awhile once you step on that plane.

SaSkiller

Didn't see any relevant positions for Vectrus, any other companies that specialize in overseas positions and have a quick turnaround?