Trainee train driver

Hi all!
I applied to be a train driver some years ago. Although there was trainee posts going, my application got refused without even an interview - Even though I'm educated to university standard and had experience driving double decker buses for 5 years (I know its not the same but its still transportation and a position of Responsibility)

Apply again when a position comes up, you don't go to interview straight away. Your application gets scored and if it's high enough you are invited to an assessment day, being successful there gets you an interview.

Safety critical experience and a people focused past gets you higher scores and gives you lots of examples to take to interview.

Dave999 said:

Safety critical experience and a people focused past gets you higher scores and gives you lots of examples to take to interview.

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However all of that doesn't grant you the job. I have known academic types, declined driving job offers, simply because the mundane, monotony, of driving a train, isn't enough to occupy their intellect. They can be deemed to be high risk, at some TOC's, because of this. Hence no further progression in the process, sadly, for that individual..

Poolsharks1 said:

Hi all!
I applied to be a train driver some years ago. Although there was trainee posts going, my application got refused without even an interview - Even though I'm educated to university standard and had experience driving double decker buses for 5 years (I know its not the same but its still transportation and a position of Responsibility)

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you are probably one of thousands with the same type of educational/work background that have unfortunately been unsuccessful. The whole process is like a lottery.....if it wasn't you'd of been well before me for a job as I'm nowhere near being educated to university standard. Probably not what you wanna hear but i quite like the fact that degrees etc aren't the be all end all when it comes to applying as the way i see it there is always someone with more qualifications but that doesn't necessarily mean they are right for the job.

I know I'm biased as i have no degrees or A levels but i know i do the job to the best of my ability and am extremely safety conscious and don't do anything without thinking it through first. I genuinely feel they made the right choice giving me a job but I'm gonna say that aren't i lol

From what i gather there were pilots turned down for my intake and look at the grades/experience they have.........from what i experienced you've not just got to prove your educational and professional worth, you've got to show them you have the right personality and temperament for the job as well..........(tricky on a piece of paper i know)...........half the battle is proving to them that you have common sense ,have your head screwed on and aren't going to be doing anything stupid, aren't going to be taking risks and that you are generally reliable, which to be fair is all most employers want but the difference and more difficult thing here is you need to prove it more than the other thousand applicants. I have said it before many times but common sense will get you much further than any educational qualifications in this role.

you are in a good position in relation to the bus driving because of the rules, regulations, concentration and communication required in that job but make sure you STRESS to them why you think it makes you suitable......there are lots of jobs which have small aspects of relevance to train driving but not many to the same level as that.........saying that It's not that wise to go overboard with that as i remember reading a trainee advert a few years back where you COULDN'T apply if you were a former HGV driver for some reason so you really do need to focus on your personal qualities as well as qualifications and employment history.

good luck mate

Poolsharks1 said:

Hi all!
I applied to be a train driver some years ago. Although there was trainee posts going, my application got refused without even an interview - Even though I'm educated to university standard and had experience driving double decker buses for 5 years (I know its not the same but its still transportation and a position of Responsibility)

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Do you know any other bus drivers from your company who've gone on to drive trains ?

scott118 said:

However all of that doesn't grant you the job. I have known academic types, declined driving job offers, simply because the mundane, monotony, of driving a train, isn't enough to occupy their intellect. They can be deemed to be high risk, at some TOC's, because of this. Hence no further progression in the process, sadly, for that individual..

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I didn't say it grants you the job but I know for sure you get to the top of the assessment invite list by having this in your application.

I don't think that is the case. Do you have proof?

Dave999 said:

I didn't say it grants you the job but I know for sure you get to the top of the assessment invite list by having this in your application.

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I don't know of any drivers who have converted from bus/coach to rail though, however i'm sure that they exist somewhere.

I know of 30 Firefighters who applied and all got invited to assessment so I'm presuming being in a safety critical role helps a lot.

Your opening post is more a statement than a question, the simple answer is that there were applicants the company thought were better suited (or they stopped recrcuitment altogether - it happens!).

Don't take it personally, do a bit of a self diagnostic, think about the cv and experience examples and try again.

the railway love to employ those who have served in the forces and the fire dept. It's fact. Take a straw poll at any depot and they will be a high percentage of ex forces people there - whether that is simply because they have a mindset to follow simple rules to a high standard, or have the capacity to challenge something, again i don't know.

Driving a bus and a train are completely different entities. Otherwise the railway would be run by ex bus drivers and not ex military personnel. Having a university education and a career in a 'similar industry', doesn't automatically grant you an interview. Look at the other threads re applying for driving grades, and the diversity of their current employment, shows you how difficult it is, to be given the seat.

it's either a 94-96% failure rate, from memory, so don't be to disheartened should you be rejected..

scott118 said:

I don't know of any drivers who have converted from bus/coach to rail though, however i'm sure that they exist somewhere.

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There are lots of ex bus/coach drivers who have made the change to train driving. Me being one of them as are a good number of my colleagues.

driver9000 said:

There are lots of ex bus/coach drivers who have made the change to train driving. Me being one of them as are a good number of my colleagues.

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like i said, i personally don't know of any former bus drivers at my depot. I didn't say that you don't exist, as clearly you have been successful..I guess it all depends on what your TOC are looking for.....

Join the police then apply to Northern at Piccadilly. Must be 10 ex police officers in the job now.

Joining the Police is hard enough lol

Poolsharks1 said:

Hi all!
I applied to be a train driver some years ago. Although there was trainee posts going, my application got refused without even an interview - Even though I'm educated to university standard and had experience driving double decker buses for 5 years (I know its not the same but its still transportation and a position of Responsibility)

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Review the content of your application. "I can drive a bus, ergo I can drive a train" will go in the reject pile.
There are PSV/ HGV drivers who have made the transition; there are also plenty of graduate drivers. The key to a successful application is demonstrating that you have the required transferable skills.

I know a train driver post holds much more responsibility because of the amount of passengers and obviously the speed the trains travel. However i think a bus driver who is well educated would make a good train driver. Bus drivers have to drive 8+ hours a day, whilst dealing with passengers, and the thousands of traffic situations you incurred over the space of a shift.

Nothing gives you an automatic entitlement to interview or move up a step to assessment.

I'd agree the qualities of a Bus Driver would help you as a Train Driver but you still have to go through the same process as everyone else.

Keep applying when vacancies turn up and keep going till you get a rejection. Then contact the TOC for feedback.

Poolsharks1 said:

I know a train driver post holds much more responsibility because of the amount of passengers and obviously the speed the trains travel. However i think a bus driver who is well educated would make a good train driver. Bus drivers have to drive 8+ hours a day, whilst dealing with passengers, and the thousands of traffic situations you incurred over the space of a shift.

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Do you know any bus drivers from where you worked that have gone on to drive trains ? What are their experiences? Did you apply for those Scotrail trainee driver jobs ? How did you get on?

I didnt reapply mate. I started my own business in what i trained to do years ago: locksmithing. Probably a blessing in disguise not getting an interview. i enjoy no having a boss for the first time in my life!

Poolsharks1 said:

I didnt reapply mate. I started my own business in what i trained to do years ago: locksmithing. Probably a blessing in disguise not getting an interview. i enjoy no having a boss for the first time in my life!

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So I'm confused. Are you looking to try and get a train driver job or you're just curious about the application process ?

notadriver said:

So I'm confused. Are you looking to try and get a train driver job or you're just curious about the application process ?

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I was just curious as why i didnt even get an interview when in my opinion i had all the qualities

Poolsharks1 said:

I was just curious as why i didnt even get an interview when in my opinion i had all the qualities

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When sifting applications it could be something as simple as missing one small part out, for instance your height or weight. You need to remember that for one position there are usually over 500 applications that need to be sifted. I have listened to many people who "in their opinion" have the required attributes but have unfortunately never got through the sift time and time again.

It is a very difficult process to get to even the assessment stage. Just keep trying and try to enter into your application the qualities you have to be able to carry out the role.

Ive recently applied for the trainee depot driver at EMT Derby, I deliberated over the application for a few days constantly going over it imagining how I'd perceive it. I did a lot of research into the selection process and highlighted aspects of my working life and personal life to reflect the qualities I think they look for along with skills appropriate to the role.
I think I did my best, if I don't get through then that's going to be disappointing but then I will take some positives from it. The sheer volume of applicants mean you really do need to stand out from the rest and i've read a lot of talk where all applicants naturally think they're the best candidate for the role and perhaps they aren't putting in the extra effort the TOCs want to see?

I've read other threads where people have applied for years with no success so I'm not too disheartened if I don't get through.

Canonite said:

I'm not too disheartened if I don't get through.

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To be fair mate, I wouldn't be either I think there is an element of luck to the sifting process, and an "on the day" element to the testing days.

All the best with your application ??????

Poolsharks1 said:

I was just curious as why i didnt even get an interview when in my opinion i had all the qualities

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the problem is the most important part of the process is opinion based.....THEIRS.

unfortunately there is a big difference between having the qualities for the job and actually getting the job.........like TDK said up to and more than 500 people apply per job so there are probably plenty of those guys within that 500 plus who are equally if not more suited to the job than yourself so it's about making yourself stand out, experience wont get you there on it's own.

i was a conductor for 7 years before getting my driving job and only ever got through a paper sift twice before getting the job (and i was applying for driving at least twice a year for those 7) and one of them was the application where i GOT the job!.....so it certainly isn't a given that just because someone has experience and qualities relating to the job that people will get through paper sifts.

driver9000 said:

There are lots of ex bus/coach drivers who have made the change to train driving. Me being one of them as are a good number of my colleagues.

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A few HGV drivers too, me being one of them