joining pains...

[Guzman]

hi everyone,im intrested in joining the military as an infantry man but i just have some questions id like honest anwsers/opinions on.here we go...

1,if i go reserve,how long will it be befor i am operational?i am talking about any kind of tour here.ive heard 2 years and ive heard as soon as basic and MOC are done,but then...

2,how long does the it take to complete basic and MOC as a reserve compared to a regular force member?

3,is the training for th reserves any "inferior" to that of the regular force?

4,if i get in the reserves,i understand that i would have to volunteer for missions over seas...would i be able to participate on 2 or more consecutive rotattions if i wanted to?

5,if im available anytime everyday,will that make my training go faster.the biggest reason i dont go reg. is b/c i cant afford the risk of being stationed to far from home for reasons i‘d rather not post.

6,if things were to change,how fast would it take for me to transfer to regular force

7,lastly,do the reserve keep a steady schedual.i was told once a week and 2 weekens a month.do they follow this every month?

well thank you in advance for your awnsers and opinions,ill be back to ask more if i should need anymore awnsers.bye all.

 

[combat_medic]

1,if i go reserve,how long will it be befor i am operational?i am talking about any kind of tour here.ive heard 2 years and ive heard as soon as basic and MOC are done,but then...
>>You have to have at least a QL4 first. This could happen in 2 years, or it could take 5. Also, you have to volunteer for an operation, there has to be a vacancy, and people with more time in and experience than you will have priority. Think 4 years as a realistic expectation.

2,how long does the it take to complete basic and MOC as a reserve compared to a regular force member?
>>I can‘t speak for the reg force, but in the reserves you can usually get them done in one summer, sometimes 2, depending on availability and priority of courses.

3,is the training for th reserves any "inferior" to that of the regular force?
>>That‘s a touchy subject. Our training is quite shorter in duration, but they try to cram in the same amount of information. This will make for obvious gaps in training. However, if you do a recce or basic para course, or junior leadership, it‘s the same duration and material as the regs. Also, remember, we‘re not out there doing it every day, so the practical stuff isn‘t always as fresh.

4,if i get in the reserves,i understand that i would have to volunteer for missions over seas...would i be able to participate on 2 or more consecutive rotattions if i wanted to?
>>No, this is not true. There is NO requirement to go overseas. Trying to get on ONE tour is a long and involved process, and I‘ve never heard of anyone doing 2 tours in a row (at least in the reserves). The CF health services only want people doing one every 2 years at most.

5,if im available anytime everyday,will that make my training go faster.the biggest reason i dont go reg. is b/c i cant afford the risk of being stationed to far from home for reasons i‘d rather not post.
>>No, this won‘t make a difference. They run courses either full time during the summer or part time during the year. You just have to be available for the next possible course, and there has to be a vacancy for you.

6,if things were to change,how fast would it take for me to transfer to regular force
>>This one I don‘t know

7,lastly,do the reserve keep a steady schedual.i was told once a week and 2 weekens a month.do they follow this every month?
>>"Approximately" 1 evening a week and one weekend a month. Each unit is a little different, but this schedule tends to be the norm.


...all the regs out there feel free to add to this (or detract from it, either way).

 

[Sharpey]

1. Operational as in elegable for overseas? I think you‘ve got it, plus a minimum age of 18.

2. Depends on the coarse. There are usually two types available. Weekend and one shot deals in the summer. I can‘t comment as my coarses were considered GMT, QL2 and QL3, different format. But as an idea...GMT was about 3 months every other weekend, QL2 was 2 weeks straight and QL3 4 weeks straight.

3. That‘s debateable, I will let someone else answer that one.

4. All I can say about that is yes, Reservists voluneer. No job protection available yet for volunteer missions. Call outs yes, but will never happen as we are not in the US Army.

5. No. You have to work around the Military‘s schedule. If you have 2 months of free time, but no coarses are beig run, unfortunatly, you are SOL.

6. Can‘t comment. But I have heard good things an horror stories on this issue.

7. For the most part, speaking from experience with my Regiment, a schedule is put out at the begining of the training year (September), and so far, we have stuck to it. But expect changes with short notice. Location of training can change as well (ie bases etc...). Expect on average 1 day a week, 1 weekend a month. But I‘ve seen 2 days a week and even two weekends a month. Along with this is taskings (GD‘s during the summer, aid to civil power, coarses), these can obviously put the "set" schedule out of whack, keeping in mind these extra duties are volunteer only for the most part.

 

[portcullisguy]

If you work for the federal gov‘t, as I do, then theoretically your job is protected because of regulations and policies that apply within the public service.

So, as I have been informed anyway, I can take a leave of absence from my civilian job to do a 9 month tour over the water (3 months build-up, and 6 months over the pond), and still walk right back into my job again. There are some funny little things like I will lose 9 months out of my pension contributions, etc., but I believe I am still covered under the health plan, etc. Our pay & benefits people know all the ins & outs of this.

Presently, I am doing the "BMQ" (basic) course. On weekends I have off from work, the CF pays me. On weekends I am supposed to be working, then my civilian employer pays me. They then send it back to the army for reimbursement, apparently. This works out great for me, because my civvy job pays $24/hr, whereas the army rate is $68 for a full-day, which is sh*t. If I book annual leave from my civvy job, then I can get paid twice.

 

[ninty9]

A question for you, portcullisguy.

"army rate is $68 for a full-day". How many hours is that full day usually? 8 hours? 12 hours?

 

[Spr.Earl]

Wait for it!
24hrs,on class B it‘s 24 and 7 and the same goes when oversea‘s.

In the Engineer‘s when overseas all are on 24 and 7
due to our job i.e. mine strike‘s ,damaged road‘s etc.

Unless you are stood down for a couple of day‘s then it‘s more relaxed but we end up with camp improvement‘s ,guard etc. but don‘t have to worry about being roused at 03 dark for a task‘s.

 

[Korus]

Combat Medic, JLCs for the reserve aren‘t the same as for the regs anymore... they‘ve shortened it by adding a ‘study package‘ you do before the course.. Apperently now the entire course is below reg standards.

As for day lengths, I love those 24 hour days on course. (I prefer to think of it as getting paid for the few hours of sleep

 

[Guzman]

thnx for all the info guys!
a few things...
1,about being "operational",i got 2 to 5 years...can anyone give me more info and how i could make it closer to 2 years

2,as for the training,id rather have them at once rather then on weekends,do i get a choice

3,backtracking to #1..i would have to be QL4 to go over seas,would this reflect on my rank in anyway?

thnx again

 

[Korus]

I‘ll answer from the reserve side...

1,about being "operational",i got 2 to 5 years...can anyone give me more info and how i could make it closer to 2 years

Get your training done as soon as possible. Your BMQ and SQ are about a month each when run full time during the summer, and I‘m not sure how long Infantry QL3 and QL4 are. I beleive infantry QL2/3 combined was about 3 months long (don‘t quote me on that) (QL2 being what was replaced by BMQ and SQ). I‘m not sure if you need just your QL3 or your QL4 to go overseas...

2,as for the training,id rather have them at once rather then on weekends,do i get a choice

In the reserve, yes you should get a choice of when to do it, though full time courses are generally only run during the summer months.

3,backtracking to #1..i would have to be QL4 to go over seas,would this reflect on my rank in anyway?

If you have 2 years in the Primary Reserve, and your QL4 you can be promoted to Corporal. (though it works a bit different for the MPs). But, from what I hear reservists don‘t always get to keep all of their rank when going overseas. I unfortunatley don‘t have any more details on that.

 

[ninty9]

So sometimes you get paid $68 for 24 hours work?

Thats $2.83/hour. I could make more per hour if I look under my couch.

I would have thought they would have paid 2 $68 payments when you‘re on for the 24 hour ones.

 

[Pikache]

Infantry MOC course is same as BMQ and SQ: 4 weeks.

You need minimum Infantry MOC (QL3) to be qualified for a tour.

 

[portcullisguy]

Technically, it‘s $68 for a full-day‘s work, which is 6 or more hours. And half that for less than 6 hours.

A trg weekend on BMQ is considered 2.5 days, you show up at 7pm on Friday and leave around 5:00pm Sunday, so you get one half-day‘s pay ($34) and two full day‘s pay (2 x $68), or about $170 before taxes, for working what is basically almost a 48 hr weekend.
Pay goes up with time in, of course, and as you progress through the ranks.

But if I can, I‘d rather be paid by my civilian employer!

 

[Sharpey]

Study package before the JLC? (now PLQ)ummmmm..... wish I got that But it is brocken down into blocks. First 5 are class / teach your self it seems, block 6 is 15 (?) days in the field.

 

[combat_medic]

OK, what‘s this with the JLC thing? I heard something about them changing it, but I thought it was supposed to be up to the same standard. I heard something about it being divided into 6 parts or something.

Anyway, since the ops staff I‘ve been speaking to haven‘t gotten a clear answer about it, does anyone here know how it will work? Since it‘s the next course I have to do, I‘m naturally a little concerned.

 

[Sharpey]

I can tell you more as the coarse progresses, but it appears (from the info I have been given / told) is that alot of it is self taught (ie computor). Still has the QL2 on steroids atmosphere...inspections, PT, yadda yadda.

It is comprised of 6 blocks. From what I understand, blocks 1 through 5 are the learning / teaching aspect and block 6 is field. I missed the first weekend, apparently that was one portion of something. It apparently can be made up at a later date as this first block has 10 days slotted, but is estimated to take only 7. Express test...if you fail it can be made up at a later date as well, no more RTU I guess.

That‘s all I know as I missed the first weekend...more to follow I guess.

 

[hhour48]

PLQ is supposed to be absolutely equivalent to the Reg Force, less one mod, which is something like "leadership in quarters", i.e. during life on base. So in order to qualify to reg Force standard, a PLQ-qualified Reservist just has to take this mod.

Or at least this is the way it is supposed to work, that‘s all I know. There are two courses being taught right now -- res and regs; they are the first ones to be ever run. The structure has changed since the old CF JLC/JNCO. It is now broken down into mods, so if you fail something -- you don‘t fail the whole course, only that particular mod. Also, more convenient for older reservists with a busy schedule...