Introduce yourself!
I'm Mike Martin (25) from Richmond in London. I'm currently an army officer on a 3 year Full Time Reserve Service (FTRS) contract. What that means is that I am a member of the Territorial Army (TA), who works full time in the army in the same way as a regular does. I'm on a three-year language scheme, which involves a 15-month language course and two deployments. I am being sent to Afghanistan – so I am currently about half-way through my Pashto interpreters course.

So when will you be going to Afghanistan?
I do my first deployment in November/December (6 months) and then the second one a year later.

How do you feel about going there? What's the situation like there at the moment?
I feel excited. This will be the first time in my life that I will actually be doing a proper job (one that isn't temping, or another non-graduate job). I am definitely going to be making a difference, and people will be relying on my skills. I can't wait. Regarding the situation in Afghanistan at the moment, Helmand is very dodgy to say the least. This should mean at least that it is a stimulating posting!

Lets backtrack a bit. Did you consider other careers? What did you do after leaving Oxford in 2004?
Unlike some people I didn’t have everything all mapped out. After Oxford I did a ski season, mainly because I hadn't have a year out before university, and I wanted to have some fun after the stress of finals. Then (with some temping in between) I went to South America and lived in Buenos Aires for 6 months before going to Venezuela to (randomly) work in a boat yard for a while! None of this was job-related at all; I just wanted to learn a language (I did biology at Oxford, and I wanted to try something completely different). I had always wanted a career that had an international element and this, as far as I was concerned, was all good experience. In ended up hitch-hiking through Colombia and Peru and then sailing back to England across the Atlantic with a guy I had met in a bar in Venezuela.
When I got back I tried for the FCO fast stream programme, and despite getting to the interviews I didn’t get the job. Doing my research for the application process (there was a lot of it!) made me realise how much I like international (geo) politics. When I got knocked back I was in a bit of a quandary. Working for the FCO was what I thought I wanted to do - and now I couldn't do it. I moved to London anyway, temping, and at the same time I transferred to a TA unit (see below) and began training. After several job applications that didn't work - many were stopped by me when I realised that I didn't want to work in those particular companies - I stumbled, completely by chance, across the army list of FTRS posts for TA soldiers/officers. It seemed like it was too good to be true – being paid to learn an interesting language in an interesting part of the world that was a focus of international events. After a selection process I was told to report to an army base in the midlands for a briefing and some more kit.

I don't know what rationale to draw out here for current students and recent graduates thinking about their career plans – except perhaps that it’s important to accept only something that you genuinely want to do, no matter how much your parents / other social pressures make you feel like you should be going in a certain direction, or getting a ‘proper’ job. That, and keep looking relentlessly! Your sense of direction, and ‘luck’ getting something that you really like, will only be strengthened by doing some proper research across the spectrum of possible careers.

Were you in the OTC at Oxford?
Yes I was. In fact, I went to Sandhurst for their reserve course and commissioned (became an officer) at the end of my OTC 'career'. Again this was quite lucky; it meant I could transfer to my unit and thence onto this course.

Did you enjoy university? What did you like and dislike about Oxford?
I enjoyed university a lot. I studied biological sciences, and enjoyed learning how to think and reason from some fantastic tutors. Socially I wasn’t much of a ‘college person’, but I had friends at other colleges and at Oxford Brookes. I particularly enjoyed living out, off the Cowley Road, and had some memorable house parties there!

Getting back to the present day, can you give us an idea of a typical day in Beconsfield?
I work pretty hard, because the best jobs go to the best linguists. I get up at 6am, and do an hour or so's work before breakfast. That’s followed by lessons from 8:30 until 10:30, and then again from 11 to 12:30. After lunch, we have a few more lessons but usually knock it on the head at about 3pm. Then it’s gym for a couple of hours - squash/rugby, whatever. I then do a couple of hours work before dinner, and we have free time after that.

How are you finding the language learning?
It’s hard work. It’s engrossing, stretching, and brilliant. It definitely is for me! I am probably now going to have a language-based future career, or at least a career that uses different languages heavily. Pashto will not be the last language I learn, for sure.

Is there a good social life?
Yes, effectively it is readymade for you - just add alcohol! Also I am near London, which is where most of my friends are anyway. For those interested there are loads of sports teams to get involved with.

Are you happy you decided to join the army, and would you recommend it as a career path?
I should stress that Defence School Languages is not at all like other parts of the army. We are here to learn, so there is more emphasis on self-motivation and personal study. That said, the army - contrary to popular opinion - is a very broad church. If you like being active, and have a suitable (driven, enterprising) personality then you will find something you enjoy here. As an officer (Oxbridge graduates should be applying as officers really) you change your job every two years, so it is hard to get bored. The money is fine, especially when you consider that most of your income is disposable. This, however, is not a job for people who are interested in money - go to the city for that. If you want an alternative career, however, it is fantastic - and it sets you up extremely well for future careers elsewhere. Many employers look upon military experience extremely favourably.
I am very happy doing what I am doing now, particularly when I look at how unhappy I was a year ago when I had just been turned down by the FCO. My life has changed a lot in a year - I couldn't have guessed in a million years that I would be here, doing this. I’m very glad I am.