Page 274 - The Rifles Bugle Autumn 2019

Melbourne University Regiment
TRAINING WEEKENDS ARE A HIGHLIGHT OF THE PROGRAM AS IT ALLOWS NEW RECRUITS A ‘LIVE IN EXPERIENCE’
‘Grow in the esteem of future generations’ is the Melbourne University Regiment (MUR) motto, and for the three companies which make up the Regiment it has been year of both growth and achievement.
MUR is one of six university regiments in the Australian Army which comprise the Eighth Brigade (Training) with the role of providing directed individual training for Army Reserve members of the Second Division, the Army’s principal Reserve formation. While now a far more diverse unit than in earlier years when it was established to provide military training to students of the University, the Regiment maintains strong ceremonial links with the University of Melbourne underpinned by our shared heritage. Most significant of these is the joint Anzac Day Dawn Service at the University Cenotaph where numbers continue to grow largely due to the active support of the Vice Chancellor.
The affiliation with The Rifles was once again reinforced early in 2019 with a two week attachment of LT Matthew Taylor, a recent graduate and recipient of the biennial travel scholarship funded by our regimental association. A separate article describes his valuable experience during this attachment.
Regional Induction Company, known as Herring Company after a distinguished former Honorary Colonel and Lieutenant Governor of Victoria, administers and supports Army Reserve recruits and Officer Cadets who reside in Victoria. Management commences from the time personnel join the Australian Army until they reach a point in their training pipeline where they are considered employable within their posted unit.
Depending on the members Corps they may stay with the Regional Induction Company for up to 18 months whilst they obtain their relevant training competencies. Some soldiers depart after
their basic training and the Officer Cadets move to another company within MUR to continue with their Officer training.
The Regional Induction Company provides a blended learning environment to cater for both recruits and trainees. This allows recruits to partic- ipate within familiarisation training whilst trainees (who have completed the Basic Soldier Course) undertake refresher training to ensure they are prepared for their next course. Recruits and trainees require intense administrative support to ensure they are integrated into the Australian Army and all staff hold a dual role as an instructor/presenter and administrator to achieve this outcome.
The Regional Induction Company parades on Tuesday evenings, Wednesday evenings and on average one training weekend per month. On a Tuesday evening, activities include basic administration and paperwork, individual fitness assessment, presentations and weapon handling. Wednesday evenings are dedicated to simulation training to remediate weapon handling issues and practice basic shooting.
Training weekends are a highlight of the program as it allows new recruits a ‘live in experience’. They stay on a major training base living in military lines, using communal ablutions and eating in a large mess facility. This provides recruits with a familiar- isation experience similar to that of Kapooka, the Australian Army Recruit Training Battalion base, and assists in alleviating some of the anxiety when they attend their initial course. The weekend also caters for more experienced trainees who participate in activities such as weapon handling and shooting practice, radio operation, navigation, basic fitness assessment, combat physical training and pack marching. The concentration of soldiers and Officer Cadets during the weekend helps to build esprit de corps amongst the personnel. It is evident as their training continues that they have formed friendships and mates within their Corps and unit groups with many nominating for future courses together.
The Regional Induction Company is a very successful sub-unit manned by a professional and experienced staff representing the majority of Corps. It currently manages over 370 recruits, trainees and Officer Cadets and has marched out over 90 personnel since it commenced operations in January 2018.
Officer Cadet Company, known as Monash Company after the distinguished wartime commander and Honorary Colonel, continues to pride itself on providing Officer Cadets with relevant and challenging training prior to their attendance on the Officer Commissioning Course at the Royal Military College, Duntroon.
Training in 2018/19 revolved broadly around defensive and offensive operations, with focus shifting from ambush tactics, area defence, urban clearance, withdrawal and advance.
Training was delivered using warfighting theory lessons, then rehearsed and consolidated on eight weekend field exercises. Pressure was applied to the trainees’ ability to use the Military Appreciation Process, deliver orders, and then execute tasks in the face of the enemy.
272 ALLIANCES
THE RIFLES