During this process, we took all of our army tests and interviews. Every single soldier has to go through something called Tzav Rishon which is basically a day to show the army that you exist and plan to become a soldier. The staff of Garin Tzabar at the Kibbutz took all of us to the Tel Hashomer army base for our Tzav Rishon. Needless to say, it’s a pretty long day. I started off with my interview. Each person gets a soldier who puts your name and information in the army’s system. For lone soldiers, this interview is especially important as it is also a test of the level of our hebrew. There is an actual hebrew test during the interview. In all honesty, the most important part of the interview and especially the test is CONFIDENCE. I’m not sure if I should say this, but half the time I had no idea what any of the words meant or what I was saying to the soldier, but I made it seem like I did. I ended up getting higher than a 7 which is high enough not to have to go to Army Ulpan and get the job I want (will get to that soon). I then went on to take some sort of an IQ test on the computer. The hebrew version is two hours, but as a lone soldier, I was able to take the test in English which is only 35 minutes. The test consisted of things like identifying patterns and filling in the missing piece - nothing to really prepare for. After that, I went to have a doctor checkup to make sure I am not a drug addict or have health problems. The jobs offered are also based on the score the doctor gives you on the physical examination. I thankfully got a 97 profile, the highest one. To sum it up, Tzav Rishon is an important day because the scores you receive based on the stations listed above contribute to your overall army profile which determines the possible job options.
A few weeks after Tzav Rishon, the girls had another similar day called Yom Hame’ah which is a more intense and ‘specialized’ day of tests and interviews to really find the right job for you. Again, as a lone soldier, the Hebrew was the most intimidating part as the day consisted of tasks like having 8 minutes to prepare a 4 minute lesson to a class (obviously in hebrew). There was a 2.5 hour test on the computer which tested many skills like reading and understanding graphs. Needless to say, it reminded me of the days that I suffered through taking the ACT- but this time it was harder and in a foreign language! We had to take a variety of tests, from sitting one on one with a psychologist while they watch you build a mechanical structure which was somewhat awkward... to group building activities and even having to ‘deal’ with an angry customer at a store. What I am most thankful for from that day was that because I am a part of Garin Tzabar, the group consisted of other Tzabar girls, so we were able to understand what we’re all going through and conquer the day together. Although the day was somewhat stressful, I felt accomplished when I completed and especially when I received my Manila a few weeks later.
What is a Manila, you’re wondering? It’s a list everyone gets of jobs you’re capable of based on how you scored on all of the tests and interviews. Thankfully, I got my top options: madrichat chir (infantry instructor) or madrichat chilutz vehatzalah (instructor for search and rescue) and mashakit tash (social worker of a base). My mashakiot (two female soldiers who live on our kibbutz whose sole job it is to take care of/ guise us in everything army) and I spoke about all of the jobs I received on my manila - they offered their own expertise and advice to really help me choose the right job for me. After much consideration, debate, and speaking to soldiers in each of the jobs I was interested in, I chose Madrichat Chir. It is not a combat job, although I teach combat soldiers how to use a specific weapon - I do not know which weapon I am teaching until 2 months into my roughly 4 months of training.
Now, I am able to spend about a month back in Florida until my draft date of April 19th!
