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SIG OP AFTER MOC

CEhopeful

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Hello,
I am going to basic on May 8Th, and I was just curious, even though it is a good year away, where do SIG Ops GO after their MOC training, and do they get attached to a Unit, or are they in their own group(after MOC, and going on deployment). CHEERS!!!!!
 
Normally, you will go to the Regiment in Kingston or a Signals Squadron in one of the Bdes.  That being said, some people are getting posted from the school to units such as RCR, PPCLI, Arty, etc.  Just don't count on it but don't rule it out either.
 
No such luck for my crew just coming out of Kingston, we're all looking at HQ and Sigs.    No RCR for us, at least, not yet anyway.
 
You forgot Winnipeg Mojo Magnum ;)

They originally told us that a few of us might be going to the RCR, however the vast majority went to HQ and Sigs Petawawa.
 
Seen!

and hey, when I said no Tequila, I meant it.

look at the mess they made me make  :)
 
I learned a pretty harsh lesson about Tequila while I was in Barrie, I'll tell you later...
 
What are the differences between the options for Sig Op postings once done the QL3?
 
Well, for where I'm going, it'll probably be working behind a computer in a message center for the next three years. It all depends on where you go, you can work in long range comm's, setting up a CP, Rovers, IS, Coy Signaller, etc. QL3's are just to give you a BASIC knowledge of the Sigs trade, the options available to you in this trade after your QL3's is huge. But once again Sigs isn't everyones cup of tea.

Usually they'll give you posting preferences during your QL3's and you pick your top three choices. So its usually between Edmonton, Petawawa, maybe Kingston, and some static postings. The options that we got were Edmonton, Petawawa, Borden, and Winnipeg.
 
Well for postings its varied. The majority of postings will usually be between Edmonton and Petawawa, and their might be a few with Kingston, and maybe one or two static postings. For our course, we had Edmonton, Petawawa, Winnipeg, and Borden, for posting preferences. Originally they told us our options were Edmonton, Suffield, Shilo, Winnipeg, Borden, and Petawawa until they limited them.
 
You can probably guess were you will be going by watching the TV and asking who is next out the door for the big sandbox.  If it is Edmonton's turn, you will go to Edmonton, Pet's turn, Petawawa, etc.  You will most likely go were the military needs you not were you want to go.  Get the Bde stuff done early in your career.
 
Mojo Magnum said:
No such luck for my crew just coming out of Kingston, we're all looking at HQ and Sigs.    No RCR for us, at least, not yet anyway.

It's a good thing too, there are lots of senior guys who have been un-able to get out of 2 Sigs for a long time and they get mighty pissed off when the "kids" get posted straight to the Bns.......not that I'm one of those senior guys or anything ( None of your freaking senior jokes either Radop!!!) Actually, Radop, I'm finally out of the troops ( for awhile anyways ) I am temporarily sig'ing for 99.
 
Jeez, they'll give that job to anyone now....
I guess you've escaped Monster Tp!
 
I completed my 3s and was posted right to my choice of posting. ie; Base, and Unit.  I was even given the postion that I asked for in IS and am being told that I will be on my 5s as soon as 6 months from now.  Everything moves fast but it all depends on you.
 
Bull_STR said:
I completed my 3s and was posted right to my choice of posting. ie; Base, and Unit.  I was even given the postion that I asked for in IS and am being told that I will be on my 5s as soon as 6 months from now.  Everything moves fast but it all depends on you.

There are still Cpls with 4 or 5 years in trade waiting for 5's so take some things with a grain of salt.
 
Canadian Sig said:
There are still Cpls with 4 or 5 years in trade waiting for 5's so take some things with a grain of salt.

Really? Are there still many signallers backed up in the PAT platoons as well awaiting their QL3?

Just a thought (And I know this could probably even be split into a seperate subject here) but the past summer, F-SQN in CFSCE modified the reserve QL5 package to make it identical to the regular QL5 package (Which actually required shortening it, and removing the light NCCIS portion, which is still taught in conjunction with the QL5 package, just on paper they're two courses instead of one).

While most of the courses were still taught by F-SQN, there was one reserve QL-5 course run through B-SQN (They were transferred back to F-SQN once the course was over so they could take their Light NCCIS course). I know my own QL5 course was part of a join exercise between (If I remember right) A-SQN and F-SQN (Ex Merc Storm if I remember right, we commanded the dets, the officer candidates conducted the recces and sited us, was definitly a positive learning experience for all involved).

Anyway, rambling aside, my thought is why not leave F-SQN stood up (I don't know if they stand down completely or partially but either way) over the winter and run through a few QL3 and QL5 courses mixed reg and res students, taught by reservists? I know there's always a few reservists looking to do their courses over the winter (And the promise of "we'll try and load you on a reg force course" seldom comes true, though apparently as of last spring, CFSCE is reserving two spots on each course for reservists) and I'm certain they could find enough staff to teach and support a few courses.

The signals reserve is far more in-line with it's reg force counterparts then the rest of the army reserve, and courtesy of the number of available tours, as well as such things as merc surge being used to back-fill CFJSR, there's more then enough experience floating around in the sigs reserve to justify being able to teach such courses...

Just a thought.
 
Just a Sig Op said:
Just a thought (And I know this could probably even be split into a seperate subject here) but the past summer, F-SQN in CFSCE modified the reserve QL5 package to make it identical to the regular QL5 package (Which actually required shortening it, and removing the light NCCIS portion, which is still taught in conjunction with the QL5 package, just on paper they're two courses instead of one).

Maybe this is just a point of language, but nothing was modified.  The Reg Force TP was adopted for reserve use.  No modification at all.

Just a Sig Op said:
While most of the courses were still taught by F-SQN, there was one reserve QL-5 course run through B-SQN (They were transferred back to F-SQN once the course was over so they could take their Light NCCIS course). I know my own QL5 course was part of a join exercise between (If I remember right) A-SQN and F-SQN (Ex Merc Storm if I remember right, we commanded the dets, the officer candidates conducted the recces and sited us, was definitly a positive learning experience for all involved).

I'm pretty sure that isn't correct.  None of those courses fell under B Sqn.  The combined exercises are run by the School- not any individual Sqn.

Just a Sig Op said:
Anyway, rambling aside, my thought is why not leave F-SQN stood up (I don't know if they stand down completely or partially but either way) over the winter and run through a few QL3 and QL5 courses mixed reg and res students, taught by reservists? I know there's always a few reservists looking to do their courses over the winter (And the promise of "we'll try and load you on a reg force course" seldom comes true, though apparently as of last spring, CFSCE is reserving two spots on each course for reservists) and I'm certain they could find enough staff to teach and support a few courses.

The only reason F Sqn exists is because of the fact that reserve training peaks big time in the summer, and falls away to almost nothing during the rest of the year.  The huge number of students in-house at peak causes a huge burden of administrative and logistical work that can't be managed by a single Sqn.  If it weren't for that big peak however then we wouldn't need F Sqn at all- B Sqn could just do all the trg by itself, as used to be the case before 2000.  In other words, we have a Reserve Trg Squadron in order to provide a surge capacity when required: F Sqn goes to minimum manning in the winter precisely because there is no further need of it until the next surge comes along.

There is nowhere near enough demand for reserve courses in the winter to justify the money and manpower it would cost to keep F Sqn manned all year round, and the two spots per B Sqn course you talk about can and do get filled- usually when they go vacant it's because of a lack of applicants.  Even if we could find the staff to run the Sqn through the winter it wouldn't make sense to do so- B Sqn is already there doing this job, and running F Sqn "just because" would be redundant.  Besides, there are other positions open for those who want jobs, and those positions usually have a higher manning priority anyway i.e. tours, callouts with operational units, etc.  As for ramping up B Sqn to run more courses- that's an entirely different matter, and one on which I'm not qualified to speak, except to say that some reservists are already on contract there as instructors.  If they wanted more, they might be able to find them, but augmenting B Sqn with reservists would still be far less manpower intensive than keeping F Sqn through the winter.

Sorry to dump on you- it's not that the idea is bad, it's just that itsn't really feasible.
 
willy said:
I'm pretty sure that isn't correct.  None of those courses fell under B Sqn.  The combined exercises are run by the School- not any individual Sqn.

Talking to friends who were on 0603, I'm pretty sure they did fall under B Sqn for the QL5 portion. Reg F staff, stayed in B7 as opposed to the rest of F sqn in B-37. After the QL5 portion, Res staff taught their NCCIS light portion, and they were moved to B-37 with the remainder of F Sqn.

JaSO, F Sqn, while the admin staff does stay longer, is stood down. IE, the trailers on the parade square are all removed, equipment and vehicles are all returned to unit, as are the staff.
 
Just a Sig Op said:
..... though apparently as of last spring, CFSCE is reserving two spots on each course for reservists

I just finished my 5's this summer and my wife just finished hers last month and neither of us had a single reservist on either of our courses.
 
Sig_Des said:
Talking to friends who were on 0603, I'm pretty sure they did fall under B Sqn for the QL5 portion. Reg F staff, stayed in B7 as opposed to the rest of F sqn in B-37. After the QL5 portion, Res staff taught their NCCIS light portion, and they were moved to B-37 with the remainder of F Sqn.

JaSO, F Sqn, while the admin staff does stay longer, is stood down. IE, the trailers on the parade square are all removed, equipment and vehicles are all returned to unit, as are the staff.

Having Reg Force Staff is one thing, being in B Sqn is another.  If they were in B Sqn then why did I keep seeing their staff at the F Sqn O Gps?
 
willy said:
Maybe this is just a point of language, but nothing was modified.  The Reg Force TP was adopted for reserve use.  No modification at all.

You misread what I wrote, we said the same thing. It was the reserve course that was changed, it's identical to the reg force course now.

I'm pretty sure that isn't correct.  None of those courses fell under B Sqn.  The combined exercises are run by the School- not any individual Sqn.

There was a reserve QL-5 course which stayed in B-Sqn barracks, drew it's instructors from B-Sqn, and was supported logistically from B-Sqn. If there's a detail I'm missing which means they didn't fall under B-Sqn, then I appologize, but it sounds like falling under B-Sqn to me. They even had those goofy looking hand-bags (Carry-alls maybe? :) ) with B-Sqn stamped on the side.

The only reason F Sqn exists is because of the fact that reserve training peaks big time in the summer, and falls away to almost nothing during the rest of the year.  The huge number of students in-house at peak causes a huge burden of administrative and logistical work that can't be managed by a single Sqn.  If it weren't for that big peak however then we wouldn't need F Sqn at all- B Sqn could just do all the trg by itself, as used to be the case before 2000.  In other words, we have a Reserve Trg Squadron in order to provide a surge capacity when required: F Sqn goes to minimum manning in the winter precisely because there is no further need of it until the next surge comes along.

There is nowhere near enough demand for reserve courses in the winter to justify the money and manpower it would cost to keep F Sqn manned all year round, and the two spots per B Sqn course you talk about can and do get filled- usually when they go vacant it's because of a lack of applicants.  Even if we could find the staff to run the Sqn through the winter it wouldn't make sense to do so- B Sqn is already there doing this job, and running F Sqn "just because" would be redundant.  Besides, there are other positions open for those who want jobs, and those positions usually have a higher manning priority anyway i.e. tours, callouts with operational units, etc.  As for ramping up B Sqn to run more courses- that's an entirely different matter, and one on which I'm not qualified to speak, except to say that some reservists are already on contract there as instructors.  If they wanted more, they might be able to find them, but augmenting B Sqn with reservists would still be far less manpower intensive than keeping F Sqn through the winter.

It actually struck me that keeping F-Sqn stood up would be rather silly, as they'd loose all their kit and vehicles when it's returned to the units in September anyway... but still, there's solutions here to be gained, even if it's giving instructors attached to F-Sqn the opportunity to extend their contracts and teach at B-Sqn come the fall...
 
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