Two former Defence Force members, Craig Foster and Jye Snare, are on target to complete their Bachelor of Education at the University of Tasmania Cradle Coast campus.
Taking time out from their busy schedules, they sat down with the Advocate Newspaper reporter Meg Whitfield to share their challenging, but very meaningful story of transition from the military to the classroom.
They also praised the academic staff at Cradle Coast Campus for their guidance and support while embarking on a new and exciting future career.
In a previous life, Coastal resident Jye Snare spent his days driving patrol boats and navigating submarines as a Navy maritime warfare officer, while Craig Foster spent more than 18 years in service to the army.
Mr Snare said in a number of ways that varied background was actually their strength.
"I know a lot of people get stuck in an identity of what their job is," he said.
"(The Navy) was great, but my mindset is on the future.
"(Teaching) is a different world, which is the exciting part because you get to learn and develop a new skill-set."
He said he was regularly in awe of the teachers around him guiding him through placement, but that he was excited to bring his own experiences to the table as well - which, for him, included modelling the value in continuing to grow and adapt.
"I'm very interested in resilience," Mr Snare said.
"It's all about teaching them that no matter who you are or what you do, you're always going to have an obstacle or some sort of adversity.
"But it's how you manage your internal state of being through that adversity that really matters."
It's about what I can bring to the future of our society. That's what it boils down to for me.
For Mr Foster, this new career represented an opportunity to continue serving his community, just in a new way.
"I think and having suffered a lot of mental health issues from my service as well, I'm very open and honest," he said.
"I wasn't a very good student myself.
"But I see my kids, and I see other kids at school that either don't have strong male role models or older male role models - so that's what I look at.
"It's about what I can bring to the future of our society. That's what it boils down to for me."
Upon graduating from their Bachelors, both Mr Foster and Mr Snare have ambitions of staying on the Coast, with Mr Snare particularly excited about primary teaching and diving into the world of science and maths - where his naval background can come into play again.
For Mr Foster, secondary school is more his speed - although, "a big kid" himself, upper primary seems pretty good too.