Posted on Mar 2, 2018
CPT Laurie H.
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What is the best way to prepare? Is there anything you wish you knew or did before you left?

I'm heading to Phase 4 in July and while I know you can't say much about the events I want to make sure I'm doing everything I can to be prepared. I'm already MEL-F qualified so I didn't attend Phase 1 or 2, and I'm just completing Phase 3 now.
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CW2 Bde Ew Tech
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If phase 4 is the final part, then it is integrated with the Active Duty Officers and Enlisted into the most incredible field exercise you will ever experience. Prepare physically to move for days with a rucksack, basic patrolling, as well as everything you have learned from prior branch, and CA stuff. You will have 1 week to plan, get to know your team and let them help you on what you need. You have a civilian job, i guarantee you will be able to find a way to apply something from it to your CA skillset. It's a perk the reserves have that the enlisted don't. Capitalize on it. But be in top physical condition, be ready for field living.
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CPT Laurie H.
CPT Laurie H.
6 y
Thank you for your insight! Luckily/unfortunately I have a month of field living starting Monday too so at the very least I’ll be ready for that. I didn’t realize the Enlisted were incorporated as well - sounds cool!
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CW2 Bde Ew Tech
CW2 (Join to see)
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Just the active enlisted are in it, Reserve enlisted don't do the operation. Bring some well broken in boots!
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CPT Cmoc Chief
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Went through the course in Oct 2017. I've been asked for advice from other people and I always speak specifically to that person's strengths or weaknesses because the experience can be radically different for each person. Consider, for example, my phase 4 squad: a couple O-4s with decades of infantry experience, handful of O-3s in varying physical shape, and two young and sprightly (albiet less knowledgable) LTs. The field was hard on some, while others struggled with the mental game.

If you have most of your ducks in a row (physically, mentally with phase 3 material and CA concepts), then you are in a great position to focus on developing team and individual products before you hit the field. Get your lamination done early, raid the office supplies at the shoppette, order your Amazon prime tacticool shipments with enough time to spare before you leave; all these things get more difficult when a battalion's worth of soldiers is preparing to go to Pineland at the same time.

What I found most useful was my personal TACSOP & OPORD skeletons. Pocket-sized, laminated, and single-ring bound, it helped me nail 100% of my squad briefings according to standard. Y'know, the little things. There's tons of advice to be offered without violating the academic integrity policy, so if you have specific questions I'd be happy to answer them in an aside or even in this thread.
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COL Program Manager
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Ok feel a little old because when I completed the Qual Course in 2005, there was no Captain’s Career Course for CA. You had to have completed one prior. Part of the reasoning was CA was only taking Captains, and no rank really lower. I was an FA Officer who had completed Infantry CCC. Curious when they finally made this change?
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LTC James McElreath
LTC James McElreath
6 y
I personally liked the training we received as it was valuable information to possibly need to use later. I was a USAR soldier, so we also did not receive the full extinct as the AD CA receive. But our training was valuable like I had stated. It was when we went to the field portion of the training with our cross leveled CA units that we got a real eye opening experience. Those cross leveled with CA were never made to feel as members of the CA Team.
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