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Hi there, I'm thinking of joining the British armed forces as an officer, and I was wondering if I could get your advice. A bit about me: I'm in my early 20s - a Commonwealth citizen who has been living in the UK for the past 5-and-a-bit years. I have a social science degree from a top-tier British university. I'm currently working for a PR agency with a focus on crisis management. Before that, I worked in Parliament as an aide. I've been thinking about joining one of the branches of the British military for about a year now - probably either the Army or the RAF. There are a few reasons for this: First of all: from a practical perspective, I need a visa to stay in the country, which I desperately want to do. Joining up would give me this. Second: I really like this country, and feel the kind of loyalty to it that I think only really comes when you're an immigrant. It's the kind of place I'd like to fight for. Third: I don't really know where my career is going at the moment, and my current job doesn't feel very secure. So I figure the military would give me some concrete assurance that - at the very least - I've got a promotion to look forward to, and my employer probably won't go out of business any time soon. Fourth: I also really dislike my industry. Apart from going back to school (which I can't afford and don't really want to do anyway) joining up sounds like the most straightforward way to change tack. Fifth: I'm out of shape, and deciding to join up would give me a concrete incentive to lose some weight and get in shape in order to meet the fitness standards. Sixth: I think I've got a bit of a character flaw, in that I tend to be pretty bad at doing stuff I don't like doing. This sounds stupid, but I think it's stopping me from really excelling at work and getting in shape... etc. In the military, you tend to be forced to do poo poo you hate - it's part of the culture. So maybe I'd learn some... discipline, I guess? If I do end up joining, it won't be until around this time next year. I think this gives me enough time to get in shape and prepare for the various aptitude tests. ---- All this said... I don't know if I should do it and, if so, how best to go about it. So, a few questions: 1) How far above and beyond the entry fitness requirements should I be? e.g.: I need to be able to run 1.5 miles in 11 minutes to join the RAF, but should I actually aim to be able to do it in 9 mins, because otherwise I'll burn out in training? 2) 9 years seems like a hell of a long time to sign my life away for. What exactly would I be doing all day? Is there enough flexibility that, if I find I really dislike and/or suck at my assigned role, I can switch to something else? Or am I stuck with that for as long as I'm in the military? 3) Does the military need people like me? I know that's pretty impossible to tell just from what I've written... So, generally speaking, what do the various branches look for in their officers? 4) As a Commonwealth citizen, I can join as an officer, but will my nationality make it harder to make my way up the ranks, even after I finally get British citizenship? 5) How much choice do I have in terms of where I get posted? 6) Should I learn a third language? Will this make me more useful? Is the military looking for particular languages at the moment? Got any other advice for me? Need more info? I'd really appreciate your advice, both UK specific and more general.
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Apr 10, 2014 23:29
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| # ? Apr 25, 2024 16:09 |
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I'm United States, but I'm pretty sure this is global. This point:quote:Fifth: I'm out of shape, and deciding to join up would give me a concrete incentive to lose some weight and get in shape in order to meet the fitness standards.
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Apr 11, 2014 00:24
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joining the military won't transform you from some fat piece of poo poo that eats pizza all day long into some pussy slamming mother fucker
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Apr 11, 2014 00:25
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Reverand maynard posted:joining the military won't transform you from some fat piece of poo poo that eats pizza all day long into some pussy slamming mother fucker but thats not what the commercials say Iseeyouseemeseeyou fucked around with this message at 00:43 on Apr 11, 2014 |
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Apr 11, 2014 00:32
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Sir Lucius posted:I'm United States, but I'm pretty sure this is global. This point: OK, true. I guess it's more of the latter for me. Like, if I want to join the military, I need to be fit. But I also need to get fit anyway, because I don't like being fat. So I guess I'll get fit over the next year anyway, and if I choose to join up then good, but even if I don't join up I'll still be happy I got in shape. I'm not treating it like fat camp. I want to be as fit as possible when I join.
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Apr 11, 2014 00:35
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Reverand maynard posted:joining the military won't transform you from some fat piece of poo poo that eats pizza all day long into some pussy slamming mother fucker He just wants to slay lava monsters.
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Apr 11, 2014 01:40
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look, all I'll say is, I gave my 20s to the air force, and I got to do a lot of cool poo poo, made some really good money, and took advantage of a lot of benefits, but I also missed out on a lot of cool poo poo too because I spent all my time in the desert. would I do it again, knowing what I know now? probably. but there's no way I'd agree to a 10 year commitment second time around
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Apr 11, 2014 04:56
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Reverand maynard posted:joining the military will transform you from some fat piece of poo poo that eats pizza all day long into some man-pussy slamming mother fucker ftfy. My understanding is that none of our armed services are really hurting for bodies at the moment, so you may struggle. On the committing yourself for 9 years thing - make sure you are getting a trade or a marketable skill out of this. Contrary to the marketing pitch, pointing guns at people and shouting bang is not a skill-set that is much in demand in civvy street. At least not in the UK.
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Apr 11, 2014 12:41
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Join a nice bowel of rice pudding EASY THERE O JUST ONE SERVING
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Apr 19, 2014 03:33
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I think you would make an excellent officer; too many people join to serve, not enough join to be served. Why worry about changing your ways? Join and figure out how to manipulate things so you never have to do what you don't want to/feel like doing. Do the Brits have light duty or profiles? (For injuries) Starting with your initial training figure out what it takes to keep from having to sweat, while still being able to stay in. Figure out which officer billets require the least technical expertise, have less urgency(more likely to be on a weekends and evenings off schedule), and minimal responsibility/accountability. Maybe admin, or some area where quality work can be hard to differentiate from the mediocre, or where blame can be laid at someone else's feet? Intel or Supply?
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Apr 19, 2014 04:39
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Join the submarine fleet. See the world. You will learn a dynamic skill set which will allow you to move into whichever industry you desire while getting in shape and gradually learning how to love life and make decisions. If there is a requirement referral program lemme know!
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Apr 19, 2014 07:35
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Nelson MandEULA posted:I think I've got a bit of a character flaw, in that I tend to be pretty bad at doing stuff This is a common feature at Cranwell and Sandhurst.
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Apr 19, 2014 19:16
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If you're not good at doing anything join the US military. You'll get rank pretty quick.
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Apr 20, 2014 00:02
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There is a reason the Canadian Forces is the largest employer of Classics and History majors. I'm starting to suspect that may apply to the Brits too.
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Apr 20, 2014 00:59
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Do me a favour join the RAF, we have plenty of poo poo officers in the Army who don't like doing things they don't like and end up making GBS threads on the lads.
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Apr 20, 2014 22:41
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Cole posted:If you're not good at doing anything join the US military. You'll get rank pretty quick. Lol. Not sure if serious or trolling. Rank is a bitch to pick up (at least in the Marines) and with the downsizing of the military, rank will be even harder to obtain.
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Apr 22, 2014 19:59
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The joke is that only idiots get rank while the smart ones get shafted and get out. Edit: VVV My mistake. Godholio fucked around with this message at 04:08 on Apr 23, 2014 |
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Apr 23, 2014 00:39
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Godholio posted:The joke is that only idiots get rank while the smart ones get shafted and get out. Joke?
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Apr 23, 2014 01:52
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| # ? Apr 25, 2024 16:09 |
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Nelson MandEULA posted:1) How far above and beyond the entry fitness requirements should I be? e.g.: I need to be able to run 1.5 miles in 11 minutes to join the RAF, but should I actually aim to be able to do it in 9 mins, because otherwise I'll burn out in training? The more above and beyond the entry level standards you are the better. There's a ton of little things to get stressed about in military training, why not eliminate one? Most of the others are beyond your control anyways. I was bad at pushups and got constantly hosed with because of it at one school I was at. They made me do extra PT on the weekends when everyone else was off. Naturally, the extra PT consisted of running. The point is I could have avoided the whole thing by doing more pushups before I got there. You don't want to be in fat kid PT.
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May 30, 2014 21:40
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