ATAR Navy Gap Year:

To be eligible for an ADF Gap Year job you must have completed Year 12 with the passes required of the role you are applying for and an ATAR of 85 or above. If you have studied science, technology, engineering or math's subjects you may have a competitive advantage when applying for a Navy Gap Year officer role. Applications can be considered if you are yet to complete Year 12 and are tracking towards the required ATAR.

Current or former serving military personnel (ADF or Foreign Service) are not eligible for Gap Year.

To be appointed, you must be medically and physically fit for entry into the ADF. This is partially assessed from the completion of an extensive questionnaire covering your medical history, followed by a physical examination. You will also be required to pass a physical fitness test before appointment.

You must also pass the swim test and physical fitness test to graduate from your Navy Training and to proceed to the Safety of Life at Sea Training that is a requirement for Recruit School and Officer training.

You will be required to pass a Pre-entry Fitness Assessment (PFA) before enlistment. The PFA requires you to complete a specified number of sit-ups and a timed cardio component. Fitness standards differ for selected age groups. Please refer to the Navy - Health and Fitness page for further details.

The RANST is conducted to ensure the Navy's duty of care to all serving personnel, with respect to rudimentary swimming skills. The purpose of the RANST is to ensure fundamental water survival skills as a prerequisite to training such as survival at sea training. Individual components of the RANST are fundamentally related to the survival at sea scenario.

Competency in the RANST is achieved through completion of each component:

• A safety jump off a 3m tower in overalls
• A 10m underwater swim in overalls
• A 50m swim using three safety strokes
• The ability to tread water or float for 15 mins in overalls

All personnel will undertake the RANST upon entry and competency is to be achieved before the end of your initial military training.

For further details on medical and physical fitness standards refer to Physical Fitness Standards for Entry into the ADF and Medical Process for Entry into the ADF.

Your Navy Gap Year experience is a fully sponsored program of up to 12 months service. After successful completion of this program, you may have further opportunities within the ADF as a permanent member, depending on capability requirements and available vacancies, or you can choose to leave the ADF. You may request discharge at any time by providing 21 days’ notice.

The Job Opportunities Assessment (JOA) is completed as part of the application process to join the Australian Defence Force (ADF). Some jobs may also require you to complete a further evaluation at a later date.

The JOA is used by Defence to establish suitability for ADF entry, and then identify jobs that best match your abilities.

Further information about the JOA can be found in the Guide to the Job Opportunities Assessment for the ADF.

To get a feel for the types of questions that are used in the Job Opportunities Assessment and how they will look on your screen some examples can be found in the Job Opportunities Assessment Example Questions.

To serve in the ADF you must be an Australian Citizen.

If you are a permanent resident of Australia, the ADF may consider a temporary deferral of the citizenship requirement if the position for which you are applying cannot be filled by an applicant who meets all the citizenship requirements, and then only in exceptional circumstances. You will be required to obtain Australian Citizenship as early as possible following enlistment or appointment.

Find out more in our Citizenship page or ask your local ADF Careers Centre.

The Department of Defence requires ADF employees to have a security clearance appropriate to their employment.

A process of background checks, collection of relevant information and if required, interviews, enables the Australian Government Security Vetting Agency (AGSVA) to make an informed assessment of an applicant's suitability for a security clearance.

The minimum security clearance level required is Negative Vetting Level 1 (NV1), and current policy requires applicants to have a checkable background for the previous 10 years.

This means applicants must provide credible referees (non-family members) who are able to provide information about the applicant covering an extended period of time. Required information for an NV1 includes, but is not limited to, the following:

• Residence
• Employment
• Education
• Financial information
• Travel

Some ADF jobs may require a higher level of security clearance such as Negative Vetting Level 2 (NV2) or Positive Vetting (PV). Your individual circumstances will determine the number and complexity of the questions and the supporting documents required for these levels.

Australian Citizenship is a requirement for a security clearance and a clearance will only be granted to a non-citizen in exceptional circumstances.

The security clearance is critical to an applicant's successful progression through the recruiting process. It is strongly recommended that all applicants action the Security Clearance Package (ePack) and provide the required documentation without delay to provide the best opportunity to commence training and be employed in their preferred employment category.

For more detailed information on the security vetting process and specific clearance level requirements set by AGSVA, please refer to the AGSVA website.

Support will be provided by DFR during the initial application process.

Navy Gap Year participants will complete a 15 week New Entry Officer Course (NEOC) at the Royal Australian Naval College, HMAS Creswell, situated at Jervis Bay on the NSW south coast, about 195 kilometres south of Sydney. The training is designed to equip Gap Year officers with general service skills including; drill, ceremonial, physical training, oral and written communication, Navy organisation, character guidance, first aid, small arms training ship's combat survivability, survival at sea training and small boat training.

During the program, you will travel around Australia to tour various Navy bases to see the wide variety of Navy platforms; Includes tours of a Submarine, patrol boats, helicopters and major warships.

You will complete a sea deployment on either a major or minor warship which will provide insights into Navy officer job roles at sea.

You will be provided with the opportunity to rotate through a common selection of workgroup sites including both training centres and workplaces. At the conclusion of this period you will undertake tailored work experience.

You will undertake a minimum of two months' work experience in Navy engineering, receiving exposure to a range of Electronics Engineering Officer roles, dependent on available placements at Navy bases around Australia.