Conor Harrington

right hi guys as some of you know i have been applying for the army all well and good.
but ive been thinking what do i do after yeha i can move up rank etc more money but realisticly ill proberly be on about £30,000 a year if i get to a sargent.
i not being big headed but im a bright lad i got a's and b's in my gcse and started college but dropped out after a year because i jsut couldent concentrate with my mates there.

i keep having the problem of go in the army start a career simple
but because i know im a smart lad i keep having urges to get back into college finish it and then go uni. my mum is head of midwidfery at southend hospitial and she is very clever etc
so i would do down the route of maby a doctor etc because i knwo im a bright enough kid

im only 17 and this migth sound stupid to alot of you but it keeps eatin away at me. because i only have a part time job atm i have alot of free time so i regualry think about this and i'va had enough ive tried wrting down the pros and cons of it all and there is no clear winner i want to go into the army but i want to go to college then go to uni and becoem a doctor. two completly different things and before everyone sais become a doctor in the army there is something that i dont liek about it i dont know why

so what woudl you guys pick if you had the chance a para in the army
of a doctor ??

any of you opinions would be great sorry if some of you find this a little ointless haha

cheers

conor

burnzy

i think it don't matter what you do as long as your happy doing it and it leaves you with enough money to be comfortable, but being a doctor will leave you higher on the salary role but will be alot of learning and time to go with it.

Conor Harrington

yeah i can understand as long as im happy but its such a big decison you know what i pick does my life
yeah i know the doctor will but liek u have said i think i worked it out to be about 10 years learnign before i even become a doctor etc

jsut trying to work out the pros and cons
cheers
for the reply mate

neal666

Can you live with the fact you might go to work one day and never return home? or return home in a box to your family? its a possability when your job is in a warzone!


on the flip side 10 years education (living on hardly nowt until your 27-30) is also a tough prospect but after that? gp`s are on what 100k+ ?

Conor Harrington

exactly but that has never really worried me i know it shoudl but there is somethign that links me to the army jsut so fasinted by it.

exactly thats my flip 10 years i think it worked out to be liek 26ish when i am fully qualified. but i knw this migth sound stuid but reli is £100,000 really that much now days how much really woudl you take home after tax etc

Alan_D

If you are keen to be a doctor I'd go with that. Go to uni, work hard, have a great time and then come out of it all with a job that pays really well... not to mention interesting.

I think if you really ask yourself some deep questions, you'll realise you don't want to go to Afghanistan or some far flung hellhole full of extremist nutters for no apparent reason.

You'd have the time of your life at uni. One of my friends is only a year or so away from being a doctor. He's got a great stress-free life, a nice girlfriend and a pretty decent future ahead of him where he won't be getting blown up. Make the most of your life mate.

It would be different if you were going to protect the country, but you have to ask yourself why we don't just put all our resources into beefing up domestic security rather than (supposedly) keeping it at bay far from home. How many British soldiers is Afghanistan going to take? And how many lives has it potentially saved? I'd bet the former would be the highest number by far.

Dangerous Malcolm..

I think one of the requirements of being a doctor these days is the ability to spell...... So maybe the army is a good option!

Rsmat

iTrader: (2)

depends what you want out of life mate..but from the things you talk about ive build a picture in my head of you...i dont really think your cut up to be a proper soldier (para) so i would advise if you think you bright enough to go uni and become a doctor then go do it....i know if id have had the choice i would have been a doctor rather than a soldier.

maxest

iTrader: (1)

LOL my thoughts too when i read the post

Conor Harrington

sorry guys was writing that all in a rush will take note

neilscott83

Exactly what I was thinking pull your head out of your arse and get some English lessons mate!

Dangerous Malcolm..

Only toying with ya!

I wanted to be a brain surgeon but I have a nervous twitch.......

BigChuck

tbh mate you tried college and was easily distracted, do you honestly think you can stick at it for 10 years?
that's a big commitment, 10 years of dedication to study and training, with very little cash and time for projects and mates.

also did you not have problems with maths as well, when you were working out your timing for one of the army assessments?

mrjenrst

Dave Hewy

iTrader: (3)

Weren't you the one that couldn't work out that 6 laps of a running track in 9 minutes was 1 and a half minutes a lap?

Apologies if it wasn't.

turbolee

being a para takes a certain type of person somebody with no fear of any thing you must be very very fit aswell i think you have picked 2 jobs that are like chalk n cheese i think realy there is onjly one person that can answer your question and thats you good luck with what ever you choose

Rsmat

iTrader: (2)

somewhere ive read on 1 of his post that he ran the mile and half in 9.32 which isnt para times tbh.. as the minimum time is 9.11 and you get an allowence of up 9.30 for suprior upper strenth which u allso admitted you need help with as you couldnt do heaves so at 9.32 they wudnt have passed ya im afraid.... i ran mine in 7.52 there`s a big difference there that was when i was 16and a half years old. on my ADSC.

.Ross.

iTrader: (2)

PMSL ... How many people can actually read a Prescription .. Not me

Go for the Doctor part ... BIG £££ after Years and years of study ..

Might be the only one here that can afford to have an RS on the road all year long

Rsmat

iTrader: (2)

ROLF......

danneth

dont go in the para's mate when they come out there right cocks

JxBabe

Go to Uni, then if you're still interested in the Army and really want to join, try for officer selection (maybe Medical Corps if you're still wanting to do that side of things).

Joining at 17 before you've had the chance to live in the 'real world' will make things more difficult if/when you decide to leave.

Rsmat

iTrader: (2)

thats you off my christmas card list...

mrjenrst

Yup and you need a bit of real world experience first, our kid's just gone in well he passed out last year and he's young (18) been brainwashed as we speak

ronf42

iTrader: (2)

try the TA for starters, it will only be a few weekends and a couple of weeks during the year. that way you can sample army life without it being 24/7 and if it is for you sign up for the regulars, failing that, leave

TOMMY_RS

no offence mate, but from the posts you have posted that i have read, you don't really seem teh type of person for the army or doctors

Big G

Do Uni then if you still fancy the army apply to go in as an officer, dont hear of many of them getting shot

Porkie

iTrader: (1)

Doctor easily... I would liked to have been a doctor or a Lawyer if I wasn't doing my job. Great careers and very interesting and rewarding after you have done all the hard work in first say 10 years!

but if you cant even concentrate enough to do A levels... how the hell are you gonna cope at Med school??????

Alan_D

He's only 17, is he supposed to come across like an expert in the two fields after having just left school? Jesus, some of these replies are pretty negative.

Just go for whatever you want. At the end of the day you'll do anything you want to do if you are interested and you work hard. There will be plenty of people along the way who say you can't do things etc, but just make your own mind up and go for whatever you choose. Ultimately, what other people say is just opinion, and has no bearing on whether you achieve something or not... that bit is down to you.

If you aren't sure, there's no pressure to do either right now. There's nothing to stop you finding a part time job just to get by and live your life until you can decide.

danneth

if you read his reply... it said because of his mates

Ryan_3

call of duty? medal of honour?

anyway hope you make a good choice, i would go for doctor

thebigyin

i cant think of anything good to say so im going to say nowt!

ben_frst

try a drug called methadrone and give up on life

Rsmat

iTrader: (2)

pmsl....

Iain Mac

My dad was a doctor and he used to say the smart guys were the vets. Dad only needed to know how one kind of body worked and most of his patients could describe their symptoms or at least say where it hurt, but a vet needs to know about everything from budgies to horses and -a part from Dr Doolittle, he can't ask his patients anything!

You need to know that As and Bs in GCSEs won't get you anywhere near university for a medical degree, don't you?

They will insist on a fistful of Highers or A Levels, normally all at A or B in a range of subjects that wil include English, Maths, Biology, Chemistry etc, just to even qualify for an interview for a place, then you have to pass the interview where your commitment to the course will be tested - they won't start training anyone who will likely drop out part-way through. There are so many candidates that they can afford to be choosy.

PhilM

Goto Uni, give yourself the chance there mate. Join the Officer Training Corps (OTC) while your there (part of the TA for students), have some fun, get pissed, army training without being deployed whilst your at uni.

3-4 years down the line you can then decide, stay civvy and be a doctor, or sign up to the army

XRdodgybird

My brother-in-law has just got his WO2 at 28, he's been in the army from leaving school. He is very young to have gotten promotions in the way he has and I think a lot of it isn't what you know but who you know. Had some shit postings to and been out to Iraq and Afgan on quite a few occasions even whilst being posted in Germany.

The upside is though that his promotion also came with a 2 year stint in Canada which he starts in July.

The other thing about the Army is the cracking pension you get after serving 12 plus years. It ain't to be sniffed at!!!

Conor Harrington

cheers for all the replys yes some are negative but its your opinion i cant argue that.
yeah there are some problems with some of my other posts yes granted.

yes sometimes i write thigns to quickly and they are mis spelt.
yes some times i have dumb moments and cant add liek everyone in the world jsut wanted to know what you all was thinking.

cheers to all the people who have written decent comments so thanks for that.

i think ill try and make a final decision but after tonight and the day thinking im swaying to the uni and getting back into college asap
cheers
conor