A career as a train driver

MacRae13 · 28 Aug 2012

Hello folks, first post.

I've spent the last couple of hours going through this whole thread! Quite interesting.

I've just recently decided on a career on the railway. To be honest I'd be amazed if I ever got to be a driver, considering the number and quality of applications they receive. I'll give it a good shot though. It seems patience and determination are the order of the day!

In terms of salary, the position of conductor seems to be well paid with decent conditions - so I've set that as my immediate target. I'd even quite like to re-locate for a job. I'm still going to apply for platform staff and on-train host and things like that. At least doing something like that would get me a look at the internal vacancies before they look outside the company.

This one puzzled me -

Beveridges said:
If they ask about hobbies then keep your answer in this one to a minimum, there are many hobbies you can be scored down on!

I just imagined the more hobbies the better?

RailUK Forums

Mik · 28 Aug 2012

Hey all, I've got through assessment and interview but still got my medical and interview assessment on thursday 30th. Just wanted to know if that means i've got the job which starts 3rd september .

wessex · 28 Aug 2012

Nerazzurri said:
Hello folks, first post.

I've spent the last couple of hours going through this whole thread! Quite interesting.

I've just recently decided on a career on the railway. To be honest I'd be amazed if I ever got to be a driver, considering the number and quality of applications they receive. I'll give it a good shot though. It seems patience and determination are the order of the day!

In terms of salary, the position of conductor seems to be well paid with decent conditions - so I've set that as my immediate target. I'd even quite like to re-locate for a job. I'm still going to apply for platform staff and on-train host and things like that. At least doing something like that would get me a look at the internal vacancies before they look outside the company.

This one puzzled me -

I just imagined the more hobbies the better?

Regards, Gavin.

dont put sky diving or racing car driver at the weekends for obvious reasons

I put golf and keep fit as its true and they like calm individuals who can fit in the cab

notadriver · 28 Aug 2012

Damn there goes my chance of getting the job

Beveridges · 28 Aug 2012

I thought you have said somewhere in the past that you're already a driver notadriver?

notadriver · 28 Aug 2012

Damn there goes my chance of getting the job

notadriver · 28 Aug 2012

Can someone delete my last post ? Tapatalk has gone strange and yes Beveridges I was just being pedantic. I can't take up sky diving lol.

Mik · 28 Aug 2012

Hi all, got a medical on thursday and dont see me failing unless someone spikes my apple juice. everything else as gone smooth from assessment to interview and i've been told that training starts 3rd september. So does that mean i've got the job with southern or is there any chance i could still be refused the job?

Mik · 29 Aug 2012

Got my medical tomorrow and assessment interview. Suppose to start 3rd september. is that likely?

Reganstorm · 29 Aug 2012

As long as you're pretty altogether fitness-wise the medical should be fine.

If what you are saying is that you still have one of the interviews to complete (which I would assume is the managers interview), then it's anyone's guess whether you've got the job. It will depend how you perform in that interview.

Good luck!!

Mik · 29 Aug 2012

Thanks, done the managers interview just had the assessment interview left that i didn't get to do on assessment day. one question my bmi is high (overweight) but generally im healthy. will this effect my medical tomorrow?

Reganstorm · 29 Aug 2012

So you have the criteria based interview left? I assume you have done your homework on the questions you will be asked? Don't under-estimate it, it's not as relaxed as the managers interview. That being said, if you have put in some planning time already in my opinion it is the easier interview of the two.

As far as your BMI goes, mine is higher than it should be and was at the time of my medical, not by a lot granted, only about 2-3 points.
They are more concerned about your general health than an exact figure. Some people are asked to perform a mobility test by the doctor and some are not, I am guessing though that if you are visibly very overweight then that is something that may happen.

It's really a bit late to concern yourself with BMI now, short of liposuction there is nothing you can do! You should concentrate on your preparation for your interview and make sure you relax in the run up to it.
You're not going to perform at your best if you're worrying!

Best of luck with it

Mik · 29 Aug 2012

Yeah trying to keep calm lol, not really worried about the medical except the weight part.but hey like you said to late to do anything about that. but if i have to do a mobility test then everything will be fine.

kinda of prepared for the interview, still remember what i wrote down and was hoping the interview would focus on that. well if it goes like the manager interview but more detailed then im happy. if they ask totally new questions then im in the dark but will still be quiet confident that i will be alright.

if you have any knowledge have what question they might ask feel free to help

but apart from that im off to bed soon as my little one falls asleep.

TDK · 30 Aug 2012

Mik said:
Yeah trying to keep calm lol, not really worried about the medical except the weight part.but hey like you said to late to do anything about that. but if i have to do a mobility test then everything will be fine.

kinda of prepared for the interview, still remember what i wrote down and was hoping the interview would focus on that. well if it goes like the manager interview but more detailed then im happy. if they ask totally new questions then im in the dark but will still be quiet confident that i will be alright.

if you have any knowledge have what question they might ask feel free to help but apart from that im off to bed soon as my little one falls asleep.

If you are going for driver you may be dissapointed if your BMI is 33 or over, I am sure there must have been a question on your application form regarding height and weight, if you was economical with the truth you are in bother, keep off the fags and coffee before your medical due to high blood pressure.

Mik · 30 Aug 2012

thanks TDK, just had my medical and interview and all went well. Now just waiting to hear back for confirmation on starting on monday. :lol:

Reganstorm · 30 Aug 2012

You sound confident which is hopefully a good sign!

Let us know how you got on when you get the results.

Fingers crossed for you

TDK · 30 Aug 2012

Mik said:
thanks TDK, just had my medical and interview and all went well. Now just waiting to hear back for confirmation on starting on monday.

If you have had a medical and passed the job is yours pending references. The job can be taken from you if the references do not match your application or answers at interview however I have only known this to happen twice and on both accounts is was due to false information regarding sickness records.

Mik · 30 Aug 2012

gave one reference (my last job) and one character reference (a good friend) so all should be good just patiently waiting for e-mail/phone tomorrow cus training starts monday. if i dont hear nothing by 4pm will call recruitment. But im fairly confident now that everything is ok.

Cant wait for training to start

--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
Thanks Reganstorm, will keep u posted

--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
Just checked southern application account and its been updated that i've been accepted for trainee driver at london

My journey begins

Reganstorm · 31 Aug 2012

Congratulations!!

Mik · 31 Aug 2012

Thanks

david_VI · 2 Sep 2012

Through my research for the train driver roles in the last few months i've noticed a few structured interviews require you to write down things beforehand. Does anyone know if GA do it this way or is it straight into an interview without having to fill in a form with answers?

Cheers
David

Mix107 · 2 Sep 2012

Hi David

Yes for GA you fill in a form answering 5 or 6 questions under timed conditions (25 mins I think). You are marked on your written answers, spelling, etc. as well as the interview after, so important not to rush through it and structure your example well. I did mine in May and passed. I'm starting as a driver in Nov.

Regards

david_VI · 2 Sep 2012

Thanks for the reply.

I suppose I somehow have to practice. I've been in education for a few years but often practical or essay writing not timed exams so i'm a bit worried about this aspect as I truly suck at handwriting, especially under pressure. Being left handed doesn't help.. Any tips anyone?

Reganstorm · 2 Sep 2012

My handwriting is pretty poor as well. I've been out of education for a fair few years and always written only in capitals since leaving.

I did all mine in capital letters and that was fine, it's the content and the spelling/punctuation that are important.

wessex · 5 Sep 2012

Reganstorm said:
My handwriting is pretty poor as well. I've been out of education for a fair few years and always written only in capitals since leaving.

I did all mine in capital letters and that was fine, it's the content and the spelling/punctuation that are important.

I have written reports in capitals for 20 years in the prison service as it is encouraged to make reports clear and easy to read, this has carried over in my role as a train driver.

meowsley · 12 Sep 2012

Hi all

I had my assessment day at Doncaster yesterday (DB Schenker). Just wanted to share a couple of tips that helped me prepare:

As others mentioned, the Barron's guide "How to Prepare for the Mechanical Aptitude and Spatial Relations Tests' (by Joel, Dr. Wieseis) great for explaining the basics. I did not buy the book, as some of it is available via Google online books (when I was revising I could only access the Gears & Pulleys sections, however now it seems much more is available online... all I know is that the Gears & Pulleys sections were great!). Obviously, good 'cos it's freeeeee! Online Barron's Google books link

The other site which helped me was http://www.technologystudent.com/. The graphics are outdated (but they do the job) and obviously the site is heavily tailored towards teachers / school / school projects, so a lot of sifting has to be done, but it is clear, easy to understand and, most importantly, free

Just covers the basics at approx GCSE Physics level.

Important note: whilst I recommend the above resources and they do help with general principle understanding, the mechanical test on the day hardly involved any calculations: it was largely about visualising what a mechanical set up would do given a particular input. For example, a 'crane with weight' question wouldn't give you any value for the weight, it would just depict two cranes with the weights at different lengths from the vertical stand. The test was very different to what I expected and I found it hard, though I did pass.

The only other thing I would say is to reiterate the importance of practising the Group Bourdon test, using the online tool others have linked to. First time I did it I was TERRIBLE, but after 4 practice runs or so I was consistently completing with new errors. A little practice will go a long way - for me it would have been game over if not for the practice.

Group Bourdon Tip: change the density from the default to one setting higher - I did this anyway just to make it tougher, but as it turns out the sheets used on the day have quite dense / small dot groupings so it was good prep.

Hope these help

387star · 13 Sep 2012

meowsley said:
Hi all

I had my assessment day at Doncaster yesterday (DB Schenker). Just wanted to share a couple of tips that helped me prepare:

As others mentioned, the Barron's guide "How to Prepare for the Mechanical Aptitude and Spatial Relations Tests' (by Joel, Dr. Wieseis) great for explaining the basics. I did not buy the book, as some of it is available via Google online books (when I was revising I could only access the Gears & Pulleys sections, however now it seems much more is available online... all I know is that the Gears & Pulleys sections were great!). Obviously, good 'cos it's freeeeee! Online Barron's Google books link

The other site which helped me was http://www.technologystudent.com/. The graphics are outdated (but they do the job) and obviously the site is heavily tailored towards teachers / school / school projects, so a lot of sifting has to be done, but it is clear, easy to understand and, most importantly, free Just covers the basics at approx GCSE Physics level.

Important note: whilst I recommend the above resources and they do help with general principle understanding, the mechanical test on the day hardly involved any calculations: it was largely about visualising what a mechanical set up would do given a particular input. For example, a 'crane with weight' question wouldn't give you any value for the weight, it would just depict two cranes with the weights at different lengths from the vertical stand. The test was very different to what I expected and I found it hard, though I did pass.

The only other thing I would say is to reiterate the importance of practising the Group Bourdon test, using the online tool others have linked to. First time I did it I was TERRIBLE, but after 4 practice runs or so I was consistently completing with new errors. A little practice will go a long way - for me it would have been game over if not for the practice.

Group Bourdon Tip: change the density from the default to one setting higher - I did this anyway just to make it tougher, but as it turns out the sheets used on the day have quite dense / small dot groupings so it was good prep.

Hope these help

Yeah but as Beveridges said there are two forms of mechanical test one which is harder. I think it is good to use the values as it is easier to get the principles.

With the dots am I right about half way through each page with no errors (wrong number of dots or dots missed) is best

meowsley · 14 Sep 2012

ml said:
Yeah but as Beveridges said there are two forms of mechanical test one which is harder. I think it is good to use the values as it is easier to get the principles.

With the dots am I right about half way through each page with no errors (wrong number of dots or dots missed) is best

Yeah i 100% agree that people need to revise the mechanical calculations and have the ability to do them - a) not all tests will be the same as mine and b) the calculations are an important part of the understanding. What I hope people might take from my experience is to perhaps watch videos / simulations of how a variety of mechanical set ups (pulleys, levers etc) move with a variety of different inputs... if there is such a thing!

My test was just very heavy on the hypothetical mechanical visualisation, and that did throw me a bit!

-

The important part with the GB is accuracy (in my opinion) - for reference, my results (sheets printed from the downloadable program with a density level of 6 (default being 5)) were around 55-60 lines with no errors (5 x 2 minutes) and I got a "good" pass.

Bootneck · 14 Sep 2012

Hi folks, new member here. What is the age cut off for trainee drivers?

Fragiledog · 16 Sep 2012

Bootneck said:
Hi folks, new member here. What is the age cut off for trainee drivers?

From what I've read there isn't really one. But you still have to take into consideration that it will cost a lot of money to train a driver. Not really worth it if they retire 2 years after :X

A career as a train driver

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