- Reaction score
- 83
- Points
- 580
FJAG said:I came into the Army as an officer with a Grade 13 (Yup I'm that old) and could have done so with a Grade 11. Never could understand what a university education gives today's officer candidates other that four more years of living.
:cheers:
Four more years of living is not inconsequential in my view, but I speak only from personal experience and do not purport to speak more broadly.
Just thinking of myself, I was commissioned as an officer at age 19. I had grade 12 and was in the reserves, so was working on my Bachelor of Arts but didn't have it yet. Looking back, I tend to think I was a bit too young and immature to be an officer ... four more years of life may have made me a bit better of an officer. But on the other hand was there a huge difference between 19 and 23? Not sure. Maybe it was the training. I found that BIOC Phase II and III taught me how to be a really good soldier and tough as nails, but I did not feel like I knew how to be an officer beyond leading a platoon level attack or defence in the field.
So in lieu of university I would be in favour of something like what you described, a programme like the Staff School you described and other training focused on developing leaders.