canadian military basic training

[alisont]

I'm looking at a direct entry program to finance my graduate studies and I wondered if anyone out there has been through basic and what it was like, level of physical intensity wise....I am very physically active (work out at least 4x week). Would I be getting in over my head? How athletic do you need to be?

[MadCow]

You should be fine. It's not like you're applying to become a Navy Seal.

From what I've read, you need to able to do the following (for recruits under 25):


Push-Ups: 19
Sit-ups: 19
Hand Grip: 75lbs.
Cardio: 2.4km run in under approximately 11 and a half minutes
They look for proper form for the push ups and sit ups. I have friends who think they can do tons of push ups in one sitting, when they are only moving their body a couple inches up and down.

You should be able to get more information from this website:

http://www.recruiting.forces.gc.ca/engraph/howtojoin/fitness_eval_e.aspx?bhcp=1

[slowtalon]

Check out the forums at Army.ca (http://forums.army.ca/)

There's a tonne of great information from actual Canadian soldiers.

[shawn99]

if they fund your grad studies and did the basic trainning, doesn't it mean that you are part of their reserves? When war calls, you go.

[coolspot]

Holy cow:

Signing bonuses For Doctors and Specialists - $225,000 and $80,000 for Specialists. Salary is $121,344 or $186,852 for specialists.

Geez, so after 4 years in the army, a doctor has ~500K in the bank.

What would a civilian doctor make after 4 years of work out of school?

[alisont]

In DND physiotherapists are commissioned officers. It means I'm an officer for five years after I'm done my schooling working as a physiotherapist maybe overseas, maybe at a base in canada. In the summers, you work for DND, don't know doing what.

[jacky27]

Holy cow:

Signing bonuses For Doctors and Specialists - $225,000 and $80,000 for Specialists. Salary is $121,344 or $186,852 for specialists.

Geez, so after 4 years in the army, a doctor has ~500K in the bank.

What would a civilian doctor make after 4 years of work out of school?


you missed read, this is the corect posting

Incentives for Military Doctors and Dentists
In addition to existing recruiting bonuses for physicians of $225,000 (for a 4-year commitment) or $80,000 (for a 2-year commitment, renewable with a $100,000 bonus) and for dentists of $25,000, new pay improvements are in place:

[FastFokker]

Read the army.ca forums or better yet, talk to a recruiter directly.

If you're physically active now, don't worry about BMQ. It'll still be some hard work, but it won't kill you. I guess in the case of commisioned, it would be BOT, not BMQ.

[ZxExN]

The mental aspect of it will affect you more than the physical. Most of the guys I was on course with quit voluntarily. Be prepared to be out in the field for a month. (You'll have nightmares lol) Good luck

[jd82]

The mental aspect of it will affect you more than the physical. Most of the guys I was on course with quit voluntarily. Be prepared to be out in the field for a month. (You'll have nightmares lol) Good luck

but IMPs are damn good. :cheesygri

[greg123]

What would a civilian doctor make after 4 years of work out of school?

A LOT MORE

[greg123]

I'm looking at a direct entry program to finance my graduate studies and I wondered if anyone out there has been through basic and what it was like, level of physical intensity wise....I am very physically active (work out at least 4x week). Would I be getting in over my head? How athletic do you need to be?

http://www.recruiting.forces.gc.ca/engraph/enrollment/index_e.aspx

on their site theres not much on the requirement of the direct entry program, do you have to apply like you were applying to a grad school or ? what are the basic requirement to apply?

[Tomato_1]

Best thing call / go down to the army recruitment center and ask. They are no where close to being pushy as the American counter parts. Hell I remember going to a center once and they showed me Officer boot camp training just to show that they are not hiding anything.

[Thanh]

I'm looking at a direct entry program to finance my graduate studies and I wondered if anyone out there has been through basic and what it was like, level of physical intensity wise....I am very physically active (work out at least 4x week). Would I be getting in over my head? How athletic do you need to be?

As a reserve officer, I can assure you that the physical part will be the lowest of your concern. The BMQ (basic military training) is 10-11 weeks long and it will test your mental toughness. Your day will start around 5h30 and you won't be in bed until 23h. That schedule for a day is easily doable but dealing with that schedule for multiple weeks while facing tons of physical & intellectual challenges is definitely tough.

Passing through the BMQ is one thing but making the most out of it is alot harder. You have to remember that after this basic training, you will be an active soldier and that you might have to engage in warfare activities. Reservists are often referred to as "weekend warriors" because of that. Too many of them are simply looking for a summer job.

Remember that the army life is not for everyone and you should think about who you are and what your values are before deciding if you join or not.

[circa76]

As a reserve officer, I can assure you that the physical part will be the lowest of your concern. The BMQ (basic military training) is 10-11 weeks long and it will test your mental toughness. Your day will start around 5h30 and you won't be in bed until 23h. That schedule for a day is easily doable but dealing with that schedule for multiple weeks while facing tons of physical & intellectual challenges is definitely tough.

Passing through the BMQ is one thing but making the most out of it is alot harder. You have to remember that after this basic training, you will be an active soldier and that you might have to engage in warfare activities. Reservists are often referred to as "weekend warriors" because of that. Too many of them are simply looking for a summer job.

Remember that the army life is not for everyone and you should think about who you are and what your values are before deciding if you join or not.

Thanh, I'm a reserve officer too, what unit are you with?

BMQ is the NCM program. BOTP(R) Part 1 is the officer program. Essentially they are the same except you get additional leadership lessons taught. BOTP(R) Part 2 is a one week add-on course for small party tasks.

Don't worry about either BOTP1 or BOTP2. As with BMQ, they will be the easiest courses you'll ever do in the army. Worry about the next step, CAP (Common Army Phase). That is where you'll really hurt.

When I ran a BMQ/BOTP course, I woke everyone up at 0500. They were to be ready for PT at 0530. I did PT with them every Saturday. Evenings would end around 2300, sometimes earlier if we were ahead of schedule. There were times were we kept them awake later because we needed to motivated them.

PM me if you want more info.

[akky]

so if u go through basic military training and become a reserve officer that stays home and is basically on call, does the canadian government still pay off your tution? and once u get called to go to war lets say, do you get paid?

[circa76]

so if u go through basic military training and become a reserve officer that stays home and is basically on call, does the canadian government still pay off your tution? and once u get called to go to war lets say, do you get paid?

umm no, you don't stay home and be "on call". Once you finish your trade training you'll have be an active member on your unit, meaning parade nights once (or twice) a week, weekend exercises (typically once a month), and if you can make it, summer concentration (one week).
If you are a dead beat, you'll be considered NES (non-effective strength) and could be released.

You can apply for tuition reimbursement if you are attending a accredited post-secondary institution to a max of 50% of the tuition or $2000 (I believe that was the number).

If you go overseas, yes you will get paid. Much more than you would as a reservist. If you go on tour, you will be paid regular force rates, plus a bunch of add-ons that I can't remember off of the top of my head.. but one of them was hazard pay if you're being deploying in a combat zone. But you're not going to get call unless an order in council is passed.. which last happened in Korea I believe.

Alot of this info is available from your recruiter, they have the finance details better prepared. If you want to know what its like during training, I can help you. I've been both the trainee and the trainer.

[akky]

j/w how much does a full time 18 year old soldier make? like what would be 1 years salary and benefits?

[chowder]

i'm a 24 yr. old reservist NCM. right now i'm on a class C contract posted with a regular force unit doing workup training to go overseas in february.

as a reservist all that is expected of you is that you show up once a week, one weekend a month, and sometimes there are other days..it is not mandatory that you show up for anything as a reservist. you can never be AWOL unless you show up, sign a paysheet for the day, and then leave before being dismissed...or if you are on a class B or C contract which is only when you are on course or if you willingly sign one. even if you say you are going to show up for something, and then wake up hungover and decide not to go, you can't be charged. sure it won't look good, and your career won't go anywhere, but legally you're fine.

unless there is an act of parliament and the War Measures Act is enabled, they can't force you to go anywhere. This hasn't happened since world war II. even if it did happen, there is probably many ways to get out.

what else...
the physical part is mostly easy. the hardest thing is probably staying awake for 2 days+ or shivering through the cold on sentry shift at 3am in wet and cold conditions.

reservists get paid 15% less than regular force members. however if you go on a class c contract then you get the same. however as a reservist you usually get promoted faster so when you get the class c contract you'll be getting paid more than someone who has been in the regular force the same amount of time...also your reserve unit will pay many things for you when you are attached to a reg force unit. for example for this 9 month workup training my unit is paying for my food and accomodation. none of the reg force guys get this allowance.

if you are taking post-secondary education the reserves will pay 50% up to $2,000 a year for a max of $8,000 over your career. it's a bit of a hassle to get and you don't get it until the year after, but you will get it.

i can't think of anything else right now. feel free to ask questions.

[webdoctors]

I'm looking at a direct entry program to finance my graduate studies and I wondered if anyone out there has been through basic and what it was like, level of physical intensity wise....I am very physically active (work out at least 4x week). Would I be getting in over my head? How athletic do you need to be?

I did basic training and passed the physical. Basic training tough cause of the lack of sleep, the physical is easy, 19 pushups, situps, etc.

I';m out of shape and dont exercise much and had no probs going into it after high skule.

I know someone that did direct entry after undergrad, its alright, they give $40k signinig bonus for engineers, u gotta work for them for 5 yrs and take courses to become bilingual (or passable).

[circa76]

i'm a 24 yr. old reservist NCM. right now i'm on a class C contract posted with a regular force unit doing workup training to go overseas in february.

as a reservist all that is expected of you is that you show up once a week, one weekend a month, and sometimes there are other days..it is not mandatory that you show up for anything as a reservist. you can never be AWOL unless you show up, sign a paysheet for the day, and then leave before being dismissed...or if you are on a class B or C contract which is only when you are on course or if you willingly sign one. even if you say you are going to show up for something, and then wake up hungover and decide not to go, you can't be charged. sure it won't look good, and your career won't go anywhere, but legally you're fine.

unless there is an act of parliament and the War Measures Act is enabled, they can't force you to go anywhere. This hasn't happened since world war II. even if it did happen, there is probably many ways to get out.


WTF? Assuming you are who you say you are, you should know better than to post stuff like this.

Believe it or not, if you do show up with a hangover while on Class B or C you can be charged uder CFAO 19-31, Misuse of Alcohol. Heck, I can probably figure out a way to stick it to you on Class A if you show up hungover. Or there is always section 129 of NDA, the wonderful "catch-all" charge if we can find a something more suitable to stick you with.

Telling people who are interested in serving that "you don't actually have to show up" is not on. Would you want a troop with that attitude as your fire team partner? No? then don't encourage it.

[UrbanPoet]

Best thing call / go down to the army recruitment center and ask. They are no where close to being pushy as the American counter parts. Hell I remember going to a center once and they showed me Officer boot camp training just to show that they are not hiding anything.

lol... it'd be funny if they say before hand "hey guys! put the whips away. act nice! a possible new recruit is coming"

[chowder]

WTF? Assuming you are who you say you are, you should know better than to post stuff like this.

Believe it or not, if you do show up with a hangover while on Class B or C you can be charged uder CFAO 19-31, Misuse of Alcohol. Heck, I can probably figure out a way to stick it to you on Class A if you show up hungover. Or there is always section 129 of NDA, the wonderful "catch-all" charge if we can find a something more suitable to stick you with.

Telling people who are interested in serving that "you don't actually have to show up" is not on. Would you want a troop with that attitude as your fire team partner? No? then don't encourage it.


i am not condoning those activities at all. and nowhere did i say you can show up with a hangover. basically i was looking for a reason someone wouldn't feel like or be able to show up. that was a bad example. i'll use another example....say you have 2 final exams on a monday, but that weekend your unit is going out for an excercise. you know that barely sleeping the whole weekend will leave you ruined for monday, and you still need to study. you can call in to your chain of command, and explain the situation and you'll be able to stay home and study. the reserves is really flexible and will try to accomodate you with your civvy job or school.

people who never show up don't get very far in the army. they don't get offered any more courses or oppurtunities. and as someone said before if it goes on for long enough they will be NES (non-effective strength) and eventually punted, never to work for the government again.

[Fragle]

i'm a 24 yr. old reservist NCM. right now i'm on a class C contract posted with a regular force unit doing workup training to go overseas in february.


My bro is in the same spot as you, at Aldershot right now but he'll be heading over in Feb. Luckily he's going to be able to take a short leave in July for my wedding.

[Xtreme2001]

Will the army reimburse someone who has completed a degree but has OSAP debt? or do you have to be in school?

[akky]

what was the age or time u guys signed up to be a reserver, is becoming one straight out of highschool a good idea, so u can be a reserve and be doing post-secondary studies at the same time? and how long does it take to be a reserve, because i was just wondering that if ur becoming a reserve how will it affect ur post-secondary studies, cause i want to become one out of highschool, but once im in Uni or College, i want to start becoming a reserve as well, thanks ne info would be appreciated

[bubble.tea]

:lol:





Firstly, I think OPs question has been answered, but there are a heck of a lot of other issues (all important) which have arisen...are we going to just use this thread as a catch-all for all military related subjects?


work-up trg is insane for reservists.

I STRONGLY encourage ALL high schoolers to join the reserves., THERE IS NO EMPLOYMENT CURRENTLY that comes close to the work-experience, the PUNCH when an employer reads, Active Reserve member with such and such unit since __years/, the fringe benefits, and of course the PAY. After 1 year in the reserves and your First Trade Qualification course, I believe your daily rate BLOWS all minimum wage counter-parts....even significant other unskilled labour positions out of the water.

I always reminisce that had I ever clued into what that damn military building behind my high school was, and JOINED while in High School-what position, and rank I would hold now. I only joined the Reserves 6 years ago, and it's been good to me. As a result my brother joined 4 years younger than I was when I first joined, so I'm glad in that sense.

For people paranoid about physical fitness....there is A LOT of emphasis and evaluative credit placed on EFFORT, and MOTIVATION, and PERSEVERENCE, that is., you have a physically hit young stud who drags his butt during BOT, and a slightly overweight 40yr old woman who NEVER gives up, and is constantly breaking a sweat on the obstacle course-always giving a lending hand to her fellow-Cadets, You'll be surprised that the Canadian Army TODAY, will rank that woman much higher-hehe and not because of male/female quotas or any crap like that.

p.s. If anybody wants to chat about stuff., pm your number., I've got a decent cellphone LD package and don't mind burning up as much of it as possible. Who knows....we might even be in the same unit :D.

[chowder]

Will the army reimburse someone who has completed a degree but has OSAP debt? or do you have to be in school?


you have to be currently in school. they will give a signing bonus to certain specialists (doctors, dentists, etc.) who have already completed school, but they won't pay off your student loans for you.

as the last poster said, joining the reserves after high school is a very good idea. for an older teen, or even young 20 year old the pay blows anything else out of the water. for example once you reach corporal (2 years) you will be making roughly $120 a day or $60 a half day. if you work for 6 hours or more you get a full days pay, anything less and you get a half days pay. so you could work 7 hours or 24 hours and you get the same amount. but as a reservist I will break down what you can expect in a month during the school year.

regular parade nights for my unit are on thursdays. i know for lots of other units it is tuesdays. during this day we show up from 7 to 10pm. so 3 hours work, you get a half days pay which is $60 and that equates to $20 an hour. do that 4 times a month and you have $240. on top of that you will do one weekend a month. for us this usually consists of showing up on friday at 7pm, and going until sunday around 3 or 4 pm. so you get a half day for friday, and 2 full days which comes out to be $300.

so right off the bat you are pretty much guaranteed about $540 a month. there is always extra days and they always need guys to come in for random tasks. you could easily pick up another couple days or weekend work and make over $1000 in a month.

keep in mind it's really flexible and if you are too bogged down with school you can call in and miss a night of work if you really need to. the weekends are often tiring and strenuous but once you get through it you feel better.

the training year coincides nicely with university semesters as well. it starts in september, shuts down for a couple weeks during christmas, and then goes until late april/early may. after that your unit will stand down, but there is plenty of summer employment oppurtunities. in fact i think they guarantee reservists summer employment. lots of guys i know just finished up 3 or 4 month summer contracts and are returning to school. during the summer while on contract you get paid every day. even if you have the day off (usually you'll get weekends off) you get your $120 a day or whatever it works out for your pay scale. so multiply that by 90 or 120 days and you have quite a nice summer income. better than working at mcdonalds all summer. on top of your wage you will also receive other allowances such a free food and accomodation, and travel allowances.

keep in mind you will also be getting $2,000 a year on top of that as tuition reimbursement.

i don't know what else to say, it sounds like a good deal to me.

[bubble.tea]

......

as the last poster said, joining the reserves after high school is a very good idea.......

in fact i think they guarantee reservists summer employment.............

keep in mind you will also be getting $2,000 a year on top of that as tuition reimbursement.
............

I would encourage joining as SOON as your 'of age' (16?)....not AFTER HS.

I dont' think so. Class Bs are far and few between., HOWEVER, they also depend on your trade. My trade is quite difficult to find employment (solid that is from May-End Aug) for more than 50% of the unit members. You may get 40-60% employment during the summer if you're lucky, and it won't be continuous, a month here., a couple weeks there, and the standard Aug 18-28 end of the year Field Excercise that every Tom DickNHarry go on.

as long as you are passing all your courses and are full-time. Part-time and it's still 50% but only what your tuition bills are.

[akky]

k, im 17 going into gr.12 tmw, so when should i join asap? bc i was wondering should i concentrate more on skool right now to get into Uni/College? and if i do decide to join when will i be able to go in for the physical tests and the other tests, if i have skool on the weekdays? weekends im guessing, but not to sure because of the staying up for 2 days test?
and...yea im pretty sure i want to become one

[bubble.tea]

k, im 17 going into gr.12 tmw, so when should i join asap? ......


I would say yes, now. Which trade are you interested in?

[akky]

which are available?, and how long does the recruitment process and training take, or does it depend on trade?

[chowder]

if you signed up now you would probably get on a weekend basic training course in the winter months. late november to february or something like that.

the recruitment process takes a while. once you get all your stuff together (high school transcripts, 2 letters of reference, and other stuff) drop it off to the local recruiter. you will probably get a call back in about 3 weeks. there are many factors that will slow down the recruitment process. if you've been out of the country for longer than 6 months consecutively in the last 5 years they will have to do this pre-secure screening thing that takes quite a while because i think they outsource it to some company and they take forever.

anyways ya, basically if you want to join the best idea is always to get your paperwork in as soon as possible because it can take a while. don't get discouraged while waiting.

by the way there is no 2 days stay awake test as i think you mentioned.

the recruitment process goes like this...hand in your paperwork, get a call back, go in for a physical which consists of doing something like 19 pushups, an easy amount of situps, and going up and down a couple stairs to make sure your blood pressure isn't through the roof. don't quote me on that, but it's nothing hard.

after the physical you do an aptitude test which is sort of like an iq test. this makes sure you are intelligent enough for the trade you want. if you want engineer then the requirements will be higher if you want to be a cook or something. there is spatial orientation stuff on the test as well. it takes an hour or so.

after that you do an interview. they will ask about drugs you've done and what not. don't lie, they don't care if you've tried weed or what not. there is stuff like caffeine on the list so don't just say no to everything.

following that, if they deem you suitable they will forward your file to the local unit that you would be working for. that unit will call you, bring you down, and swear you in. you will get paid for this day. then you will get all your kit and officially be in the military. your basic training won't start for a while because they are only run once in a while. usually during the summer, and as i said before sometimes they run weekend courses during the winter.

i can't think of anything else. where you live will depend on what trades you can sign up for...well sort of. if you live in a big city they will most likely have reserve units of all types. however if you're in a small city they might only have one or two reserve units like infantry or artillery.

ok, i'm spent

[corrupt123]

My friend just got back from it. He told me a lot.

Chowder got it all pretty much correct. However, I want to point out that there IS infact a test of endurance where you stay awake for 48 hours. I dont think however you do this test in the basic training, so it'll be a while before you have to do it.

What happened with my buddy was he did all the appaers and what not, then during the school year he goes once a week on wednesdays. Then, this summer he went to CFB borden for the basic training. It was 2 months, so he basically got lit for his summer. He had a good time though from the sounds of it. Now, he's back in town and back in school, and again, he goes once a week to some local section to continue his work/training. Then, I believe, next summer he can go to Quebec for the next portion of his training.

[bubble.tea]

....... that unit will call you, bring you down, and swear you in. you will get paid for this day. .........
what!?

I got jipped!!!

[circa76]

I want to point out that there IS infact a test of endurance where you stay awake for 48 hours. I dont think however you do this test in the basic training, so it'll be a while before you have to do it.


on BMQ? I'd like to see that. I just taught BMQ last year and I had to give the recruits a minimum of 4 hours of sleep a night. Varies by the school I guess, but your buddy was LFCA, probably 32CBG so its should be the same school.

Perhaps you're referring to SQ, where no such requirement exists. I would be surprised if they only deprived you of sleep for 48 hours. Ask your buddy what kind of hallucinations he had, those always get a good laugh!

[akky]

if you signed up now you would probably get on a weekend basic training course in the winter months. late november to february or something like that.

the recruitment process takes a while. once you get all your stuff together (high school transcripts, 2 letters of reference, and other stuff) drop it off to the local recruiter. you will probably get a call back in about 3 weeks. there are many factors that will slow down the recruitment process. if you've been out of the country for longer than 6 months consecutively in the last 5 years they will have to do this pre-secure screening thing that takes quite a while because i think they outsource it to some company and they take forever.

anyways ya, basically if you want to join the best idea is always to get your paperwork in as soon as possible because it can take a while. don't get discouraged while waiting.

by the way there is no 2 days stay awake test as i think you mentioned.

the recruitment process goes like this...hand in your paperwork, get a call back, go in for a physical which consists of doing something like 19 pushups, an easy amount of situps, and going up and down a couple stairs to make sure your blood pressure isn't through the roof. don't quote me on that, but it's nothing hard.

after the physical you do an aptitude test which is sort of like an iq test. this makes sure you are intelligent enough for the trade you want. if you want engineer then the requirements will be higher if you want to be a cook or something. there is spatial orientation stuff on the test as well. it takes an hour or so.

after that you do an interview. they will ask about drugs you've done and what not. don't lie, they don't care if you've tried weed or what not. there is stuff like caffeine on the list so don't just say no to everything.

following that, if they deem you suitable they will forward your file to the local unit that you would be working for. that unit will call you, bring you down, and swear you in. you will get paid for this day. then you will get all your kit and officially be in the military. your basic training won't start for a while because they are only run once in a while. usually during the summer, and as i said before sometimes they run weekend courses during the winter.

i can't think of anything else. where you live will depend on what trades you can sign up for...well sort of. if you live in a big city they will most likely have reserve units of all types. however if you're in a small city they might only have one or two reserve units like infantry or artillery.

ok, i'm spent

thanks thats the info i needed to know