Armed forces logistics/support officer job profile

Logistics/support officers are responsible for the movement and supply of people, transport and equipment

In the Army you may be known as a staff and personnel support (SPS) officer, part of the Adjutant General's Corps (AGC), or you may be a specialist officer in the Royal Logistics Corps (RLC). In either corps, you'll be trained in supply, distribution or commodities (e.g. ammunition or petroleum).

The role is also known as a logistics or supply officer in both the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Royal Navy, where you will be part of the surface, the submariner fleet or Royal Fleet Auxiliary. In each setting, your purpose is to enable each service to carry out its allotted role in peace and war.

Responsibilities

As an armed forces logistics/support officer, you'll supervise and plan the work of highly-trained individuals and teams who deliver of a range of specific services and functions, including:

human resources/personnel, training and development, pay and benefits
IT and information management
administration and secretarial
infrastructure and project management
accountancy
security
stores and supplies.

In the context of the infrastructure and services of a base, typical activities include:

commanding a platoon of highly-trained specialist service personnel
assessing priorities, plans and maintenance routines as well as liaising with external agencies
ensuring that army personnel are motivated and trained to high standards
investigating the causes of administrative problems
supervising administrative routines including records, budgets, inventories and accounts
taking responsibility for the morale, welfare and training of subordinates
managing resources to achieve complex tasks within budget.

Additionally, in field operations, your activities might include:

registering prisoners and/or refugees
registering and notifying of death and injury
undertaking security and patrol duties.

Salary

The starting salary for graduate officer cadets in all three armed services (Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst, Britannia Royal Naval College, Dartmouth and the Royal Air Force College, Cranwell) is £28,861.
After successful completion of initial officer training (IOT), salaries increase to £34,690 across all armed forces.
Salaries are rank related, and you should expect to earn more while progressing through various ranks and seniorities.

Figures are intended as a guide only.

The armed forces also offer benefits such as an excellent pension scheme, private health and dental care and subsidised accommodation.

Working hours

Depending on your role, you may need to work shifts. When on operations, officers work long hours in a challenging and often stressful and dangerous environment.

There are opportunities for part-time work and sabbatical leave.

What to expect

A logistics/support role is mainly office based. However, this depends on the role - when on operations, you may be asked to work outdoors and participate in training.
Opportunities for female graduates in logistics and support are good and are increasing, with all posts equally open to women and men.
Many officers work in the UK in bases and stations, but there are opportunities for periods abroad or for naval supply officers on board ship.
Job rotation and relocation can be expected every two to three years. The extent of relocation, travel and family separation will depend on the service and posting, but the support services, as well as social and recreational facilities, are good.
As a logistics/support officer, you will be given a high level of responsibility early on, which can be stressful. This will include management responsibility but also a considerable extension of your professional experience in a specialist field.

Qualifications

All three armed services recruit graduates as officers and provide initial officer training and a continuation of technical and professional training, however a degree is not a pre-requisite for every role.

Graduates in any subject will be considered as suitability for service life is deemed to be more important than your degree subject. However, a high level of numeracy is expected, and GCSE or Scottish Standard Grade maths and English language qualifications (to grades A to C standard) are essential.

To join the Royal Air Force, you must have 5 GCSEs at grade 4-5 or above (including English language and maths) or the Scottish equivalent. You'll also need at least two A-levels/three Highers at Grade C or above which must total at least 64 UCAS points.

For the Army, you must have 72 UCAS Tariff points from at least two A-level passes (or 4 Scottish Highers) and 35 ALIS points at GCSE (34 for SCEs) from seven GCSE/SCE subjects (including Grade C in English, maths and a science or a foreign language).

In the Royal Navy, to join the surface or submarine fleet as a logistics officer, you need a minimum of 92 UCAS points, accrued from either A levels or National Diplomas such as a BTEC. You'll also need at least five GCSEs at grades 9-4 (or the Scottish equivalent), including English language and maths.

To join the Royal Auxiliary fleet, you will need a degree (a logistics or business degree is advantageous) and GCSE Grade 4 in English language and maths (or the Scottish equivalent).

The following degree subjects may increase your chances:

business-related studies
business with languages
information technology (IT).

Professional qualifications and experience may be accepted as an alternative to a degree. All three services have specialist branches, including:

chaplaincy
dental
legal
medical
nursing.

Pre-entry postgraduate qualifications are not generally needed, but membership of an appropriate professional institution may be helpful. For example, seniority is offered to qualified solicitors or barristers joining the Legal Services Branch of the AGC.

Generally, you must be a UK, Commonwealth or Irish citizen and have been resident in the UK or Ireland for five years prior to entry to the armed forces, but some exceptions and restrictions apply. For most branches of the armed forces you'll need to meet physical fitness, medical and eyesight requirements as well as age limits.

Competition can be fierce for certain roles. All three services offer student bursaries or sponsorship, but amounts vary according to the subject you are studying and the needs of the service. University service units also pay students who join and attend training.

Up-to-date information on bursaries, entry requirements, vacation training and familiarisation visits to service units is available from university liaison officers (ULOs) and local armed forces careers offices. You can also find this information on the Army, RAF and Royal Navy websites.

Skills

You'll need to show:

leadership skills
the ability to work effectively as a member of a team
organisational skills
discipline
an interest in current affairs
commitment to a career within the armed forces
service knowledge
the ability to take initiative and work under pressure.

Work experience

Pre-entry experience is not necessary, but some training can be helpful with:

Find out more about the different kinds of work experience and internships that are available.

Employers

There are four armed forces employers, namely the:

Army
RAF
Royal Navy, including the Royal Marines.

The armed forces are an arm of the government, and their purpose is to:

defend the United Kingdom and its interests
assist in keeping the peace around the world
deliver emergency humanitarian relief.

Much of the time, the armed services achieve these aims through membership of alliances, particularly the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), but unilateral responsibilities (for example the Falklands Conflict), may mean that they act alone and need to be equipped and trained for all aspects of modern warfare.

Britain's membership of the United Nations (UN) and its permanent place at the Security Council may also necessitate the use of armed force in defence of international security (as in Afghanistan), or in support of humanitarian and peacekeeping initiatives (as in Bosnia or after the Asian tsunami).

The services have an important diplomatic function in representing Britain overseas with goodwill visits and in training other countries' armed forces, both in the UK and abroad. There is also action in support of the civil power.

Many opportunities exist for officers upon retirement from the armed forces due to the management skills, professional training and experience gained during their period of service.

Look for job vacancies at:

Army Careers
Royal Air Force Careers
Royal Navy Careers
Armed forces university liaison officers (ULOs)
Local armed forces careers offices.

Professional development

All three armed services provide initial officer training followed by specialist, professional or technical training. Continuing professional development (CPD) and training are features of a service career and provide opportunities to gain qualifications and accreditation with civilian professional bodies.

If you're successful at the army selection board you'll go on to the officer training course, which lasts for 44 weeks and includes physical training, military training and exercises, adventurous training and participation in a range of sporting activities at the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst. Academically, you'll be taught about:

army organisation
defence issues
current affairs
management skills.

In the RAF, you will complete a 24-week Initial Officer Training (IOT) at RAF Cranwell, Lincolnshire, which includes:

leadership and management skills
fitness development
military training.

The Initial Officer Training (IOT) in the Royal Navy lasts for 30 weeks at the Britannia Royal Naval College, Dartmouth, which focuses on:

military and maritime skills
initial fleet time
leadership and teamwork skills
principles of command and management.

Some officers, after several years' experience, will be selected to attend extended command and staff training courses at the Joint Services Command and Staff College, part of the Defence Academy of the United Kingdom at Shrivenham, in preparation for senior and top management appointments.

Career prospects

After completing your initial officer training with the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst; Britannia Royal Naval College, Dartmouth; or RAF College Cranwell, you'll be posted to your chosen regiment or corps. This will be a ship for fleet training or to a squadron or station, where you’ll undertake specialist training to enable you to gain the detailed skills and particular knowledge that you will need before assuming your first command.

Career officers are selected for a sequence of command and staff courses and further professional courses, which may include postgraduate study at the Defence Academy of the United Kingdom, or other universities or colleges, depending on your specialist area.

The normal route in all three forces is to achieve command of your own unit (for example, in the Army a unit of about 650 soldiers) by the age of 40.

Further promotion is normally into increasingly senior staff posts. Advancement involves increased responsibility and may lead to a command and staff training course at the Joint Services Command and Staff College at Shrivenham, as preparation for a senior command or managerial appointment.

Armed forces logistics/support officer