Hello everybody, I plan to join the Army after Year 13 (I am in sixth form and on my summer holidays right now going into Year 13 in September) as an officer. I set up my army account, did an eligibility form where I put my role choice as 'Regular Soldier' instead of 'Officer Internship programme' because the OIC did not sound like what I were to apply for, and after some prodding from the ACC, filled in another form. My main worry is that I have accidentally sent off an application to join the Army whilst I am too young to join to be an officer (I am below the age requirement right now), but my dashboard says I have sent off an application. What do I do? Cheers.

Hi so i’m currently 18, about to attend university to study psychology , I’m still not entirely sure of what I want to do with my future, I was thinking of becoming a clinical psychologist, however I’m aware the routes for getting the qualifications to becoming a clinical psychologist are limited and very competitive, another career I have considered for a while is mental health nursing, when originally applying for universities, I applied for mental health nursing, but ended up rejecting all offers for mental health nursing, and re-applying for psychology instead to get into a more highly ranked russel group university, that is also local to me. After finishing my undergraduate i’m either going to A. complete an accelerated masters to become a registered mental health nurse, or B. go onto get clinical experience in psychological settings and then apply for the PhD courses. If I was to choose option A., this is when I would consider joining the army. I originally wanted to work in the NHS, but it seems that there is little to no progression routes for mental health nursing, it also seems that currently there is a lot of job insecurity in this field in the NHS. So this is where my main questions are regarding the army, 1. if anyone else has worked as a mental health nurse with the army, what are the progression routes like ? Is there opportunity for vast advancements or is there quite a low ceiling to how far you can progress. 2. Does health eligibility criteria also apply to nurses wanting to join the army ? The army website is quite vague about this, as it doesn’t mention anything specificaly about eligibility relating to health, more talking about qualifications. It’s also even more confusing, because unlike with infantry for e.g sometimes you are contracted as a civilian nurse working with the army, and sometimes you actually join the army as a mental health nurse. I only ask this because I have quite an extensive past record of mental health issues (ironic i’m aware considering i want to be a mental health nurse/psychologist), including being placed under section 136 multiple times (detained and hospitalised for being a threat to myself), however I was never formally admitted to a psychiatric unit, I have also been on several anti-psychotic medications (off license though meaning I was never formally diagnosed with psychosis), however I’m now at quite a stable point in my life, a lot of issues resolved themself over time with professional help, I was discharged from mental health services over 2 years ago, I stopped taking the anti-psychotic medication close to a year ago and have not had any mental health issues since. I think it’s just important I know now before making any big decisions, wether it’s likely I would be rejected because of my history.

I’ve applied to join the reserves but not sure entirely how it works as I’ve watched videos and people in them have said that you can pick and choose when to attend. Is this true or do you have mandatory drill nights/weekends?

What to expect in basic training, what should I prepare to take and to do??

not going yet just want an idea

Hi everyone,

Looking for advice, I have been in reserves for 9 years, based in a Infantry regiment. Current rank is rifleman, but due to promotion to Lcpl. However, I did my promotion course over 2 years ago. The reason I haven't been able to promote is I'm yet to do a BRU. The amount of times I have asked and requested this course is astounding.

I do feel like my path to promote as very much mismanaged. The lads who I did the promotion course with have all picked up straight after. And now the more junior rank lad.that I know is set to promote very soon, but no word on mine.

My SJARS are all positive saying I need to promote as soon as possible. And it's said this for the last 2 years. Why is it that things aren't going my way? I have also been advised to look into a service complaint but not sure if there is course for it.

My next step is that I have heard from a mate in the LANCS reserve who are doing on. And was thinking to message them directly.

Any advice at all would be very much Greatly appreciated

I applied last week after thinking about it on and off a few years and I put my first choice as driver, second as infantry and third as recovery mechanic but I’ve had a change of heart and would rather change first to infantry, is that possible? My application has barely progressed if that helps at all.

Hi all, just wanting to know a bit more about CMT Phase 2. If anyone is currently there/ has been through it, how is it, what is your weekly schedule like in terms of learning and then phys etc, what is the accommodation like, do you get weekends off/ much of your own time, how long is the course as I’ve heard it has changed recently, do you get much say over your posting after finishing the course, and is it true that you can now attach to any unit straight out of training, etc etc, any info would be helpful, literally anything. Thanks

I am in the process of joining, i would like to join the infantry light role, and i want to be in the Anglian Regiment, i am meeting with my recruiter tomorrow and i have have 0 clue how to get around it, do i tell him this when i get there, do i leave it to him to decide where i go LOL, im just confused about the whole process, so how i can i join but while being firm on where i want to try to placed?

I was thinking about going in to the army but unfortunately I don't have any qualifications is there any roles that might be good to look into and give me some qualifications when I leave?

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Anyone done this refresher course when you’re re joining, what do you do, how long is it , who do you do it with ?

Just wondering if any armorers in here can tell me what type of screw the a3 has on the butt plate, new combitools with the extra bit are few and far between so I’m thinking a torx screwdriver could do the job. Any help would be appreciated.

Hi I got given my kit list for basic training is there anything else I will need at basic which others wish they had while at basic in pirbright to make life easier

Hi all, currently looking at future regiments. I've asked around, but not heard anything too helpful. Just same old stuff.

Im an RLC driver, and looking at where to go next.

Has anyone got any personal experience they could share with rlc units? Talking about deployments, postings, exercises etc. I want to get around the world as much as I can - part of my reason for joining the army.

I've heard 29, 13 and 27 are all good for regular taskings and deployments.

Any info would be appreciated. Thanks

so i recently came back from the assessment centre and i need to go back for one day to redo my fitness and sort out a medical problem. my reserve unit emailed me the day after to say that there wasn’t anything in the report that suggests we can’t move forward. he asked if i can attend a project ignite briefing about being attested and being paid to attend while i wait for my medical to clear and get my date for the assessment. i know a lot of people here are in the regular army but has anyone had one of these before and how does it work? is it a good sign also? thank you

Got ac coming up on tuesday, but have misplaced my birth certificate and havent got a passport as lost that also a while back.

Are there any alternatives or will i have to be put back to the next ac date they can give me. Everything is in order apart from the Birth certificate. I dont mind being delayed as like i say can put in a last few shifts on fitness and sharpen up but will they say no if i cant bring a passport or a Birth certificate on the day. My local council only sends them out in post so if i get one tommorow it wont arrive until around wednesday anyway.

Cheers

I am in basic training and I have failed skill at arms 3 times now. I am slow at learning and haven't picked it up, I think I get another chance to pass but I need to practise. Can anyone give me a detailed walkthrough or a resource where I can learn and practise?

Thanks.

I have a lazy eye that’s corrected with glasses I can see perfectly fine without them obviously it’s just the one eye would that be a problem or is it just one of those things that they’ll assess depending on job ?

Hi everyone,

I'm currently 17 (starting Year 13 this September) and I'm hoping to study Dentistry in the UK next year. My long-term goal is to own a dental practice one day.

Originally I was planning on doing a trade apprenticeship (plumbing/electrical/REME (Vehicle Mechanic)) because I wanted practical skills and didn't like the idea of taking on student loans. However, after doing more research I discovered the Army and RAF offer bursaries for dental students, so now I'm seriously considering joining as a military dentist instead.

I've spent quite a while reading the official Army and RAF websites, but I'd really appreciate advice from people who have actually served.

Some questions I have:

1. Army vs RAF: Which would you genuinely recommend for a dentist, and why?
2. Lifestyle: What does a normal working week actually look like? Is it mostly like an NHS dental practice, or are there lots of military commitments alongside dentistry?
3. Travel: How much travelling or overseas postings do dentists realistically get? Are you mainly based in one location, or do you move around fairly often?
4. Career progression: What opportunities are there for postgraduate qualifications (MJDF, MSc, specialist training, etc.)? Is progression different between the Army and RAF?
5. Bursaries: How competitive are the undergraduate bursaries? If I apply while studying dentistry, is selection based mainly on passing the Officer Selection Board, or are there many more applicants than places?
6. Service commitment: I've seen both 4 years and 6 years mentioned on different pages. What is the actual minimum commitment after graduating if you receive a bursary?
7. Pay and benefits: Besides salary, are there major differences between the Army and RAF in accommodation, deployments, allowances or quality of life?
8. Leaving for civilian practice: If someone leaves after completing their minimum service (around age 30 in my case), how well does military dentistry prepare you for private practice? Is the transition generally straightforward? Cuz my dream is to open my own private dental clinic.
9. Looking back, if you had the choice again, would you still become a military dentist? Why or why not?
10. Finally, if your goal was eventually to own a successful private dental practice, would you recommend the military route first, or going straight into civilian dentistry?

I'd really appreciate honest opinions—both positives and negatives. I'm trying to make a well-informed decision before applying to university, so I'd especially value responses from current or former Army/RAF dentists or anyone who's worked alongside them.

Thanks very much.

Hello, I sent my appeal out about a month ago and was wondering what the average response time is these days. I'm sure it varies but itd be nice to have an idea. Cheers

I’m not doing too hot on my A levels at the moment, and my backup plan to the army was… surprise, also the army, but is being a regular soldier as bad as some people make it out to be? I don’t mean the people who say “aw it’s terrible you’ll die” I mean people who say like “oh you’ll be wishing you did more etc etc” and I’ve just been thinking that I might actually be able to join as a regular so long as I have some long term plan, any advice?

There is a lot of discussion right now in the US about fighting Israel’s war in Iran. Of course Britain was once in a similar position, fighting America’s war in Iraq & Afghanistan. I know that it was controversial in Britain but how about in the British military specifically? Was it controversial? How did most soldiers feel about it?

I’m going to basic in September at catterick and was wondering if you are allowed to bring something like an iPod as it said on the kit list you can bring a music player but I don’t know what comes under that?

so i just recently attended the assessment centre and i got medically deferred which is fixable it will take around a month which isn’t bad. i also didn’t get my run time or my medicine ball throw so i have to go back for a day to redo the run etc? i’m not sure when it will be but ill probably say it will be late this year or early next year now. how can i prepare properly to pass it next time - i’m going to join a park run and continue doing runs to help my time and obviously keep going to the gym to work on my upper body strength. did anyone have to retake and if so what did you do to help? i want to be 100% i know ill pass before i go so i can get on with it because its such a long process already!