My RAF Application for CSS(IT Tech) 2019/2020 Happy to answer any questions

*Posting anonymously*
Disclaimer:This post is my own opinion and timeline of the events that took place leading up to my basic training. This is not endorsed by the RAF. After spending hours on the internet looking for hints and tips at each stage I thought I’d write something that would have helped me during my application. All of the information provided is subject to change and might not be accurate at the time of writing (Feb 2020) but I'm sure RAF_Adam will correct anything i got wrong :smile:

At this point I have not completed my basic training so I'm still a civilian. This post is meant to help and provide an overview. I'm not trying to rock the boat or give anything away just provide a bit of information on this. Thanks!

Rough Dates during application:
Start June 2019 - February 2020

Background:
So i decided that i wanted a change of pace from my current job in IT, i was struggling to find it interesting needed to move on to progress my career as i was stuck at a dead end. So after a lot of reflection I decided that I wanted to join the RAF. I made it my 2019 new years resolution to apply before the end of 2020 and get in before 2021 little did i know I'd be 95% there before the end of 2019.

Application:
After trying to get fit and not really having a plan or motivation to do so other than the “Dream” a friend that was joining the Royal Navy buddied up with me and we started to train together. He had convinced me to apply now (June 2019) as the best motivator for me was the deadline. After proofreading my application 5 times and hovering over the apply button for 30 minutes I hit the button and started the roller coaster.He had said to me it will take 2 - 3 weeks to get a response from my local AFCO, to my surprise i was contacted 13~ hours later and asked to come in for my AST (Airman Selection Test).

AST (Airmen Selection Test):
After spending weeks going over GCSE English , Maths and Science I was ready to take the test. The exam took altogether 1.5 - 2 hours, it wasn't the most difficult test to complete, but it did stretch my memory as i hadn’t done GCSE Maths / English for over 5 years at this point!After the test i thought i had failed and not achieved the required score, to my surprise when i was handed a completely green sheet and told i can do any role that you need to take the test for! Then we had a presentation where the Corporal spent most of the time ripping into the Army guy that was transferring over to the RAF, coming from a Military family. I understood the jokes and it was quite funny.50% of the people who showed for the test failed and would have had to resit the “2nd paper”Tips for the AST :biggrin:

ress Smart. This isn't on any of the paperwork, this is the first time the AFCO staff will see you make sure you look your best

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Revise GCSE English -

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Revise GCSE Maths -

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Revise GCSE Science -

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The online test the RAF provides gives you a really good understanding of the areas to revise on.

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The most important tip is not to panic, the test isn't designed to catch you out, but it is strictly timed!

Pre Joining Interview:
This was a 1 on 1 interview with a corporal at the AFCO. This is a pass / fail interview so you need to make sure that you look your best and get a good night's sleep before. Make sure you arrive 15 minutes early to the interview so you have time to calm down and gather your thoughts before it starts. so on a very warm July morning i arrived for my interview, they read off of a sheet and asked loads of questions

Tips for the Interview:

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Dress smart (i went in a full suit and tie)

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Research the RAF find out interesting facts that you can remember,

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Make sure that you ask questions back to the interviewer, as them about their career and what they do how long they have been serving for, taking an interest in them

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Stay calm and DO NOT LIE they will find out one or another

Basic Training modules:Module one “Transition Phase”This will consist of; Drill , General service knowledge , Kit Prep and PT sessionsModule two “IFPT”This will consist of; Battle PT, CBRN , weapons handling, field craftModule three “Prep and presentation”This will consist of; Rifle drill(Marching with a weapon) , final exams in all areas and the graduation parade.

Pre Joining Medical Assessment:
So the Medical assessment is the biggest fright I had during the application process. There is a big scary list of conditions that you cannot have when applying for the RAF. I spent weeks digging through this list frantically checking that I didn't have any of them. In hindsight a very very very silly thing to do. When i had the medical i was surprised that all of the things i thought would be a problem where actually completely fine. He wanted to check my medical history on a few things, Asthma and a hip problem I had when I was younger, both in the end turned out to be fine. I wish i knew this during the medical as i was so nervous my blood pressure was too high and i failed the medical for it!After being told to visit my doctors and get a monitor fitted / three appointments with a nurse to measure my blood pressure i discovered that i have white coat hypertension after one reading came back as 190 / 90 or something! They fitted me with a 24 hour monitor.I was given the all clear and Capita(who this part of the process is ran by) got my documents from the doctors surgery and i was moved on all within 1 month of the medical.Tips for the Medical:

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They will ask you loads of questions that you might not remember the answer to, so ask your parents before you go, examples included ; name every time you have been to hospital and what for , have you had any problems with breathing after exercise that type of stuff.

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Wear loose fitting clothes you will be asked to strip down to your underwear and will be asked to perform loads of random movements so don't go hard at the gym the day before!

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They will ask you to pee in a cup, this wasn't a drugs test it was just a test on liver / kidney function and he told you the answer straight away.(this doesn't mean you can do drugs!)

PJFT Pre Joining Fitness Test:
So this was the biggest hurdle for me, i had spent 2 - 3 months training every day to pass this fitness test, going from a McDonald's guzzling couch potato to a bit of a fitness freak. I was nervous and eager to get it over with. I was informed of the fitness test date and time via my application portal, it was only 6 days after the medical confirmation came back, The guy who was adjudicating my test was really nice. He was just a PT in a local ‘Nuffield Health Centre’ gym. I celebrated passing this with the worst thing possible. Wetherspoons!Tips for the Fitness test:

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Rest at least 2 days before the test

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Do not eat a large meal beforehand.

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Get a good night's sleep

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If you start to struggle just remember your body can go a lot farther than your mind will go.

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You aren’t allowed to listen to music so get used to doing it without it

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The run is on the treadmill but don't spend every training session on the treadmill run outside get some fresh air. (Living by the seaside was a big help for me on this!) You will run a lot further outside than you will on a treadmill. I joined the local park run group and started doing 5K’s after the test a good way to make sure you are keeping your Phys up!

PRTC (PRFE is the new name i think):
I feel the PRTC was deliberately far away as a test to make sure you keep your fitness up in between the stages of the application. I opted to drive myself to the camp after a 2~ hour journey. I made it to the RTS 20 minutes before i was allowed to enter, so i went a mile or so down the road and parked up and waited for the arrival time to open. It is very important you go to the correct gate at RAF Halton. After parking up and getting my bag out I stood in a line of other very scared looking candidates waiting for instruction. We were led up to our blocks for the next 1 / 2 days and told to find our names on the door of the room we were going to be in. After dropping our bags off we were told to get into our PT gear and go to the briefing room in the block. We spent a good hour there handing over certificates , reading orders and giving in our vaccination information to the staff the corporal gave us a brief and we were sent down to the gym . After this test a lot of the fear / tension went away and we all could relax a bit, after getting into issued overalls we went for dinner and then to the EEF building which is filled with computers, we had to fill out some paperwork. We only had 15 - 20 mins then we had to draw a line and complete the rest as “home”work. After this we were sent to bed and were expected to be outside dressed in overalls at 06:30 the next morning make sure you get outside 5-10 minutes before the time ordered. The corporals were stood in the building over from us watching and they questioned everyone who came out after they had stood there. Even after we got shouted at for it the other block clearly didn't get the memo and then we all got shouted at! After breakfast we went back to the EEF building and had to complete a BKSB in english and maths, this took about 1.5 hours and wasn’t that difficult to complete. After that we had a brief from the RAF Police and the WO that runs the RTS. This was an interesting talk where we could ask any questions that we had and he answered them all very well.If you didn't have C grades in English and Maths you had to stay for another day to complete FS tests in these to make sure you were at the required level. If you failed the fitness test on day 1 you could retake this on Friday. Thankfully I didn't need to do this and I was sent home at 15:00. This is probably one of the best car journeys of my life knowing I had pretty much done it. The food that was provided was nice and wasn’t like the horror stories that you hear about online!Tips for PRTC:

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Do as your told / read & understand the orders given to you

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DO NOT post on social media that you are there and what you're doing they do check. Snapchat included…..

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You aren’t allowed to talk to anyone else on the camp and the overalls make you stand out so keep your chin up and act like you want to be there.

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Take a watch(It isn't on the kit list make sure you have one)

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Make friends and talk to people you will probably see a lot of them again

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Make sure you revise English and maths for the exams / BKSB

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We didn't do the Fitness test until 15:30 i hadn’t eaten since 07:30 that day so make sure you bring a light snack for on the train / car so you aren’t starving during the fitness test it made it a lot harder than it needed to be!

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They do have Wi-Fi in the accommodation blocks that you need to give loads of information to access so don't do anything silly on it as they will know its you, me being a computer nerd i VPN’ed into my router at home so all of my internet traffic was encrypted and my public IP would be my home router. This stops them tracking what i was doing. (This is the same process i follow for any public Wi-Fi network)

308 interview: So the final jump on the roller coaster of the application to join the RAF. I was told this is usually a month before you start training so I booked it in and had a nice relaxing Christmas knowing that I had something big to look forward to next year. Keeping the fitness up of course i even ran a park run on Christmas Day! Something i would have never done pre RAF application. As the date crept up I started to revise the same stuff that i was asked in the first interview. As i heard that they ask you to make sure you haven't forgotten, I'm not sure if the corporal who did was in a good mood or not as i wasn’t asked any questions like this, it seemed more like an informal chat where they asked me if i was ready to do this and when my time in the RAF would end (2032 seems a long time away from now) they gave me some tips and a kit list / joining instructions to read and follow. After a few rounds of Amazon and Asda / Tesco’s I had everything on the kit list packed into one large suitcase, gym bag + an ironing board and iron308 interview tips:

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Dress smart and show up on time

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Listen and make sure you understand what they are telling you

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Prepare a list of questions before you go so you can ask them

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Take a notepad and pen

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Make sure you thank the AFCO staff after the interview this will be the last time you see them

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If you have any questions after this call the AFCO and ask them they were always happy to help.

My biggest bit of advice during the application is if you aren't sure pick the phone. Or visit the AFCO and ask them. Internet guides are great but be proactive. If you have applied the RAF have done their job to attract you, now it’s your job to prove to them and yourself that you deserve it. Good Luck!

Happy to answer questions on the process but i am due to start soon so i might not reply straight away :smile: