AOSB run two Army Scholarship Boards (ASB) per year (Spring and Autumn). Applications are coordinated and administered by Army Careers Advisers.

The Selection Process (A fuller version can be downloaded on the right)

The Board
You will be divided into groups of eight, with boys and girls working together. It is important to remember that you are not competing against the other candidates. You are all being assessed against a common standard and your success is based entirely on your own performance.

Board Composition
The Board consists of the following members:

• President - A Brigadier
• Vice President - A Colonel
• Deputy President - A Lieutenant Colonel
• Group Leader - A Captain or Major
• Education Advisor - A commissioned or retired Army Education Officer

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Programme - Day One

Arrival
Those arriving on a Monday should be at Westbury by 11.45 am. Candidates arriving later in the week must be at Westbury by 10.30 am on the day stated.

Introduction
After lunch, the President of the Board, an Army Brigadier, will give an introductory talk, which will include some useful tips for the next day.

Mental Aptitude Profile Tests
These consist of the following elements:

• Verbal Reasoning Exercise (Thinking logically about written information)
• Numerical Reasoning Exercise (solving numerical problems)
• Abstract Reasoning Exercise (solving practical problems)

The exercises take 70 minutes in all to complete; examples with instructions and advice can be downloaded on the right.

Written test
An essay will assess your written communication skills.

Outdoor tasks
Later in the afternoon the leaderless outdoor tasks begin. A typical task might involve the group crossing a defined space without touching the ground using ladders, ropes, poles and planks.

Interviews
Just before supper you will be interviewed. All candidates will have a dual interview with their Vice President and Deputy President, as well as an interview with one of the Education Advisers.

Planning exercise tutorial
After supper, you will receive a tutorial on how to approach the next day's Planning Exercise. An example of the Exercise can be downloaded on the right.

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Programme - Day Two

Planning exercise
This theoretical written exercise tests your ability to use people, equipment and time effectively. You are given an hour to study the narrative and write up your solution. Then each group discusses the problem with the aim of reaching an agreed plan.

500 metre sprint
A short, sharp, best effort run.

Command tasks
The next part of the morning is devoted to outdoor Command Tasks, where each member takes a turn at being in command of the group. The objective is to complete a specified practical task within a time limit.

Individual obstacle course
For the final morning task, individuals must negotiate an individual obstacle course with the objective of completing as many obstacles as possible within a set time limit.

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The Board Officers start assessing candidates after the Individual Obstacles. This is the first time the assessors discuss the candidates, and every point raised by the Group Leader, the Deputy President and the Education Adviser is explored in detail. The results of the Board are passed to the Army Recruiting Group, based in Upavon, Wiltshire, who will inform all candidates of their provisional results within one week. The award of a scholarship ultimately depends on your GCSE results.

If you pass, you will have demonstrated that you have the academic and personal qualities expected of an Army Scholar. You will also have rightly earned yourself a place at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, provided you pass the Army medical.