Autobiography Thread (merged)

[TCBF]

Well this sucks I had no idea you have to write an autobiography. I'm definitely not going to get anywhere in that area; autobiography's are the worst thing for someone who doesn't have many memories of their life and can't remember much about their past. Does anyone know how long they're supposed to be?

- If I was a Recruiting Officer and you told me you had no memories of your past, I would probably immediately and - in a post-modern sense - inappropriately label you as a fraud, a foreign plant, a drug addled derelict or a severe FAS example. All of which would mean that I would treat you with extreme courtesy and professionalism whilst mentally dumping your file under the short leg of the staff room coffee table. Better have your paper trail and documents in order.

 

[Revan]

So quick question... I got the joining instructions from my file manager a week or so ago (July 2014 version), read over them and saw the "write your autobiography on legal size lined paper and bring with you to BMOQ".  Went out and bought 500 sheets since that was the smallest amount Staples had and got it done.  Browsing the site here: http://www.forces.gc.ca/en/training-establishments/recruit-school-joining-instructions.page and clicking on the PDF i noticed there is now a shorter, revised edition as of April 2015 and there is no longer any mention of the autobiography.

I have it done anyway and would rather show up and be told it's not required anymore, however it would be interesting to see if this requirement has indeed been removed.  Anyone with knowledge of the current situation able to shed some light on this?

 

[baconk2]

The joining instructions I received on Sept 25, 2015 also did not mention writing an Autobiography. Has this been removed from the requirements for BMQ? Please advise as I am leaving for St. Jean on Oct. 10th.

Thank you,

 

[BinRat55]

Well, it's all about decisions here isn't it? I will PM DAA and maybe he knows, but when you all actually GET to basic, you won't have literally thousands of years of military experience at your finger tips - rely on your instinct.

MY instinct would tell me that if I received official correspondence from DND telling me exactly what to do, what to bring, how to act and there was no mention of performing heart surgery on my pet gerbil then I don't think I would go out an buy anaesthetic. See what I'm saying?

If your JIs don't ask for an autobiography - don't do one. If you are THAT nervous that it may be a typo, then DO one. It's 400 words - not difficult and can be completed in less than an hour. Months of agonizing over "Should I do one, or shouldn't I"...

If a 400 word statement of your own lives causes that much stress, wait until you have to write Briefing Notes, Memos, Letters - PERs!!

DAA? Can you ascertain for these poor hang-ashores if there is an autobiography requirement anymore?

 

[Revan]

I am fairly certain they will make us write one when we get there.  I just figured they removed it from the joining instructions because they were making everyone rewrite it anyway, even though they did one before hand.  I wrote one anyway because my file manager gave me the old joining instructions before I found the new ones.  As BinRat55 stated it wasn't difficult to do, I just had to revise it a few times as the guidelines were producing way more than 400 words based on life experience.  I managed to shrink it after  few edits to 433 but its still within the 1.5 pages double spaced criteria.

I am fully expecting to have to rewrite it when I get there so maybe with a time crunch I can make it shorter but if you are worried just write one before you go.  At the very least  it will allow you to see what writing an autobiography is like, will give you a chance to practice and might ease your mind on the whole process.

 

[BinRat55]

The thing about the autobiography (which by the way is often required on other courses we go on) is not so much that we need to know your life story (although it is helpful when gleaning tidbits of personal data) but seeing where you are at from a grammatical / literary standpoint (i.e. can you put verbs where verbs should be, can you spell somewhat, do you write in "text" or plain English... As well, can you follow direction? As ordered, you MUST have... (this essay) and the criteria is ... (the essay content, length) on the day of your arrival...

We as staff watch who has it done. Even if it 75 words of mush, at the very least, they read the JIs and made an attempt. Communication skills.

 

[DAA]

DAA? Can you ascertain for these poor hang-ashores if there is an autobiography requirement anymore?

The autobiography used to be a requirement prior to arriving at BMQ and would be handed in to your course staff on your first day.  But I believe that this is now part of the training syllabus and is a homework exercise which is handed out the first week.

 

[BinRat55]

The autobiography used to be a requirement prior to arriving at BMQ and would be handed in to your course staff on your first day.  But I believe that this is now part of the training syllabus and is a homework exercise which is handed out the first week.

You DAA best DAA!!

So to all about to embark on this journey - it's not a pass / fail in that there is no right or wrong answer. We get certain info from your "back story" as it were, but we also see how well you can take direction, and string words together to form a sentence. No worries - take it seriously, but do not stress. Take your time and do the best you can do.

 

[Gunshark]

At PRes weekend BMQ that started this fall, we were told to prepare a biography before arriving for the first weekend. But we all had to rewrite it by hand to be in line with the given template.

 

[BinRat55]

Can you share the given template? I am curious (just for curiosity sake...) but it may be helpful to those here about to start their PRes journey...

 

[George Wallace]

[

From Page 1 of this topic:

This is right from the LFCATC web sight


ASSIGNMENT - AUTOBIOGRAPHY

1. In an effort to become better acquainted, it is asked that you write an autobiography of approximately 200 words or more of your life to date.

2. The autobiography will be treated as CONFIDENTIAL and will be read only by those officers involved in your training.

3. It is designed only as an aid in assisting your course staff in getting to know you.

4. Listed below are a few of the points you should consider in writing your autobiography:

a. Pre-School:

(1) Place of Birth,
(2) Number in Family, and
(3) Rural or Town.

b. School:

(1) Sports played, awards won,
(2) Type of School (separate, public),
(3) County or town,
(4) Organizations belonged to and positions held, i.e. scouts,
cubs, cadets, student council, and
(5) Final grade attained.

c. Family member's occupations and accomplishments.

d. When did you leave school and for what reasons?

e. What were your parents, brothers and sisters feelings about your decision to join the Canadian Forces?

f. What made you decide to join the Reserves?

g. What are your career ambitions in the Canadian Forces?

h. What is your Military Occupation Code (MOC) i.e. Infantry, Armoured, Cook etc, and why did you choose it?

j. What do you expect to be your ultimate accomplishment in the Canadian Forces?

5. Please write clearly.

 

[BinRat55]

... which I read, however I was thrown by the date (2004) given this particular template is over 10 years old, I just thought it may have changed a little... or a lot...

 

[Gunshark]

Sure thing.

The autobiography instructions given to us this fall were somewhat different from above. Note this is for part-time PRes BMQ, and may only be applicable within my Brigade. Needless to say, you should always follow instructions of your direct chain of command.

Here's what was sent to us by email prior to start date concerning autobiography:

--> Candidates attending course are to prepare an autobiography consisting of a minimum of 500 words either typed or in their own legible handwriting.  The autobiography will be double-spaced on 8½ by 11 inch white paper, lined if the autobiography is hand written.  On arrival, it will be handed to the course staff and treated as a Protected document.  It will be read only by those involved with the candidate’s training and is designed only as an aid in assisting the course staff in getting to know the candidate.  It must be stressed that this essay is part of the candidate’s first impression they present to staff.  It is an assignment which must be completed and handed in to course staff on your first evening of course.

Listed below are a few of the points which should be considered in writing the autobiography:

a. Personal:

(1) Place of birth; and

(2) Family size;

b. Education:

(1) Sports played and awards won;

(2) Type of school, i.e. public, private or separate;

(3) Organizations belonged to and positions held, i.e. scouts, cadets, student council, etc; and

(4) Final grade attained;

c. What made you decide to join the military;

d. What do you expect to be your ultimate accomplishment in the military; and

e. Any other information that would assist the course staff in getting to know you. <--

What ended up happening was we first got involved with other things like paperwork, getting our kit issued, etc., and in the process of lugging everything around most of our autobiography papers became all wrinkly and not presentable. So we were told to rewrite them neatly by hand on lined paper. We were given a template to follow. I don't have it now, but it was just simple instructions, e.g. where your name and service number goes, where page number goes, how to start a new paragraph, etc.

You will receive all instructions when the time comes. And if you don't, you can confirm with your chain of command. The instructions can change at any moment too, and you will need to adjust on the fly. But it's no big deal.

Happy holidays! :christmas happy:

 

[BinRat55]

Thanks Gunshark!

 

[c_canuk]

I can't believe this thread is still growing. The autobiography is on the top ten least demanding things you'll have to do on bmq somewhere between sleep and laundry.

 

[ZKC]

Sure thing.

The autobiography instructions given to us this fall were somewhat different from above. Note this is for part-time PRes BMQ, and may only be applicable within my Brigade. Needless to say, you should always follow instructions of your direct chain of command.

Here's what was sent to us by email prior to start date concerning autobiography:

--> Candidates attending course are to prepare an autobiography consisting of a minimum of 500 words either typed or in their own legible handwriting.  The autobiography will be double-spaced on 8½ by 11 inch white paper, lined if the autobiography is hand written.  On arrival, it will be handed to the course staff and treated as a Protected document.  It will be read only by those involved with the candidate’s training and is designed only as an aid in assisting the course staff in getting to know the candidate.  It must be stressed that this essay is part of the candidate’s first impression they present to staff.  It is an assignment which must be completed and handed in to course staff on your first evening of course.

Listed below are a few of the points which should be considered in writing the autobiography:

a. Personal:

(1) Place of birth; and

(2) Family size;

b. Education:

(1) Sports played and awards won;

(2) Type of school, i.e. public, private or separate;

(3) Organizations belonged to and positions held, i.e. scouts, cadets, student council, etc; and

(4) Final grade attained;

c. What made you decide to join the military;

d. What do you expect to be your ultimate accomplishment in the military; and

e. Any other information that would assist the course staff in getting to know you. <--

What ended up happening was we first got involved with other things like paperwork, getting our kit issued, etc., and in the process of lugging everything around most of our autobiography papers became all wrinkly and not presentable. So we were told to rewrite them neatly by hand on lined paper. We were given a template to follow. I don't have it now, but it was just simple instructions, e.g. where your name and service number goes, where page number goes, how to start a new paragraph, etc.

You will receive all instructions when the time comes. And if you don't, you can confirm with your chain of command. The instructions can change at any moment too, and you will need to adjust on the fly. But it's no big deal.

Happy holidays! :christmas happy:

Sorry for digging up an old thread but I recently received the joining instructions for a PRes BMQ and there was no mention of an autobiography. Is this normal?

 

[Gunshark]

Sorry for digging up an old thread but I recently received the joining instructions for a PRes BMQ and there was no mention of an autobiography. Is this normal?

Yeah, don't worry about it, you will be given bio instructions while on course. You will have to write, and re-write, and possibly again re-write it. It will be a sh!t show that will turn into a funny memory.