Going to Field Artillery BOLC, what should I expect?

1LT Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 14 Sep 2015 12:55:03 -0400

I will be attending Field Artillery BOLC B in October. What should I expect from this school? Also, what can I do to best prepare for BOLC? Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Response by MSG Brad Sand made Sep 14 at 2015 12:55 PM

MSG Brad Sand — Mon, 14 Sep 2015 12:55:29 -0400

Your ears to ring. Make sure you wear your hearing protection?

Response by 2LT Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 14 at 2015 12:58 PM

2LT Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 14 Sep 2015 12:58:41 -0400

Be ready for a lot of attention to detail and for long classroom days. It's a very difficult course but it's based on whatever effort you want to put in.

Response by CPT Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 14 at 2015 1:39 PM

CPT Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 14 Sep 2015 13:39:44 -0400

Speaking of, does anyone have the welcome letter and packing list? The Sill website is down so I have not been able to access it.

Response by CPT Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 14 at 2015 2:53 PM

CPT Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 14 Sep 2015 14:53:46 -0400

Statistically, the second hardest BOLC behind Aviation, when I went three years ago there like 23 graded assessments total, not counting homework. It has changed some from what I am hearing, and not in your favor. Early days that end late and regular, if not nightly HW. You will actually fire howitzers a lot less than you would think. Like 5-10% will recycle or drop each class, no options of picking up with the class behind you, you start all over in common core...fire hose all day, but I also saw some "rocks" squeak it out. Good luck!

Response by MAJ Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 14 at 2015 3:31 PM

MAJ Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 14 Sep 2015 15:31:24 -0400

Very challenging course. Very, very long days that end around midnight. You will have homework most nights, along with redoing the homework from the previous night. Fire Support and JFO is the fun part and the loads are not so bad.You will hate your life and the Army as a whole during manual gunnery.

Response by MAJ Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 14 at 2015 3:49 PM

MAJ Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 14 Sep 2015 15:49:34 -0400

Fort Sill, eh? Check if the on-post club, the "Impact Zone," still does their own micro-brews. They were pretty wicked when I was there for BOLC 2 (back when they still had a separate course for Phase 2).

Response by LTC Gavin Heater made Sep 14 at 2015 6:40 PM

LTC Gavin Heater — Mon, 14 Sep 2015 18:40:23 -0400

Take the course seriously. Plan out your assignments and stay organized. Take good notes, and join study groups. There is time to have fun, but you need to stay focused. Best of luck.

Response by CPT Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 14 at 2015 7:49 PM

CPT Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 14 Sep 2015 19:49:19 -0400

Email me and I will help you get going. Since the Sill page is down I can't give you a run down of how to access class material.

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Response by MAJ Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 16 at 2015 1:13 PM

MAJ Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 16 Sep 2015 13:13:49 -0400

You should expect to be challenged to do your very best in each of your areas of study/development. Expect to be held to a high standard of meticulousness when completing assignments. You will study the "art" of employing and alsynchronizing fires as an FSO, and the "science" of delivering fires as a battery FDO and XO. You will be expected to treat being a student there as different from being a college student, because this is your full time job now and there are life and death consequences at the receiving end for errors, careless or otherwise. It is a fantastic branch that is at the heart of combined arms and joint operations effectiveness. As such, there's homework most every day, a mixture of classroom work and practical exercises/life fire shoots, and a small capstone exercise near the end of the course.

Response by 2LT Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 26 at 2015 3:52 AM

2LT Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 26 Sep 2015 03:52:44 -0400

I'll see you there in OCT

Response by 1LT Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 29 at 2015 7:13 PM

1LT Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 29 Sep 2015 19:13:29 -0400

I was in class 3-15 and graduated in July. A lot of changes were made to subsequent classes- for one, they took out most of if not all manual gunnery which was the real headache for my class. They also removed the hotel exams which were practical, graded events (also a struggle for many). Your standard should be 70% to pass. All exams are open note which makes fire support a snap. As long as you put the effort into your gunnery homework and tab out your FM 6-40 like crazy, you will do just fine. I can't stress the importance of study groups enough- you will get a lot more sleep. None of the concepts are very difficult but expect to be blasted with information constantly. It really is attention to detail that gets people. Pay attention to rounding/artillery expression and make notes on your homework and the example problems you do in class as to where to find things. ALSO, do NOT blow off the CAD classes. There is very little emphasis placed on them, yet we still had a couple of people recycle because of those silly classes. Staying on top of the work load and keeping everything organized is critical.

Response by LTC Fred Eisert made Oct 6 at 2015 2:33 PM

LTC Fred Eisert — Tue, 06 Oct 2015 14:33:18 -0400

I recall a lot of students that were challenged by the technical aspects of the course. So if you are weak in math/geometry/etc it may be tough. Myself, I loved the course and had great fun there. Even managed to work on my private pilots license there in my free time.

Response by Cadet 2LT Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 14 at 2016 9:49 PM

Cadet 2LT Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 14 Apr 2016 21:49:48 -0400

I am attending FA BOLC in August and still waiting on my orders. I read online that FA BOLC is no longer a PCS move. Does anyone know if this is true or not?

Response by SFC William Stephens A. Jr., 3 MSM, JSCM made Jun 23 at 2017 10:08 AM

SFC William Stephens A. Jr., 3 MSM, JSCM — Fri, 23 Jun 2017 10:08:53 -0400

When you become and officer or a commander, make sure you take care of your NCOS and ensure you and your 1SG are a team if you become a commander of troops. If not you will never be a great officer. How you look at it. Take from me I been through some shity Field Artillery Commanders and some really great Officers Who I can only count on my two hands in 20 years, Not a lot of them out there. because they only think of themselves. That's what gets you killed on the battle field. I sure you'll do very well in school or you would not of been selected for it.

"KING OF BATTLE" always REDLEG until the end SIR.

Response by MAJ Don Boggs made Jun 25 at 2017 11:13 PM

MAJ Don Boggs — Sun, 25 Jun 2017 23:13:06 -0400

Since I graduated in 1976 I cannot say what to expect now, but always listen to the instructors whether they are officer or enlisted

Response by COL Dana Hampton made Aug 10 at 2017 1:29 PM

COL Dana Hampton — Thu, 10 Aug 2017 13:29:31 -0400

Expect to be academically challenged. The FA BOLC is a no-joke course. Artillery professionals pride themselves on accuracy. Gunnery and safety will be your hardest challenges, but also the most fun. So learning your craft is key to your success. Learn what the maneuver branches need and expect from their Artillery in terms of effects and capabilities....not just the weapon you are assigned to in your first MTOE unit. You will become the FA expert for your Company CDR. Your advise and recommendations will play a big role in the company's success on the ground. Learn land navigation...not just how to use the various GPS enabling tech, but how to use a map, compass, and terrain association...on foot. The rest is just physical. Show up in shape and you'll do fine.