how did you manage work/life balance, did you find it difficult to be away for so long?

Hello, In terms of work/life balance, when I am in the UK, I find that I actually have more time off, my day finishes on time most of the time, and lots of regiments give soldiers either a slightly late start on Monday or a slightly early finish on Friday. It will greatly depend on your role and which regiment you are posted to though. It also depends on what you are used to - my previous job was predominantly shift work, so the Army is a lovely change in comparison! At the moment the Army is doing more short term deployments (6 weeks, 3 months etc) than long term deployments (6 months +), although there are some of these going on. They keep track of how many days you spend away on exercise or deployment and there are measures in place to try and ensure you don't spend too much time away each year (although the needs of the Army do come first so this may be overridden at a senior level). I don't have children, but many serving personnel do. Everyone's experience of the Army is different, I know plenty of people who are content with their work/life balance, but I know some who are leaving the Army in order to spend more time with their families. If you have a particular role in mind I would advise researching it and speaking to your careers office about whether you could attend a familiarisation visit to speak to serving personnel in that role to find out what their normal day looks like and how often they deploy.

Hi Samantha, Thanks for your question. As Tori says this is a really personal thing, some people find they have sufficient time with friends and family and others find they don’t. I have two very young children and whilst being away from them is never easy, it does get a little easier each time. Today we are so fortunate to have excellent communication options such as FaceTime which makes such a difference to young children. The most important thing to ensure is that you have a strong childcare plan in place as whilst you’re going through training, or away on exercises or operations you will need to ensure that someone else is able to take care of them for you. It is tough but it’s totally achievable, especially with a good support network around you. If you have any more questions please feel free to ask. Katie

Hello Samantha. Thank you for your question. I agree completely with the points made; there is no single answer to this question. Striking the work vs home life balance can be challenging at times in the military and based on an individual's circumstances. That said the Army, provides ample opportunity for rest and recuperation. Based on conversations with my friends and from personal experience I have found that managing a military career with a wife (also a Soldier) and family is no different to manaing a career as civilian under the same or similar circumstances. Hope this provides more breadth?