Hello everybody,
This is my first post on ARRSE after lurking the board. I have a few questions for anybody who has any knowledge or experience to answer them for me.
I am 23 years old and currently studying at the University of Sheffield doing a Foundation Year which will progress on to a History and Philosophy BA. Joining the army is something I have always wanted to do since I was young, particularly at an officer rank. Sadly I made some poor choices as teenager which caused me to underachieve in my GCSE's and not be able to pursue A levels; I take full responsibility for these bad decisions. As it stands, I only have about 3 GCSE's graded at C, Mathematics is not included in these and also my Science was a BTEC graded at a PASS (equivalent to C). Fortunately, I got scouted for a job in Finance and worked in the Financial sales sector until I was 21- although it paid well I felt it was rather banal and lacked adventure, but because of bad grades and a lack of prospects thereof I decided to give university a shot. I am currently signed up for the UOTC and will do a medical for it in January (I do have some experience similar as I was in the Army Cadets as well).
This whole pandemic has really made me question what I want in life and I still want to serve in the Armed Forces, and lately I have been thinking of finishing my Foundation Year and then applying. While looking through the Army Mod site, I found that you can join the army and be recommended or apply for an enlistment into Sandhurst. Here are some questions that I have:
Will the Army let me study GCSE's and A Levels in my spare time in order to reach the necessary qualifications?
Should I request a commission only after a promotion? (I don't think it would be a appropriate to request it after passing all training, am I wrong?)
How possible is it to move up the ranks in this manner?
Should I finish University and then apply, even though I lack the GCSE's? (I will also be 27 when I graduate)
Thank you for reading through this, I really appreciate it and look forward to any advice given!
This is my first post on ARRSE after lurking the board. I have a few questions for anybody who has any knowledge or experience to answer them for me.
I am 23 years old and currently studying at the University of Sheffield doing a Foundation Year which will progress on to a History and Philosophy BA. Joining the army is something I have always wanted to do since I was young, particularly at an officer rank. Sadly I made some poor choices as teenager which caused me to underachieve in my GCSE's and not be able to pursue A levels; I take full responsibility for these bad decisions. As it stands, I only have about 3 GCSE's graded at C, Mathematics is not included in these and also my Science was a BTEC graded at a PASS (equivalent to C). Fortunately, I got scouted for a job in Finance and worked in the Financial sales sector until I was 21- although it paid well I felt it was rather banal and lacked adventure, but because of bad grades and a lack of prospects thereof I decided to give university a shot. I am currently signed up for the UOTC and will do a medical for it in January (I do have some experience similar as I was in the Army Cadets as well).
This whole pandemic has really made me question what I want in life and I still want to serve in the Armed Forces, and lately I have been thinking of finishing my Foundation Year and then applying. While looking through the Army Mod site, I found that you can join the army and be recommended or apply for an enlistment into Sandhurst. Here are some questions that I have:
Will the Army let me study GCSE's and A Levels in my spare time in order to reach the necessary qualifications?
Should I request a commission only after a promotion? (I don't think it would be a appropriate to request it after passing all training, am I wrong?)
How possible is it to move up the ranks in this manner?
Should I finish University and then apply, even though I lack the GCSE's? (I will also be 27 when I graduate)
Thank you for reading through this, I really appreciate it and look forward to any advice given!
