Australian Army Lateral Transfer - help please!

Bond Girl · #1 (**permalink**) 13th August 2007, 11:51 AM

My husband is looking to transfer from the UK Army (Royal Artillery) to the Australian Army. As yet we're in the very early application stages, but we'd love to hear from anyone who has already made the move from the UK. We're currently trying to get as much info as possible together so that we can make a final, informed decision.
If anyone could please contact me with information, that would be great. Many thanks!

Pete W · #2 (**permalink**) 19th August 2007, 08:13 PM

Hi Bond Girl

Me and my wife Sarah just completed our interviews in London and got accepted, but we are still uncertain - it's a big move for the kids. Interested to know how you get on. Financially we'd be crazy NOT to do it.

Pete W

Bond Girl · #3 (**permalink**) 20th August 2007, 08:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pete W

Hi Bond Girl

Me and my wife Sarah just completed our interviews in London and got accepted, but we are still uncertain - it's a big move for the kids. Interested to know how you get on. Financially we'd be crazy NOT to do it.

Pete W

That's what we keep saying, but if we don't do it now then we'll never do it. We haven't put the app in yet, waiting for Garrick to get back from Afghanistan in October and then all systems go. How long did the process take from application to interview? And which branch of the Army are you in? Any information you could offer would be great, if you don't mind...

eddy · #4 (**permalink**) 29th May 2008, 02:34 PM

hi i have my interview in aug this year any tip or hints on what questions they will ask me eddy

QUOTE=Pete W;4107]Hi Bond Girl

Me and my wife Sarah just completed our interviews in London and got accepted, but we are still uncertain - it's a big move for the kids. Interested to know how you get on. Financially we'd be crazy NOT to do it.

Pete W[/quote]

eddy · #5 (**permalink**) 29th May 2008, 02:36 PM

hi i have my interview in aug this year any tip or hints on what questions they will ask me eddy

Bond Girl · #6 (**permalink**) 29th May 2008, 02:59 PM

We never actually went for it in the end!

We looked into it at length for over 6 months and eventually came to the conclusion that it was too big a risk to take. We did loads of research on moving to Oz and spoke to several people who had already made the switch across from the UK, but most were very homesick for their families in the UK and they said that the cost of living was very high in Oz and that the Australian people just weren't that friendly. Apparently, you DO get more of an "outdoor" lifestyle, but you have to work all hours to be able to actually afford to do anything! Or so I've been told.

Also, my husband had been told all manner of things about the Oz Army that just weren't true, so we decided to stick with the UK instead.

Hope I haven't wasted your time. I perhaps should've updated the thread to say we skipped it.

Wishing you all the very best with your interview. Good luck & please let us know how things go - it would be nice to hear a success story!

kaz101 · #7 (**permalink**) 29th May 2008, 11:34 PM

The cost of living is certainly higher than you think it is when you are living in the UK. With the exchange rate everything seems cheaper when you are are holiday from the UK but it's different when you are earning Aussie dollars.

Some people are homesick for the families since there is an adjustment period and that has to be expected since it takes time to settle in and find new friends. The fact that I can talk to my parents and see them through Skype for free has made a big difference. We've set up a free blog where we put our pictures too so family and friends can still see what we're up to.

I know nothing about the Army here but moving to Oz is the best thing we've ever done.

Regards,
Karen

Tiffani · #8 (**permalink**) 30th May 2008, 02:16 AM

hmmm, I would say that, with the exception of the cost of living (to be fair, I moved from North Carolina, USA --not exactly new york city -- to Melbourne Australia), I have found the opposite of almost everything you were told to be true.

Sure, you'll get homesick, and it is EXPENSIVE to go back home and it's not something you do for a weekend, but I have found the people to be extremely friendly in all manner of situations, and even though the cost of living is high, so are salaries. My partner and I save about as much in Australia as we did back in the US. I still find a $140 theatre ticket to be prohibitively expensive, but there's plenty of free stuff to do and bargains to be found if you know where to look.

I don't blame you for deciding to stick with home, but just remember the ones who "took the road less travelled by, and that has made all the difference". For our part, we came out here because, in spite of moments of intense regret about the decision (we moved here four months ago so we still have some adjustment issues!), they are just fleeting moments. If we HADN'T come, we would've regretted it for the rest of our lives!

Good luck in the UK though

There are worse places to live than England for sure! (I lived there for three years and loved it, although I wouldn't live there again because I'm a child of the sun and I couldn't handle the dreary cold weather!)