Army | Challenge Yourself

Soldier Training

The training our soldiers receive is world class. The skills and knowledge you gain from these courses will be invaluable to your military career but also beneficial should you decide to leave the Army and embark on a civilian career. The Army also recognises your skills should you wish to return to the Service after a period working elsewhere. These are skills for life.

Education opportunities

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Full-time soldier

All soldiers in the Army must first complete Basic Training at the Army Recruit Training Centre (ARTC) at Kapooka, near Wagga Wagga in New South Wales. Kapooka is home to the Department of Defence's Blamey Barracks, from where the ARTC conducts its operations. The Barracks are also known as "Home of the soldier." The duration of the Basic Training course at Kapooka is 80 days.

Part-time soldier

As a soldier in the Army Reserve you will also undertake Basic Training at the Army Recruit Training Centre. This will take 28 days.

Initial Employment Training

This follows Basic Training and prepares you for the specific job you'll ultimately be doing. The length and location of this training is dependent on the job. After this you will be sent to an Army unit and your career as a soldier will have begun.

The skills learnt at Kapooka form the foundation of a career as a soldier and are called upon for years to come. Recruits walk out these doors a different person to when they came in, with a wealth of new experiences to draw from.

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What you'll learn

You'll undergo physical training and drills and learn valuable first aid skills. You'll also receive basic military and weapons combat training. Night fighting, navigation, drill and advanced field-craft will also be covered.

You are up to the challenge

This is a very demanding course but there is no better preparation for life as a soldier in today's Army. As well as training in the physical aspects, by the end of the course, you'll know a lot about important soldierly qualities, like a will to win, dedication to duty, compassion and mateship. You will gain a huge sense of achievement, purpose and confidence by completing this training.

Fitness

A reasonable level of fitness is required to gain entry into all of our courses, but this is easy to achieve. If you're a fairly active person who spends some time exercising and playing sport every week, you should have no trouble meeting these requirements.

Fitness training will form a part of any course. Army instructors will guide you through activities such as obstacle courses, circuit training and strength and endurance training, to build your confidence and fitness levels along the way. Look at it as an opportunity to improve your fitness rather than as a requirement. The instructors are there to see that you succeed, not fail and in many cases you'll come to regard them as mentors.
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