Officer Training Establishments

• Navy Initial Military Training - HMAS Creswell
• Army Initial Military Training – Royal Military College, Duntroon
  • The Army Officer Course is conducted at the Royal Military College, Duntroon located in Canberra, ACT. The course is physically challenging and mentally demanding. General Service Officers undertake 18 months of training, made up of three terms of approximately six months duration. Specialist Service Officers undertake up to 42 days training
  • For additional information on Army Officer Training go to https://army.adfcareers.gov.au/joining-and-training/officertraining-at-rmc
• RAAF Initial Military Training - RAAF Base East Sale
  • The Officers’ Training School is located at RAAF Base East Sale, in East Sale, VIC, approximately 220 km east of Melbourne. The major elements of the course involve introduction to military life, Defence values and attitudes, ground defence and weapons training, leadership and personal development, communication skills and Air Force operation studies.
  • The training is a live-in course, conducted over 17 weeks

Additional areas examine in the Defence Interview

An ADF Officer is a leader. They are required to influence others to achieve planned objectives (professionally, with courage and dedication). Leadership is the major ingredient which binds a team together through loyalty, honesty, and good communication, thus allowing the team to achieve the desired objective.

Your ability to lead others and communicate effectively is an important part of being an Officer. Success on military courses and promotion examinations, as well as an Officer’s day-to-day performance, depends greatly on strong communication skills, both written and oral. Accordingly, your Defence Interviewer will note your conversational skills, your vocabulary, and your sentence structure and grammar. Additionally, they will assess your understanding of leadership concepts, your experience and potential for leadership positions as an Officer. This may include an assessment of: • Leadership positions you may have held • School appointments • Leadership camps • Public speaking • Community involvement • Team sports participation • General knowledge and understanding of current ADF operations – read national newspapers; read Defence newspapers (online) • Self-confidence • Maturity

The Officer Selection Board

The OSB consists of a series of virtual activities designed to test aspects such as leadership, teamwork and individual abilities, as well as a range of challenging problem-solving exercises designed to test your competitiveness for available vacancies. The OSB usually consists of a number of activities including: • Oral presentation • Group activities (Navy and Army officer candidates only) • Formal interviews (all positions and Services) • Attend Aviation Screening Program (ASP) for all avenues of entry for Pilots and Mission Aircrew

The formal interviews will be conducted before a panel of Officers usually including: • President (ADF member) • Specialist Officer (ADF member) • Psychologist (Civilian or ADF member depending on the Service)

The OSB will offer you the opportunity to make a favourable impression upon the Board. Whilst Board members will make allowances for candidates who are nervous and will do their best to put them at ease, they will expect you to overcome and control nervousness and present yourself in the best light.

The following are points for you to consider to improve your presentation: • Pay careful attention to dress and grooming–first impressions are important • Be confident and sell yourself • Answer all questions completely and honestly • Think before you speak • Listen carefully; be alert and responsive at all times

To help you prepare for the OSB, you are encouraged to attend an OSB Information Session. Your attendance is not a requirement of the recruiting process but is recommended to assist in your progress. There are many questions you must ask yourself before applying for an appointment as an Officer. You must be absolutely sure that you really want to be an Officer in the ADF and know the reasons why. Careful preparation is essential to ensure a knowledgeable and confident presentation at interviews and the OSB. There are some websites listed below which may assist with your preparation.

Useful websites for Officer Entry Preparation

ADF Careers https://www.adfcareers.gov.au/ Navy https://www.navy.gov.au/ Army https://www.army.gov.au/ RAAF https://www.airforce.gov.au Australian Defence Force Academy https://www.adfcareers.gov.au/students-and-education/australiandefence-force-academy Royal Australian Naval College https://www.navy.gov.au/royal-australian-naval-college Royal Military College https://army.adfcareers.gov.au/joining-and-training/officer-trainingat-rmc ADF Operations https://www.defence.gov.au/operations Defence Strategic Review 2023 https://www.defence.gov.au/about/reviews-inquiries/defencestrategic-review National Defence Strategy 2024 https://www.defence.gov.au/about/strategic-planning/2024-nationaldefence-strategy-2024-integrated-investment-program