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Ghurka Officers
Posted: Mon 25 Jul, 2005 7:32 pm
by darkwarrior
How do the Ghurka regiment select their officers? I've always wondered that.
Posted: Mon 25 Jul, 2005 7:51 pm
by Sarastro
Some British officers a la normal route from Sandhurst, some young Nepalese officers entering under various scholarships / programs, some Ghurkas promoted from the ranks along the lines of Late Entry commisions.
As far as British officers getting a place from Sandhurst goes, heard many rumours, but suffice to say it is pretty damn exclusive and not an easy regiment to get into!
Pasha would be our resident Ghurka expert who could tell you more.
Posted: Mon 25 Jul, 2005 9:23 pm
by aes69
I was under the impression that to progress thru' the ranks, whether it be OR's or Officers, you had to have a strong family background. All to do with surnames. If you were a Smith, you might get lance jack, if you were a St-John-Smythe then WO1 is looking good (obvioulsly Ghurka equivalents)
Posted: Mon 25 Jul, 2005 9:40 pm
by Spooky
it was a Ghurka officer who took my marksmanship skills to what they are (pretty good, to his credit, not mine).
he joined in '79, RGR, went sigs at some point after becoming at sergeant then did a late entry comission to retire a short while ago. spoke better english than me and is without a doubt the best officer i ever had the pleasure of meeting.
not to relevant to the thread
Posted: Mon 25 Jul, 2005 9:55 pm
by markthestab
"How do the Ghurka regiment select their officers? I've always wondered that."
basket full of rocks, steep long hill
Posted: Mon 25 Jul, 2005 10:10 pm
by AdamR
I discretely looked into it myself a while back and was basically told don't hold your breath unless you have a family connection to the regiment (note, most of their officers are whities who hail from these fair isles). Otherwise it's a good idea to do a bit of traveling in Nepal, learn the language and culture and whatnot and get bloody fit.
Posted: Tue 26 Jul, 2005 4:08 pm
by Sarastro
Pash, while most interested in Ghurkas, they would not be my first choice regt. That, with having talked to friend of friend who used to be a Ghurka Officer who said you need to be fairly well connected to have a realistic chance, and having recived a very polite letter from the regimental secretary saying they are very oversubscribed for officers of my age, seems no matter how good you might be, it's a bit of a lottery.
Even so, my father is working in Kathmandu, so learning what I can on the sly - never say never, I'm sure a lot can happen while at RMAS!