Army views please

sturgeon62

Hi
Our 17 yr old, is currently thinking of joining up. At present he is six months into a four year apprenticeship as an Electrician but has decided he wants to do something more worthwhile. We have tried to make him realise how fortunate he is to have an apprenticeship and what he would be throwing away. Tried persuading him to perhaps keep the apprenticeship but join the TA's etc but he is still set on joining. He has an appointment tomorrow to kick it all off, followed by the presentation talk and application form. He knows its a long process with lots of stages to pass so at present has agreed to keep working.
Obviously the presentation tomorrow will be from an Officers viewpoint So we would really appreciate if anyone has any views good/bad of what its like to join as we know no one in the forces. Thankyou

andyg9053

i did about 8 years in the army and never regretted it, this was however 20 years ago, if my parents had stopped me i would have held it against them, let him do it if he wants, just make sure he does something with a trade involved. you have to come back to civvy street one day!!

dad-of-4

I wish i had done it when i was young, i toyed with the idea of going in the navy but wasnt able to get in doing what i wanted so didnt bother. I genuinly believe national service would benefit this country hugely.

advise your son to do the same if hes looking for a trade out of it. ive heard a alot of stories about recruters telling porkies and claiming there are no openings in certain trades, just to try and steer people into the infantry or any other roll they may be struggling to get people for.

obviously i cant confirm any of this to be true but if your not going down there with your son at least put the above across to him and ask him to keep it in mind.

chilli_dog

As above if he is stead fast on joining get him to learn a a trade whist in there.

Does you son understand that he will be sent to a warzone when he has finishes training?

Voyager2002

And make him watch the TV pictures of badly injured soldiers coming back from Iraq and Afghanistan, and being offered pennies to get on with their lives! If he wants adventure, he can always do VSO once he has a trade.

Conor_3

It's not certain he'll go to a warzone when he finishes his training. With a trade, it's even less likely he will and even if he does, he's very unlikely to end up anywhere other than in the rear with the gear. Out of the 175,000 there are in the Forces, less than 3% are in Afghanistan and a smaller number in Iraq with the majority of those being infantry which he won't be.

And TBH, you're in FAR more danger doing a VSO than you are serving as a sparky in the Royal Engineers or REME.

As for the advice about doing a trade, that's the best option but make sure it's one that has a civilian recognised qualification (CGLI/BTEC/17th Ed etc) as Army qualifications become worthless once you leave. Being in a trade, it's going to be at least the thick end of 18 months before he's deployable to a unit as he'd have to do 2+ months of basic training and then a year or more trade training as well as being put through any car/LGV licence he needs to do the job.

RainbowChild_2

I would let him go for it..without a doubt. I spent 4 years in the Army ( although it was a few years ago now!) and never looked back! He will learn a trade, have a career, have accommodation and food in his mouth and a wage..meaning money in his back pocket!!!!! He will learn so many skills in the Army that he may not otherwise, if he was 3 years into his apprenticeship then I may be inclined to talk to him to finish it. At the end of the day it's his choice and I think it's a good one!

Sue-UU

Do let him go, don't let him always have regrets about not having been given the chance to do something he really wants to do. If he tries and fails then that's up to him, but at least he followed his wishes. If he's unable to join as something's not quite right, then at least that will be fate playing a hand - not you! Our lad was always with the cadets and loved it - but was unable to go into the Army as a regular as he failed the medical due to having asthma. It broke his heart at the time and he's never really settled happily into any other job for too long. I'd give anything for that all to have been so different and for him to have been able to follow his dream. Do let your lad give it a go and hope that he can at least try it, he may make a brilliant squaddie! Whatever happens, he'll make you so proud as he'll be so proud of himself. Best wishes, Sue

IWasWondering...

I would not encourage my son (in fact I have told him not to even consider it) after the farce that was/is the Iraq invasion. But that's just my personal opinion.
I would def encourage your son to finish his apprenticeship and join the TA in the meantime.

sturgeon62

Thankyou for all your input, we would never stop him as its his life and he needs to make his own mistakes and gain his own experiences. I was stopped doing what I wanted by a careers adviser when I was fifteen and have regretted it ever since. We just want him to be happy.
This thread has really helped as he has read it and at least it has given him some other viewpoints, rather then just us and the Army's.
Thanks again

chilli_dog

Has he thought about joining the Navy?