Teenager seriously considering RMC, have a few questions

[CadienCadian]

Hello! I’m a Teenager seriously considering the RMC and Military as a career option. I had a few questions about both the RMC and service as a whole if anybody would be able to answer.
1. Is it true that they actually pay you to go to the RMC?
2. If I wanted to be an officer in the Armoured Corps is strategic studies the course to take?
3. Is it possible to go straight into the armoured corps from the RMC? Or would I start in infantry? Doesn’t really change my decision I just want to know.
4. How is life at the RMC? I’ve heard it’s really hard but is it as bad as people say?
5. How do promotions actually work in the CAF? everything I seem to find about them is from from the US Military.

 

[brihard]

1: Yes. You get a modest salary for the time you’re an Officer Cadet (that’s a rank) at RMC. But you also don’t have to pay tuition, so that modest salary is a decent bit of spending money with no student debt adding up. Also, as soon as you join CAF, which is even before you start at RMC, you start contributing to a pension. You probably don’t grasp how awesome that is now but you would down the road.

2: If you want to be an armoured officer you can take basically anything. Some officer occupations require specific degrees, like engineering. Armoured is not one of them. You just need a degree to hang on the wall.

3: When you join CAF you accept an offer to a specific occupation. If you accept an offer for Armoured Officer, then that’s your career path unless you flunk out or decide to change trades later. You don’t have to be infantry first.

4: Can’t say; didn’t go.

5: Promotions require time and qualifications, and after the first couple, merit. While at RMC you would be an Officer Cadet. After you get your degree you would be promoted to Second Lieutenant. Lieutenant and Captain are mostly based on having a few more years in. Past that it has to do with job performance and certain qualification courses that CAF will send you on. CAF will manage your career quite actively. You’ll have some say in what your job preferences are, but promotions to Major and above will have more to do with how good a job you do and what jobs you fill.

 

[AKa]

I'll say up front that my experience is dated but I can weigh in on #4.

Military college is hard. In addition to your standard academics, there's required fitness classes, language training (if you are not bilingual in the official languages), and military training. None of this is optional.

For the academics, there isn't (unless that has changed) a lot of optional courses and you don't have the option of dropping courses when you're overwhelmed or failing. You are expected to arrive at the end of four years (five if you do prep year in St Jean) with all the degree requirements completed. Failing courses generally has consequences, up to and including release.

As to whether it's as hard as they say? Experiences differ wildly based on personal suitability, resiliency, and a certain amount of luck. At my stage of life, the children of my military college classmates are now cadets. Now, like then, some fit very well, some struggle, and some discover it is not for them at all