I have always been fascinated by the military lifestyle and as im graduating this spring from high school I am wanting to enlist with the canadian armed forces most hopefully as an infantry soldier. This being said I am also wanting to obtain some further education with a bachaleur of arts with a major in criminology and a minor in pyschology opening up a career path as a lawyer or law enforcement position, possibly in the military police force. So after some research I have determined that the ROTP would be a path I am very intrested in taking. I am aware that you go through basic training and then a mix of officer training and degree training but I am woundering at what point will you get to serve in combat and if my first experiance of active duty will be as an officer or at some point of my training would I get to serve as a regular infantry soldier and get the feeling of combat in a less than leadership role.
ROTP after High School Questions
- Thread starter kona_mtb
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In ROTP, during the academic semester, you will be employed at a university -- either RMC or a university of your choice. Your summers will see you doing your training and/or employment while awaiting training (EWAT). During this time, you will be an Officer Cadet. Upon completion of phase 1 and receipt of your bachelor's degree, you will receive your commission and will begin your career as an officer in the regular forces.
H'ok;
Shamrock about summed it up, you will be at school during the year (charm school or civvie school) and will train during the summer, either on a course or on EWAT/OJT. You will be an Officer Cadet until you graduate school, at which point you will be commissioned and sent on your final course and get posted.
You want infantry? Well, you'll be an infantry officer and not an NCM through ROTP. Being an officer is different then being an NCM. As to your desire to deploy, you will get that chance (we're a busy military) although not necessarily in Afghanistan (the current mission ends in 2011 and who knows what it will look like after that, and you've still got four years of school ahead of you for ROTP, judging by your post). Also, you may not necessarily deploy as a platoon commander either, not trying to burst any bubbles but I don't want you to get any false hopes either.
Have you looked at other jobs? If deploying is your goal there are numerous smaller missions around the globe that we send people on and support trades often get the go ahead for those. Make sure you research other trades (as appealing as infantry looks, and it does, there are other neat officer jobs out there).
Finally, through ROTP you will sign a contract (I believe that IE for infantry officers is 13 years now) in which you will spend 4 years (or less, depending on when you sign up for ROTP) at school, 5 years paying back your degree and the rest to serve out your IE.
Shamrock about summed it up, you will be at school during the year (charm school or civvie school) and will train during the summer, either on a course or on EWAT/OJT. You will be an Officer Cadet until you graduate school, at which point you will be commissioned and sent on your final course and get posted.
You want infantry? Well, you'll be an infantry officer and not an NCM through ROTP. Being an officer is different then being an NCM. As to your desire to deploy, you will get that chance (we're a busy military) although not necessarily in Afghanistan (the current mission ends in 2011 and who knows what it will look like after that, and you've still got four years of school ahead of you for ROTP, judging by your post). Also, you may not necessarily deploy as a platoon commander either, not trying to burst any bubbles but I don't want you to get any false hopes either.
Have you looked at other jobs? If deploying is your goal there are numerous smaller missions around the globe that we send people on and support trades often get the go ahead for those. Make sure you research other trades (as appealing as infantry looks, and it does, there are other neat officer jobs out there).
Finally, through ROTP you will sign a contract (I believe that IE for infantry officers is 13 years now) in which you will spend 4 years (or less, depending on when you sign up for ROTP) at school, 5 years paying back your degree and the rest to serve out your IE.
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In a nutshell, if you enter through the regular OFFICER training program, your first and every subsequent experience on active duty will be as an officer. You will not "get to serve as a regular infantry soldier and get the feeling of combat in a less than leadership role". However, during your first phase of training, (IAP and BOTP or whatever they are calling it now, BMOQ?) you will be evaluated on your leadership performance as a section commander. However, when the other candidates in your section are being evaluated themselves, you will serve as just a regular member of that section, doing all the footwork. This would be the only experience you get as a "regular infantry soldier".
Cheers.
P.S. It's Bachelor of Arts
Cheers.
P.S. It's Bachelor of Arts
George Wallace
Army.ca Dinosaur
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gshim12 said:
Can I inquire as to how serious you are about this?
George Wallace said:
i am serious about it. i always wanted do become a military medic and i still do.
my main concern however,is being pulled out during my school days, because as a science student one missed day is very big loss. I've heard from others that you do get pulled out during the school year. the recruiters told me that the forces take education into huge consideration and thus does not pull out anyone during the school days, but i just needed someone to clarify who is the correct one. once again i am very serious about this. plus in addition to that, is it true that med school reserves spot for those in the forces?
thanks for answering
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gshim12 said:
The only time I recall being called out of class for the annual Subsidized Education Manager's brief -- once a year, totalling about 3 hours per. Attendance at these briefs is mandatory but an excusal is possible if it conflicts with a mandatory attendance class.
I think you have been given information that skirts around what ROTP is. ROTP candidates are soldiers whose primary duty is to attend an academic institute and maintain acceptable marks. Infrequently, these duties may conflict; when and where this occurs, academics will be the primary concern but your SEM and ULO will have the final say.
George Wallace
Army.ca Dinosaur
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ballz said:
Sorry, to offend you, but having to deal with people who want to become officers on a regular basis, it really upsets me when they come across as uneducated and can not communicate properly in the written form. There are many others on the site, who are educators or in HR, who also feel offended by such lack of communication skills.
ballz
Army.ca Veteran
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George Wallace said:
I am not offended. I just get sick of people getting jumped on because they ask what are considered stupid questions by people within the military, which aren't stupid at all because it's not common knowledge to people outside the military. You asked "how serious she is about it" which to me seemed more like you were talking about the content of her messages and not how they were written. I understand completely why people on here are expected to communicate as efficiently as they are able to, I just didn't think that was what you were pointing out to her.
George Wallace
Army.ca Dinosaur
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The question is what would you expect of a person going to any university, with the aspirations of becoming a leader, in any field? If you really are serious about doing so, then you should be showing your skills and abilities to be accepted into a program that will benefit you. You first impressions can be lasting.
A simple question as to how serious you are in your aspirations, should solicite response indicating a desire to achieve the goal, or perhaps indicate that you are looking at various options, of which this may only be one.
A simple question as to how serious you are in your aspirations, should solicite response indicating a desire to achieve the goal, or perhaps indicate that you are looking at various options, of which this may only be one.
George Wallace said:
sir, i hope you are not implying that towards my communication skills, for if you are it is truly offending. you said as an educator you feel offended by the lack of communication skills people have, but isn't it the job of an educator to accept it and correct the mistake they made so that they won't repeat it again for the future? I was asking about the program because i happen to be the first person in my family to actually consider joining the forces. not everyone is educated in that area as you or those in HR. i believe people have the rights to ask questions whether it is stupid or not. i mean come on joining the forces is contracted and people would want to know everything before they sign the paper.
A
aesop081
Guest
gshim12 said:
Theres a difference between "knowing all you can before signing up" and "asking retarded questions about every little possible detail".
People around here, generaly speaking, have a problem making the distinction.
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I think it would have been a much more efficient use of time to answer the questions being asked, perhaps providing the Army.ca conduct guidelines, maybe a lecture about the availability of the search function on the website, followed by a locking of the topic if necessary rather than wasting time arguing over whether or not the original questions were stupid, how stupid these questions were, who is educated and who is not, how serious someone is about joining, etc. For God's sake, everyone at some point or another went through "that phase" of wanting to know and asking about every possible detail. Too many people get in, leech valuable resources from the system and get out a few months later because they did not bother to educate themselves. Responding to those who are trying to educate themselves in this way definitely does nothing but deter them from seeking information.
Just my opinion.
Just my opinion.
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gshim12 said:
If you go apply for any of the education subsidization programs for your medical degree (I believe the one you are looking for is referred to as MOTP - standing for Medical Officer Training Plan) and are accepted into the program, you will, obviously, go to school and earn your respective degree(s) and be subsidized for doing so. All of the SEM (subsidized education management) programs try to limit as much as possible the days of school you miss to do administrative work at your local base/unit. After all, you are "an employee of the Crown who's job it is to go to school". To answer your question, no, you will not normally be pulled out of school during your school days. You will only be "pulled out" under special circumstance such as, as mentioned earlier in this thread, the annual subsidized education manager's briefing, which only lasts approximately three hours on a weekday morning at the beginning of the school year. Other than that, the only other times that it will be necessary to do "military" stuff on any particular weekday would be to go into your local base/unit to submit claims for books/tuition/school supplies, travel expenses (if applicable), and to report and/or fix any pay problems that you may or may not encounter. These types of things will be on your shoulders - you will have to make an appointment with the unit's Chief Clerk (the individual overseeing the operations of the personnel support section of your unit/base) in order to have these things finalized. Obviously, this makes it very convenient for you as you are not being "pulled out" during your school days but rather you are making an appointment with your Chief Clerk at a time that is most convenient for you (e.g., a time during a Wednesday when you have a three hour break between classes [hypothetically]).
Other than those things I've mentioned, you will not normally be pulled out during any school day. Again, it is your job to go to school and earn your degree, and considering the CF is footing the bill, it would not be in the best interest of the CF to keep pulling students out of school and having them fall behind in schoolwork, etc. On top of that, for things such as the annual subsidized education manager's (SEM) brief, you are able to speak to your ULO (university liaison officer) to get an exemption from the brief if it is absolutely imperative that you cannot miss a class for any specific reason.
You are in the right place to be asking these questions because when it comes to details such as how the program works once you are IN the system (i.e., wondering how often you will have to attend briefings and how administrative work gets completed), it is often best to ask those who are currently in the programs you are seeking information on rather than asking the CFRC about these "internal" things. The CFRC is great for answering questions about the program you are interested in, but their job is to process you and to get you through and into the system for the program you are in, provided you are properly qualified. Questions of a more specific nature about the internal-workings of each individual program are best to be directed at those managing the programs themselves (for example, the SEMs, ULOs, and/or Chief Clerks). With that being said, it IS always best to initially direct all of your questions toward your local CFRC. If you don't get the answers you want or need from them, then feel free to ask or search around the forums here or get in touch with people already in the program.
Search around the forums here - using the 'search' tool on the main page - there is a vast amount of information here on all aspects of CF life that I'm sure you'd be interested in, including different entry programs.
Good luck
