ARmy Rumour SErvice

Originally Posted by forsey

My only advice is that there is no sympathy or special consideration due to your age. They expect you to be just as good and the bar is not lowered or raised for anyone. If you feel getting a bit older, a bit more mature will do you good then don't rush! Average joining age is 23 after all.

Not entirely correct. The final boarding is made on the basis of what the assessors consider your potential to be, based on the evidence they've seen over the course of the board. They might therefore, come to the conclusion that a younger candidate has more potential to improve with training and pass him or her despite what might appear to be a weaker performance; alternatively, they might decide that a candidate is currently too young, fail them but encourage them to come back some time later.

Secondly, you've passed AOSB so well done, but that doesn't really put you in a position to pontificate over which regiments or corps want their candidates to have degrees, or whether to tell the interviewers about cadet experiences or not. Stick to what you know.

Originally Posted by forsey

Agree with most the points about it not being an issue. I'm 18 and passed briefing with a cat 1 and got a good solid pass main board.
I was the only person on my board who hadn't been to or currently was at uni yet it made no difference. 2 of 8 of us passed- one was a 25 year old maths graduate and there was me- further clarifying that so long as you have leadership potential, effective intelligence and they believe your a solid person you'll make the grade.
My only advice is that there is no sympathy or special consideration due to your age. They expect you to be just as good and the bar is not lowered or raised for anyone. If you feel getting a bit older, a bit more mature will do you good then don't rush! Average joining age is 23 after all.
Regimentally, like it has been said, engineers and technical regiments will potentially look for a degree. I have also heard on the grapevine that for Int. Corps it's almost an unwritten rule.
Finally, on the issue of cadets, don't mention it too much- it will make you seem like a one trick pony. I have done all 3 ten tors standards and I didn't go on about it too much- the army know all about them, tell them something they're not experts on. Furthermore, on my board 4 lads had done OTC. I'm not saying it made them less suitable; it was just the quality of candidate. But they have all failed.
Best of luck.

There certainly is special consideration due to age. Its why in the briefing, you are assigned to age categories.

Both are true and inevitably, as with a lot on here, is what we have heard read or been told and in that sense is open to be wrong- happy to be corrected. I was steered away from int. core by my ACA due to being nongtad, as well as reme. Any ideas which reg is best for a possible inservice degree?

Originally Posted by forsey

Both are true and inevitably, as with a lot on here, is what we have heard read or been told and in that sense is open to be wrong- happy to be corrected. I was steered away from int. core by my ACA due to being nongtad, as well as reme. Any ideas which reg is best for a possible inservice degree?

I was also steered away from the Int corps as I'm a non grad.

Originally Posted by dodzy-1

The ACA I went to said with the experiences I have had so far and maybe some volunteering I should be well on my way to RMAS.I have done the Nijmegen march and I am going to the arctic part of Norway for 5 weeks later this year aswell as doing the great north run and maybe try and find something else to do. On leaving sixth form I am going to volunteer with a local charity and regards to my cadets I hope to progress to CSM in the next few months.

Get a good time in the GNR or don't bother mentioning it. I made that mistake - I got a truly awful time (one which I will have to get around to beating before I go to main board no doubt or I'll look a fool) and got ripped for it. "What? Were you running backwards? A lad your age should be doing it in 90 minutes"

Originally Posted by AFA06

You will have as good/bad a chance as a person with a degree. The attitude toward those who are not graduates joining has changed. It depends entirely on you as a person so long as you fulfil the minimum educational requirements. Non-grads do as well/as bad as their grad counterparts depending upon how intelligent and committed they are. If you are the right person then not having a degree in the modern army will not hold you back in the slightest. Anyone who tells you different is a tad old fashioned.

Speaking as one who joined RMAS straight from school in 1974, when OCdts with degrees were a very new-fangled thing, I'm not sure I can agree with your 'old-fashioned' thing.

The Army has traditionally (meaning for generations) had a properly sceptical view where the academic abilities of its junior officers are concerned. That may have shifted slightly, given the ready availabillity (until recently) of grant-funded University education, but 10 years of all-too-serious combat should have restored a focus on the central qualities of the young men and women appointed to junior command, while the fact of Uni fees and recession, will mean that Graduate entrants (who made up 71% of RMAS entrants, last time I looked a coupla years ago) are going to become rarer.

Point is this - if you have the minimum educational qualifications, you're in with a shout.

To get in (aside from the very useful matter of having some kind of cap-badge sponsorship in your favour) you need to be able to turn up at Westbury with sufficient confidence and maturity for your age, to stand up favourably in comparison with others who have had a gap year, time at Uni, and in some cases, real jobs.

When/If you come out of Sandhurst with a pip on each shoulder, you'll find that all the skiing, climbing, rugby or Cadet experience in the world, is no preparation for dealing with (f'rinstance) the marital problems of an immature or troubled soldier who may/may not be older than you, but who will almost certainly have at least one op tour - and a much tougher upbringing - under his belt. Regimental officering ain't just about 'the working day' - it's 24 hour-365 days a year thing, even if you're not in the field.

Go when you're ready, not before. But don't let anyone talk you out of having a go, if it is what you really want to do.

You might want to look on YouTube, for the RMAS documentary aired on BBC last year. All sorts to be learned from that.

Good luck.

Originally Posted by Stonker

When/If you come out of Sandhurst with a pip on each shoulder, you'll find that all the skiing, climbing, rugby or Cadet experience in the world, is no preparation for dealing with (f'rinstance) the marital problems of an immature or troubled soldier who may/may not be older than you, but who will almost certainly have at least one op tour - and a much tougher upbringing - under his belt. Regimental officering ain't just about 'the working day' - it's 24 hour-365 days a year thing, even if you're not in the field.

This is far and away the bit about being an Officer that scares me the most...any tips about how to manage it effectively? I mean, there must be such a gap of life experience between soo many young officers and the squaddies they lead. How do you go about convincing them that you A) seriously care about their welfare and B) actually give advice that is helpful and useful?

It isn't necessarily as daunting as it might seem. It is something that you will learn about at RMAS where you will be taught where to seek the help that you need. The welfare of the soldiers you lead is a key part of the job of being an officer and it isn't neglected in your training.