Connect

Your Defence Forces Newsletter Call for Papers Defence Forces Review 2017 T he Defence Forces, in conjunction with the School of Law and Govern- ment, DCU and the School of History UCC will host a one-day conference in Cathal Brugha Barracks during November 2017. The conference will explore political, social, economic and cultural developments in contemporary Irish history, in addition to focusing on military matters. This year in particular, papers that focus on Terrorism Studies, its history, evolution and develop- ment and the current Terrorist threat are encouraged. We welcome proposals for papers that address the topic of Terror- ism that is so debated and analysed in our times and welcome contributions from academia and also from within the Defence Forces and Veterans groups. Selected papers will be published in the annual Defence Forces Review, copies of which will be available in traditional format and also online via the Defence Forces website. Those wishing to contribute to this publication must submit their completed paper (c.3000 words) to the conference organisers by 29 June 2017. Defence Forces Review 2017 will be launched at the confer- ence in November. Abstracts (250 words) for 20 minute pa- pers should be emailed to Rory Finegan at rory.finegan@defenceforces.ie by 31 March 2017. Please indicate whether you also in- tend to submit a full paper (c.3000 words) for publication in Defence Forces Review. Organis- ers: Prof. John Doyle (Dublin City Univer- sity), Dr David Fitzgerald (University College Cork) & Comdt Rory Finegan (Military Col- lege). WE ARE HiRinG!!!! T he Defence Forces are planning to recruit up to 1,000 new in- ductees in 2017. These new entrants will comprise of 850 General Service Recruits for the Army & Navy, 97 Cadets and 25 Air Corps Apprentice Aircraft Technicians. In 2016 the DF inducted 690 new entrants and the increased target for 2017 is a welcomed challenge. The largest inductions are for General Service Recruits and accordingly a new Recruitment Campaign will be launched in Q1 2016 with a target of attracting 5,000 applicants. One of the questions we ask all applicants for the Defence Forces is "How did you hear about us?", and almost 20% of applicants indicate a current serving member informed them of the competition. With that in mind there is an onus on all DF members to be aware of when the General Service Competition is open for applications, how to apply and what is involved in the competition. Applications are only accepted online and the link to the application form can be found on www.military.ie once the competition opens. The General Service Competition itself is divided in to a number of stages. Firstly applicants will be called for a Fitness Test. A suggested program of training and a demonstration of the exercises assessed during the DF Induction Fitness Test are sent to all applicants in an auto response when they apply. Applicants also undergo a competency based interview the same day as the fitness test. The competency based interview focuses on the past experi- ences of the candidate. The four competencies examined are Ability to Work Under Pressure, Teamwork, Motivation, and Career Orientation. Applicants will be sent an explanation of each competency with sample questions in ad- vance to assist with their preparation. The merging of these two competition stages; fitness test & interview was successfully introduced in 2016 in order to reduce the number of occasions an applicant has to report to a military instillation during the competition. The next stage of the General Service Competition is the Online Psycho- metric Assessment where an applicant's numerical & verbal reasoning are assessed. Applicants will be afforded the opportunity to attempt mock tests online in advance. The final stages of the General Service Competi- tion are Security Clearance and Medical. It typically takes a successful candidate 5 – 6 months to complete all stages of the competition. Should you have any recruitment related queries please email recruitment@defenceforces.ie or call Ext 2553.

• Cover