You must have a Defence Gateway account in order to access your course material and complete the pre course essential reading and exercises. If you do not have an account, please go to www.defencegateway.mod.uk for further information on how to create one.
You should also have a valid passport (with a minimum of 6 months until its expiry). This is so that you can participate in the tour of Normandy or Belgium in the penultimate week of your course. The tour may prove difficult for those with severe mobility challenges as some elements take place over difficult terrain. You are advised to consult the Royal Naval Division if you are concerned about completing this element of the course.
Military students are expected to have completed the Britannia Royal Naval College (BRNC) Naval Analysis Course within six months of commencing ICSC(M).
As a minimum, you must complete the following prior to your residential course:
Staff and Communication Skills. In preparation for this component, you should familiarise yourself with Joint Service Publication (JSP) 101, Defence Writing Guide (in particular Chapter 6) and complete a written exercise which will help you apply JSP 101 in practice. You may also wish to complete the online electronic defence writing (eDW) package noting this takes approximately 2hrs to complete.
Command, Leadership, Management and Ethos/Ethics. As part of your pre-course preparation, you should arrive having completed a brief essay (1-2 sides of A4 paper) on the following topic: ‘Leadership and management is the backbone of command.' Using your own experiences, examine whether this is true in today’s Royal Navy’. This is designed to encourage you to form a personal opinion in preparation for future discussions.
Maritime Tactical Estimate (MTE). You should arrive on the course possessing a basic awareness of the MTE planning tool. The aim of this element of the course is not to train the basics but to develop your understanding of the process. If you have not experienced planning using this tool you should complete the online training course available on the DLE. It is strongly advised that even if you have utilised the MTE tool, use the online course as a refresher.
Essential Reading. The essential pre-reading is the absolute minimum to set the initial context for what will be an intense period of study. This should take approximately 4 hours.
a. Global Strategic Trends – Out to 2045.
b. Joint Doctrine Publication 0-10 British Maritime Doctrine.
c. The Future Operating Environment 2035 (Introduction, Chapters 1, 2, 3 Key Points (at the end of each chapter), Commanders Perspective.
d. Maritime Doctrine Primer (Second Edition).
e. The Globalisation of World Politics, Chapter 1.
Desirable Reading. You should familiarise yourself with the National Security Strategy and Strategic Defence Review 2015. A Secure and Prosperous United Kingdom.
Course Administration. Complete an electronic Student Pre-joining Form along with a short biography.