Supply officer (Royal Navy) scheme (entering Britannia Royal Naval College (BRNC), Dartmouth, Devon, as a Cadet or Midshipman, under terms similar to those direct from civilian life) was open to those supply branch ratings under the age of about 25. Such ratings were called CW candidates, and they were specially reported on for selection to attend the Admiralty Interview Board before final selection for promotion and entry to BRNC. The second avenue of promotion from rating to commissioned officer was to the Special Duties (SD) List. Petty officers and chief petty officers could, with the approval of their commanding officer, become a CW candidate
Royal Naval College, Greenwich Christopher Wren and built between 1696 and 1712, then intended to serve as the Greenwich Hospital, a home for disabled sailors. This closed in 1869, when the pensioners were transferred to other places, leaving the buildings available for a new use. The site of the former hospital had once been occupied by the medieval Palace of Placentia, or "Palace at Greenwich", begun by Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester, in 1428. After the Royal Navy departed in 1998 the buildings were opened to the public as the Old Royal Naval College. The President of the College was a full-time post until 1982