A contemporary approach to officer training is being trialled by Royal Military College – Duntroon (RMC-D) this year, condensing the current 18-month program to 12 months.
Trainees will receive the same training in a shorter format, meet the same graduation standards and qualifications, and graduate as lieutenants on completion of the course.
Commandant Land Combat College Brigadier Jason Groat said the 12-month officer commissioning program (OCP), being trialled from January 2024 to December 2025, marked a significant development in Army’s commitment to deliver an integrated force that meets the requirement to be simple, scalable and agile.
“As with all training, we will monitor and evaluate trainees throughout the program. If adjustments need to be made, we will make them,” Brigadier Groat said.
The trial OCP will comprise six modules that include practical applications of leadership, command, foundation warfighting and military planning.
It is designed to enable the same initial foundation and leadership skills for all officers.
Commanding Officer RMC-D Lieutenant Colonel Brian Hickey said: “As we re-shape and contemporise our training approach to be more effective, the training will retain the same core performance elements and critical skills that are the mainstay of Army’s ab initio officer education pathway”.
The program design presents an opportunity to increase the speed to capability for service category (SERCAT) 7 generalist officers and inform a training design to benefit other SERCAT and training audiences.
Lieutenant Colonel Hickey said the trial aimed to remove duplication by incorporating technology and new methods of instruction that are sources of efficiency and value for training systems and the receiving units.
On July 1, 2023, RMC-Australia and Combined Arms Training Centre aligned to become Land Combat College (LCC) with headquarters in both Canberra and Puckapunyal.
LCC is the single training authority that delivers foundational training and combat capabilities for land specialists.
