Female needs advice on joining the SAF
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Hi,
I am a female graduate and am thinking of joining the SAF ... more particulary in the Navy as an Officer.
However, before going any further, I would really like to know more about what I will be getting myself into and hope that some of you here with the experience can advise me.
Here are some info I've gathered from friends and would like your opinion on them and if they are true or false.
1. Officers who aren't scholars are less likely to be able to get very high up in terms of rank
2. There are more young officers in the Army than in the Navy and Air Force so it's tougher to rise in the ranks
3. The army is more physically challenging while the Air force and navy is more mentally challenging
4. The pay in the navy is higher...
5. ...but it's due to the allowance as most of the time is spent sailing
Also, I have a few questions,
1. Will I be on call 24hours a day? How will my working hours/ schedule will be like?
2. How much time will I spent sailing? Will the time I spend sailing slowly be cut down as the years go by?
I would also appreciate any other form of input and feedback that I may not have thought of and you think I should consider.
It would also be cool if I could gain some insight of the life of a naval officer. How different would it be from the Army and Air Force? -
I believe there is one woman officer from the army in this forum, maybe she is the one to answer your qns.
Her nick is "wocc" , I think you should PM her. -
As a navy officer,u must be able to take plenty of mental stress and learn to be a fast learner! The senior commander will be bery harsh on the junior because they expect the best and the fastest out of u!Originally posted by washer:Hi,
I am a female graduate and am thinking of joining the SAF ... more particulary in the Navy as an Officer.
However, before going any further, I would really like to know more about what I will be getting myself into and hope that some of you here with the experience can advise me.
Here are some info I've gathered from friends and would like your opinion on them and if they are true or false.
1. Officers who aren't scholars are less likely to be able to get very high up in terms of rank
2. There are more young officers in the Army than in the Navy and Air Force so it's tougher to rise in the ranks
3. The army is more physically challenging while the Air force and navy is more mentally challenging
4. The pay in the navy is higher...
5. ...but it's due to the allowance as most of the time is spent sailing
Also, I have a few questions,
1. Will I be on call 24hours a day? How will my working hours/ schedule will be like?
2. How much time will I spent sailing? Will the time I spend sailing slowly be cut down as the years go by?
I would also appreciate any other form of input and feedback that I may not have thought of and you think I should consider.
It would also be cool if I could gain some insight of the life of a naval officer. How different would it be from the Army and Air Force?
Sailing is no joke! The ops during sailing is very tight.That means after one is over another one comes in quickly! Sleep is scarce.
U must be willing to sacriface a lot of yr personal time for the job!
The schedule for sailing is unstable meaning any additional sailing will just pop out to fit in the already tight schedule. A lot of last minnute ops will happen! Sailing can be range from normal patrol of 24hours to a 1 month long overseas deployment!
Basically as a officer, u r given with great responsiblity and must be able to handle great challenge
U r not pay for nothing and that is the reason why navy officer pay is one the highest. -
Wow, dun scare her leh!Originally posted by zenden9:As a navy officer,u must be able to take plenty of mental stress and learn to be a fast learner! The senior commander will be bery harsh on the junior because they expect the best and the fastest out of u!
Sailing is no joke! The ops during sailing is very tight.That means after one is over another one comes in quickly! Sleep is scarce.
U must be willing to sacriface a lot of yr personal time for the job!
The schedule for sailing is unstable meaning any additional sailing will just pop out to fit in the already tight schedule. A lot of last minnute ops will happen! Sailing can be range from normal patrol of 24hours to a 1 month long overseas deployment!
Basically as a officer, u r given with great responsiblity and must be able to handle great challenge
U r not pay for nothing and that is the reason why navy officer pay is one the highest.
There is many women officers in all the arms of SAF, maybe she is one tough cookies !!!
Washer, I think for you to make a career decision like that, you should talk to someone in the svc who will give you her's personnal experiences and maybe even direct you to a woman navy officer.
So PM wocc and ask her your qns.
I hope she will help you to make a right decision. -
wonder if u haf visited the wocc faq?
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I am a ex-NSF and used to serve in a Manpower Br, so i got to know too much about these things.
The officer corps in SAF is polarized among "scholars" and "farmers". Which is to say, you either enter with high qualifications, and rise fast, or enter with average qualifications and rise slow. Of course, promotion does count on performance. I knew an CPT who rose to his rank in 4 years. Inspirational?
I cannot answer about the Navy or the Air Force, but there does seem to be too much 2LTs and LTAs in the Army, so there are a lot of supernumary posts. (Project Offr anyone?)
In the SAF there is allowance for many things. Overseas posting is one. So... lets say your a Army offr, and your posted elsewhere for a year. You'd be rich.
Take it from a NSF, and one that had to lock up after too many officers who did overtime.
Your working hours is anything the unit requires you to.
If there's something important the next day, you'd better do it right now, and don't go home.
Your not exactly on call 24 hours per se, but.... as you rise in rank, and appointment, you WILL be on call 24 hours/7 days.
Im sure ex-NSFs would know... something called KAH.
If your a KAH, your every move must be documented, and it's a incident that needs to be reported to GSOC if your sick. Furthermore, if your a really important KAH, you may not go abroad if the other important KAH are abroad too.
Also.... the stress! The stress!
Here is a feedback that you may not know of. If your a female enlistee and you commit suicide, or any other chargeable offence, it's brushed over and your discharged.
Also.... suffice to say that .... you will be targeted by Wolfpacks, and shielded by Hunterkiller groups.
Every female in the SAF has "Property of SAF" emblazoned on them. Hands off! -
http://www.socnetcentral.com/vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=37644
Sharp words from people who know what their about.
The whole site is chockfull of real SEALs, Rangers and so on. -
Originally posted by washer:1. Officers who aren't scholars are less likely to be able to get very high up in terms of rank.
YUP. Either you're a scholar or a farmer.
2. There are more young officers in the Army than in the Navy and Air Force so it's tougher to rise in the ranks Age doesn't really matter... but if you're 31 and still a LTA. Its more like the person "cannot make it" in the first place.
3. The army is more physically challenging while the Air force and navy is more mentally challenging I can answer Airforce... mentally, yeah.
4. The pay in the navy is higher...
5. ...but it's due to the allowance as most of the time is spent sailing More money = less time on land
More time on land = less money
depends on how you see it. Some people wanna spend more time with friends, family... so they choose not to join the Navy... I'm not saying its impossible to have human contact, but some people seem to need more time talking to other humans out of the same sector.
Also, I have a few questions,
1. Will I be on call 24hours a day? How will my working hours/ schedule will be like? You'll be on call the moment you sign the contract. Unless of course you take overseas leave, but that also will depend.
Working hours, i don't know how long the navy works.
2. How much time will I spent sailing? Will the time I spend sailing slowly be cut down as the years go by? I got no answer to that... I'd refer you to xavier1979
How different would it be from the Army and Air Force? Very different. different specialisation. depends on your interest.
if you're going to compare the money of the different forces, an advice for you, don't sign. you'll be suffering for the rest of your contract. -
Washer,
1.Officers who aren't scholars are less likely to be able to get very high up in terms of rank ?
Yep, scholar will have a good start, but for a degree holder and if can perform, no problem of going above major.
2. There are more young officers in the Army than in the Navy and Air Force so it's tougher to rise in the ranks ?
Well all depends. but air force have more role of female officers, so may have more chance.
3. The army is more physically challenging while the Air force and navy is more mentally challenging ?
All is the same, you will still have to survive the basic training and OCS ( both female version).
4. The pay in the navy is higher...
Air force pay is higher ?
5. ...but it's due to the allowance as most of the time is spent sailing
Yep, but is life on the sea for you ? unless you like the sea, don't sign up just because it pay better.
6. Will I be on call 24hours a day? How will my working hours/ schedule will be like?
Yes, expect sometime you be on call. Working hr and schedule all depend on your assign role ( sometime beyond your control).
7. How much time will I spent sailing? Will the time I spend sailing slowly be cut down as the years go by?
You may not need to sail at all. All depend on your assign role. Even need to sail, after a few years can request for transfer to more of base or desk job.
Washer, think you must first of all ask what is your interest! Strange but your question seem to be more focus on promotion, pay and time. Forget about the rank, pay and time, if you are too focus on that, you are not going to make a good officer and everyone is going to give you a shit time. Seriously consider, what your interest is, and whether your interest is in army, navy or air force. -
thanks gary. I will most definately be dropping wocc a PM soon! I've tried getting contacts from friends who have friends who are in the navy though they haven't seem to reply back cos they all seem to be sailing.Originally posted by gary1910:Wow, dun scare her leh!
There is many women officers in all the arms of SAF, maybe she is one tough cookies !!!
Washer, I think for you to make a career decision like that, you should talk to someone in the svc who will give you her's personnal experiences and maybe even direct you to a woman navy officer.
So PM wocc and ask her your qns.
I hope she will help you to make a right decision.
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thanks to all who replied for their invaluable insight and input.
I heard that the navy is having an open house next weekend at the changi naval base peharps i will be able to find out more from them?
One more thing that I would like to know is what appointments are there to hold in the navy as a combat officer? A friend who is a sign on said that after the basic training, it will be appointments, training and appointments till you retired around 43yo? So what kinds of appointments are there? -
Cadet-->
Attach officer-->
Navigating officer-->
weaponary officer/comunication officer-->
operation officer-->
executive officer-->
go base clock some shore appoint and come back to ship-->
commanding officer of a minor platform-->
commanding officer of a major warship-->
go base again to finish yr remaining contract as head of some department in gombak which u shall be 38yrs to 40 yrs by then! -
haha..i've been thinking about going on the same path as her too when i come of age..only thing i'm scared abt is lack of personal time..wait no time to get married then how
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hey zenden, u in the navy?Originally posted by zenden9:Cadet-->
Attach officer-->
Navigating officer-->
weaponary officer/comunication officer-->
operation officer-->
executive officer-->
go base clock some shore appoint and come back to ship-->
commanding officer of a minor platform-->
commanding officer of a major warship-->
go base again to finish yr remaining contract as head of some department in gombak which u shall be 38yrs to 40 yrs by then! -
Navy pays more? well, it is indeed to compensate for the sailing...
Concerning sailing, it depends on which platform/class of ship u are in.... and to an extent of which ship....
Usu MCVs and MGBs sails less where as the APVs n PVs are the workhorses of the navy... Which means they sails most of the time... MCV n MGB goes for Ops/Exercise, PV goes for patrol while APV(All Purpose Vessel
) goes for Exercise and Patrol... So which ship u are posted to, greatly affect how much sailing u r subjected to.... But I think MGB and MCV is not available for female personnel due to accomodation problems...
Female can goes to APV/PV, LST, MCMV... LST and MCMV are cool... MCMV and LST are not bad too... Accomodation is the best on these 2... Sailing wise also...
Talking about whether the higher rank u get, the less sailing u have is not true... Usu on your tour of duty or ur career in navy, u will be post to ship and also have some stint at shore units like maintenance base, MSD, Gombak... But the initail years when u r junior usu u will be with ship which means sailing unless u are medically unfit... -
Long time ago! How r abt u? U seems to know a lot abt navy too!Originally posted by Arena:hey zenden, u in the navy? -
I just read in this thread (http://www.sgforums.com/?action=thread_display&thread_id=37552)
"...as for frequency of sailing, it depend on class of craft he had posted.
some ship sail frequently, around 10 to 20 days per month out at sea.
some ship dun sail frequently, around 5 to 10 days per month out at sea.
some ship sail very far, one trip may sail 10 days to 40 days.
so, it all depend on which ship he posted to..."-- doLpH
and
"...On average if he serves on a ship he will be gone for anywhere between 5days-2 weeks stretches after which he is free for the next 2-4 weeks before he should set sail again.But it all depends on the timetable of which he will be given months in advance.
Note:I got all this from the person i spoke to at the career recruitment office of the Navy..." -- |-|05|
Any comments on the above claims? I am prepared (and in fact look forward ) to go sailing for weeks but as long as I am able to spend time with my family when I am back in Singapore. Is it true that I will be given some time off after I return from a long trip or will I still have to be at the Base to do paperwork till the next sail?
That's the only concern I have left now. -
Guys, just a suggestion: I think to be fair to her as she is making a carrer choice, shouldn't we also inform her about the "s.h.i.t.y stuff" she is going to face? I am not pouring cold water but at least she can expect what to happen. Any comments Guys?
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tell u a good job for a female officer... join as a intelligence officer.. combat pay.. office job.
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not very interested in SAF. what about SPF? any comments?
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MaybeOriginally posted by octega:Guys, just a suggestion: I think to be fair to her as she is making a carrer choice, shouldn't we also inform her about the "s.h.i.t.y stuff" she is going to face? I am not pouring cold water but at least she can expect what to happen. Any comments Guys? -
You hoping to get into the submariners ?Originally posted by washer:Hi,
I am a female graduate and am thinking of joining the SAF ... more particulary in the Navy as an Officer.
However, before going any further, I would really like to know more about what I will be getting myself into and hope that some of you here with the experience can advise me.
Here are some info I've gathered from friends and would like your opinion on them and if they are true or false.
1. Officers who aren't scholars are less likely to be able to get very high up in terms of rank
2. There are more young officers in the Army than in the Navy and Air Force so it's tougher to rise in the ranks
3. The army is more physically challenging while the Air force and navy is more mentally challenging
4. The pay in the navy is higher...
5. ...but it's due to the allowance as most of the time is spent sailing
Also, I have a few questions,
1. Will I be on call 24hours a day? How will my working hours/ schedule will be like?
2. How much time will I spent sailing? Will the time I spend sailing slowly be cut down as the years go by?
I would also appreciate any other form of input and feedback that I may not have thought of and you think I should consider.
It would also be cool if I could gain some insight of the life of a naval officer. How different would it be from the Army and Air Force? -
just try not to crash your ship into a commercial one....well...just dun crash into any ship for that matter.
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i always thought air force pilots have the highest pay scale in the saf?Originally posted by washer:4. The pay in the navy is higher...
5. ...but it's due to the allowance as most of the time is spent sailing -
Of cos! Please bring it on! I really want to know everything!Originally posted by octega:Guys, just a suggestion: I think to be fair to her as she is making a carrer choice, shouldn't we also inform her about the "s.h.i.t.y stuff" she is going to face? I am not pouring cold water but at least she can expect what to happen. Any comments Guys?