What civilian jobs fit an Army 11B or Marine 0311 infantryman?
The Department of Labor's military crosswalk maps both Army 11B Infantryman and Marine Corps 0311 Rifleman to one occupation, Infantry, which is a military-only category: it names no civilian job. Career Backstory's free lookup offers five real civilian occupations instead: Security Guards, First-Line Supervisors of Security Workers, Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers, Correctional Officers and Jailers, and Emergency Management Directors. Treat them as a starting point. What you did in uniform is what gets you hired.
What the lookup shows for an 11B
This is what the free veterans lookup returns for Army 11B, as it stands on the date above. The government's answer is shown as it is, next to ours.
| Government crosswalk | Our match |
|---|---|
| Infantry (55-3016.00), a military-only category | Security Guards (33-9032.00) |
| First-Line Supervisors of Security Workers (33-1091.00) | |
| Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers (33-3051.00) | |
| Correctional Officers and Jailers (33-3012.00) | |
| Emergency Management Directors (11-9161.00) |
The codes are O*NET-SOC occupation codes. A Marine Corps 0311 returns the same rows.
Our rule is simple. When the crosswalk names real civilian jobs, our match is the crosswalk's. When it stops at a military-only category, as it does for infantry, our match is a short list picked by hand from real civilian occupations in the same federal list. No AI picks them, and nothing about you is stored.
Why the crosswalk stops at Infantry
The crosswalk maps each military specialty to occupations in the federal occupation list, and that list has a group of military-only occupations: Infantry, Artillery and Missile Crew Members, Armored Assault Vehicle Crew Members and others. A specialty with no direct civilian counterpart is mapped there, and the crosswalk goes no further. Army 13B Cannon Crewmember and 19D Cavalry Scout come back the same way. For the people most likely to look, the official answer is blank.
Why these five
- Security Guards: standing a post, patrolling, controlling access and reporting what you saw.
- First-Line Supervisors of Security Workers: the same work as the person in charge of a team, the way a fire team or squad leader is.
- Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers: patrol, judgment under pressure, and working within rules on the use of force.
- Correctional Officers and Jailers: keeping order, following procedure exactly, and staying alert through a long shift.
- Emergency Management Directors: planning for the worst, running operations when it happens, and coordinating many people at once.
Several of these need state licensing, an academy or other training first. The lookup tells you where to look, not that you qualify.
If you led a team
Tick “I led a team” in the lookup and it adds the roles a leader also fits. For an 11B or 0311 that is Training and Development Specialists. The supervisor role it would add, First-Line Supervisors of Security Workers, is already in the list above.
A title is a starting point
A specialty code tells an employer what you were trained for. It says nothing about what you did: the fire team you led, the soldiers you trained, the convoy you planned, the equipment you kept running, the inventory you signed for. Those are what open jobs well beyond these five, and they are what a hiring manager reads. Write them down in plain civilian words, with numbers where you have them.
Common questions
Is there a civilian equivalent of an Army 11B?
Not one official equivalent. The Department of Labor's crosswalk maps 11B to Infantry, a military-only category, so it names no civilian job. Career Backstory's free lookup offers five real civilian occupations instead: Security Guards, First-Line Supervisors of Security Workers, Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers, Correctional Officers and Jailers, and Emergency Management Directors.
Does the same answer apply to a Marine Corps 0311?
Yes. The crosswalk maps 0311 Rifleman to the same Infantry category, and our lookup offers the same five occupations for it.
Why does the government crosswalk stop at Infantry?
The crosswalk maps each military specialty to occupations in the federal list, and that list has a group of military-only occupations, Infantry among them. For a specialty with no direct civilian counterpart, the crosswalk stops there. Army 13B and 19D come back the same way.
What does “I led a team” add?
For an 11B or 0311 it adds Training and Development Specialists. The supervisor role it would add, First-Line Supervisors of Security Workers, is already in the list.
Do I need to share my DD-214?
No. The lookup asks only for the specialty code in block 11 of your DD-214. Never upload or share the form itself: it carries your Social Security number.
Are these the only jobs open to an infantryman?
No. They are the closest matches to the title. What you actually did, such as leading a fire team, training others, running logistics or maintaining equipment, opens many more, and that is what an employer hires.
Look up your own code
The veterans lookup is free, needs no sign-up and stores nothing about you. Enter your branch and the code from block 11 of your DD-214 to see the government's answer next to ours. When you are ready to turn what you did into a resume, Free Start builds your career library from your current resume at no cost, military service included.
Look up your codeThis page is general guidance about military-to-civilian job matches. It is not career advice for your situation. It includes information from the O*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. “Our match” is Career Backstory's own and is not endorsed by USDOL/ETA.