Your vocation is the job you do for most of your two years. For SAF, it's decided near the end of BMT, and for most people it feels like it comes out of nowhere.
There are vocations across all three uniformed services: the SAF, the SCDF, and the SPF. This page covers how postings work and lists every vocation in the official CMPB NS Vocations Handbook.
In-depth vocation guides
For a day-to-day look at specific vocations:
- Infantry: IVT, the SIR battalions, outfields, stay-in life, and the Combat Skills Badge.
- Guards: elite infantry, GVT, earning the khaki beret, and heliborne and amphibious ops.
- Armour: tank operator vs armoured infantry, the Leopard 2SG and Hunter, and overseas exercises.
- Island Defence (Security Trooper): guard duty, shift work, IDTI training, and the 8/9 SIR battalions.
- Medic: combat vs medical centre medic, the EMT course, IV cannulation, and the WSQ cert you earn.
- Transport: the driving course, nights out, and earning a driving licence.
- Logistics (Supply Assistant & ASA): storeman and clerk life, the courses, and free time.
More guides coming. The rest of this page is the full map of how postings work and every vocation.
How postings are decided
It's a mix of your profile and what the service needs that intake. The main factors:
- PES status: your medical grade is the biggest filter. PES A and B1 open up combat vocations. Lower PES pushes you toward service and support roles.
- IPPT and fitness: stronger results help you get (or avoid) the more physical vocations.
- Education and aptitude: some vocations screen for qualifications or specific test results.
- BMT performance: standing out can get you picked for command school or specialist tracks.
- Manpower needs: postings fill slots. Even with a good profile, you go where the vacancies are that intake.
That last point is why it feels random. Two guys with the same profile can get very different postings.
Combat vs non-combat
- Combat: you carry a weapon, train in the field, and do more physical work.
- Combat support and service: you keep the machine running, often with more admin time and a more routine schedule.
Neither is automatically better. Combat pays a higher vocation allowance, but service vocations are usually more chill.
Indicating your vocation interest
Before your medical screening, you can indicate interest in vocations through the NS Portal. From the handbook:
- There are 7 vocation categories: 3 from the SAF, 2 from the SCDF, 2 from the SPF.
- You can pick 2 or more vocations in each category, or say you have no specific interest.
- Deployment still comes down to manpower and operational needs, plus your medical fitness, cognitive attributes, and interest.
So indicating interest is a preference, not a guarantee. It costs nothing to put down what you actually want. I personally would not put too much emphasis on this, to be honest.
Full details are in the official NS Vocations Handbook (PDF) and on the CMPB vocations page.
SAF vocations
The 15 SAF vocations from the handbook, grouped by how they feel day to day.
Combat
| Vocation | What it's like |
|---|---|
| Infantry | The largest fighting force. Vocation Fitness Training then Infantry Vocation Training (IVT), section weapons, live-firing, and the Terrex. Earn the Combat Skills Badge with a 16km tactical march. |
| Armour | Crew the Leopard 2SG tank, Hunter, or Bionix. Heavy on gunnery, driving, and vehicle maintenance, usually with an overseas exercise. |
| Artillery | Gun crews and fire support on HIMARS, SLWH, or FH2000. Most do Artillery Operator Training (AOT). Some run radars like the TPQ-53. |
| Combat engineer | Demolitions, bridging, obstacles. Common Engineer Course, then one of five specialisations: Field, Armoured, Bridging, CBRD, or EOD. |
| Guards | Elite infantry. Complete Guards Vocation Training (GVT) for the khaki beret. Heliborne and amphibious ops, fast marches, coastal swims. |
| Signals | Comms and network experts. One of four courses: Army Cyber Defence, Infocomm 1, Infocomm 2, or Infosystem (IS). |
| Air Defence | Air Defence Weapon Operator (ADWO) running ground-based systems like SPYDER and RBS 70. Air Force squadron, 24/7 rotational duties. |
| Naval Operations | Naval Warfare System Operator (NWSO) for boarding, fast craft, or surveillance, or a Sea Soldier doing naval base defence. |
| Island Defence | Security Trooper protecting key installations. Trained as ST (Combat, armed) or ST (Service, unarmed) at IDTI. |
Combat support and service
| Vocation | What it's like |
|---|---|
| Transport | Drive military and heavy vehicles, Class 3 and/or Class 4. Convert your military licence to a civilian licence at ORD if you meet the mileage and clean-record bar. |
| Logistics (Supply Assistant) | The storeman and clerk (ASA) life. Supply Assistant course covering accounting, materiel, and maintenance. Lots of saikang, lots of admin time. |
| Medical | Combat medic or medical centre medic. EMT course at SMTI with IV cannulation and a WSQ healthcare cert. |
| Military Police | Security, enforcement, and ceremonial duties. P30 pistol and Taser X2, plus roles like investigator, K-9 handler, traffic outrider, and Detention Barracks. |
| Intelligence | Analysis and ops support. Four disciplines: Fusion & Analysis, Combat ISR (drones, recce tab), Imagery, and Open Source. |
| Maintenance | Army Technician (Leopard, Terrex, howitzers) or Air Force Technician (F-16, F-15, AH-64D, Heron). Diagnose and keep platforms operational. |
SCDF vocations
If you're posted to the Singapore Civil Defence Force, these are the 8 vocations.
| Vocation | What it's like |
|---|---|
| Fire & Rescue | Frontline fire fighter. Fire Fighter Course (FFC), then a fire station. Turnouts to fires and road traffic accidents, shift-based. |
| Emergency Medical Technician | First responder on an ambulance crew at a fire station, or a medic in a medical centre. Manage medical and trauma emergencies. |
| Special Rescue | Special Rescue Unit (SRU). Chemical decontamination, large fire support, and mass casualty work. 24-hour shifts in chemical suits. |
| Provost | Enforce discipline under the CD Act. Security clearance, contraband checks, detainee escort, and detention barracks duties. |
| Logistics (Storeman) | Plan and provide supply and store support. Indenting, issuing, stock taking, and record keeping. |
| Maintenance | General technician servicing SCDF equipment, facilities, and vehicles. On-the-job training and basic repairs. |
| Transport | Driver for the SCDF. Class 3 Driving Course plus Class 4 Restricted. Transport personnel and equipment, plus national events. |
| Infocomm | Operate command, control, and comms systems (ACES). Ops Centre Operator Course, plus support for the Public Warning System sirens. |
SPF vocations
If you're posted to the Singapore Police Force, these are the 10 vocations.
| Vocation | What it's like |
|---|---|
| Neighbourhood Policing (GRF) | Ground Response Force. First to attend incidents, Fast Response Car patrols, and proactive policing. GRF Course with NPC attachments. |
| Police Coast Guard | Crew a PCG boat as lookout, radar plotter, gunner, or steersman. Maritime Policing Course covering seamanship and boarding. |
| Airport Police | APD patrol officer protecting Changi and Seletar. Aviation security, MP5 operator and concealed-weapon training. |
| C3 Operations (AWO) | Assistant Watch Officer at the Police Operations Command Centre. Dispatch support and reviewing Police camera footage to track suspects. |
| Dog Handling (K-9) | Handle a narcotics-detection or security dog. 12-hour shifts, kennel and grooming care, deployments at checkpoints or institutions. |
| Police Tactical Troop (PTU) | Special Operations Command's strategic force. Red beret, public order and high-deterrence patrols, urban tactical training. |
| Protective Security (ProCom) | Protect critical infrastructure and strategic locations. Two-phase training, 12-hour shifts in teams led by regulars. |
| Public Transport Security (TransCom) | High-visibility patrols across the MRT and bus interchanges. 5-week TransCom Basic Course with behavioural profiling. |
| Community Engagement | Crime-prevention outreach, roadshows, school visits, and bicycle labelling. Community Engagement Course. |
| Training (AOFI) | Assistant Operations and Field Instructor at TRACOM. Run PT, drills, and the obstacle course for police trainees. |
Higher-risk and specialised
A few SAF vocations are volunteer or selected on profile, and pay the highest vocation allowance:
- Commando: among the toughest. Volunteer or selected.
- Naval diver: the Navy's elite divers. Very demanding.
- Aircrew: Air Force flight roles.
The training is no joke. These don't appear in the general handbook listing because they run their own selection.
The command school route
If you do well in BMT, you may be picked for command school:
- Specialist Cadet School (SCS): train to become a sergeant.
- Officer Cadet School (OCS): train to become an officer. See the command school page.
Both add training time but rank you up faster and pay more by the end of your two years.
Can you choose your vocation?
Mostly no, but a few things help:
- Indicate interest early: you can rank vocations on the NS Portal before medical screening. It's a preference, not a guarantee.
- Volunteering: for some vocations (like commandos) you can volunteer, subject to passing the tests.
- Profile: there's no cheat code, but your PES and IPPT shape what's on the table.
- OOC and reposting: if you're taken out of a course for medical or other reasons, you get reposted, often to a service vocation.
Common questions
When do I find out my vocation?
For SAF, near the end of BMT, usually around posting time before your passing out parade.
Does a better IPPT get me a better vocation?
It helps for combat and specialised roles, but manpower needs still decide a lot.
Can I change vocation after I'm posted?
It's hard once you're in unit. The easiest changes happen early, through OOC or medical reposting.
Which vocation has the most admin time?
Service and support roles like storeman and clerk usually do. Combat vocations spend more time in the field.
Which vocation gives a driving licence?
Transport. Clock the required mileage with a clean record and your military licence converts to a civilian one at ORD.
Sources
- NS Vocations Handbook (PDF): the official CMPB handbook this page is based on.
- CMPB NS vocations: official vocation videos and handbook.
- r/NationalServiceSG: real NSF experiences on postings, OOC, and which vocations are chill.