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Hi guys, new to the board as you can guess!

Ok, so im 15 (nearly 16) and I have applied to join as an aircraft technician (mechanical) I have my AST workshop on thursday!

I have also been accepted into college as a back up plan.

But my problem is, my cousins friend is 18 and is in the RAF, he has told my cousin that staying on at college was the best thing he did because most of the 16 year olds in basic training dropped out. And so now my cousin is trying to tell me I should do 2years of college, but personally I feel this would be wasting two years!
Personally I think I am mentally tough enough to succeed but I was just wondering on other peoples opinions and whether it is true that a lot of the youngens signing up drop out.

Thanks a lot!

mate...im 17 in october and my choice of regiment is princess of wales royal regiment (infantry) and basically,ive had so many doubters and negative comments on my plans,i was at college doing mechanics (ive done car and just finished level 1 bikes) ive been told that im wastin all that time at college by joining yet if u think of it logically theres 200 percent more to gain by joining,dont let no one choose a career path for you as its your future and therefore it should be in your hands,


i would rather die of a heart attack from being ragged at training then deal with the embarrasment and grief of dropping out!

as long as you are 110 percent confident you can make it through phase 1 then there is no reason not to go on and give it ure all,no doubt theyl all be proud of you as you pass out,

you have a place at a college secured so why not go for it and IF you dont make it to passing out then its not like youll be f@#k!

good luck with your decision mate!

luke

Cheers mate, I want to join the RAF and people putting these doubts into my mind are just an inconveniance I guess.

yeh f@#k em,dont start goin on the offensive but jus bite your lip and when your on-top then ull be the one puttin negative thoughts in THEIR minds...

Well some bad news, as you can get there are waiting lists for pretty much everything so it looks like I will have to go to college for a few months anyway.

Bit pissed off about it to be honest but its just unfortunate.

Mums trying to tell me its just to sort out the people who are not as commited as the others but thats bullshit to be honest :/

It's because the numbers of people applying to join the military have increased massively since the start of the recession as people think we have guaranteed job security, and yet there are still only the same number of jobs available every year, or even in many cases fewer than there used to be.
If you're any good at maths you'll see that it causes a bit of a problem.
The careers offices are all a bit swamped at the moment and of course it will take time. It's nothing to do with making people wait in order to sort out the less determined applicants, it's simple logistics.
Personally I would have said go to college anyway, you'd be surprised how much you grow up in the space of that 2 years, and the extra life experience will make it easier to handle some of the stuff you'll have to deal with when you do reapply.

hyperlinthe's got a point,it aint to seperate the commited from the not commited,but use this time wisely to train and prepare coz para's have high fitness standards/levels mate

all the best...

luke-cameron wrote:hyperlinthe's got a point,it aint to seperate the commited from the not commited,but use this time wisely to train and prepare coz para's have high fitness standards/levels mate

all the best...

Who said anything about paras?

Just incase anybody is interested I missed out on my AST today, I had the correct overall marks but need 5 on mechanical comprehension and I only got 4

Chin up mate and give it another go!

alexe wrote:Chin up mate and give it another go!

I am doing next month, I would have to wait that long anyway because the waiting lists could last up to 18months

unlucky on your AST mate just make sure you revise hard for the next one because if you miss out on this one then its 6months before you can retake it again.

as for gonig in at 16.. its not a bad thing to do, especially if you hate the idea of gonig to college.
however im going in in a couple of weeks and i have 2 brothers in the RAF aswell, and i had the same dilema when i was 16.

they told me to wait the two years and do A-levels etc then go in when i was 18 which in hien sight im very glad did.
in their experience alot of the 16/17year olds dont enjoy it as much as they have alot less freedom, especially when all the older lads go out on the piss and they have to sit and play their playstation instead.

also i agree with hyperlithe, when i was on prtc recently it was clear who all the 16year olds where as in general of the time they seemed alot less mature and it is so true about how much you grow up after a couple of years.

but its upto you at the end of the day!
coop