Garda Reserve Force - (See Moderator note in first post #1)

jmc1546

I know its down to the individual station but in your case how long was it between finishing phase one and starting phase two? A week, a month?

johnnyjd

Hi guys, Passed my medical exam yesterday....THRILLED:D:D:D:D!

They said to me to wait for word on when training is commencing,

1. Anyone who is in the same position or has done it before have any idea on how long this usually takes

2. How do i hear from them (e-mail or Phone)

3. I heard that the september intake is full, is this official or rumour?

kensey

jmc1546 wrote: »

I know its down to the individual station but in your case how long was it between finishing phase one and starting phase two? A week, a month?

For me it was a week but I know people who commenced phase 2 a few days after phase 1. Again this is different for everyone

kensey

johnnyjd wrote: »

Hi guys, Passed my medical exam yesterday....THRILLED:D:D:D:D!

They said to me to wait for word on when training is commencing,

1. Anyone who is in the same position or has done it before have any idea on how long this usually takes

2. How do i hear from them (e-mail or Phone)

3. I heard that the september intake is full, is this official or rumour?

Congrats on passing the medical!

I think they informed me by email and post at the time. There is two more intakes after september and before the end of the year.

Enjoy the training!

Spartan09

jmc1546 wrote: »

I know its down to the individual station but in your case how long was it between finishing phase one and starting phase two? A week, a month?

Finished Phase 1 on Saturday & started phase 2 the following Thursday. Finished phase 2 on a Tuesday and started phase 3 on the Friday of the same week.

jmc1546

johnnyjd wrote: »

Hi guys, Passed my medical exam yesterday....THRILLED:D:D:D:D!

Fair play on passing the medical. Alot of hard work and time to get there.
I know how you feel. I didnt pass my medical too long ago eather.

Lucky enough that i got into september intake. But as they said there will be another intake soon so you wont have to wait long.

Spartan09 wrote: »

Finished Phase 1 on Saturday & started phase 2 the following Thursday. Finished phase 2 on a Tuesday and started phase 3 on the Friday of the same week.

God they didnt waste time between phases do they. I thought it would belong periods of time between them. Thanks for the info.

walkthisway

Spartan09 wrote: »

Completed Phase 2 not too long ago. When and how often you do the law lectures depends on each individual station and how many are in your group. In DMR the main stations rotate the location for where the lectures are. We had ours Tues and Thurs from 6-9pm for 10 weeks. Others had theirs 9-5 on sundays it really depends on what suits the Sergeant in the station you're assigned to for Phase 2. There was huge variety for when they occurred and how often. We started phase 2 pretty much straight away after phase 1 and started phase 3 a couple of days after we finished the phase 2 law exams.

As above no cost involved for uniform. They even provide you with a huge kit bag to store it all in. There is a serious amount of kit involved.

Thats great thanks very much for your help, its nice to know what's coming up:). So is the work load for these lectures and exams a lot? Ye I suppose we have to work within our training Sergeant's schedule!So are you enjoying your reserve work Spartan?Hope I look dapper in my uniform :cool:

Spartan09

walkthisway wrote: »

Thats great thanks very much for your help, its nice to know what's coming up:). So is the work load for these lectures and exams a lot? Ye I suppose we have to work within our training Sergeant's schedule!So are you enjoying your reserve work Spartan?Hope I look dapper in my uniform :cool:

No problem at all, boards.ie was a great help to me in applying and during training so only too happy to try and repay some of the favour. Workload for the lectures is very manageable and the training staff in the station I was in were incredibly sound and gave us alot of pointers. It does require a bit of study to learn the various pieces of legislation / acts but if you put any effort into it it should be very straightforward. Am absolutely loving it so far even if still only a phase 4. The most pleasant surprise has been the attitude of all the full timers Ive encountered. The most anxiety provoking part for me was how I would be received by the full timers and to a lesser extent the public. I have as of yet not had anything but 100% positive reactions from the members Ive worked with and the general public also. Despite the bright blue GR training epaulettes on my shoulders the public dont seem to notice and only see the remainder of the uniform. The best advice I can give you is something which has been said many times on here, go in humble, we're there to learn and listen, help in anyway we can, dont have notions about yourself or think you're robocop, it only takes one or two reserves to give the rest a bad name. Ive heard about one or two negative perceptions of other reserves but also heard glowing descriptions of others and how much they are accepted by and are integrated into their units. Most of all enjoy it, its well worth the wait.

johnnyjd

Thanks very much

shampon

Spartan09 wrote: »

No problem at all, boards.ie was a great help to me in applying and during training so only too happy to try and repay some of the favour. Workload for the lectures is very manageable and the training staff in the station I was in were incredibly sound and gave us alot of pointers. It does require a bit of study to learn the various pieces of legislation / acts but if you put any effort into it it should be very straightforward. Am absolutely loving it so far even if still only a phase 4. The most pleasant surprise has been the attitude of all the full timers Ive encountered. The most anxiety provoking part for me was how I would be received by the full timers and to a lesser extent the public. I have as of yet not had anything but 100% positive reactions from the members Ive worked with and the general public also. Despite the bright blue GR training epaulettes on my shoulders the public dont seem to notice and only see the remainder of the uniform. The best advice I can give you is something which has been said many times on here, go in humble, we're there to learn and listen, help in anyway we can, dont have notions about yourself or think you're robocop, it only takes one or two reserves to give the rest a bad name. Ive heard about one or two negative perceptions of other reserves but also heard glowing descriptions of others and how much they are accepted by and are integrated into their units. Most of all enjoy it, its well worth the wait.

Spot on horse.

ROBOCOP...or TACKLEBERRY..forget any thoughts you have about being Dirty Harry, just be quiet and listen when the time comes and your in the thick of it all, you'll be ready because you have listened and learnt off a full-time member. The ammount of tricks I have learnt over the last two years is amazing, all tru listening to and oberserving the full-timers...Have a blast...and if your blue lighting it..dont cry...

jenny81

johnnyjd wrote: »

Hi guys, Passed my medical exam yesterday....THRILLED:D:D:D:D!

They said to me to wait for word on when training is commencing,

1. Anyone who is in the same position or has done it before have any idea on how long this usually takes

2. How do i hear from them (e-mail or Phone)

3. I heard that the september intake is full, is this official or rumour?

Hey congrats on passing the medical, can ou tell me what was done for it? im hearing loads of different things about it

kerry4sam

jenny81 wrote: »

Hey congrats on passing the medical, can ou tell me what was done for it? im hearing loads of different things about it

Their is information on the medical here in the 'Medical' section of our Garda Reserve Guide. If you have something specific you'd like to question, please don't hesitate (within reason obviously).

jmc1546

Hi,

Bit of a complex question.

Is there a way you can find out when your due to start phase 2 training?

I am due to start phase 1 on the 3rd of September but my girlfriend booked a holiday for the week after not thinking about training. I know phase 2 can start immediately after phase one but its down to each individual station.

But if i could find out if the holiday and training clash i could cancel the holiday now and get most of the money back from it. But if i wait for phase 1 to start to find out i would be not be able to cancel anything?

Who do i ring? Garda reserve office, Templemore?

Any ideas?

stiofanD

you could try the Reserve office, but all they will tell you (if anything) is the station you will be doing your phase 2. They won't have any information about when you'll start (since its down to the training Sergeant to arrange that).

However, I think you can be 95% sure that phase 2 will start immediately after phase 1, so cancel the holiday!

jmc1546

Well did a bit of digging since I posted last.

Rang reserve office but once you pass your medical they don't have any more dealings with you.
So I was put trough to the garda HRM office who told me what division I was in and they officially said phase two starts Monday 6th but its up to the training Sergeant on when it really starts.

I rang my divisional station and they told me the station they the training is held and the Sergeant that is doing it. So I have the number now of the Sergeant and I have to ring him on Monday to find out exact start date.

So not out yet.

glhoran121

ya its def the week after ur phase one on watever night suits your teacher make sure to ring them first

walkthisway

does any body have any idea what time the classes will normally start on in the evening?probably varies from day to day Im guessing....

glhoran121

All depends what suits you and your sergant ours was from 6 till nine and 7 till ten different all the time to suit us !!!

caseyann

If you were say in 6th year,how long before should you put your name down for Garda reserves?

Spartan09

I could be wrong but I would think that at a minimum that you would need to be 18 and have the minimum qualifications, ie leaving certificate before you would be eligible to apply but I'm open to correction on this

kerry4sam

caseyann wrote: »

If you were say in 6th year,how long before should you put your name down for Garda reserves?

Spartan09 wrote: »

I could be wrong but I would think that at a minimum that you would need to be 18 and have the minimum qualifications, ie leaving certificate before you would be eligible to apply but I'm open to correction on this

Nah, you won't be corrected here
It is as Spartan09 states here: you would need to be at least 18years of age to apply. So, in reality you wouldn't necessarily have to be in 6th year, once you have LC done and still apply once you are 18years+. As for when you should put your name down though it strictly up to each individual, as and when they are ready to apply and commit.

Have a look through this very-useful pdf document for more information. (eligibilty requirements is on page 7)

trail man

kerry4sam wrote: »

Nah, you won't be corrected here
It is as Spartan09 states here: you would need to be at least 18years of age to apply. So, in reality you wouldn't necessarily have to be in 6th year, once you have LC done and still apply once you are 18years+. As for when you should put your name down though it strictly up to each individual, as and when they are ready to apply and commit.

Have a look through this very-useful pdf document for more information. (eligibilty requirements is on page 7)

The Garda Press Office said it did not have numbers available for the number of reservists who had applied to join the full-time ranks or had been recruited full time.
The last intake to the gardai is understood to have contained no reservists and had an unusually large number of recruits with family members already serving in the force.
Gardai say that though the reservist scheme is now four years old, it does not appear to be developing in ways that volunteer reservist schemes in other jurisdictions have.
In the UK, reservists, or 'special constables' who show commitment and ability are actively encouraged to join the full-time ranks.
The UK police also have a Police Community Support Officer scheme of salaried police officers who deal with day-to-day community policing. Many special constables join this, and those who show ability continue into the regular forces.
The director of the Garda Inspectorate, Kathleen O'Toole, has been looking at the use to which the Reserve is being put and earlier this year called on garda manage- ment to better define its role and purpose.
- JIM CUSACK
Sunday Independent

kerry4sam

Can you clarify something trailman?

The initial question here was:

caseyann wrote: »

If you were say in 6th year,how long before should you put your name down for Garda reserves?

and initially received this reply which is perfectly okay

Spartan09 wrote: »

I could be wrong but I would think that at a minimum that you would need to be 18 and have the minimum qualifications, ie leaving certificate before you would be eligible to apply but I'm open to correction on this

then I also replied with:

kerry4sam wrote: »

Nah, you won't be corrected here
It is as Spartan09 states here: you would need to be at least 18years of age to apply. So, in reality you wouldn't necessarily have to be in 6th year, once you have LC done and still apply once you are 18years+. As for when you should put your name down though it strictly up to each individual, as and when they are ready to apply and commit.

Have a look through this very-useful pdf document for more information. (eligibilty requirements is on page 7)

and you say "surprise, surprise, not really...". Now I am a little confused what you mean by that. The initial question related to applying for the Reserves but your quotation below has inferences to applying for full-time which we were not referring to here in this instance.

Can you clarify what you meant by "surprise, surprise, not really..." please. I'm just slightly confused.

trail man wrote: »

The Garda Press Office said it did not have numbers available for the number of reservists who had applied to join the full-time ranks or had been recruited full time.
The last intake to the gardai is understood to have contained no reservists and had an unusually large number of recruits with family members already serving in the force.
Gardai say that though the reservist scheme is now four years old, it does not appear to be developing in ways that volunteer reservist schemes in other jurisdictions have.
In the UK, reservists, or 'special constables' who show commitment and ability are actively encouraged to join the full-time ranks.
The UK police also have a Police Community Support Officer scheme of salaried police officers who deal with day-to-day community policing. Many special constables join this, and those who show ability continue into the regular forces.
The director of the Garda Inspectorate, Kathleen O'Toole, has been looking at the use to which the Reserve is being put and earlier this year called on garda manage- ment to better define its role and purpose.
- JIM CUSACK
Sunday Independent

Thanks in advance.

Geansai

Hey Kerry4Sam,

I'm not sure Trailmans post was in response to your earlier one.

Also, I don't think you can join if you are in 5th or 6th year, even if you are over 18. The doc which you posted states the entry requirements will be the same as for the full-time, for which you do need a leaving cert.

I'm open to correction on either point though.

kerry4sam

Geansai wrote: »

Hey Kerry4Sam,

I'm not sure Trailmans post was in response to your earlier one.

Also, I don't think you can join if you are in 5th or 6th year, even if you are over 18. The doc which you posted states the entry requirements will be the same as for the full-time, for which you do need a leaving cert.

I'm open to correction on either point though.

Yeah I have amended by reply. My reply was in relation to min age being 18 and never mentioned L.C. Cheers.

It is only since trailman quoted my reply with a "surprise surprise, not really..." that I am unsure about. You might be right geansai. (again )

trail man

sorry for confusing you kerry for sam.. hit the wrong option in posting something that might be of interest to the thread..
keep up the good work..

trailman..

Yogi Bear

kerry4sam wrote: »

Spartan09 it really is as glhoran121 says. It is up to your own S I/C to determine whether or not the reserve would be of more benefit in the station or out in the patrol car, obviously depending on varying factors including current staff/resources in your own station. One reliable source has informed me that the reserve would of course be covered by insurance when out in patrol car so it really is at the discretion of the S I/C at each station.

I heard of one station would not let the reserve in the car but they then rang the GRA and clarified that we are allowed to be in the car even as observers. Hope this helps.

It's about 4 years now since the first reserves started in Templemore. Any word on changes in duties........ect..... from above???

Crunchy Friends

Hey guys.
I've read through a good few of the posts just wanna ask a quick question get some up to date advice.

I'm 18. Just about to start 2nd year of my degree. Really really want to join the reserves but I think maybe I should hold off for a while and get some volunteer work under my belt? I haven't really done any volunteer work. I have done some fundraising in the form of mini marathons and that kind of thing but I don't think that is what they are looking for.

Thanks in advance!

jmc1546

I think if your interested in the reserves and you meet the basic requirments go for it.

I came from the same background as you not doing much volunteer work other then simple local stuff but i got trough the process without a problem.

Worst case you dont past the interview but there is notting stopping you getting feekback and going for it again at a later date.

Best a luck if you do go for it.

Crunchy Friends

Hey guys, I'm about to apply to the reserves.

Just worried. What is the story with a small tattoo on the inside of my wrist?