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Army officer

Command and motivate soldiers to work as a team in dangerous situations. Take responsibility for their welfare, training and discipline.

About the job

Salary (before tax)

Entry

£33,000

Arrow

Experienced

£51,000

In this job, new workers in Scotland start around £33,000 per year. Experienced workers can earn up to £51,000.

What it's like

You'd lead a team of British Army soldiers to compete a task or mission. You’d make quick decisions about what action to take in dangerous and stressful situations.

You’d be responsible for the training, welfare, physical fitness and discipline of the men and women under your command. You’d motivate them to work together as a disciplined and effective team.

If you are an officer in a unit in the Combat Arms you'd lead troops involved in fighting, such as the infantry, armoured corps, air corps and cavalry.

If you join a regiment in Combat Arms Support you would lead a unit working in artillery, engineering, information technology and communications, intelligence, logistics and healthcare.

You’d make sure your soldiers have the equipment, skills and support they need. As an officer you’d manage the soldiers in your unit and supervise the training and the integration of new recruits. There will also be administration to do.

Your exact duties would depend on which Arm you join and what type of job you do.

Examples of roles in the Combat Arms are:

  • Infantry platoon officer – leading a team of 30 trained soldiers on operations

  • Helicopter pilot officer – with responsibility for your crew and supporting ground troops

  • Tank troop officer – in charge of 12 soldiers and their vehicles

  • Artillery troop officer – in charge of a team of 30 soldiers and their weaponry

In the Support Arms, the roles include:

  • Adult heath nurse – caring for injured soldiers in demanding situations

  • Medical support officer or dental officer – looking after the health of army personnel and their families

  • Veterinary officer – working with military animals

  • Chaplain – offering spiritual support to soldiers and their families

Your unit could help with peacekeeping and humanitarian missions as well as undertaking missions in a combat zone.

Hours

Your working hours will depend on which part of the armed forces you work in. When not on exercises or operations your working day could be from 8am to 5pm. During exercises and operations you may work longer and irregular hours.

Environment

You could face a range of testing challenges, conditions and situations depending on your role and regiment. You'd spend a lot of time on training exercises, or you may also be in an office as a manager, or in an engineering workshop or field hospital.

Travel

You could be away from your family for long periods of time. You could be deployed or posted in the UK or overseas in places such as Canada or Cyprus.

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