Army reserve recruitment open in mullingar

Are you interested in experiencing the life of a soldier? Do you want an active, challenging and rewarding life experience? Would you like to achieve this part-time? If the answer to these three questions is yes, then joining the Reserve Defence Forces might be for you.

Recruitment is currently open for the Reserve Defence Forces unit in Mullingar. C Company of the 6th Infantry Battalion have their training centre in Mullingar Business Park. They are an infantry unit, meaning that the men and women of the company are ‘footsoldiers’, the backbone of all armies.

The unit have a close working relationship with the Permanent Defence Forces based in Athlone, and in 2015 C Company will be taking part in further joint training and exercises with their full-time counterparts.

The training is as exciting as it is varied. Firstly, you will train to become a private soldier in the Reserve Defence Forces, with modules in Foot/Arms Drill, Weapons Training, Fitness Training, and Tactical Training. Once you reach this rank, there are any number of courses open to you, from weapons courses to driving courses and fitness instructor training (many of these qualifications are recognised outside the army). Having met certain criteria, you will also be eligible to apply for further promotion to become a junior leader in the Reserve Defence Forces.

C Company parade one evening a week in Mullingar, and also train during longer field days – roughly once a month on a Saturday or Sunday – in Custume Barracks, Athlone. Further residential training camps – generally one to two weeks long – take place at different times of the year, mostly during the summer, in barracks and camps around the country. You will be paid for attending the residential training camps.

C Company recently took part in the presidential Guard of Honour outside the GPO for the 2014 Easter Rising commemorations in Dublin. This was the first time that a reserve unit outside of Dublin had this role and C Company were proud to have been a part of the commemorations.

Members of the unit also took part in tactical exercises alongside the Permanent Defence Forces during the summer, while in 2013, several personnel completed the Dublin Marathon wearing full military tactical kit (weighing 30kg) and raised over €9,000 for charity.

To join, you must be between 18 and 34 years old (you can be 34, but not older). You will also have to pass a fitness test, an interview, a medical examination, and be cleared by garda security vetting. There are no formal educational qualifications needed.

Applications will only be accepted online at www.military.ie/careers/current-competitions/ (when making an application, to apply for C Company select the ‘2014 Army Reserve – Mullingar’ application form). The closing date for applications is Friday November 14.

For more information on the Reserve Defence Forces in general, visit www.military.ie/careers/reserve/join-the-reserve.

– by 2/Lt Neil Richardson