A career as a signaller

[Rockhopper]

Does anybody else here think that they did really badly on the online tests for signaller, but actually got through? Be interested to hear from anyone who has succeeded in this way?

Yes, i personally think the bench mark is not especially high but certainly the higher your score the better chance you have of getting an interview. You'll potentially be competing with upwards of one hundred other people who got through as well.

 

[WoollyMammoth]

Does anybody else here think that they did really badly on the online tests for signaller, but actually got through? Be interested to hear from anyone who has succeeded in this way?

Yes I did quite badly on the situational judgement test I think! I actually got rejected at the sift prior to interview on a number of occasions. I went past the despair stage and kept trying and I’ve very recently been sent out the pre-offer for a dream job. I’ve got the medical to go. Just keep at it if you really want the job, focus on your non-technical skills and the other bits relevant to working for Network Rail in preparation for an interview! You can ask the recruitment team to redo the tests after 6 months I think? Good luck in either case!

 

[iwasyoungonce]

Yes, i personally think the bench mark is not especially high but certainly the higher your score the better chance you have of getting an interview. You'll potentially be competing with upwards of one hundred other people who got through as well.

I have applied for a few vacancies grade 2 to 6 and been told every time I had reached the required benchmark.
I can only assume from this that the benchmark is the same for any vacancy regardless of grade ?

 

[Fezza74]

Hello,

I was supposed to have my medical on 26th March at King's Cross but, understandably, Optima Health called and cancelled the day before, and of course they weren't able to give me an alternative date. They just said they would prioritise the cancelled appoints when it's all up and running again. So now, like everyone else, am playing the waiting game and just hoping things get under control soon! I just want to get the medical done and get a start date!
Anyone else in the same boat?

 

[Tom Quinne]

With regards to the Worcester vacancies.. Does anybody know which boxes they are looking to fill and which are closest to South Wales? I live in Newport so trying to work out whether or not it would be commutable for me to make enough sense to apply. Thanks in advance

Worcester will cover the local SB, I think there are three in the immediate station area still all grade 4 or 5, Worcester is about an hour from Newport up the the M50.

Starting up there would give you a very good chance of side stepping onto the Marches to be closer to home as well.

Avoid the “Evesham” vacancy if you want close to home, that probably covers the three or four Cotswold SB grade 2 and 3, worse case it could be the first box up from Oxford Workstation at TVSC!

 

[railwanabe]

Just got the thumbs down for three bridges ASC

 

[Javagem]

Hey guys to anybody that maybe coming up to interview stage etc here is my personal timeline to give u a heads up.
January 2019 - applied for job
February 2019 - interview
March 2019 - finally found out i got the job
July - 2019 officially started employment
End of july 2019 - started signalling school
October 2019 - finished signalling school
November 2019 - TCB conversion course
Early March 2020 - Rules verified
End of March 2020 - passed out grade 2 box
29th March 2020 - First shift in box

Obviously this sort of timescale can change from location to location and i applied for a grade 2 position so my 'training pay' was the lowest grade, but may just give you a little insight what to expect. Financially this last year has been a struggle but my passion and determination for the job got me through. I would say its important to have a similar passion if you are serious about being a signaller because there are tough times ahead before you can really appreciate the job. Hope this doesn't put anyone off just thought i'd offer a brief descriptiom of my personal experience of applying and training to become a signaller.

that’s a good insight, thanks for sharing.

 

[Javagem]

Does anybody else here think that they did really badly on the online tests for signaller, but actually got through? Be interested to hear from anyone who has succeeded in this way?

You can request your scores from the recruitment team too to see how you’ve done.

 

[Kraken]

Hey guys to anybody that maybe coming up to interview stage etc here is my personal timeline to give u a heads up.
January 2019 - applied for job
February 2019 - interview
March 2019 - finally found out i got the job
July - 2019 officially started employment
End of july 2019 - started signalling school
October 2019 - finished signalling school
November 2019 - TCB conversion course
Early March 2020 - Rules verified
End of March 2020 - passed out grade 2 box
29th March 2020 - First shift in box

Obviously this sort of timescale can change from location to location and i applied for a grade 2 position so my 'training pay' was the lowest grade, but may just give you a little insight what to expect. Financially this last year has been a struggle but my passion and determination for the job got me through. I would say its important to have a similar passion if you are serious about being a signaller because there are tough times ahead before you can really appreciate the job. Hope this doesn't put anyone off just thought i'd offer a brief descriptiom of my personal experience of applying and training to become a signaller.

that’s a good insight, thanks for sharing.

Seconded, thanks LincsBobby

 

[railwanabe]

I’ve passed the benchmark, didn’t progress through to interview. Feel like a failure.

 

[89jordanbj]

Worcester will cover the local SB, I think there are three in the immediate station area still all grade 4 or 5, Worcester is about an hour from Newport up the the M50.

Starting up there would give you a very good chance of side stepping onto the Marches to be closer to home as well.

Avoid the “Evesham” vacancy if you want close to home, that probably covers the three or four Cotswold SB grade 2 and 3, worse case it could be the first box up from Oxford Workstation at TVSC!

Great advice as always thanks Tom. Do you know if they work on a 12 hour roster or 8? I can deal with the hour or so commutes if I knew I was getting more rest days to save on fuel. Will put my application in this afternoon

 

[Kraken]

Just got the thumbs down for three bridges ASC

Sorry to hear that - best of luck with the next application

 

[WoollyMammoth]

I’ve passed the benchmark, didn’t progress through to interview. Feel like a failure.

Mate I wouldn’t be too disheartened. That vacancy was open for a month and it’s only for 6 people! Plus it’s a grade 9, it must have had thousands of applications.

 

[LOM]

I’ve passed the benchmark, didn’t progress through to interview. Feel like a failure.

I am sorry to hear that. In my experience as a hiring manager the vast majority of applicants pass the SHL tests. If there are a lot of applicants for a job it then comes down to the quality of your CV to progress to an interview. Typically we only interview 5 or 6 applicants for each post. It is a numbers game unfortunately. Perhaps you should ask a friend to take a look at your CV with a critical eye to make sure it is as polished as you can make it.

 

[ArchangelA]

I am sorry to hear that. In my experience as a hiring manager the vast majority of applicants pass the SHL tests. If there are a lot of applicants for a job it then comes down to the quality of your CV to progress to an interview. Typically we only interview 5 or 6 applicants for each post. It is a numbers game unfortunately. Perhaps you should ask someone to take a look at your CV woth a critical eye to make sure it is as polished as you can make it.

If someone had an outstanding level of evidence in their 70 questions, also a great CV, would that take precedence over low SHL online test scores?

 

[ArchangelA]

If someone had an outstanding level of evidence in their 70 questions, also a great CV, would that take precedence over low SHL online test scores?

I mean if that same person did rubbish on the tests but achieved the benchmark

 

[LOM]

If someone had an outstanding level of evidence in their 70 questions, also a great CV, would that take precedence over low SHL online test scores?

The hiring manager does not get to see the SHL score, only whether or not the applicant has sat/passed/failed the SHL tests. I would like to post a screenshot of what the hiring manager sees but I do not think that would be allowed.

 

[ArchangelA]

The hiring manager does not get to see the SHL score, only whether or not the applicant has sat/passed/failed the SHL tests. I would like to post a screenshot of what the hiring manager sees but I do not think that would be allowed.

So it's basically down to HR sending you the list of what they think are the best?

 

[MostlyHarmless]

Hey guys to anybody that maybe coming up to interview stage etc here is my personal timeline to give u a heads up.
January 2019 - applied for job
February 2019 - interview
March 2019 - finally found out i got the job
July - 2019 officially started employment
End of july 2019 - started signalling school
October 2019 - finished signalling school
November 2019 - TCB conversion course
Early March 2020 - Rules verified
End of March 2020 - passed out grade 2 box
29th March 2020 - First shift in box

Obviously this sort of timescale can change from location to location and i applied for a grade 2 position so my 'training pay' was the lowest grade, but may just give you a little insight what to expect. Financially this last year has been a struggle but my passion and determination for the job got me through. I would say its important to have a similar passion if you are serious about being a signaller because there are tough times ahead before you can really appreciate the job. Hope this doesn't put anyone off just thought i'd offer a brief descriptiom of my personal experience of applying and training to become a signaller.

Thanks for posting this - it's really helpful. I've just been offered a position so I'm wondering how you found signalling school?

 

[MostlyHarmless]

Yes I did quite badly on the situational judgement test I think! I actually got rejected at the sift prior to interview on a number of occasions. I went past the despair stage and kept trying and I’ve very recently been sent out the pre-offer for a dream job. I’ve got the medical to go. Just keep at it if you really want the job, focus on your non-technical skills and the other bits relevant to working for Network Rail in preparation for an interview! You can ask the recruitment team to redo the tests after 6 months I think? Good luck in either case!

What he said.

I think I did pretty badly at the maths part of the tests and got knocked back a few times but have just landed the same job as @WoollyMammoth

 

[Sussexdrummer]

deleted

 

[Mi&Li]

Hey guys to anybody that maybe coming up to interview stage etc here is my personal timeline to give u a heads up.
January 2019 - applied for job
February 2019 - interview
March 2019 - finally found out i got the job
July - 2019 officially started employment
End of july 2019 - started signalling school
October 2019 - finished signalling school
November 2019 - TCB conversion course
Early March 2020 - Rules verified
End of March 2020 - passed out grade 2 box
29th March 2020 - First shift in box

Obviously this sort of timescale can change from location to location and i applied for a grade 2 position so my 'training pay' was the lowest grade, but may just give you a little insight what to expect. Financially this last year has been a struggle but my passion and determination for the job got me through. I would say its important to have a similar passion if you are serious about being a signaller because there are tough times ahead before you can really appreciate the job. Hope this doesn't put anyone off just thought i'd offer a brief descriptiom of my personal experience of applying and training to become a signaller.

Great insight, thanks for that. Which box are you working at?

 

[Lee1280]

What he said.

I think I did pretty badly at the maths part of the tests and got knocked back a few times but have just landed the same job as @WoollyMammoth

Me too! Congrats!

 

[Chaz T]

The hiring manager does not get to see the SHL score, only whether or not the applicant has sat/passed/failed the SHL tests. I would like to post a screenshot of what the hiring manager sees but I do not think that would be allowed.

Your insight in previous posts is actually worth far more to those of us trying to secure a role as a Signaller. As someone that has failed to reach even one interview against the numerous applications I was beginning to get extremely disheartened as I was completely unsure what I was doing wrong.

I took a break from applying as I was concerned that my name would simply be seen by the hiring manager and have them go 'Oh, that one again' and passed over. I have now been right through everything that needs to be submitted and started applying again. Here's hoping

 

[MostlyHarmless]

Me too! Congrats!

Congrats to you too! Feltham?

 

[Lee1280]

Congrats to you too! Feltham?

Yes, Feltham! Was really nice to get that email confirmation especially in current climate

 

[Tom Quinne]

Great advice as always thanks Tom. Do you know if they work on a 12 hour roster or 8? I can deal with the hour or so commutes if I knew I was getting more rest days to save on fuel. Will put my application in this afternoon

I don’t know I’m afraid mate, probably a mix (worst kind in my personal view) 8hrs during the week with 12s on the weekend.

The plus side is all the Worcester area SB are nice and busy, so itll keep you interested, and more importantly tick lots of boxes on the competency interview and application (the 69 questions).

 

[High Dyke]

I appreciate these questions get asked a lot but would anybody be able to say whether the boxes at Rauceby and Sibsey are on 8 hours, 12 hours, or a mixture of both? Also would I be correct in thinking they are both Absolute Block?

I know it’s not the primary concern but I think grade 2 pay may be marginal for me and both those boxes would be quite a commute. They look to be lovely rural locations though! I’m strongly tempted but I don’t want to do it if commuting costs will make life a struggle. Thanks in advance for any help.

Sorry, I hadn't spotted this post earlier. As Tomnick posted. To add, both locations have manual worked gates, with a CCTV crossing at Rauceby. The shift patterns are just over 8 hours on both early & late turns (Mon - Sat). Currently Sibsey has one Sunday shift all year round; Rauceby has two Sunday shifts between May - September (Summer), and one shift during September - May (Winter).

 

[Allaboard78]

A few people on here have mentioned just getting in anywhere and then moving because you have access to the infamous internal list. Is there anyone here that can tell me how many internal vacancies are currently in the wroc? Thank you to all the invaluable advice on this forum. It's such a good help.

 

[High Dyke]

A few people on here have mentioned just getting in anywhere and then moving because you have access to the infamous internal list. Is there anyone here that can tell me how many internal vacancies are currently in the wroc? Thank you to all the invaluable advice on this forum. It's such a good help.

If it's Wales ROC, internal list currently shows 1 signaller vacancy. If you meant Basingstoke (Wessex) then there are none shown.