Alternatives!

[Fitness_Freak]

Rickboi I ALSO (lol) know exactly what you feel. I went to my medical hoping I would pass first time, but I didn't. I went through the process fine, passing everything untill the doctor said 'do you have any history of a heart mummur'. My heart sank and I said 'yes'. He did an ultra sound convinced it would still be there. However- I had gone to hospitol two years before when considering the forces and had loads of heart tests and the conclusion was that I no longer had it.
Soo I had to write to my GP, get a letter sent to my local doctors, then send it away, which took forever. However they rang me up and I did pass, because I no longer had it. For that time I was really upset, as all my dreams can crashing down- but look now I start RT in July . Just don't think youv'e failed untill they tell you officially, if they don't pick it up just dont tell them.

[Hughser]

Where theres a will theres a way, if things dont go right, you need to fight your side as hard as you can, and do everything in your power to assure you get in (everything but cheating the system). A couple of letters here and there to the MoD, NHS, local doctors is a small worry compared with losing out on your future. And if you cant get into the branch you want, try a different one.. and see if later in life you can work your way up to the spot you wanted. But the moral of the story is Dont give up!

[xcj]

Ye, it's a killer.

I came out of school and was literally thinking to myself, "ok what now".


I had applied for uni and stuff like that, but all through school I didn't really care about what qualifications I got. If i got it, then great, but i certainly wasnt sticking my head in books like a lot of people did. I got rejected for my first choice course at uni, which automatically bumped my second choice up to my first choice. One day before going go-karting (which I won btw :D) I got a phone call from the uni, "Hi, this is so and so from whatever. I see you changed your first choice option"... "ehhh yes".... "well theres a place open for you if you want it"... "err ok". That believe it or not is literally what happened.

At the time, i was thinking about doing an electrical apprenticeship. But i went with the flow and went to uni.

For the record, I would not advice going to university unless you have a clear idea of what you want to be (and where being at uni is a must) ie a doctor or something dizzy like that.

Its an absolute killer. You sit there bored out your face, not giving a flying fcuk about what you're being told - so whats the point.

Im thinking of dropping out in favour of doing my apprenticeship and maybe setting up my own electrician's company one day with my brother.

Im still not over being kb'd from the forces. Im on here a lot, reading what everyone in training is posting, their pre training nerves and questions etc all the time wishing I was in their shoes.


So ye, i'd gladly open my legs and allow someone to boot their size 10's into my nads if it allowed me to at least attempt joining the forces.

In fact, writing that last sentence has made me realise something. I don't even know if im cut out for the forces or not. All the time im writing here saying "ye I want to be in the marines" yet i've never even properly seen what it's like. Thats the worst bit actually. I'll never know if I could do it.

[Rickyboi]

I'm far from giving up yet.

Thankd for all the replies by the way.

It totally stinks to be failed on something so so close to the requirments, I know I know, rules are rules.

But i'm just gonna try use a positive attitude and i'm not gonna lie about anything in my whole application because I don't need to. My only concern is jsut over this crappy eye test.

I have heard all about the SA80 just being for right handed shooters. It's a horrible thing to get rufused for but if it happens it happens.

I don't think I would be so bothered, it's just the fact that it's so so close to the actual requirment, I would prefer to fail it by a mile, then I would just think fair enough, my eyes are shit.

Well today I will start my application and get this eyesight form filled out once and for all. My right eye is still crap with glasses on or with contacts in. My right eye is 6/12+ corrected.

And I can't remeber who said, but contacts and glasses are both allowed in the marines, might not be very practical but they are allowed.
Cheers

[Mauser]

Im kind of in the same boat, i got failed for my medical because i missed alot of school and for medical reasons , so they barred me and said i had to come back in 2 years time with a clear medical history, so i appealed and lost, but my medical histroy has been clear for a good year and a half now and im able to rejoin in November. anyway this Eye test you had, i never had to do anything like that, i got told to go get a normal Eye test from Boots , spec savers etc etc and bring back the the results and if they were good i'd pass. so maybe you could try transfer to another recruitment centre and get a eye test done with a differnt person,
im short sited to a degree cant read small lettering on boards etc in dull lighting and i thought that might stop me from getting in, but it never was raised and im sure i read somewhere on here that there are Marines that wear glasses / contact lenses. anyway all best of luck to you whatever you do
(i havent had time to read all this thread in full, of to the gym in 10 minutes so i skimmed it, so sorry if you said you had given up or somthing :> or had passed )

[Rickyboi]

The guy that I spoke to on the phone said I passed the distance vision test and was just inside standard 3 or S3. But then he asked my near vision and it was N8 and it needs to be N5.

I don't see what near vision has to do with being a Marine but rules are rules and there pain in the ass right now.

I will try every optician available if it means me getting over this stupid little hurdle.

Cheers

[Brian-]

No no no, read my post again, you can join with galsses in the reguklar army. You can be a para with glasses. I told you its only the marines that wont let you.

You keep giving out duff advice mate. You CAN join the Marines with glasses/contacts, plenty do!

[Rickyboi]

Yeah, they do accept with glasses or contacts, but my right eye is still spank when I wear contacts.

I'm off to the recruitment office in a bit, anyone know what happens the first time around?

Cheers

[rgj-rifleman]

YOU CAN JOIN THE REGULAR ARMY WITH GLASSES!! My dads eyesight is apauling and he got in with lenses and glasses. Join the standard army. Have a word with your AFCO and talk to him about the army and see what he has to say. There are different choices, marines are yes, i agree, the dogs bo**ocks, but its not the all end all!!!

I may have to join the army because of this policy. My medical may fail me to!! Not just on eyesight!!

[Rickyboi]

We were saying that Royal marines do accept glasses or contact lenses.

I have jsut had my first day at the AFCO and he said to me the Marines have the lowest out of all eyesight standards so if you fail then basically you have no chance of passing any eye test of any military.

Also he said that everybody has to do an eye sight test with the local opticians, so look slike I will defo have to pull out all the stops on this eye test. I won't let it beat me.

Ws really boring at the AFCO and only me there, the whole palce was empty, looked l ike it was closed. I just wanna crack on and get everything out the way.

Got my application form here ready to fill out, I hate papaer work.

Cheers

[Brian-]

YOU CAN JOIN THE REGULAR ARMY WITH GLASSES!! My dads eyesight is apauling and he got in with lenses and glasses. Join the standard army. Have a word with your AFCO and talk to him about the army and see what he has to say. There are different choices, marines are yes, i agree, the dogs bo**ocks, but its not the all end all!!!

I may have to join the army because of this policy. My medical may fail me to!! Not just on eyesight!!

Yes it was the bit in bold I was talking about. I don't know where you heard it but it's wrong.

[Bitty]

You could try these eye pills

http://www.vitabiotics.com/addtocart.aspx?ID=21

[In_Training]

It might only be one line but the standards are there for a reason. Dont cheat if you get caught out you will be out on your arse and there will be a chance you might not be allowed in to another service because you lied. I no its frustrating mate but just be truthful and try all possiblities.

Whilst it is commendable to be 100% honest, and truthfully the safest and correct way of going about things. I personally would say to you:

DO WHATEVER IT TAKES!! - on the basis that, you only ever get one shot at life and if you miss an opportunity then it is gone forever, nobody else is going to jump out and try to help you. When it boils down to it the only people you can truly rely on are 'Me, Myself, and I'. A pessimistic view I know, but one that has been instilled throught personal experience of lifes overwhelming tendency to sh#t all over me!

From what I hear in this thread you can take the eye test at an optician which i think is the best thing possible - Go specsavers, if they fail you, then try boots, if they fail you then try another boots store, if they fail you try somewhere else - just keep going till eventually you get it right! Obviously there is a limit to this and if you find yourself spending your life savings on test then actually just give up lol. Because it probably means you cant actually see your hand in front of your face (not an attribute favbourable when playing with rifles!)

I also have refrained from properly applying due to a medical problem. I hope that it will in time go away. I think I may write to the MOD though as somebody else did on this site, seems like a good idea.

Good luck anyway.

[Rickyboi]

In_Training.

That's exactly what I have been thinking, I don't wanna go there the first time and be honest with my eye test and fail and then go back and cheat and then pass, I wanna get it over with the first time.

I know I can just scrape through if I just remember that 1 line, and your right, if I don't help myself in this situation, then nobody will and that's a fact. My contact lense specialist said, you won't get in, gave me duff advice on eyesight standards, and didn't even offer any solutions or advice, so I had to help myself and checked EVERYTHING on the internet that I could and phoned every phone number where somebody could help me.

Turns out her eyesight standards were well well out of date so I went to the opticians and passed everything accept the near reading test. I WILL pass it next time. (Fingers crossed)

And the eyesight check I will have to take is with the opticans near my afco, he said they have a contract with them, and EVERYBODY, that comes through the afco does it at the same place, but then you don't do it on your medical.

I'm gonna get my eyes checked at boots in the next couple of days and see if it's possible for me to fiddle it a little bit. And like i have said, it's only a little tiny bit of cheating, so I don't feel guilty about it 1 little bit.

I'll let ya'lll know.

Cheers