LC and RDF

[eroo]

Well I have my Leaving Cert this summer,just wondering will I have to attend every parade night after the pre's as I honestly do not know if it will be possible.They told us that it was fine not to attend as much but will I miss out on a lot?
Overall,I heard they are good when it comes to letting you off for LC,anyone experience otherwise??
Thanks,
eroo

[DeV]

Depends on your unit & your rank/grade. In January ask for a copy of the programme, stating the facts above.

[Fintan]

How much study are you planning on doing?


Must be alot if you cant spare 2 hours a week.

[luchi]

How much study are you planning on doing?


Must be alot if you cant spare 2 hours a week.

Some people find that they need a couple of hrs a night. Some can skip a couple of nights and make up. So its not really how much stud one intends to do but rather what type of studier you are.

Nearly all LC students in our unit over the last few years have stopped training in april. Really pissed off the Trg Sgt.

[Goldie fish]

Your education should always come first. The RDF will be there next year.

[Bravo20]

Never mind the next year bollox. Any platoon commander and Pln Sgt worth his/her salt is well aware of the timings of the leaving cert examinations, and should work their program around that. The thing you should do is keep your NCOs informed

[ackack658]

no offence OP, but that attitude really annoys me. surely your not going to spend every second between leaving school and going to sleep studying? Can you really not take 2 hours out of your evening once a week to attend training? When I was doing the LC I went every single week, even the night before one of my exams because the contrast to regular life not to mention the discipline of an evening parade relaxes you, and focueses you better on what lies ahead.

You might look at 2 hours for the 3 months before the exams as 24 hours of studying lost, assuming you would spend that time studying, but will you really?

[Eddie Dillon]

That's assuming that people in LC do nothing else with their spare time. What about people who play sports, boy/girlfriend, hobbies etc. It's all well and good for some people to say that people in LC not attending training regularly pisses them off but having been there myself I know how it can be difficult to attend regularly. Most units will understand once you explain your situation to them, whatever it is, and you should be able to work something out

[fred the red]

there is a lot of bs been talked here.
leaving cert is one of the most important exams youll ever do.
rdf is not gonna pay your wages in years to come.
if your unit has a problem with you taking time off to study or whatever during your leaving then they obviously dont think much of you and your future so i personally wouldnt have much time for that unit.
im a training sgt and if some of the troops im training are doing there leaving cert they would get nothing but support from me its a stressfull enough time without ncos givin ya sh!t for not being at training.
remember rdf is a hobby.

[luchi]

You might look at 2 hours for the 3 months before the exams as 24 hours of studying lost, assuming you would spend that time studying, but will you really?

And this assumes lots of dicipline. Everyone is different.

As B20 says keep your NCOs informed.

Incidently a couple of years ago I spent the last two tuesdays before the LC giving a couple of lads a dig out with maths and Physics.
My point is letting lads in your unit know you are seriously studying can yield unsuspected bonuses.

[johnny no stars]

I paraded the nigth before an exam. I got an A1 in that exam. I didn't stop parading during the year either. It shouldn't make a big enough impact. Instead of doing 3 hours on a satuday, do 4. Chances are you'll get as much done in 1 extra hour a tthe weekend than you will after a whole day spent in school, followed by homework.

That said, I did find that it got a bit awkward if I had essays due the following day because it meant that I literally only had wednesday night to get them done. So it depends on your commitment and acedemic ability really. Only you can tell for yourself but as long as you do as much as you yourself can justify and go to your camp after the LC there shouldn't be a problem. If there is a problem then your NCOs are gobshites if they can't see that ultimately, Leaving Cert comes before RDF.

[eroo]

Thank you for the help everyone.My NCO's said there is no need for me to show up at EVERY parade night,so I will just wait and see how it all pans out come March/April!
Thanks,
eroo

[SC Uilechumachtach]

I did a TOET the night before my oral irish exam. Told them all about how the Bren worked.

[Docman]

leaving cert is one of the most important exams youll ever do.

The LC is probably the least most important exam you'll do, surpassed in lack of importance by the Junior Cert.

Most employers don't give a rats ass what you got in your LC, most are more interested in what you got done after the LC. Most recruitments firms advise that you DON'T include your LC results in your CV as employers don't want to know or may think you are trying to cover over your lack of post LC qualifications.. The high drop out rate in 3rd Level has largely been attributed to students not realising that your 7 A1s that you got in your LC doesn't impress anyone when you are failing a module. Even to get into College nowadays has moved away from the LC points race as many colleges realised how poorly prepared LC students are for 3rd Level and have placed more and more emphasis on accepting people who have a proven track record of qualifications achieved AFTER the LC since it has been seen that showed that these people are far more likely to achieve a 3rd Level Qualification that those with LC only.

Anyway, enough of my rant.
My old unit used to try and have a major Ex in March/April and tried to encourage LC students to parade weekly or fortnightly up to the EX and they were then excused from training until after the LC. Worked very effectively. If certain people were unable to commit to even that, allowances would be made unless it was considered too excessive as to prevent them from completing a large proportion of module 1. Seeing as we started recruit training in Sept/Oct, the module was usually finished sometime in Feb allowing plenty of time for LC students to get the module done.

However, it largely depends on the unit you join. If it is any good at all, it should have its training scedule set up around LC students or, at least, make allowances for them.

[eroo]

Well the LC is quite important to me as it is absolutely necessary for joining GS!