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Raf wsop

Recently I (17) took the RAF batteries for WSOP and passed all but ISR, meaning I fail them all. I strongly intend on retaking it next year, as the odds were not exactly in my favour (Kings Cross was shut and arrived at Grantham at about 10:30PM, virtually no sleep).

Are there many people under 20 that make it past OASC and their subsequent training? I understand prior leadership experience is almost meant to be a given, so I'm working on getting both my MOI and attending QAIC at cadets.

Reply 1

Surnia

Yes, under-20s do successfully join the RAF; however, it's not age but ability that gets them through. Remember that Aptitude tests aren't like learning something for an exam; some of it is a test of inherent skill which you either possess or you don't.

They are looking for leadership potential, and it is a given.

Reply 2

caffeinewizard

The aptitude tests are challenging, but I would tend to disagree with Surnia that it is an "inherent skill". It certainly is challenging no doubt but I would say a lot of it can be improved. Many people and recruiters especially will say that you either have it or you don't when it comes to aptitude tests. I passed for AAC Pilot pretty well, and I would say I was fairly average when it came to maths, memory and all the aptitude test stuff. However I got a decent pass, I could of been lucky but considering the amount of preparation I did I think if I didn't prepare then I wouldn't of passed. When I did the DAA for the navy the first time, I got a very low score, my recruiter said my chances of passing for Royal Marines Officer was extremely low as you either have it or you don't, I had an average of 15% for each section except mechanical comprehension. Anyways fast track 6 months I studied my ass off for 3 hours a day and got a legendary pass. Nearly 95% on everything. Bottom line is that this stuff can be improved, the brain is more flexible than you might think, don't let other people define and limit your capabilities, if you want it then go get it. I will give a brief outline of things Cranwell tests and what I did so you can improve.

The way I see it, Cranwell is testing certain psychological attributes, and although you can't directly improve your scores on those tests you can improve the psychological attributes they are testing, which will in turn give you a small edge when it comes to the tests, since the tests last around 8 hours every tiny point you get will add up and should give you a pass.

Reaction time + Hand eye coordination: first person shooters. Ok so Cranwell does test reaction time and it is a known fact that playing video games improves reaction time and hand eye coordination. I didn't use this as an excuse to play video games and if anything, I really don't enjoy playing them as I find them to be a waste of time, however one of my friends plays very often and lets just say his reaction time and hand eye coordination is off the charts. I borrowed an xbox from a friend bought call of duty modern warfare 2 off eBay for £20 and played an hour a day for about 2 weeks, my reaction time and hand eye coordination increased exponentially so this works.

Memory: Dual N back training, good for auditory memory and visual.

Maths: obviously knowing times tables is good plus basic equations like SDT

When it comes to under 20s passing OASC I don't have the statistics but from my experience it is generally fairly unlikely unless you are some sort of messiah character. I think for the Army in 2022 only 1 person who was 18 was let into the Sandhurst intake in the whole year. I only have experience with the Navy and Army but from what it seems is they automatically view people under 21 as people who don't have what it takes, It seems like a default "take some time out and go to university" answer. Not only did I receive this but also many other candidates. Now yes we do have a lack of life experience but they want to see something "CV worthy" if you will. My experience with the Army was that they didn't give any people under 18 a straight pass for briefing despite a few of em being very bright. You are only 17, I would save some money and do some proper CV worthy stuff in a gap year before you join that shows you have responsibility and leadership skills etc. I made the stupid mistake of being overconfident in my abilities and essentially wasting half a gap year as I thought everything was going to be smooth sailing. Though I'm going to Americamp this year so I have more stuff to talk about at AOSB main board. I applied to the army and attended briefing when I was 17, I thought I was the sh** because I had quite a few achievements like ultramarathons under my belt, however I was given a CAT 2 and I wasn't too happy, I took a gap year after and grew and learnt so much during that time and it was truly priceless. So if you pass CBAT and go to OASC and they fail you because of your youth then don't be disappointed. You will have a lot to learn just in a year and will come back a superior individual.

I thought they would honestly be impressed with my endurance activities and I did them to impress the Army, however it was immediately obvious like Surdia said that they are looking for leadership potential and experience not a d*** measuring contest which is kind of how I approached it because I was an idiot. I would work on gaining those leadership skills.

Point is you can probably pass next time especially because you passed everything else, if the only thing you failed was ISR then you can improve quite a lot, do not doubt yourself. I always wanted to be a pilot it was a dream of mine, however I doubted myself and never applied out of fear until I failed RM officer and felt I had nothing to lose, anyways I applied and passed. Work hard and smash it!