Week 5 YO

[ironandgrit]

What it says on the tin. Just about to start week 5 of YO training and got a bit of spare time to give anyone a hand if you need it! Fire away with any questions

 

[Rob20]

What is day to day life like in the early weeks mate?

 

[Chelonian]

What it says on the tin.

Have you yet had to replicate your accommodation—beds, lockers, etc.—onto the station platform of Lympstone Commando?

Aside from phys stuff, knowing what you now know, what prep would you have done?

Best of luck. And thanks for taking the time to post here. Much appreciated.

 

[Small4646]

Firstly, just want to say a thank you for taking time to answer some questions we have.

At the interview stages (careers discussion, POC, AIB) what piece of advice would you give an aspiring YO, what gave made you a better candidate and would you do anything differently?

All the best!

 

[Small4646]

Firstly, just want to say a thank you for taking time to answer some questions we have.

At the interview stages (careers discussion, POC, AIB) what piece of advice would you give an aspiring YO, what made you a better candidate than some of the other candidates and would you do anything differently?

All the best!

Edit: didn't make sense

 

[ironandgrit]

Have you yet had to replicate your accommodation—beds, lockers, etc.—onto the station platform of Lympstone Commando?

Aside from phys stuff, knowing what you now know, what prep would you have done?

Best of luck. And thanks for taking the time to post here. Much appreciated.

I'll leave that for the aspiring YOs to find out . For me it's just time management really. I thought I was pretty organised before being here but the admin is done at turbo pace and the learning curve is so steep you'd probably be best asking your rents/partner to have a list of jobs around the house and just fire through them with time limits! Apart from that phys till your eyeballs bleed and then keep going!

Absolutely no worries, I know I had loads of help from people posting threads like this when I was applying so it's only right that I help when/where I can!

 

[ironandgrit]

What is day to day life like in the early weeks mate?

Hiya pal. Very varied and very fast paced. For the first few weeks 3/4 hours sleep was a good kip! Admin and hard phys daily with lectures scattered in between! We've got our first week long exercise next week so it'll be good to get our and start doing some practical tactics/field stuff

 

[ironandgrit]

Firstly, just want to say a thank you for taking time to answer some questions we have.

At the interview stages (careers discussion, POC, AIB) what piece of advice would you give an aspiring YO, what made you a better candidate than some of the other candidates and would you do anything differently?

All the best!

Edit: didn't make sense

Thanks very much pal, I reckon the best bit of advice is just have a good dig around inside your noggin and really get down to the bare bones of why you want this. Pin point the exact reason you want to be here and then once you have that just use it as motivation to get you through training! I think motivation from within is far better than external motivation

 

[Small4646]

Thanks very much pal, I reckon the best bit of advice is just have a good dig around inside your noggin and really get down to the bare bones of why you want this. Pin point the exact reason you want to be here and then once you have that just use it as motivation to get you through training! I think motivation from within is far better than external motivation

Thank you for getting back to me so quickly!

That is honestly one of the best pieces of advice I've heard, I've been thinking a lot lately about my own personal reasons to join so that's great to hear.

Good luck with everything.

 

[ironandgrit]

Thank you for getting back to me so quickly!

That is honestly one of the best pieces of advice I've heard, I've been thinking a lot lately about my own personal reasons to join so that's great to hear.

Good luck with everything.

Absolutely no worries. Good luck with the app and thankyou!

 

[Quantumblade]

What is day to day life like in the early weeks mate?

I'm in the batch with ironandgrit too. Early days is a lot of phys (roughly 2 to 3 hours a day) a lot of inspections/rounds a lot of personal admin. Ironing, folding/washing, studying Corp's history etc. Much of the basics needed to ingrain into military life and the RM. So far we've completed one exercise, passed weapons handling test and are about to be tested on map reading/navigation. A good amount of drill on the parade ground as well.

 

[Quantumblade]

Have you yet had to replicate your accommodation—beds, lockers, etc.—onto the station platform of Lympstone Commando?

Aside from phys stuff, knowing what you now know, what prep would you have done?

Best of luck. And thanks for taking the time to post here. Much appreciated.

I think a lot of the lads, including myself ignored elements of revision such as VC winners and memorable Corps dates because it's not needed for POC or AIB. However in the last couple of weeks we've definitely needed to know that information, which means a fair amount of time has to be sacrificed in order to learn and revise. So I would say other than physical prep, a great future time saver would be to learn the 10 VC winners and what they did, the 10 memorable Corps dates and details, and obviously the history behind our cap badge and what the different parts signify as well as learning the Corp's colours and their origins. Just a small tip that will save a couple of evenings

 

[Quantumblade]

Firstly, just want to say a thank you for taking time to answer some questions we have.

At the interview stages (careers discussion, POC, AIB) what piece of advice would you give an aspiring YO, what gave made you a better candidate and would you do anything differently?

All the best!

Ironandgrit gave a great answer. I know it's cliche and you've probably heard it before but absolutely be yourself, particularly in AIB. It's tempting to try and present a version of yourself you think they will like, what you think they're looking for but honestly, the variety of personality and backgrounds on this batch prove there is no set standard bloke they're looking for. What everyone seems to have in common is the ability to be calm under pressure, determination and a clear drive/motivation to be here.
In my AIB interview I was so relaxed I ended up talking about a past relationship, and I tried to be as open and genuine as I could, and I believe that came across really well. I walked out of the interview feeling like it had been more of a conversation than a formal interview! So definitely try to relax and be yourself, it will come across naturally and confidentaly.
All the best with the app, when you get closer to going on POC/AIB feel free to shoot me a PM and if I can I'll try to answer any questions.

 

[Small4646]

Ironandgrit gave a great answer. I know it's cliche and you've probably heard it before but absolutely be yourself, particularly in AIB. It's tempting to try and present a version of yourself you think they will like, what you think they're looking for but honestly, the variety of personality and backgrounds on this batch prove there is no set standard bloke they're looking for. What everyone seems to have in common is the ability to be calm under pressure, determination and a clear drive/motivation to be here.
In my AIB interview I was so relaxed I ended up talking about a past relationship, and I tried to be as open and genuine as I could, and I believe that came across really well. I walked out of the interview feeling like it had been more of a conversation than a formal interview! So definitely try to relax and be yourself, it will come across naturally and confidentaly.
All the best with the app, when you get closer to going on POC/AIB feel free to shoot me a PM and if I can I'll try to answer any questions.

That means a lot, thank you!
I'm just about to have my medical booked so I still have a while yet but it's never too early to prepare, thanks for the advice and I am sure to drop you a message nearer the time.

One last question, during the interview stages and the practical assessments was there anything you did that made you stand out and aside from the advice you've already given, would you give me any other advice?

All the best!

 

[Quantumblade]

That means a lot, thank you!
I'm just about to have my medical booked so I still have a while yet but it's never too early to prepare, thanks for the advice and I am sure to drop you a message nearer the time.

One last question, during the interview stages and the practical assessments was there anything you did that made you stand out and aside from the advice you've already given, would you give me any other advice?

All the best!

Nothing in particular to make me stand out, I prepared well for each element of selection and gave it my best shot on each one. Not much more you can do at that point! In the coming months if you can or aren't already doing, try to find hobbies or a part of your job where you can find opportunities to lead or to be part of a team, those experiences will help massively when it comes to AIB ontop of whatever life experience you may already have. During my application process I was just a barista, but I took a team leader position and used those experiences to help build my thoughts and perspectives on leading and team work.

 

[Small4646]

Nothing in particular to make me stand out, I prepared well for each element of selection and gave it my best shot on each one. Not much more you can do at that point! In the coming months if you can or aren't already doing, try to find hobbies or a part of your job where you can find opportunities to lead or to be part of a team, those experiences will help massively when it comes to AIB ontop of whatever life experience you may already have. During my application process I was just a barista, but I took a team leader position and used those experiences to help build my thoughts and perspectives on leading and team work.

That's great to hear! I've just had a promotion up to a Duty Manager at my current job and they know my future plans so it will be great to use this period as experience.

You and ironandgrit have been a huge help, thank you!

 

[mactavish80]

How old were you when you started, and were there any 18 year olds in YO training?
How fit were you for POC?
What kind of leadership experience did you have?
Did you do cadets or anything before hand?
What's the best kind of way to conduct yourself through AIB/POC?
Finally, how did you do at college? Did you get straight A* or were you closer to the minimum? Are your academic qualifications ever really bothered about on a POC or AIB?