ROTP 2008-2009

[Corey Darling]

Curious question for most of you, but isn't Air Ops a branch, containing trades like Pilot, Air Nav, Aerospace Control, etc?

I guess ill be more specific - Going for pilot.  ;D

 

[dwalter]

Yes Air Ops contains the careers Pilot, Air Nav, and AEC. Then there are sections like Air Support, which would be jobs in the logistics department. There is also a general engineering category last I heard, and I'm not sure what else. Land and Sea have the same set up as well with Operations, Support, and Engineering.

 

[BK]

hey guys,

i got accepted also this year for ROTP  and i saw a couple mentions that some of you are P. Reservest.  My application got processed so fast because i totally skipped the security, aptitude, medical and went straight to the interview (cause of my records with the res.) it was kindah creepy to the point did the CF make a mistake with me or did the rest of you guys breeze through the application process?

 

[infamous_p]

hey guys,

i got accepted also this year for ROTP  and i saw a couple mentions that some of you are P. Reservest.  My application got processed so fast because i totally skipped the security, aptitude, medical and went straight to the interview (cause of my records with the res.) it was kindah creepy to the point did the CF make a mistake with me or did the rest of you guys breeze through the application process?

My experience during my application process was nothing less than an absolute nightmare. So no, not all of us breezed through...

 

[tabernac]

My experience during my application process was nothing less than an absolute nightmare. So no, not all of us breezed through...

Always a pain when that happens. I've been fortunate, I've had no problems thus far.

Sea Ops is an interesting occupational grouping. Of the 3 trades under Sea Ops - MARS, Maritime Sys Eng and NCS Eng - 2 require engineering degrees. For someone like me, under the BA program, it should prove interesting how selection goes at the end of my first year, considering I only qualify for one trade.

That being said, does RMC take into account an applicant's otther occupational choices? I had MARS followed by ARMRD, then PLT.

 

[BK]

hey infamous, thanx, i know my story is nothing short of a miracle i think....

 

[infamous_p]

That being said, does RMC take into account an applicant's otther occupational choices? I had MARS followed by ARMRD, then PLT.

That is quite the occupational spectrum right there...  ^-^

 

[Lumber]

That is quite the occupational spectrum right there...  ^-^

Not really, if you think about it. MARS, ARMRD and PLT are all trades that entail working with a vessel (Ship/Tank/Plane). I know a lot of people who are MARS whose second choice was ARMRD because that type of job, of working with/inside a vehicle as it were, somehow appealed to them, as it did to me.

 

[dwalter]

I agree that those 3 trades are related. You are in command of some sort of vehicle/ vessel in each case in some way. Of course pilots and armour officers are in command of their vehicles sooner than a MARS gets control of a ship but that's besides the point.

Personally I have been going through a stretch where I've had too much time to think, and I'm wondering if it would have been better for me to finish university first and go DEO, in case I finish university and realize I want to get my masters and PhD or something. It's a bit of a battle in my mind right now.

 

[infamous_p]

I agree that those 3 trades are related. You are in command of some sort of vehicle/ vessel in each case in some way. Of course pilots and armour officers are in command of their vehicles sooner than a MARS gets control of a ship but that's besides the point.

Personally I have been going through a stretch where I've had too much time to think, and I'm wondering if it would have been better for me to finish university first and go DEO, in case I finish university and realize I want to get my masters and PhD or something. It's a bit of a battle in my mind right now.

Well keep in mind that if you <i>do</i> decide that DEO would be the better route to go because you would want to get your MA/MSc or PhD (or whatever you will) you still have a year to decide; as you can pull out of ROTP anytime before the beginning of your second year of subsidization...

 

[dwalter]

Yeah, that's why I want to wait. They said you can opt out a the end of BOTC if you so choose, and so I'd definitely like to give everything my best shot. I still have high hopes that things turn out the way I wanted them to, I was just having a momentary crisis because I have too much free time right now haha.

 

[infamous_p]

Yeah I know what you're saying. When you have too much free time, you think way too much. Personally, I would very much like to pursue (and am sure I definitely will) my MA in Sociology, however I am going to do so afterwards, WHILE serving in the CF as a part-time student. Who knows when I'll do it - maybe I'll do it when I'm 30 years old, when I'm 40 years old, time will only tell. Regardless, I am certain that at some point I will pursue it for sure. I have actually gone through the same internal battle as you; wondering if it would be best to go the DEO route rather than the ROTP route in order to allow me to attain a Masters degree, however I believe that the financial independence (in the sense of paying for the education, which is obviously enormously expensive in this day and age) offered through the ROTP program is MUCH too golden to trade-up simply for a one-year (for me, at least) Masters program, when I can always do it later on - especially since I don't necessarily "need" a MA degree for my chosen trade.

Think of it this way (I'll use my personal situation as an example):

I have just finished my second year of a four-year long BA (Honours) program in Sociology, and will be starting ROTP this coming September, thus being subsidized for my remaining two years of University. Should I wish to pursue a MA degree sometime in the future, I will be only paying for the one year of MA schooling (as my particular MA program is a one-year program), although it will be less convenient because I will most likely have to do it through either:

1) Distance learning; or
2) Part-time at a nearby institution

However, if you give up ROTP simply because you want your Masters' or PhD, you will obviously be sacrificing the monetary compensation and will therefore be paying for the remainder of your Bachelors', your subsequent Masters', and the following PhD (provided you choose to go that far). That, my friend, is a lot of schooling, and a HUGE dent on your wallet, for which you will need quite the bank account (or quite the marks, to get some sort of scholarship). Not to mention the debt you will likely be in after convocation, unless you or your parents have a very warm bank account.

Food for thought. To me, sacrificing ROTP for that MA or PhD (unless you actually need it for your trade/profession) is not worth it, in my opinion.

EDIT: Actually, come to think of it after I've already posted this, the money you save through ROTP (money that you would otherwise have spent on your Bachelors' degree) is now newly expendable funds, considering how the DND takes the financial burden of your undergraduate education upon itself. So, should you remain in the ROTP program, you *could* think of it as getting a free Masters' degree should you decide to do it in the future, considering the money you would spend on your Masters' degree was the money you were ORIGINALLY going to spend on your Bachelors'.

Now of course this is speaking from the standpoint of someone who is funding his own education. Obviously not everyone is funding their own education - many students' parents fund their child's education, for some their grandparents, aunts, uncles, other relatives, scholarships, etc. Whoever is funding your education (whether it be you or someone else) is your business and no one else's, however I WILL say that saving that very generous and loving relative these sums of money (provided it is, in fact, them that currently funds your education) is always an enormous bonus for which he or she will likely be eternally grateful for.

Obviously there are trillions of reasons that one would stay in and/or leave ROTP that present from all ends of the spectrum, however this is speaking merely from a financial standpoint. While not having a Masters' degree may hurt your chances of achieving past the rank of Colonel, financial troubles and debt will hurt your career no less and maybe even more so, depending on their severity.

But that's just a way of making yourself feel better, from an emotional-mental-financial standpoint. 

Let me know what you think

Dave

 

[dwalter]

I really want to say thank you for putting so much thought into your post. It has really helped me think about some things, and you are really right about things. I am going to think some more about everything. I do agree about the financial aspects of things, and I have really been considering that as one of the reasons for staying, just the fact that I won't have to worry about funds for my education.

Thanks so much again for taking the time to connect with my situation. I'll let you know what my final decision is when I make it. I do believe in sleeping on choices because it can be very helpful to get a fresh perspective on things.

 

[infamous_p]

I really want to say thank you for putting so much thought into your post. It has really helped me think about some things, and you are really right about things. I am going to think some more about everything. I do agree about the financial aspects of things, and I have really been considering that as one of the reasons for staying, just the fact that I won't have to worry about funds for my education.

Thanks so much again for taking the time to connect with my situation. I'll let you know what my final decision is when I make it. I do believe in sleeping on choices because it can be very helpful to get a fresh perspective on things.

Not a problem

Cheers

 

[dwalter]

Well I did all my thinking and after putting in a bunch of time down at my old cadet unit I have decided that I still definitely want to join the forces, so all is still good. Just took me a little bit of time to run through all the options in my head to make a choice.

 

[Kilfoil]

  The 2008 joining intructions are now online on the RMC website:

                          www.rmc.ca/military/ji/ji_e.html

 

[Burden]

I was accepted into Support Ops (MPO) and will be going into my third year at CiviU

 

[dwalter]

Land, Sea, or Air Support Mangela? Also, what are you majoring in?

 

[Burden]

I'm going air (really for support trades the only difference it makes is on your first posting). And I am majoring in Criminal Justice with policing.

 

[dwalter]

That's really interesting! Keep us posted as you go through the training. MPO was one of the trades I had been offered after I didn't meet the visual standard for AEC. It seems like quite the interesting job.