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RAF PTI selection

Hi, i'm new to this forum having stumbled upon it researching for a potential career in the RAF.

I am looking to join as a PTI and just waiting for the trade to re-open so I can go to selection interview.

This is something i've always wanted to do and unfortunately it's my last and only chance to do it as i'm 28 and the upper limit on the joining age is 29.

I have found answers to most of the usual questions but am now looking to dig a little deeper to know what to focus my efforts on in terms of preparing myself.

This is in terms of what they actually ask you at interview and what they ask you to demonstrate at the 3 day selection process rather than just rumours of things that may or may not happen!

Some of the things mentioned in the trade description and elsewhere are as follows:

Climbing
Canooeing
Mountaineering
Indoor and outdoor sports
Skiing
Coaching
Leadership
Uniformed Youth Organisations
Swimming

So, I am embarking on climbing and swimming lessons at the moment and thinking of volunteering for the Air Cadets.

I may also have access to some Kayaking lessons but I fear that in the potentially short space of time I have I may not reach a level that counts in any of these things.

Is there any point joining a rugby club/football club?

So the question for the people in the know is what is the most important thing to focus my efforts on and what might I be wasting my time and money on?

Any help appreciated :smile:

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Reply 1

ProStacker

Do you have 'a sport'? Every PTI I've ever met / played rugby/surfed/climbed/mountain biked with has their own sport that they have taken to a fairly high level as a starting point for joining. Often County level sportsmen, they have competed and / or instructed rather than just had a go at several different sports. Just being an enthusiastic person willing to 'have a go' at anything might not be enough up against the guys I've met who are PTIs.

Reply 2

Mike Walker

My sport is Martial Arts which I have taken to a high level and have competed/instructed.

I'm also a very competent snowboarder and spent a winter season living in the Alps improving myself.

Unfortunately both these things don't really fall into the 'classic' sports that the armed forces love so much, if it was boxing and skiing I think things would be different.

I am commited to becoming a PTI not because i'm great at playing Football etc. but because i've always been commited to health and fitness and have always really enjoyed and feel that i've been good at encouraging/teaching/leading people in anything that promotes health and fitness.

Reply 3

marley2010

Just want to ask question regarding joining the RAF PTI. I am qualified personal trainer. I am an ex service man in the British Army and I will be 29 this year. I just wanna know how quick can you get in and what types of tests do you have to pass. Also want to know if my age will affect me joining the PTI RAF. Would like to get your answers.

Reply 4

Theo1977

I don't know any of the answers, but suggest you get to an AFCO as quickly as possible, because if age is against you you need to get the ball rolling at the earliest possible opportunity.

I'm not sure if the trade is open at the moment, though - just about everything was closed recently.

Reply 5

sav-raf

Hi,
The biggest thing about the PTI selection is being able to swim to a high standard I know this sounds silly but if you’re not the best swimmer you won’t get in.
they don’t do the climbing phase of the selection now nor do they do the cannoning!
You will complete several different tests including:
Bleep test (max effort)
Mile and half run (max effort)
1 min press up and sit ups max effort,
Leadership and leaderless tasks,
You will have to show you can instruct and demonstrate a set skill from a sport they will give you this when you get there!!
You will do a presentation about yourself
And have an interview.
Plus a few other things!!

Reply 6

robinmuzette

Hey, does anyone know anything about the differences between a Physical Training Instructor and a Personnel Training Officer. Obviously one is an officer and is more involved in the design and implementation of actual training techniques. However looking through the job descriptions I see a lot of overlap. For example, both offer the chance to become Adventurous Training and Parachute Jumping Instructors. Just wondering if someone had any more personal insight into these fields of work.

Reply 7

rashc90

Hi,

Have you experienced the RAF PTI selection course? Could you offer a greater insight to the course as well as targets to reach for all the assessments.

You mention if you not a great swimmer you will not be successful, the swimming assessment isn't that intense in terms of distance therefore are the instructors grading on techniques and compatance.

Much appreciated if you could answer these questions.

Kind regards

Reply 8

Keely33

Hi wonder if anyone can help.. have my RAF PTI selection later this year and wondered if the bleep test graded on maximum effort or is you have to get to level 13.2 to pass?

Reply 9

ZGFT

Hi there,
I have recently taken my RAF PTI specialist interview and can confirm that it is highly competitive and very tough. You are judged based on a scoring system from 1-4. For each part of the spec interview so the bleep test, Sapca etc. you will be either branded as 1/2/3/4: 1 being bad, 3 being a pass, 4 being a good pass. In total I scored a 3.0 which was high enough to be deemed suitable however due to the competitive nature I narrowly missed out on being accepted. I am re-doing my spec. interview tommorow so hope to get a higher pass to gaurantee acceptance.

In regards to the interview, you will do it before all the other tests so its a really good opportunity to impress the examiners before starting the tests which will help you in their judgements of you. To be fully prepared for the interview you must have really good knowledge of the career path of the RAF PTI, so the 12 sections of 28 weeks specialist training etc., make sure you highlight all of your achievements especially sporting wise and be able to demonstrate examples of leadership and responsibility (the more you have in the locker the better). It is also important that you are confident in the reasons why you specifically want to be a PTI in the RAF (a good point to make is that in the RAF you are treated with more respect than army etc.). This interview will be marked by the scoring system so if you score highly it gets you off to a great start and compensates for your weaknessess in other areas.

The other tests are marked the same way, so achieving 13.2 or more will score you a band 3 which is a pass, but don't worry necessarily if you score less than that as its not a pass/fail element unlike the swimming, one lad in my interview scored 12.6 on the bleep test but was still guaranteed a job. When you do the press ups and sit ups, you should be aiming for +50 press ups in a minute and +60 sit ups in a minute for a decent score (if i had of managed 3 more press ups and 2 more sit ups I would have scored 13.2 overall which would have guaranteed me a job!!!). Don't underestimate the sporting transfer ability examination either, at the time it seems slightly more laid back and enjoyable and its not absolutely crucial but they will be watching you the entire time so make sure you concentrate on getting your techniques right. When you lead your warm up you will be given the night before to plan it and its aimed to last 7 minutes (but in reality lasts a lot less than that), make sure when you deliver it use confidence and try to come up with some original ideas. The officiating element is fairly straightforward but again the examiners will always be watching so be confident and authoritative.

The swimming assessment takes place the next day and is important to get right I only scored a 2 on the swimming which cost me dearly. It's a very quick assessmentt so you have little time to settle in the pool so make sure your training has fully prepared you for it. I can tell you from my own experience that the swimming separates the decent from the very good candidates, but once you get it out the way its a whole lot of weight taken off your shoulders. In your 5 minute tal you will be expected to talk about personal life so hometown, family, jobs, holidays etc. but the main concxern of the examiners here is to monitor how you talk and deliver a speech in front of people, keep it interesting and add a bit of humour if you can. Finally the SAPCA is all about how much effort your willing to put in, its your last examination of the interview so ensure you put 100% into it! Its very challenging and very fatiguing but if you put in maximum effort then the examiners will admire that.

After all this is compete you will be invited into the office one by one as they tell you how you got on and what you scored in total. They will tell you where you excelled but more importantly areas to improve. If you don't pass its likely they'll invite you back again in either 6 months or 12 months. If you do pass however your position isnt guaranteed unless you score 3.2 or above then its very likely. They will contact you a few weeks later to let you know if you have been awarded the job!

I hope this has helped as when i first did my interview I was looking for information to help me out but there didn't seem to be much out there, so i went into great detail here. In regards to the age thing it doesnt really matter when i did my interview ages ranged from 17-26 and they were purely judged on their scores. However the older you are obviously you will have more experience but obviously younger candidates are easier to mould into what they're looking for but don't worry to much about that as theyll mainly judge you on your perfomances on the tests and your ability and suitability to be a PTI in the royal airforce.

Reply 10

crdixon2004

Hi all.Does this proceedure still stand? Is there anythingnelse I can expect from the vetting?Thank you in advance.Chris

Reply 11

Marlon1996

When I applied for the PTI position recently it doesn't mention anything about swimming or taking warm up's sessions to pass to get onto the 10 week training phase. Has the process changed recently?

Reply 12

Stevie fatface

How should you be dressed for your interview

Reply 13

Matthias587

All suited and booted otherwise you'll make a terrible first impression

Reply 14

Bpeach

Hi all, regarding the beep test. Can anyone who has been at selection recently Confirm if the 13.2 is the minimum? This thread seems to suggest not. However I am going for PTI and the paperwork I received says both the beep test AND swimming are pass/fail elements, with the beep test minimum 13.2.Can anyone just Confirm that please? I can pass everything else to a good standard, however just struggling to get my beep test up to that level!Thanks in advance 🙂

Reply 15

Surnia

Original post by Bpeach

This is a very old thread on a student chatroom, so you should go by the current information on your paperwork, which is from an official source.

Also look at the PTI role on the RAF Recruitment website for details of the Specialist Vetting Course. Given the job of of a PTI you are expected to meet much higher levels than candidates for other roles. If you don't reach the requirements they'll look at how much you missed the target by; some elements are a straight pass/fail, in some there are degrees as to whether you have potential and can be taken on as a training risk, but they'll be considering everything in terms of performance and attitude. Fall well short, you won't be accepted as a PTI.

Reply 16

RAF_Adam

Original post by Bpeach

Hi

It's best effort, but a standard for that role and for training is 13.02, but you should be aiming for better than that.

Have a look here (choose the role you want to apply for from the drop down list first):

https://www.raf.mod.uk/recruitment/how-to-apply/application-process

Kind regards
Adam
RAF Recruitment

Reply 17

DRUM.NERD

Hello all, considering joining RAF PTI as I am currently a personal trainer in a private club. My question is what is the work - life balance? I just wonder how some of you current PTI's find it. Very keen to apply and help a cause bigger than myself, just wishing to find as many answers to questions before applying. Thank you kindly for your time.

Reply 18

threeportdrift

Careers Forum Helper

Original post by DRUM.NERD

My experience was that the work-life balance was fine in terms of hours you were at work and hours you weren't at work. Of course there were more intense periods of work on ops and exs etc, but generally there was plenty of time for yourself. The 'problem' if you see it as that, is that your down time often wasn't at the time you needed it (birthdays, christmases, special events etc) or the place you want it, ie it's somewhere hot and sandy, cold and wet, in a tent etc. You don't own your life and location to a very large extent, but you are given the opportunity to get away from work and do your own thing.

Reply 19

Dharbour16

Hello, does anyone know when the trade opens up again, registered my application but they are going to let me know when it’s available again, anyone know when?