Son has decided he wants to join up

A question about : Son has decided he wants to join up

My son is almost 16, he is doing his GCSE's in may and then was going to go to college.
Just recently (the last couple of months) he has shown an interest in Joining the army as an army careers officer went to his school to do a talk.
He has applied for the college place to keep his options open, and is going to the army careers office to speak in more detail.

The thing I am most worried about is most of the parents who post on ARSSE say how there son/daughter wanted it since they were 10,11yrs mine has taken a quite sudden interest, has anyone else's child joined up this way, and stuck it out?

Dont get me wrong he is perfect for the army in my opinion, he loves all sport, trains hard, does as he is told (including getting up in a morning lol) and gets on really easily with other lads his age.

I have balanced the talk about all the amazing things they will do, with things I have read up on my self like up at 6am, no sweets/chocolate for 6 weeks,getting your room trashed because 1 locker was wrong so you work better as a team, and so on
But he is still as keen to go (which I am really proud of) what do you think?

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Best answers:

• Hi, Miamoo, i think its great your son wants to join up. My DD2 also 16 & doing GCSE's this year, wanted to join the army after A levels, however as she has asthma & needs glasses ffor distance they won't entertain her. She is very fit, & loves sport, especially rowing & swimming. She is looking at attending Welbeck defence 6th Form college for her A levels & going into the MOD as an engineer!! Welbeck also takes all the forces for A levels & sponsers them through uni too. Downsides, leaving home at 16 [me worrying] parental contribution required for the 2yrs, based on income, need to delare everything for last year including overtime etc. If child drops out at uni or during course, parents have to pay back quite a few thousand pounds!!!
  Does you son have an area of interest in the army & is he wanting to A levels?
• Thanks for the reply, no he wasn't going to do A levels, he had applied for a construction/engineering course as this is what he has been doing at school for the last 2 years.
  In the army he hasn't really decided what he wants to do, probably something along similar lines, he wants to speak the the recruitment officer about that.
• i would let him begin the recruitment process and see how he feels. He'll have to speak to the recruitment office, do the barb tests, go to selection etc. It can be quite a long process and he may have a wait- recruitment numbers are high at the moment!
  Let him go into it a little more and see how he feels. You can go and speak to the recruitment office aswell.
• What is he intending to do in the Army? What rank level is he looking at, soldier or Commission?
  Could he sort out a visit to an Army unit nearby that will give him an idea of the day to day routine of the Army.
• I did the lower sixth form at school and never went back after the summer hols. Eventually got kicked out of the house until I got a job so I went to the careers office and after the tests, I joined the Royal Corps of Signals and am still serving in the Armed Forces 21 years later although I am now an RAF officer. My advice would be to try and join up as an officer in the first place (hindsight is always 20:20!) and do as much research as possible into exactly what the various jobs actually entail. The recruiters will always tell you about the positives but it's best to talk to someone who is actually doing the job for a fully balanced view.
• As a forces wife ( we are in Germany right now) of many years I can tell you that if my Son wanted to join up, I would be SO proud!! Good on your son! The army offers so much these days, yes its scary the climate we live in but it IS one big family when it counts
  Education, promotional courses, training e.t.c are really encouraged now and invested in. Its all changed a LOT!
  Some of my spur of the moment decisions have been the best I have ever made...I had a light bulb moment and joined here on the spur of the moment and its changed my life So dont knock those spur of the moment things! lol
  Good luck to your son and thoughts to you x
• After speaking to him last night he said he would like to join the REME but I think it will depend on his exam results.
  He did consider the RAF but he thought that there are more opportunities to play sports in the Army which he loves, is this right?
  (I appologise if this sounds like a stupid reason to choose the Army over the RAF but he is only 15, I am trying to help make sure he makes the right choice)
• As a forces wife and also the mother of a 16 year old with a son considering a forces career I would say go for it, let him look into it and see if it would suit him. ood career oppotunities and great character building. Would shoul all be really proud and grateful to our armed forces.
• My maid of honur is in the RAF (officer) and has done one tour of Afghanistan on the front lines - it was scary for everyone at home and really tough out there. She's now back and in an office job due to her legal skills but will probably rotate back out there in a couple of years time. she has no problem with that and whilst she doesn't relish it she accepts it as part of her job and a fact of life.
  I was a Navy brat myself... so I've seen a lot of that side of it too and my step brother did a stint as a grunt (as a navy family he had the mickey taken for joining the wrong side )
  It's a worthy job and a good career. As for sports... I'd say RAF and Army have at least the same amount of sports available - Navy slightly less if you're onboard ship for obvious reasons. My maid of honour is VERY keen on sports and is super fit still - I don't think she does much team sports but she runs and does at least an hour in the gym each day.
• Hi, both my sons are in the Army. One in Logistics-Courier, and one in Royal Signals-IT and Comms system engineer. The Signals have a great history of sports...got their own rugby team etc etc.
  Being a mother of a soldier (even one under training) is what I describe as 'happy sad' Happy that they're getting a career and going to see the world, and sad that we don't see as much of them as we'd like. PLEASE just be proud that your son feels secure enough in your love that he knows he can do this, and you'll still be there to love him-no matter what. When people asked me how I felt when my sons joined up, I just said' it doesn't matter how I feel-as long as they're happy' -cue brave smile and sob in private...lol.
  Whatever your son decides, I hope he's happy. As for us mothers-we'll just get on with it and support them no matter what.
• If he's really into sports, have him look into a PT (physical torture/training) instructor role perhaps - sounds rather suited to him.
  Also, if you're worried about having to pay back any forces scholarship, certain roles will pay out golden hellos to those with certain degrees - for example, an EO (engineering officer) in the Navy gets an extra Ј12k during training if they have a technical degree.
  I'd encourage him to go to university beforehand, if you think it suits him, whether he decides to seek commission or otherwise.
• My son also suddenly decide he wanted to join the forces at a careers evening - up to then, although he was in the school cadet force, he had never thought of it as a career. As languages were his strength he was leaning more towards a career which would involve these. After deciding he wanted to 'join up' he never looked back, gaining a sponsorship deal with the Artillery which paid him a lump sum each year whilst he was at sixth form college and then at university. He also joined the local TA unit whilst at uni, all of which helped keep his student debts to a minimum. He is now 28 and a captain and he has used his language skills in his job. I would say give your son all the support he needs to join the forces - the opportunities he will get he will never receive any where else. My son really has travelled the world and has met some fantastic people that he remains in touch with. Good luck to him whatever service he decides on.
• I spent a few years in the RAF and had a great time. Loads of sporting opportunities - Played Squash and Badminton all over the uk and when posted there all over Germany. Its a great life and I was always proud to say what I did for a living.