Camilla Turner
The British Army is filled with graduates, the Sandhurst chief has said, as he reveals plans to entice school-leavers by offering them a university degree alongside their officer training.
General Paul Nanson, Commandant of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, said that 18-year-old feel that they should go to university because it is the “done” thing, and often have not considered alternative options.
He said that when he was at Sandhurst, it was evenly split between university graduates and school-leavers, but now the vast majority - around four fifths - of Officer Cadets arrive with a degree.
“You want to try and get youngsters in early and develop them yourself rather than [choosing from] an ever increasing pond of graduates,” said General Nanson, who was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire for distinguished services in Afghanistan.
Officer Cadets during training at Sandhurst CREDIT: MINISTRY OF DEFENCE
“There are a number of people with very good degrees out there – but what you are looking for is character. That is one thing the army develops very well. There is a feeling now that people are going to university because it is the ‘done’ thing.”
General Nanson revealed that from this September, school-leavers who have been accepted for officer training at Sandhurst will be able to register for a BSc in Leadership and Strategic Studies. Once they have completed the undergraduate degree, developed in partnership with the University of Reading, they can go on to complete a Masters.
Officers will build up credits during their 12-month officer training course at Sandhurst, which will make up a third of the degree. They can complete the remaining two thirds over a four year period while they are a serving officer.
General Nanson, who joined the army straight from school and rose through the ranks, said that the new programme is aimed at “the youngster who says I always wanted to join the army but I felt the pressure to get a degree”.
Officer Cadets during training at Sandhurst CREDIT: MINISTRY OF DEFENCE
He said: “We are trying to tap into another pool of talent. We need to get back into schools and get the message out. We need to get back into sixth forms to let people know that there are alternatives.
“Very few [Officer Cadets] over the last few years have been school leavers – about 15 per cent. In my day it was almost 50/50.”
General Nanson said that there is “no doubt” that degrees are viewed by 18-year-old as prestigious, but added that there is a “movement” towards employers offering higher education opportunities to their employees.
“It has a lot to do with the fact that university is very expensive,” he said. “We have done some research – a lot of school leavers want to go to university. But over half said they would skip it if they knew they could get the same job and salary.”
British Army's Belong campaign CREDIT: MINISTRY OF DEFENCE
John Wills, head of custom programmes at Henley Business School, University of Reading, said that he has have been working with Sandhurst over the past twelve months to develop a bespoke course for officers.
“The majority of the course will be distance learning – meetings with tutors remotely, and using webinars or skype calls,” he said. “They can access also access resources r
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