How much say do Medical Officers (F1, F2 and GDMOs specifically) have in where they are posted?

For FY1&2 you have to go to a JHG (Frimley Park, Northallerton, Portsmouth, Plymouth or the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham). So Northallerton would be the only one up north.

You could choose to join the Army as a direct entrant, you don't get the same financial benefits, but you would be able to choose where you want to go for FY1&2 (obviously depending on how well you score etc..). Direct entrants join after FY2 but I would recommend starting your application early-mid FY1 as the process can take a while.

For GDMO; while you're on the commissioning course you usually get a talk about postings and you get told which jobs are likely to be available for your year group, then on the PGMO course (Jan-May, based near Lichfield) you will get a list of the available jobs and you will then be asked to submit a postings preference proforma. You will have space to say why you want to go to a certain place (family, house etc..).

The majority of GDMOs get one of their top choices, but a few will receive 'directed' postings (they go somewhere they don't want to go). Generally speaking, the competitive postings tend to be in the south and towards London, so you might be ok if you want to go north.

If it helps, during GDMO you often get a Friday afternoon off, and you might be able to claim 'get you home' pay which would contribute towards the costs of driving home.

Let me know if you need any clarification on the above or have any further questions.

Thanks, Tori. That's really useful. Just in terms of where the GDMO postings might be - I know it fluctuates but is there a list somewhere of potential locations or could it be to any army base with a med centre?

Also, a slightly more personal question (if that's okay!), but how have you found not being in control of where you get posted to? I know it varies from person to person but for me, the one thing attracting me more to the reserves is the fact I'll be guaranteed to put down roots close to family. I've really enjoyed the FD / AT / expeds etc. I've done with the military since being at uni and the GDMO years sound incredible, but I'm hesitant to commit to something that could mean I'd have to live away from family Mon-Fri as opposed to chunks of deployments away. I guess that's why the financial benefits of sponsorship are so good!

Hi Tom,

A GDMO posting can be in any military medical centre that has a GDMO supervisor. GDMO supervisors are (usually, but not always) RMOs who also move around every 2-3 years, and not every RMO is a GDMO supervisor. Some of them will already have a GDMO they are supervising. Some may be deployed. So trying to predict which locations will be available can be really tricky.

I've found the postings ok, but we have changed our lives to adapt and have subsequently become less worried about location. I wanted a posting near to the south west when I first joined, and was given Gloucester. My husband was also serving at the time, but it wasn't really working so he decided to leave the military. Since then I've tried to ask for jobs near his work place, but it's not always worked and he does weekly commute at the moment - although he did pick a career where he could work from home a few days a week which has helped. We agreed a long time ago that my career would come first for a while, and that has made it less stressful as we have both accepted we may move somewhere unexpected. We are also fortunate that our family is all over the UK and we don't have any 'roots' as such. Army life is very affordable in terms of housing, and the GDMO salary is quite generous, so living off one salary while my husband moves jobs hasn't been an issue.

Saying that, I have plenty of colleagues who have partners with less flexible jobs/careers, and they do make it work, but they do find the postings process can be more stressful, and some colleagues have done their GDMO time and then decided to leave to try and make things easier (though they are in the minority, most people stay in the Army after GDMO).

My advice would be, by all means hope you get a particular posting, but be prepared to work elsewhere. The more flexible you are, the more you will enjoy it.