British Army Questions

RobPot said:
Sorry, but why on earth are you posting this question on a computing forum?
I think you need to do a little more research, speak to people, and... (...I hate to say it...) ... but get out more.
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Perhaps you do! A little ironic that you location is set to 'looking out of the window' would indicate you need to get out more?
 
GMorrison said:
I plan on enlisting next year and I have a few questions:

I am Scottish, would I be able to train on a Scottish base instead of going to England?
What is my wage, and whatare the average deductables (accommodation, etc)
And what would be my take-home pay.
Out of 10, how high would you rate the fitness level needed to become a soldier (10 being very high)

Thanks!
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depending on what you choose to join will determine where you go for training, but i cant think of any phase 1(or even phase 2 for that matter) training regts in scotland. you cant choose where you go either.
however you can pick which Regt you wish to be posted when you finish training, although you may not get your first choice they will try to accommodate your wishes you have to remember the armys needs come before yours, so if you wish to be based in scotland do some research and find out which regts are based in scotland.

dont get me wrong but if being away from home for long periods of time are an issue then you have to consider if the army is really the kind of job for you.

dont have a pay slip at hand but pay aint that great to begin with but then again neiter are the outgoings, first 6 months you will be getting about £750ish in hand at the end of the month.
as has been said after 6 months your pay gets increased to 16k, it will then rise as you go up the pay bands in each rank.

fitness is obviously a massive thing in the army, but that dosnt mean they expect you to be superman, however you should be looking to going to selection with a good base fitness, make sure you can do the 1.5mile in well under 10:30, into the 9's preferably.
they built up your fitness in basic and all training is progressive, as long as you keep the fitness level from selection or even improve on it(which you should easily be able to do) then you will have no problems, the fitter you are going in to basic the easier it will be for you.
 
GMorrison said:
I plan on enlisting next year and I have a few questions:

I am Scottish, would I be able to train on a Scottish base instead of going to England?
If you was thinking of joining the infantry, ie, a Scottish Battalion, then yes. If you joined specialist units like the Engineers, Signals etc etc, you would do your training in England.
What is my wage, and whatare the average deductables (accommodation, etc)
16k minus tax, accommodation and food
And what would be my take-home pay.
About £750 - 800 approx
Out of 10, how high would you rate the fitness level needed to become a soldier (10 being very high)
I was a paratrooper in the Engineers. Fitness levels for that would be about 7-8 , other units about 5-6

Thanks!
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RobPot said:
Sorry, but why on earth are you posting this question on a computing forum?
I think you need to do a little more research, speak to people, and... (...I hate to say it...) ... but get out more.

Are you for real ?
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I seriously suggest it would be a good idea for you to pop down to your local AFCO and have a word with someone and get some information, its NEVER too early to get the ball rolling and you are making no commitments what so ever by going in for info, you would be suprised how helpful they are, the lads down at the one in dundee were a great bunch and were full of info.
they can give you a load of reading material to take away for you to have a look at and hopefully get a better idea of what you want to do.
first time i went in i came away with half a freakin forest worth of paper under my arm!
just make sure you do as much research as you can.
 
Good luck, dont over train, work on speed the army will pull your endurence up once you're in. To practice for the BPFA (1.5 mile test run @ 10.30) I usually run 400m as fast as i can, then rest for 400m and repeat over a 4 mile loop. It takes me 8 mins and I'm 33. Don't stress if it takes you 10:30 theres no extra points for being faster.

I mean 8 mins for the BPFA not for 4 mile.
 
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if i remember correctly 2 SCOTS are glencorse and 3 SCOTS fort george in inverness i think.
if thats what you want to do then there would be a fairly good chance, what part of scotland you from?
 
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Well if you ask to join a battalion based in scotland then you'll go there but bare in mind that battalions do move (not as often as we used to) you may find yourself in London, especially if you join the guards as they do public duties like guardiing buck house more often than non guards units.

Dreghorn barracks is closest for you i think, not a bad camp either
 
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Good luck to you chap; I often think about going back in myself. You'll find things much easier if you get yourself reasonably fit before you go in, take as much advice from the AFCO staff and serving Soldiers as possible, and prepare yourself mentally for some hard slogs and abuse. It's worth it in the end.

P.S. - Why not join THE Royal Corps? Better pay, cooler kit, but everyone else in the Army will hate you. ;)
 
I'm not sure how old you are mate but, if you're coming up to sixteen, then consider joining the army cadets or something so that you can get a feel for the ethos of the forces. Go away to a few bases and see what you think. Bear in mind that even the best SLA is still rather basic for a 20-22 year old, so think about how you might feel in a few years. If you still want to go for it then you'll at least be a little prepared for what's to come.

If you are under 18, you'll go to harrogate in yorkshire for your initial training, otherwise your phase 1 training should be at Pirbright, which is just accross the way from Sandhurst.

Pay is good for an entry-level job and rises quickly, and continues to rise if you show promise and go for promotion.

Physical fitness doesn't need to be amazing but you should be able to cover 1.5 miles in 11 mins (9 mins for the Paras and 10.something for the engineers). The main attribute is ability to learn quickly about preparation, getting food and sleep when you can and having the mental strength to carry on when you really don't want to.
 
GMorrison said:
I plan on enlisting next year and I have a few questions:

I am Scottish, would I be able to train on a Scottish base instead of going to England?
What is my wage, and whatare the average deductables (accommodation, etc)
And what would be my take-home pay.
Out of 10, how high would you rate the fitness level needed to become a soldier (10 being very high)

Thanks!
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no1.Different ATR train different cap badges, you go where your training is held.

no2. The wages are all available on the MoD website

no3. same

no4. for infantry you need to run the 1.5 miles under 11:45, i was lucky going for REME i had a leisurely 14 mins to do it in. Your strength tests are pretty easy just crack on with your strength, chin ups and back and other upper body exercises and it will be a breeze.
 
GMorrison said:
I plan on enlisting next year and I have a few questions:

I am Scottish, would I be able to train on a Scottish base instead of going to England?
What is my wage, and whatare the average deductables (accommodation, etc)
And what would be my take-home pay.
Out of 10, how high would you rate the fitness level needed to become a soldier (10 being very high)

Thanks!
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You will be trained in the base that trains the regiment, in all truth it doesn't matter as you will not have much time to see the outside world.

Wage - not sure about the wage, deductables will be about £100 a month when in barricks. It could be more or less, its been a while sence I left the forces.

Fitness does not need to be that high when you first join, you will get no shortage of fitness training. Generaly you don't want to be fat or overly weak, my advise would be to go for a short easy run twice a week before you join just to make life easy for yourself.
 
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