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Reply 3020
About the feedback thing from OASC, i got my full debrief back, im being considered again in feb, does anyone know the overall grade structure?
Reply 3021
dirts
I think nikki's right. If so, search this thread for review board, look at 15 dec 04!


You're spot on, and by extrapolation, so is she :smile:
Reply 3022
cwarranto
PTC don't dish out the scholarships. The money is pre-allocated to the ACO. They then swish it around the pot depending on what they need to pay for, or what HQAC ask for.


So why did money from PTC assets not being used find its way to that pot? When we're struggling to buy spares for our other aircraft, I'm quite mad that a lucky saving of a few thousand from some grounded Tutors went on freebies for cadets rather than what we need.
Reply 3023
peegee
About the feedback thing from OASC, i got my full debrief back, im being considered again in feb, does anyone know the overall grade structure?


Yes, you're given a board grade from 0 to 7. 0 is incompatible for service; i.e. you're not the right nationality, or you're a criminal, habitual drug user, whatever. 1 is a catastrophe of a potential officer, 7 is virtually there already. You need a 3 to "pass," but in today's climate you need noticeably better to actually get in.
Wzz
Yes, you're given a board grade from 0 to 7. 0 is incompatible for service; i.e. you're not the right nationality, or you're a criminal, habitual drug user, whatever. 1 is a catastrophe of a potential officer, 7 is virtually there already. You need a 3 to "pass," but in today's climate you need noticeably better to actually get in.


The CIO told me that you are graded from 0 to 5 and they have never seen a 5, 4's are rare, 3's are most common and anything below you haven't much chance. Last year you could have got in with a 2 but this year you need a high 3.
rugbyspaniel
The CIO told me that you are graded from 0 to 5 and they have never seen a 5, 4's are rare, 3's are most common and anything below you haven't much chance. Last year you could have got in with a 2 but this year you need a high 3.
They always have a higher number that is very rarely achiveable, it gives people something to relentlessly strive for :wink:
Reply 3026
They're wrong. It's 0 to 7, with a 3 to be considered. Frequently you'd be ok with a 3- or a 2+ depending on demand for your branch. 5s are quite common.
Reply 3027
sublime_envy
They always have a higher number that is very rarely achiveable, it gives people something to relentlessly strive for :wink:


There are no unachieveable numbers in selection, IOT, or flying training :wink:
Wzz
There are no unachieveable numbers in selection, IOT, or flying training :wink:
I said rarely :wink:
Reply 3029
Wzz
There are no unachieveable numbers in selection, IOT, or flying training :wink:

Yep, there's always some gifted sod who manages to get these scores!
dirts
Yep, there's always some gifted sod who manages to get these scores!

apparently the instructors on our course aren't supposed to give out a score of 6 for anything.
Reply 3031
sublime_envy
apparently the instructors on our course aren't supposed to give out a score of 6 for anything.

Student myth! I may have had about 2 sixes on a score in the little matrix bit, in my entire flying training! I certainly never notched up a 6 in an overall score, but there was the occasional sky god who could never do anything wrong. Very few and far between, but it is possible (for them!). A 6 is classed as exceptional in every way - a difficult standard to achieve - and one which probably requires a certain amount of humility for an instructor to award. After all, the demo you just had was probably a very, very good one, but was it perfect? For a six, you have to be perfect. That means that your instructor is acknowledging that you were absolutely faultless, and may have just done it better than they did! And anyway, if you get a 6, then you can only go down!
dirts
Student myth! I may have had about 2 sixes on a score in the little matrix bit, in my entire flying training! I certainly never notched up a 6 in an overall score, but there was the occasional sky god who could never do anything wrong. Very few and far between, but it is possible (for them!). A 6 is classed as exceptional in every way - a difficult standard to achieve - and one which probably requires a certain amount of humility for an instructor to award. After all, the demo you just had was probably a very, very good one, but was it perfect? For a six, you have to be perfect. That means that your instructor is acknowledging that you were absolutely faultless, and may have just done it better than they did! And anyway, if you get a 6, then you can only go down!
I'm only going by what I was told by one of my instructors. Apparently only one guy in two years ever got a 6 and it wasn't an overall mark. Anyway I would rather have something to strive for :smile:
Reply 3033
I was talking about the grade on the overall score. I got 'weak acceptance' but its subject to the competition. There is also a matrix score thing, which i think is now out of 28 (5 different catogories for leadership etc, 4 for fitness and 4 for interview).
Reply 3034
sublime_envy
apparently the instructors on our course aren't supposed to give out a score of 6 for anything.


Yup, utter student myth. Normally something senior years will tell you to cover up the fact they haven't managed to get any! It's ridiculous to say that they just won't give them out; there's a fairly rigid definition of a 6 written by CFS, so if you produce that in your Tutor then you should get one. The goalposts change as you get further through anyway.

I've found them harder to come by the further through training you go, but they were definately achieveable during EFT and at Linton. A coursemate had a 6/6/+ 5/6/+ FNT at Linton, which made us all feel suitably humbled when we thought our 4s and 5s were good!

As far as what a 6 means goes, I'm sure it's "nothing further could be expected from a student sortie." So you don't have to be perfect, you have to be as perfect as it's possible to be for your level of training. First one I ever got overall was for a trip which wasn't perfect by a long shot, but it was (quote) "noticeably better than above average and absolutely all we could wish for at this stage- hence a coveted 6." However, what they expect from you obviously increases as you go on; so that trip, flown to the exact same standard, wouldn't impress as much when I had 100hrs as it did when I had 25, and would probably be a 4/5.

It's nice to have something to strive for, but I liked knowing that if I did everything as well as I could possibly do it as a 150hr TT Tucano stude then they'd recognise it, pat me on the back and give me a 6. I hate the attitude that some instructors have, thinking that you can't possibly be good enough.
Reply 3035
peegee
I was talking about the grade on the overall score. I got 'weak acceptance' but its subject to the competition. There is also a matrix score thing, which i think is now out of 28 (5 different catogories for leadership etc, 4 for fitness and 4 for interview).


There was always a scores matrix, which changed between letters, numbers, totals, whatever. A weak acceptance is probably a 3- out of 7.
Reply 3036
I've got my filter interview in 3 weeks. Does anyone know what the changes to the IOT course are going to be?
Wzz
So why did money from PTC assets not being used find its way to that pot? When we're struggling to buy spares for our other aircraft, I'm quite mad that a lucky saving of a few thousand from some grounded Tutors went on freebies for cadets rather than what we need.


It's called budget pre-allocation according to the beancounters here.

Works like this. Budget is divided up amonst allocations for the coming FY. Say 42k here, 2k there. 3k for the brew fund, 190k for ATC Grob Fuel flights, 400k for UAS Grob Flights etc.etc. (my figures here are not accurate!)

So as the FY is rolling on, the pot of 190k is not going down due to no flights. Neither is the pot of 400k. ATC request re-allocation due to extenuating cirumstances - it had already been allocated, so what the heck. Might as well ask.

PTC Beancounters OK it, click, flash, whoosh. Scholarships 'R' us.

Pot of 400k is still there, for whatever the UAS's ask for, unless 1. someone else gets to it first to ask for spares for your Aircraft - don't you need a new landing gear, or have your perfected your landings now? ;-) 2. it gets swallowed up towards the end of the FY year.

Of course, in a perfect world the RAF would pull in money left right and centre to keep paying for your spares. But ask the theoretical question, "where would they stop". Would they take money from the HIVE funds, or the IT Learning & Development budget? Would they cut the number of sugars officers are allowed in the mess? It goes on and on.
Reply 3038
Nikki J S

Please check your private messages!
Wzz
Yes, you're given a board grade from 0 to 7. 0 is incompatible for service; i.e. you're not the right nationality, or you're a criminal, habitual drug user, whatever. 1 is a catastrophe of a potential officer, 7 is virtually there already. You need a 3 to "pass," but in today's climate you need noticeably better to actually get in.


How do I go about finding the board grade awarded? There was nothing on my letter from OASC, and having spoken to the AFCO in an attempt to get a debrief, I was told they did not iisue any grade as they "were not given in case it led to a false sense of security, or despondency".

Cranwell weren't too forward in dishing the dirt either. They merely re-iterated that I was in the Feb sift. (Maybe an overall score of minus one would lead to my nervous breakdown followed by grisley suicide)!

Any suggestions?

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