Originally Posted by
SLXOwft
I do wonder, given the technical demands of many RN branches and the high participation rates in Higher Education if an incentive of reimbursing student loan deductions and writing off a proportionate amount of the remainder and the basis of return of service should be added to sponsorship/cadetship. Even in the dark ages when I joined some tiffies were better qualified than officers on entry. I wonder how widespread the message that entry can be up to 39 depending on role and the starting salary for an accelerated apprenticeship (start as probationary leading hand) is above the UK median salary. There's even direct entry POET(ME) for those with relevant experience, personally and I suspect I'll be seen as a heretic, I think late recruitment at a higher rate/rank on probation for those with transferable skills with a 'Navalization' course has to be seriously considered.
Back in the late 60's/early '70s the RAF briefly ran a direct entry sqn ldr programme for the engineer branch. Total intake was around 10 and it was generally reckoned not to be a success. Most had difficulty acclimatising, falling foul of posts like mess sec, and left pretty quickly. To the best of my knowledge only one stayed in for any significant length of time and he went on to become a gp capt.