Attracting People to the RDF

[easyrider]

1. There's a picture in today's Irish Times showing Korean high school students doing a four-day 'boot camp' run by the Korean Marine Corps. Could the DF offer something similar - military-style adventure training - maybe as a module for Transition Year students?

2. Would it make sense to base some RDF units on 3rd level colleges? All sorts of clubs, societies and organisations have college branches. After all, that's where you find high concentrations of young people.

3. What about attracting RDF recruits by offering 'try-it-and-see' camps, at the end of which those who want to continue, and who are deemed suitable, are invited to sign up?

[trellheim]

2 is eminently feasible and has been done before. The regiment of Pearse was famous for being connected to the Universities

[DeV]

2 FAR used to run a 4 day event (try it & see type without the guns or drill) for An Gaisce, not sure if they still do.

Either 9 or 10 Inf (FCA) used to run a competition for schools in the area where teams competed in military skills competitions.

There is an RDF near to most universities/colleges and they have the advantage of weapons on site.

Also please use the search function!

[riflemangundy]

Tyr It And See

Great idea,, this would work,, only thing is INSURANCE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I could see it working even boosting the profile of the DF!!

[northie]

2 FAR used to run a 4 day event (try it & see type without the guns or drill) for An Gaisce, not sure if they still do.

Either 9 or 10 Inf (FCA) used to run a competition for schools in the area where teams competed in military skills competitions.

There is an RDF near to most universities/colleges and they have the advantage of weapons on site.

Also please use the search function!

The Gaisce event is still ran every year and places on it are quite sought after. Its aimed mainly at (i would say) silver level award participants. But from what i gather its more outdoor skills and team building than "try and see if you like it".

The second suggestion of RDF/OTC units in third level institutions would be interesting - it would certainly make the defence forces better known in the public sphere, but the defence forces would need to be quite clear in their mind as to what the goal or ethos/aim of these third level units would be.

Other equivalents overseas (OUTC, ROTC are all i'm vaguely familiar with) seem to have the goal of giving the future high fliers a taste of military life so they will be more favourably disposed towards the armed forces of whatever particular state it is, to provide "leadership training" (basically same as the previous point, captains of industry fondly remembering their "army days") and pluck out suitable officer types for commissioning into the reserve or regular forces and generally provide good pr.

I somehow can't see this scenario working in Ireland based on my limited understanding of the defence forces, both permanent and reserve. If I've anything wrong, please correct me.

Firstly your looking at the set up/infrastructural costs of such units, they'll require their own units and presumably somewhere to store gear/weapons etc. Somehow I can't see expansion of the reserve in this economic climate. Secondly there is actual structure and size of the pdf and rdf - in my understanding, in the rdf your starting as a private and eventually work your way up through the non commissioned ranks and into the commissioned ones. I'm not saying this is the case, but some third level people will consider it a "waste" of their "abilities" in joining an organisation of where you'll start from the very bottom . So basically i'd wonder how the whole promotion thing would sit with third levelers.

Thirdly - the likes of the OUTC and ROTC come from countries that are always recruiting and try to fill enlisted and officer places etc. Defence forces general service is currently oversubscribed (roughly i think from looking at the last few years annual reports) by a factor of between 6 and 8 applicants per enlisted places and something like 13 to 15 for cadets. The DF doesn't have the same incentive so why bother pouring resources into third level units?

Just a few thoughts, criticism on my ill informed opinion is welcome!

[riflemangundy]

Rotc

some third level people will consider it a "waste" of their "abilities" in joining an organisation of where you'll start from the very bottom . So basically i'd wonder how the whole promotion thing would sit with third levelers.



And how are they supposed to become Soldiers collect 20 crisp packets ans send away £2!!!!!!Even reserve officers start as Ptes. Its a ladder!!Even the cadets start like privates just with more sophistication i think!!!!!!!!!!

[Goldie fish]

What "abilities" exactly?

[Hello Alaska]

!Even the cadets start like privates just with more sophistication i think!!!!!!!!!!

Cadets start on the same level as Recruits. Only difference being they get their berets straight from the off AFAIK.

[easyrider]

I certainly wasn't proposing an ROTC-type thing, just that you have RDF units attached to the main 3rd level colleges, simply on the basis that there are thousands of young people attending each of those colleges, often looking for things to do/join in their spare time.

[northie]

Re - Riflemangundys point - your absolutely right, there's no way I'd expect people from college to automatically be fantastic soldiers, far from it. But your dealing with a crowd of people, a fair few whom expect that their degree will entitle them to "graduate entry" or junior management positions. What I'm trying to put across is that alot of resources could be thrown at 3rd level units only for a fair degree of snobbery to kick in and for it to be a waste of resources. Re the point about reserve officers starting is privates,

Re Goldie - I used "abilities" because some college types will leave with their degrees and walk into well paid jobs above people who might have lots of experience but haven't got the bit of paper that they have. The (back to the snobby thing again) thought of going and starting from the bottom of an organisation will simply not be comprehensible for the people in question. I used the term "abilities" in punctuation marks because that is what they view themselves as having - its certainly not the way I look at things.

Again, please correct me if I am wrong, but cadets start at the same level as recruits but ultimately the goal is different - the eventual churning out at the other side of a junior manager or leader.

easyrider - i personally find the majority of us who are living away from home at university, either end up working weekends, or scurrying back home to work weekends. Those who live at home close to the university have more free time due to not having the same overheads - so you'd probably get those people joining the local units anyway.

I guess what I'm trying to get across was that my opinion would be that university units wouldn't be the magic panacea and that there would have to be a clear strategic goal behind setting those units up.

[bunny shooter]

As per the title - IMO attracting them is not the problem it's keeping them is the problem

[Goldie fish]

I have to say, If any of my relatives or their offspring were considering joining the RDF, I'd find it very difficult to encourage them any more.

[womble]

I have to say, If any of my relatives or their offspring were considering joining the RDF, I'd find it very difficult to encourage them any more.

You have offspring??? Oh dear God NNNOOOOOO!!!!!!

MOD: Points issued, no personal insults on the board!!

next time I'll use an emoticon to indicate when I'm trying to be funny.

[Johnny2Stripes]

Hi Northie, I went to college - I joined the RDF as a recruit (just like everyone else) I worked my way to the glorious heights of cpl to date - I dont believe I have any right to a higher rank because of my civilian life- I will work my way there, and learn the system, tactics and weapons on the way - if that was the case, we would be led by those who do not know how to soldier...and where would we be then.
I dont know what college you went to, but I know very few snobby assholes with degrees, that would expect to be treated differently

[Goldie fish]

You are slightly biased at this point in time.

I don't have offspring. I thought Personal insults were something people used to get points for here.

My decision was formed long before you'd like to think. There are many others I know, not in my situation who feel the same way. They put 10 to 20 of their formative years into the reserve, and when the reorg happened, got cast aside, with shit for thanks, due in many cases to their lack of seniority in their amalgamated new units..

These were active people, unable through work commitments to get involved in Integrated, but who were for many years the driving force behind the activities of their sub unit.

Pretending it didn't happen won't change issues. It was a serious Brain drain.