The weekend of the 21st-22nd Jan saw two of our commissioned officers from B Company take the next step in their cadet journey as they continued their Initial Officer Training (IOT) at the esteemed Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst. These courses are designed for newly commissioned officers to develop their leadership skills and experience.
Among them was 2nd Lieutenant Pete O'Shea who completed the first of two weekends. Pete first attended his ACCB in April 2023 and says of the weekend "I found the course to be informative and fun and I learnt about different leadership and management skills. This gave me an insight into the kind of leader I am. During the weekend we had various seminars with one of them having a guest speaker, Jordan Wylie MBE." He continues "On the course, I learnt a more in-depth approach to leadership and how to put those skills into practice. I came away from the course, energized, excited and eager to transfer my new skills!"
2Lt Marie Milligan who completed the 2nd course at the weekend says "I went to Sandhurst for my first IOT DM course in September 2023 and on that weekend I had imposter syndrome from the minute I arrived until the day I left!" She continues "Part of me, was l convinced I did not have what it takes to be an officer, however after talking with others on the course I was surprised to learn that others felt the same way! What was really great was the feeling when I left, I was enthusiastic and excited to continue my journey, I learnt things about myself and how my attitude and behaviour influence others and how I could improve and develop my leadership skills. It turns out many of the things I was already doing were leadership skills, I just didn’t know the names of the models"
"My 2nd Weekend (CM Course) was supposed to be in November but unfortunately that was postponed till January 2024. I arrived at the course expecting the same as the previous weekend. We started with the usual icebreakers and had to put up our learning objectives for the course and talk about them. We then under the facilitation of our syndicate leader went through the exercises and the point of the exercises. Through my IOT training, I have met some fantastic people, made new friends and learned a lot about myself. Who I am and who I want to be."
The Initial Officer Training at Sandhurst has proven to be a valuable and unforgettable experience for both of these officers, giving them leadership skills and experiences that will come to good use, not just in the ACF but in their normal day-to-day lives as well.
