Career In The Army part 2 (Hopefully)

bakes0310

bakes0310

bakes0310

Soldato
Joined
22 Oct 2004
Posts
13,708
Cause of the no search function i couldnt find my old thread so i think ill just make a new one.

Since late January this year i have been getting myself fit ready for a career in the Army. And today for the first tiem in my life I feel like im physically fit and ready. I went for my run today along the canal and i timed my 1.5 run and done it in 9min59secs which im really happy with as i had to do it in 10mins30secs :) As soon as i got in i went on the army website and filled out the online applicatin form and ill be hearing from them withing 10 days :)

Im hoping (and a little help from a captain) to get in the ColdStream Guards its something i really wanted to do from when i was little and nows my chance to live my dream.

I know its going to be extremely challenging and i know theres going to be times where i want to go home, but there will be times when ill feel like the most happiest chap ever :D and talk about job satisfaction aswell itll make me feel like im making a difference even if its a small one.

Im off in my caravan in 2 weeks and im going near an army base so ill be talking to the soldiers on patrol asking them questions and maybe theyll let me hold there rifle :)
 
MrJimjok said:
Whats the distance your having to run for the fitness??

And btw i wouldnt recommend trying to hold one of the regs rifles. All military bases in the UK are at a heightened state of alert at the moment due to the Glasgow Bombings so i dont think it would be advisable!!

You should have had a look at the cadet forces for an experience into army life!
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Only joking i know they wouldnt let me touch it :)
I currently run twice a week 1 run is a 1.5miles to see if im keeping on top of my running time ready for my test. And the other run i do is 4.75 miles with bag that carries 2 washing powder boxes and i do that run to improve endurance, and to get me used to running with a bag. I go to the gym 3 times a week for about hour and half sessions. Basically this is my fitness routine:
Sunday-Run
Monday-Gym
Tuesday-Rest Day
Wednesday-Gym
Thursday-Run
Friday-Rest Day
Saturday-Gym

But its looking all good on the fitness front, and im just looking forward to getting in, fingers crossed :)

Edit:
oops didnt answer your question i got to do a 1.5mile run in 10minutes 30 seconds :)
 
Ghosteh said:
lol, I very much doubt you would be able to hold their rifle. But good luck :P

Do you have a gf at the moment? Because, unless she is really up for the army, my advice would be dump her before you get to basic lol. Biggest problem when I was going though Basic was gf's calling bf's any complaining, caused so much bloody upset lol.

Anyways, good luck fella. I'm hoping to get back in soon hehe. The application process may take ages just to warn you, especially this time of year. I've had my application in for about 2 months now, not even been on selection yet, not heard any dates etc.
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No gf :)
I would like to go in about febuary-march time so thats why im doing it now cause ive heard it can take about 2-6 months. And i thought they were really in need of more soldiers.
And as for my application it says that i should be hearing from them within 10 days, didnt you even get a phone call.
 
Ghosteh said:
Nah, I went in to my local AFCO, I had some extra stuff to ask as I am reapplying after a Medical Discharge in 2005. I'm sure you will hear back, What I mean though, is it can take up to like a year to get in, if your unlucky, if your lucky, 2 months. When I 1st got in It took around 3 months from start to finish.

ps. good thing to have no gf for basic training hah.
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What Regiment were you in and what role?
 
Ghosteh said:
Yep. My original plan was to do around 5-6 years doing that, then coming out and getting a job on civvy street. but after getting discharged, and working on civvy street for the past 2 years, I hate it lol. When I get in again, im planning on doing at least 22 years hah.
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After working on civvy street ( look at me army talk already ;) ) its really helped me in thinking that i really want to make a good go at it and try and stay in that army as long as possible. I know im not in yet but its gotta be better than warehouse work :)
 
I was on the official army site just looking up what sort of infantry roles you can be, all of them are quite self are quite obvious like paratrooper and sniper but then i saw the following:
Reconnaissance Soldier
Assault Pioneer

What do you suppose that involves?
 
zom247 said:
Being thick as mince helps! Also the ability to carry heavy objects and not being able to read and write is a pre-requisite for some infantry jobs (I speak from experience of serving with them and I'm NOT infantry) :D
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woot im gonna fit right in :D
I would like to be a sniper i heard thats really challenging or if not maybe a heavy machine gunner. My dad was in the ColdStream Guards and he was in the mortar division which doesnt really appeal to me but maybe...
 
wordy said:
Good to see you making the effort to get fitter before joining up, I did exactly the same as you before joining the RN. You'll be suprised the amount of people who don't tho :confused:

To be honest though Bakes, no matter how fit you are, you'll end up fitter. The PTI's make sure everyone is working their hardest, and if they catch someone loafing then then don't do it again ;)

Good luck! :)
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Its either down to laziness or they think there fit already probably.

Anyway its good to see a soilder on these forums what did you join then?
 
Ive just phoned army career office to see what my next step is, and they told me to pop down any time. So im gonna go down tomorrow, im really nervous ive been waiting to do something about going in the army for ages now, and its finally happening:)
 
The Mad Rapper said:
<Former RMP SIB SGT Mode>

Do not join the Infantry. It can be a good life, but promotion is slow and competition fierce. I recommend that you join a technical trade as that will give you far better career prospects outside the Army, which is really what you must constantly think about. It's only a 22 year job, once you've done your time you'll need to find another career.

I also suggest you save as much of your salary as you can and buy a house as soon as possible. Then rent it out and let someone else pay your mortgage. I really regret not having done that when I was younger, so learn from my mistakes!

Either the Royal Signals, Royal Military Police or the Royal Engineers would be my suggestions.

If you need any advice or help then don't hesitate to get in touch.

</Former RMP SIB SGT Mode>
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Ive got my heart set on the guards, but ill defiently take your advice about saving up for a house and renting it out though:)
What advice would you give me on settling in, cause im sure the first month or so adjusting will be hard.
 
Just an update, i went to the army careers office wednesday, and i walked out with an application form:)
It took me about an hour to fill it all out and check it to make sure it was all correct, and i posteded it on the same day. So hopefully they should have it by monday, and i should be hearig from them soon:)
 
Ghosteh said:
The first few months can be hard if you've not lived away from home before. I found it incredibly difficult, being away from my family, my girlfriend(thank fudge I won't this time around lol).
I surprisingly found going to the church, both during the Sunday sermon, and during the evenings some nights rather helpful, having a chat to the padre(who was awesome). And trust me, before I went in the army, I was a MASSIVE atheist, but there was something about the atmosphere in the church that helped comfort me, as well as lighting candles for the ones I cared for.

Also letters from home were also nice, they make you miss people, but they also make you remember they are there for you always. They are better than phone calls because you can Re-Read them over and over.

Also, lots of phone calls are also good, you should get time to call your family in the evenings etc. Just for the LOVE of god don't take a phone out with you on exercise, unless you want to get yourself and the rest of your troop beasted to hell lol.
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Your input is always great to hear from:)
The army recruiter was like "what regiment do u want to join" i said coldstream guards, he was like wtf:p
 
Little update, just this moment came back from holiday down East Fleet, to find a letter from the army. Its my medical forms i got to fill out:) this does seem to be happening quite fast so, after a nice session on Bioshock im gonna sit down and fill it out and post it off:)
 
Update:
Ive filled in what i can on the medical forms and the rest i handed in yesturday to my doctor so now its just a matter of time:)

Its all happening really fast i was expecting to wait a month or so for my medical forms after filling out my application form, but i only had to wait a week:eek::)
 
Ghosteh said:
Cool cool. Don't want to sound annoying though, but that part of the application process doesn't take long at all. What does take a while though is the length of time the medical forms take to get processed. I've just come back from the AFCO and I was told that mine should be ready in the next two weeks or so. They got sent off to the review board about 4-5 weeks ago, so they wont be rushed though even though they are quite desperate.

When they have been reviewed they can go a number of ways:
1) Accepted, they will email your recruiter who will then get back to you to arrange an interview.

2) Require more information. They will email the recruiter and send him some forms which will be passed onto you to take to your GP, this can add a few weeks onto the application process.

3) Unsuitable. This could either be permanent, or could be a few months depending on the reason.

Once your accepted on medical grounds you will go for an interview to discuss your job choices in further detail, and have an arranged date set for you to go to a selection centre, this will be about 2 or so weeks after your medical acceptance.

This is when the dates can vary vastly depending on your trade choice. Infantry can be sorted within a few weeks and you would be off to ITC Catterick. If your job is more specialised however you could have to wait for anything up to a few months, possibly till April next year when the new recruitment term starts.

Hope this clears things up for you a bit dude. Good luck with it all :D
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Cheers for the read:)

Yeah i dont mind if it takes a while, i said from the start that id like to be in about febuary, so plenty of time:)
 
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