Intelligence Officer / Operator

[Franko]

I have a few of my Int Op colleagues who have been involved in firefights on several occasions. So yes, be prepared to.

I can tell you that there was absolutely no Int ops outside of KAF for TF3-08 with exception of one who was brought into the FOBs at the demands of the BG and much to the protests of the ASIC. For OP Athena/ Archer roto 4/0 no Int Ops left Jullian or KAF at all, nor accompanied any of the convoys or presence patrols in Kandahar, Kabul, Zabol or Ghazni provinces. They didn't even forward deploy to the FOB to link in and get any info.

For TF3-08, our dude did not get into any firefights, and went on one op....as a passenger in a LAVIII once....for one day, much to the protests of his leadership. They basically had a hissy-fit and balked at the idea.

It was the same for TF1-08 as I knew the Int op in MSG. It was the same protests by her leadership as well and she did not leave the confines of the wire.

If that was the way it was for two tours, I'm sure it was the prevailing pattern for other tours as well, unless someone grew a backbone and got them out actually gathering in the field with the troops, which I highly doubt. Forward deployed troops are the primary collectors of Int. An Int ops job is to gather it all and figure out WTF is going on....not get into a fire fight nor go on patrols. A desk and a computer are their tools.

HUMINT are a different thing altogether, please don't get the two mixed up.

Regards

 

[Journeyman]

I think it's a typo.  I'm sure he meant to say....

I have a few of my Int Op colleagues who claimed to have been involved in firefights on several occasions. So yes, be prepared to.

Unless he was talking paintball......

 

[OldSolduer]

Here's my take:

If an Int Op has a specific task and is required to go on patrol that's fine. The Patrol Comd and 2 I/C can deal with that by assigning two patrollers to babysit the Int Op - chances are he or she will need some coaching and practice.

If the Int Op wants to go on patrol for craps and giggles - no.

I never liked the idea of clerks, mechanics, cooks etc being encouraged to go on patrol in Croatia or Bosnia. This idea never came from the troops - it came out of BGHQ where the Good Idea Fairy had taken root.

 

[medicineman]

I think it's a typo.  I'm sure he meant to say....
Unless he was talking paintball......

Or they were partaking from one of the big screens in the TOC?

MM

 

[George Wallace]

Or they were partaking from one of the big screens in the TOC?

MM

Some of those screens are great for HD movies after hours.

 

[Aldaren]

Some of those screens are great for HD movies after hours.

Sometimes it's hard to tell what's predator feed and what's Call of Duty...  >

 

[The_Dictat]

Guys, I never said that they where on patrol... They've been hit by IEDs during their road moves/convoys and got injured. Some have exchanged fire with the enemy. So don't generalize that Int Ops don't get out. Heck, a colleague of mine was even on Op Medusa, doing Intreps behind a mud wall... For myself, my driver brought us into a minefield during my tour in Bosnia...thankfully we were able to get ourselves out safely.

As for the Int Officers decision not to send out their guys, well no comment.

I do agree that Int personnel are not supposed to go outside the wire as they have a valuable work to do inside HQs. However, sometimes being on the ground to see by their selves what is going on is useful and time saving. Would they need babysitting? Obviously.

 

[whisper]

Hello all! First post.

I am a 24 year-old Master of Arts Graduate in Political Science, and I need a job. At least, the job-hunt was the reason I found myself back on the FORCES Browse Jobs tab. I have looked into the CF before, but that was mid-undergrad and - at the time -  a friend informed me that hiring was frozen across the board. I had a job at the time, and no intention of moving away, so I let it drop and went on to do a Master's degree.

But here I am with training, experience, and skill in reading complex documents, distilling info from multiple sources, writing simpler analyses, and presenting them to people verbally/in written form. I understand these are valuable skills across the board.

So, I'm interested in a few trades specifically - places where I might get to deploy this skill-set. INT Officer is incredibly appealing, and if I could join for that Trade tomorrow I would seriously consider it.

That said, forum-posts seem to the the only insider info on feasibility of being hired DEO into this Trade - and they aren't positive or recent (http://forums.air-force.ca/forums/threads/77865.25). I'm trying to get some research done before visiting a Recruiter. Any thoughts on the trade generally, DEO entrance into it/suggested alternative forms of entrance, wait-times, etc. would be great! Any thoughts on appropriate alternative trades would be a good start for me too (I am tentatively looking at Signals Officer as well at the moment). Thanks in advance!



Aside: I am not afraid of exercise or personal fitness, I spent three years rowing in highschool and quit the mornings so I could party. I'm done with that crap at this point, and miss the discipline - the freedom of not having a choice and just f**ing doing it because expectations demand it. I understand that self-motivation will be required, but think basic could kick-start that. My interest in INT Officer comes from the nature of the work, not apprehension of being dumped into an extremely physical lifestyle.

 

[mariomike]

Some here.

"I want to be Int" Mega-thread 
http://forums.army.ca/forums/threads/12858.225

 

[whisper]

Thanks - I just found it myself a few moments ago - starting seeing all the "I'm applying tell me everything" threads and felt guilty.
Cheers!

Edit: It appears that I was moved here. Thanks Mods! It seems like I will just have to go to the source and visit a recruiter.

 

[d_edwards]

Sometimes it's hard to tell what's predator feed and what's Call of Duty...  >

:rofl:

 

[George Wallace]

INT is not hiring DEO.  At the moment, it next to impossible for trained INT O's to CT from the PRes to the Reg Force; and they would be chosen before someone off the street.  This would make the suggestion to join the Reserves and becoming an INT Op or INT O a less than encouraging route to take, but still an option.  You may want to weigh the Pros and Cons.

No matter whether or not you go officer or NCM, you will have to do Basic.  This may tie up a good portion of your first year to two years in the Reserves, depending on how lucky you are at getting onto a BMQ and BMQ (L).  In the Regular Force, you will go to BFC St Jean for your Basic.  If you join as an officer, you will then have to go off to CFB Gagetown for CAP (DP1).  It will be a year to two years before you even see the doors of a QL5A INT Op (NCM) or BIOC (officer) course.

I have had several Masters grads working for me as INT Ops in a Reserve unit.  The NCM route for a person right off the street takes approx two years before they are Trained as an INT Op.  The officer route is a long and drawn out route to take, even as a Reservist.  Compounding it all is that there are not that many openings at the moment for positions on a BIOC, which will run up to eight months of training, and may consequently take a Reservist over three years to become trained and employable.  In the last year, openings for Snr NCO and officer positions on career courses have been extremely rare for Reservists, further prolonging the time it may take to become employable. 

If you join the Regular Force, you likely would have to join in another Trade (as you suggested Signals Officer) and apply for a VOT a few years down the road, after you have been fully trained in that Trade.  Once again, you would have to spend another year on the BIOC, before becoming employable as an INT O.

No matter which route you should decide to take, it will be many years before you become employable as an INT O.

 

[whisper]

Thanks George, this kind of info is exactly what I wanted to get a handle on before visiting a recruiter. It helps me go in knowing what questions I want to ask. Very helpful.
Cheers.

 

[hockey1234]

Hello,

I am currently in first-year studying for a Bachelor of Public Affairs and Policy Management, and was wondering if this is an acceptable degree to be entered into ROTP as an Intelligence Officer? The specializations that I can take that seem the most related would be International Studies or Public Policy and Administration. In short:
1) Am I in the right program to become an Intelligence Officer?
2) If so, which specialization would be most beneficial?
3) Can I apply for the Reserves as an Intelligence Officer and then switch into ROTP, say two years from now?

Thank you for taking the time to answer! 

 

[DAA]

I am currently in first-year studying for a Bachelor of Public Affairs and Policy Management, and was wondering if this is an acceptable degree to be entered into ROTP as an Intelligence Officer? The specializations that I can take that seem the most related would be International Studies or Public Policy and Administration. In short:
1) Am I in the right program to become an Intelligence Officer?
2) If so, which specialization would be most beneficial?
3) Can I apply for the Reserves as an Intelligence Officer and then switch into ROTP, say two years from now?

Current academic programs recognized for ROTP Int O are:

Ideal

Bachelor of Arts in:Conflict Studies, International Studies, Military and Strategic Studies, Political Science, Global Studies or Anthropology

Acceptable

Bachelor of Arts in: Economics, English, History, Journalism, Geography, Psychology or Theology.
Bachelor of Science in: Geography, Geomatic Imagery/Science, or Information Technology Systems
Bachelor of Engineering (any)

As far as applying to the Reserves as an Int O, the academic requirements for both RESO and DEO are slight different than above:

Bachelor of Arts in: Conflict Studies, International Studies, Global Studies, Political Studies, Military and Strategic Studies, History, Geography, or Social Sciences (with a major in Politics or Economics)
Bachelor of Engineering (any)
Bachelor of Science (any)

So you could join the Reserves and then apply for ROTP provided you have not already obtained the requisite undergrad degree required under the ROTP program.

 

[hockey1234]

Current academic programs recognized for ROTP Int O are:
Ideal

Bachelor of Arts in:International Studies, Political Science, Global Studies

As far as applying to the Reserves as an Int O, the academic requirements for both RESO and DEO are slight different than above:

Bachelor of Arts in: International Studies, Global Studies, Political Studies, or Social Sciences (with a major in Politics or Economics)

So you could join the Reserves and then apply for ROTP provided you have not already obtained the requisite undergrad degree required under the ROTP program.

I appreciate the thorough response!
Just to clarify, is a Bachelor of Arts the only one accepted or could I remain in my Bachelor of Public Affairs and Policy Management program provided that I major in International Studies? I was accepted into the programs that I just quoted. Also, would you recommend applying straight to ROTP and avoid Reserves if I am nearly certain that this is a career I would like to pursue?

Thanks again, 

**Note: I only quoted excerpts from DAA's post

 

[DAA]

I appreciate the thorough response!
Just to clarify, is a Bachelor of Arts the only one accepted or could I remain in my Bachelor of Public Affairs and Policy Management program provided that I major in International Studies? I was accepted into the programs that I just quoted. Also, would you recommend applying straight to ROTP and avoid Reserves if I am nearly certain that this is a career I would like to pursue?

Your best option, would be to apply for ROTP NOW before the deadline and see just what comes of it.  If not selected for ROTP, you could always convert your application over to the Reserves or wait until you complete your studies.

As far as the required undergrad degree, I would suggest printing off all the information regarding the academic program that you plan on taking and visit your local CFRC to obtain are more thorough review, just to ensure that it is an "acceptable" program of study for the occupation that you wish to pursue.

Good luck!

 

[hockey1234]

Your best option, would be to apply for ROTP NOW before the deadline and see just what comes of it.  If not selected for ROTP, you could always convert your application over to the Reserves or wait until you complete your studies.

As far as the required undergrad degree, I would suggest printing off all the information regarding the academic program that you plan on taking and visit your local CFRC to obtain are more thorough review, just to ensure that it is an "acceptable" program of study for the occupation that you wish to pursue.

Good luck!

Thank you very much DAA, I really appreciate all your helpful advice!

 

[juliandam26]

Hi, I'm new in this forum, and I am about to take my CFAT, and hopefully everything will go as expected.

I have a question regarding what kind of training and how long it is for intelligence officers. Also, I would like to kindly request any kind of information regarding that specific trade. I have bee looking into the forum but I haven't been able to find much information (or probably I don't know where to look). I will really appreciate any input regarding this trade.

Thanks

 

[mariomike]

I have a question regarding what kind of training and how long it is for intelligence officers. Also, I would like to kindly request any kind of information regarding that specific trade.

"I want to be Int" Mega-thread 
http://army.ca/forums/threads/12858.275