Kilkrazy wrote:My father went into the RAF straight after technical college; he became a wireless technician. Part of his motive was to avoid National Service. He also got a good technical education which he later used as a technical author in the electronics industry.
He was posted all over the world; Gibraltar, Aden, Ceylon, India -- this was the 1950s of course -- and learned a hatred of card games and foreign travel.
My grandad did that, but kept his love of travelling, an now resides here, in Oz.
Cheese Elemental wrote:Well my country let me live here, didn't it?
It's a very difficult issue for me. I know that there are a fair few military/former military personnel here (jp400 etc) and people who don't even like the military (MDG), so I figured I'd get some good opinions here. My mother thinks it's a good idea, and my brother wants me to go along because he did and got through it just fine (although he
is 6'5").
Besides, the army isn't the only option, right? There's always the navy and air force.
I am going Navy when I get fit and disciplined enough. That's what Karate's for
Albatross wrote:I would say it depends...
If you wanted to pursue the military as a long-term career, you'd be better off getting some form of higher education in order to qualify for officer training. You can be a fighter-pilot with 3 A levels (IIRC) in the UK.
Also, being Australian you could join the British military as a commonwealth citizen - although this would mean an increased chance of seeing active service in Afghanistan.
How fit are you? Australia has an SAS - they're pretty awesome, by all accounts.
The Oz
SAS are off the fething chain. Raving loonies, by all accounts. Read a book written by some guy who was in it. He sounded crazy for even doing the training...
Drk_Oblitr8r wrote:Cheese, I'm guessing you've finished Year 12 recently, right? Wait for your HSC results, then decide if you can't get into the uni course you want. Although, I'm under the impression that it might be too late for the uni course...
Isn't HSC just N.S.W.?
dogma wrote:sebster wrote:
You don't need a scholarship to fund higher education in Australia. We have a scheme where you are accepted based on your highschool grades and then government will pick up the tab, and you accumulate a debt as you learn (even then the debt is only around 1/3 of the actual cost of education). You are only required to pay the debt off once you earn enough money after completing your degree.
Christ, why didn't I get 'lost' there 12 years ago?
I knew there was a reason I wanted to go to graduate school down there. Well, that and women with Australian accents.
It's true, we do sound awesome
Wrexasaur wrote:sebster wrote:dogma wrote:Well, that and women with Australian accents.
Australian accents are attractive? The women are hot, I'll agree to that, but the accents?
I am trying to think of a famous Australian chick... I am sure there are at least a few rather well known figures.
That said, I am not sure I follow either...
Nicole Kidman, Cate Blanchett.
Emperors Faithful wrote:Have you considered doing a degree and having the army pay for it?
I've talked to my careers advisor about this and the army has this great program where you take a Uni course, and for every year you spend at Uni, you spend a year in the army after you finished your degree. (Then +1 for the Crown.) So if you do a 4 year course you serve 5 years in the army afterwards. (You DO get a normal salary.) After that the worlds your oyster.
This is what I'm planning to do. I'll do a 5 year Arts/Law course, serve 6 in the Army and after that I'm set for a career.
BTW Cheese, I'm not a Gung Ho, guns-galore type of guy. I don't want to die. And I certainly don't plan on it. I fear death as much as you do. And if you've got religeon, probably more.
Could I kill another human being? I can't speak from experience but if we were shooting at each other, I think so. Cold-blooded murder? Probably not.
As for those who say that we follow poloticians, it has long been Australias proudest tradition to mock these very fellows. I'm not signing up becuase of any polotician, I'll be signing up becuase of me, my family and (I can't beleive I'm saying this) my country. No country had any favours done for them by not having an army.
I'll just add this cheesy little footnote. I know what I'm gonna be, do YOU?
Eugh. The restaurant I work at was full of pollies the other day, and they were having little speeches 'till after closing, and they got pissy at us when we started cleaning. Prats...
Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:You think School sucks? Wait until you leave.
Now that sucks.
Da Boss wrote:You think school is bad wait until you leave, mate.
This is SO true.
Cheese Elemental wrote:Lord-Loss wrote:So In Australia, do you leave school at Year 2, age 16?
Which would make Year 12, to be the same as Year 11 in Britain.
Which makes you 14
You should not be worrying if you got two years of hell, I mean school left.
No. Here, you start Grade 1 when you're six, and at the end of Grade 10 you're sixteen. College (last two years of government schooling) then goes on until age 18. Before Grade 1 there's Prep (age five), kindergarten (age four) and pre-school (age three).
(I'm in Grade 10, sixteen)
That's in Taswhinier. Here (Canberra) we go Pre-school, Primary school (Kinder - 6), High School (7-10) and College (11 and 12).
Drk_Oblitr8r wrote:
And they've changed the laws, so now you can't leave until you finish year 12, without a full time job
Where the feth did you get that from? You can leave school after finishing year 9.
As for me, Navy is something I have wanted to do since I was about 8, so I am definately going to give that a shot.
-to many points to bother to count.
