I see you've pored thru the "OCS FAQ" thread ;-)
Don't over-interpret the info there. The key pre-call up criteria
are educational qualifications & school ECA records, but they
only serve as preliminary benchmarks. The more important scrutiny
will occur during BMT, with regards to performance, aptitude,
attitude &, needless to say, leadership.
The appraisals are done by your commanders as well as peers (no
blanket party is a good start ~lol~) throughout the course, &
there'll also be predetermined simulation tests where your
problem-solving skills are assessed. [For example, the instructors
could use white tape to designate 2 riverbanks & provide some
other props, then stand back & let the 8 of you work it out on
how to get everyone across the "water."]
Of course, you'll need to pass the various fitness &
marksmanship tests too but they needn't be elite scores, but then
they shouldn't be worse than the SISPEC batch's either.
Don't overamplify your OCS ambitions unless you wanna get "marked".
Reveal that eagerness only during your PC interview (he will
conduct one with every recruit), but perform well at all other
times to show that you deserve the recommendation. I don't mean
wayang either; you need to show initiative as well as achieve
tangible results with the tasks.
If you want an inside edge, I'll suggest 2 reading materials. The
1st is the SAF Leadership Handbook. Not sure if
the libraries have a copy but if you've got no lobang, I advise you
get acquainted with the SAF Core Values &, in particular, the
KAQ Leadership Framework ("Knowledge, Abilities, Qualities"). The
latter is the SAFTI-developed philosophy for all local army
officers to emulate & nurture.
The 2nd book is Making The Corps by Thomas E
Ricks, which tracked a platoon of US Marine recruits thru their BMT
in the mid-90s. Never mind the American setting; one central tenet
it reveals, & IMHO shares a lot with the Singapore version, is
how enlistees can be separated into 3 groups:
- there's a small group of Type-A, can-do people who forms the top
tier, very self-motivated & correspondingly natural
leaders.
- at the other end are the condemned failures, the unresponsive,
incompetent deadbeats who'll be misfit soldiers.
- in between are the majority: the quiet-profile guys who sail thru
training quite proficiently on the whole without standing out (the
DI's often can't recall their names). They'll form the main body
for operational units in various vocations/roles, some of them
excelling enough to become NCOs or group i/cs.
Having mentored over a mono-intake BMT before, I can testify that
it's very much a universal truth. You'll likely meet the same types
in your own basic training.
