You can find on this page a list of frequently asked questions by pre-draftees together with answers. Feel free to submit additional questions below.
Do I really need to buy a large number of green and white undershirts?
No. White shirts are generally only worn under your dress uniform (מדי א) which are worn for formal occasions as well as when you leave/head to base/home. Realistically, no more than 2 white undershirts are needed.
In regards to green undershirts – these are only worn under your work uniform (מדי ב) which are worn on base during day to day activities. You will not be required to wear an undershirt – it is your choice. If the weather is cold enough to wear an undershirt, you’ll likely want a long sleeve shirt. Therefore, we suggest that you invest in 2 or 3 quality long sleeve green undershirts for the colder months of the year. There is no need for more than that.
Should I invest in a pocketknife before drafting?
Throughout your combat service, you will need to cut ropes, open cans of food, cut different things, etc. While not required, your own pocket knife can be very helpful instead of depending on the possessions of others.
Should I draft into the Hebrew course at Michve Alon or try to skip the course?
As you are drafting into the IDF, naturally Hebrew will be the spoken language throughout your service. We can not emphasize enough how critical it is to have a high level of Hebrew throughout your service, whether you draft into a basic job or into an elite combat unit. Your Hebrew must be fluent enough to understand and communicate with your teammates, commanders, and all others. If not, you are not only endangering yourself, but also those around you. If you have a dream of serving in an elite unit or in any leadership roles throughout your service, you must have a high level of Hebrew.
With that being said, every pre-draftee must be honest with him/herself and decide if drafting into the Hebrew course is the proper decision.
Additionally, not always will it be your decision whether to skip/draft into the Hebrew course at Michve Alon.
What are my rights as a Lone Soldier?
You can read about your rights as a Lone Soldier here.
How can I improve my Hebrew?
There are a number of ways to improve your Hebrew. Each person learns in a different way – some methods will be useful for you but wont be useful for others. Try them out and see which methods help you.
- Always have a notebook on you. Any time you hear/discover a word in Hebrew that you don’t know, make sure to ask and write it down. During your free time/on the bus/whenever you can, go over the new words that you wrote down. With time, your vocabulary will grow. You should combine this method with the following methods.
- Listen to Israeli music/watch Israeli TV shows. Pay attention to the words. Use the notebook method to study the new words/sentences.
- Use Hebrew books to learn new words. Whether its a children’s book or a book you previously read in English (such as Harry Potter), you will be exposed to new words and the ways to use them in a sentence.
- Ulpan/private tutors.
What is it like being religious (shomer shabbat, kashrut, prayers) in the IDF?
Like the previous answers, this one largely depends on you as an individual as well. You will have every opportunity to keep up your religious lifestyle but many times this will fall on your free time.
Kashrut – All IDF kitchens and the food that they provide are Kosher to a very high standard. In the religious units such as נצח יהודה, חץ, תומר, there are separate kitchens which are used to verify the level of Kashrut of the food. After training if you get moved up to smaller bases it may require you to do some of the kashering.
Prayers – There is a difference between prayers during training and post training. During training, it’s much easier to find time to daven. The army is mandated to give you time for שחרית, מנחה, מעריב. The only difficult part is that there might not always be a minyan. Unless you are in a religious unit, you will not be guaranteed to always daven with a minyan. Plus, if you want to daven שחרית and put on tefillin, you may have to wake up earlier than the rest of your unit. Once you finish training and doing active service, the army isn’t required to give you set times to daven. Plus one may find them self doing guard duty or some sort of job during prayer time. If one wants to daven or put on tefillin, they then either need to wake up a drop earlier or wait until after they finish their current job. This may either take up some time from a soldier’s nap time or break. Also, important to note that one isn’t always guaranteed a Torah (or someone to lain) on laining day’s. There will always be time for prayers – you just have to find the time for it.
Shabbat – Shabbat is generally a restful day during training. You will find yourself on base with the option to attend בית הכנסת if you choose. After training, you may find yourself on operational duty during Shabbat. This means that you may need to travel in a vehicle, use a radio, pen, flashlight or a number of other things for operational reasons – this is fully allowed and it’s a must as it involves פיקוח נפש.
Rabbinate– The army has its own world of issues within the world of Halacha. Every unit has a set Rabbi to give soldiers guidance and strength during their service. If a soldier ever finds themselves alone with a question, they can always call the rabbinate hotline. You can read more about the IDF Rabbinate here.
While it is not an easy task to maintain this lifestyle throughout your service, it is without a doubt doable.
Tzevet Mikey - צוות מייקי 