WASHINGTON –Two months after completing his five-plus years as an Army medic, Dan Huber is still looking for a job. And while he's had some promising interviews, he has no assurances the search will end soon.

That's given him some insight that he shares with some of his buddies back at Fort Polk in Louisiana: Don't wait until you've left the military to determine how you'll make ends meet as a civilian.

"I've told them: 'Hey, man, you guys have really got to start planning months and months in advance. It's not just planning for interviews. It's planning to make sure you'll be afloat in this time period, which you don't know how long will take,'" said Huber, 26, of Waukesha, Wis.