The interviews start next week. If you are invited to interview, do prepare for it (and dress smartly).

There will be a board of 2 RAF officers, either serving or retired, who will conduct a structured interview. Most likely they will be members of ULAS staff.

The first part of the interview will consist of questions about your recent past, your home life, your schooling and studies, your hobbies, sports and any adventures you might have had. The other officer will then take over, after about 20 minutes, to ask you what you know about ULAS and the RAF, their rôles and equipment (aircraft) and what jobs are carried out by RAF officers. Remember that we aim to tempt people to join the officer corps, so it will help if you have looked at the various options available for careers in the RAF.

The interview will then continue on wider-ranging subjects to do with current affairs, both at home and abroad, perhaps including NATO. The officer will have to ask you about any convictions you have against you and about your attitude to drug abuse, but he or she will finish with invitation to ask them any question you might like.

The whole interview should be over within 45 to 50 minutes; it is a relatively informal process, but the board will expect you to treat it seriously and to do your best. Whatever the result, it can be useful practice for any job interview.

As with any other organisation, the board will expect you to have researched a bit about ULAS and the RAF . . . and the world.

Chris Barker

Our rules for membership of ULAS are set out by the Royal Air Force. The rules are summarised on the Eligibilty page, but it is worth looking at the RAF's own website for the latest changes. Nationality (British, Commonwealth or Irish) and residency (normally 3 years) are the key requirements.

And if you are already committed to sports or other clubs you might not have time to spend with ULAS. We expect to come second only to your studies . . .

Chris Barker

You will need to speak to a member of the Squadron staff to obtain an application. This means that we can chat to you and discuss whether the Squadron is for you. It’s a busy sort of team to join, and you must have time to run the Squadron, events, activities and routine chores/

We expect to come second only to your university course, so consider your timetable carefully.

But once you sorted it out, the benefits of membership are immense; the University of London offers great opportunities for flying, sports and adventure.

Chris Barker

UPDATE

Members of ULAS will be at the following Freshers' Fairs:

20 Sep Brunel
22 & 23 Sep King’s
30 Sep ULU
30 Sep Herts
4 Oct Imperial

All application forms must be with us by Thursday 7 October for a chance of gaining an interview. You can post it to us at the Town HQ address or bring it along in person (if time is tight, perhaps). Alternatively, if you have all the information that the form requires complete it at the Fair and give it to a Squadron member, staff or student.

Note that you will not receive an application form unless you have spoken first to a member of the Squadron staff.

Feel free to approach us at a Freshers’ Fair to discover more about who we are and what membership would mean for you. If there is no ULAS stall at your university, do come and find us at another university; we will be at ULU on 30 Sep (we couldn’t get a stall at UCL) and Imperial will have the most Squadron members available to help you with considering membership of ULAS.

Chris Barker

This is the view for a student in a Grob Tutor. We teach our members to fly and to keep a good lookout for other aircraft – such as the Tutor just to the right of the nose. In fact, this pilot is about to join the other in formation, one of the skills that ULAS instructors maintain with frequent practice.

Chris Barker

This is a sort of blog to help prospective members of ULAS with the joining procedure, from the first enquiry to the interview and the induction process. It should provide you with general information as to how to get through the recruitment and induction system.

The next recruiting cycle starts in September 2011 when we will be at some of the bigger Freshers' Fairs in London; we will list them closer to the time, but they are likely to include Imperial, UCL, Brunel, Royal Holloway, King’s and Herts. Then there will be interviews in the middle of October, followed by periods of induction for the successful candidates.

We will invite applications only from individuals whom we have met at Freshers’ Fairs; and only those who have completed a successful interview will be invited to join the Squadron. It’s competitive, but the prize is worth it.

See the Useful Information pages for more . . .

Chris Barker