They are between 18 and 25 years old, often say they share “the values of the army”, and are attracted by the discovery of a profession. Like Mathis, 23, trained in construction, from a military family: “At the beginning, I had difficulty, but with hindsight, I tell myself that these are very good values. For me, the army is a huge family, it’s about cohesion, living together and working to pull each other up. Joining the army means being able to serve your country, you have to be proud of it. I am here for my country, if he calls me I will be there! »
His objective, after having failed in the army sporting events, is to use national service as a second chance and become a soldier.
Léane, from Cazaux, also dreams of the army. She would have liked to hire herself directly as a sports instructor, but no position was open. At 18, she tried her luck again via national service. “When I presented myself, there was no recruitment. With national service, I find another way to enter the army and I do the job that I love. I have always lived next to an air base, the army is a world that I have always liked, the values that it transmits, I like it. This allows you to be structured, to have rules, not a job where you do what you want.”
Année de césure
For Ethan, 18 years old, son of a soldier, it’s a way to quickly get started: “Studies, classes, that doesn’t interest me too much. National service is an opportunity to have a job where I will feel useful, where I will move around. I’ll also see what I really like. There are a lot of jobs you can do in the army.” According to Colonel Yann Lefebvre, commander of BA106 in Mérignac, the army offers around sixty different jobs.
“The only limits are young people who set them for themselves. We guide them on projects, we don’t choose for them. This is very important to hear. We don’t tell them you will do a certain job, if they have doubts we guide them, we take time,” adds a recruiter from Cirfa de Bordeaux. National service can also serve as a gap year, before returning to civilian life, at a university or elsewhere.
