The Army Internship Programme (AIP) allows individuals aged 18-25 to experience Army life in a regiment of their choosing for between 9-24 months. The first step is to commission as a 2nd Lieutenant (2Lt) following an 8-week course at the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst (RMAS). 2Lt Felix Williams OT (MH 18-23) has just completed his course and passed out of Sandhurst on Saturday 25 November. He writes about his experience, below:

'The Course consisted of four two-week modules covering everything from basic infantry skills up to complex planned attacks on multiple enemy positions. The Army can offer up to thirty of these internship places, and eleven were awarded this year from over one thousand applications. Interns on the course are heading to the Guards, The Rifles, The Royal Gurkha Rifles, The Royal Artillery and others. Alongside the interns, the course is comprised of Padres, Doctors and some reserves which makes for an entertaining mix of ages, skills, fitness and resilience!

Over the course of 8 weeks, Officer Cadets (OCdts) embark on 4 exercises for a total of 10 nights; highlights of which included a 4-night exercise during Storm Ciaran – where we became so wet, it felt like a transfer to the Royal Navy. The final exercise, the culmination of your time at RMAS, finishes with an assault on a fortified position turning into a defence resulting in a stretcher race through the infamous Wish Stream, regarded by many as their fondest memory of CCS.

Following this intense training, the newly commissioned 2Lt. interns will be off to the field army and are deployed across the world to places such as Cyprus, Poland, Germany and the Falklands. I am being deployed to Brunei to serve with 1st Battalion, The Royal Gurkha Rifles (1RGR). Here I will undertake Jungle Warfare training as the Gurkhas are the only trained and combat-ready jungle warfare battalion.  There is also the opportunity for overseas exercises alongside the US Marines, as well as the Australian and New Zealand armed forces in Exercise Pacific Kukri for 6 weeks as well as other potential exercises in Japan, Fiji and Hawaii.

The AIP, whilst highly competitive, is an experience to be recommended for all school leavers offering both the ability to travel far and wide for free, whilst being paid; but also, in the long-term, offers valuable leadership skills which employers will appreciate. Some of the banks in the City allow those with this experience to move directly to the 3rd round of interviews. It also allows one to experience life as an Army Officer in one of the most elite and feared fighting units in the world; with soldiers who live by their motto ‘better to die than to live a coward.’

Jai RGR!

2 Lt. Felix Williams 1RGR (OT)