A career in the armed forces had always been on alumnus Ben Findlay’s radar; his fascination with military history coupled with a love of the outdoors, in particular tramping and bushcraft, made the army a natural fit. Now he will be following in the footsteps of politicians and royalty after being accepted into the Regular Officer Commissioning Course at England’s Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.
Sandhurst was the obvious choice for Ben. While he has a high regard for the training provided by the New Zealand Army, the potential and scope offered by the British Army really appealed. “The British Army offered me greater opportunities to deploy on a global stage and lead soldiers on operations, which has always been my dream,” he says.
He describes the selection process, which began early last year, as “long and stressful.” The application itself required a lot of form-filling, as well as a cognitive test to gauge his aptitude for being an officer, a pre-selection medical assessment and an online interview with an officer lead recruiter.
Having got through this stage, Ben was then invited to travel to the United Kingdom in November for the first part of officer selection, the initial Army Officer Selection Board Briefing. “This was held over two days where we were put through a series of physical, mental and leadership tests,” which Ben passed with a Category 1, giving him unconditional entry to part 2 of the selection process, the AOSB Main Board.
Run over four days, the Main Board assessment is intense. The minimum level of fitness required of candidates is a 76kg mid-thigh pull, a 3.1m medicine ball throw and a score of 8.7 on the beep test. But it’s not just about physical fitness; it’s a test of mental fitness as well. Tasks include a psychometric test, a written essay, group problem-solving exercises, a planning exercise, an interview and individual and group command tasks.
Ben returned to England in March for the Main Board but describes the months leading up to his return as “some of the most nerve-wracking days of my life,” and although he knew he had prepared as well as he could, “the day that I arrived I was so nervous I was struggling to maintain a confident appearance.”
For Ben, the most demanding part of those four days was the Planning Exercise. “We were given a very difficult problem to solve in a very limited time. It was mentally draining - and immediately after we had to get up in front of our group while our assessor grilled us on every detail of our plan and tested our knowledge of the details of the problem we were faced with. I also had the additional pressure of having several other observers sitting in the back of the room watching as well.”
At the end of the four days, Ben spent a tense weekend waiting for the results before the letter arrived on Monday confirming his selection. He was “overjoyed.”
But there’s more preparation to come. Before starting the 44 week Regular Officer Commissioning Course, Ben must complete a nine month residency in the United Kingdom followed by a 12 week pre-Sandhurst course. All going well, he anticipates beginning Officer training in May 2026.
And after that?
“I hope to join the Parachute Regiment in the British Army which involves specialist training as an Infantry Platoon Commander and then further testing to join the regiment, followed by training in airborne operations and jumping out of aircraft.”
Ben is grateful for the “amazing amount of support” he received from Strathallan. “Mrs Balchin (Careers Adviser) put me through mock interviews in order to help me practise my answers to possible questions and gave advice on my demeanour and presentation. And Deputy Principal, Mr Balchin, went through several practice cognitive tests during school lunch times to help familiarise me with what would be expected of me.”
But it’s Ben who has put in the hard yards. He’s shown tremendous mental and physical agility as well as a clarity of purpose and determination that is sure to see his name listed alongside many other esteemed leaders as a graduate of Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.
