Advice for a Girl who wants to drive a train.

[sarahtheclarke]

Hello Everyone,

I'm a 25 year old Girl. I have always had a deep love for Trains (Most girls had posters of boy bands, I had a photo of the Mallard and Flying Scotsman) and for as long as I can remember I have wanted to drive them as a career. After three years at University and finishing my degree, I have been thinking about career paths and I’m really considering following my dream career path. I have some queries that I hope can be answered.

Is train driving a career that you would recommend to someone?

How do you go about getting a rail-based career / career as a train driver?

Are there women who drive trains? If so, what is the opinion of them?

Anything else you can advise me or think that I should know would be greatly received and appreciated.


Thank you in Advance.
Sarah

 

[Simon11]

What did you study at your university?

There are a huge range of careers opportunities in the rail industry, not just for driving.

 

[SkinnyDave]

Hi Sarah,

All the info you need is on these threads in this section on becoming a driver along with the website www.traindriver.org
My depot has a few women drivers and it is good to see tbh and in my experience they have not been treated any differently nor should they be.
I still believe the grade has to look more in depth at benefits job share and accommodated jobs for women who may fall pregnant etc etc as well as drivers nearing retirement who may want to still work on but not as intense as full time member of their roster.

Best Wishes it is a great career

 

[telstarbox]

Are there women who drive trains?

Funnily enough I asked a similar question the other day and the consensus seems to be 'some but not many'.
http://www.railforums.co.uk/showthread.php?t=117368

This page on the National Careers Service might be useful, although the drivers on here will be able to tell you more specific.
https://nationalcareersservice.direct.gov.uk/advice/planning/jobprofiles/Pages/TrainDriver.aspx

Good luck!

 

[Orchid]

There is a group called "Woman in Rail" who are trying to encourage more females into the industry and gain promotion into higher roles. Worth making contact if you have concerns about being female (not that I gathered that from your post, it's just you mentioned it.) http://womeninrail.org/
Plenty of women drivers out there and they seem to be treated just the same as any male driver, ie taken on individual merit.

 

[E&W Lucas]

Hi,

There's plenty of girls driving trains, and there's plenty of graduates moving onto this career too.

Re this site, concentrate on posts by drivers, not armchair "experts", and especially not sour grapes "you need to be on the platform for 15 years like I've been", from those who can't get the job.

There's plenty written already about what skills you need, so much will depend on what you've been doing work wise since graduation. Also, please get a clear grasp of what the job actually involves - massively anti - social hours and repetitive, if not unpleasant (IMO) work, in particular.

Please also read up on where trainee opportunities arise geographically.

It's all on here already. happy reading, and please come back with any specifics, when you've caught up on the basics.

 

[TomBoyd]

I can't answer most of your questions, but I can say that about 25%of the drivers I talk to are female.

 

[EM2]

A good friend of mine is a female driver, she's been driving on the main line for SouthEastern for about six months.
To give you an idea, she joined the railway as a Customer Service Assistant on a station, then became a Station Controller, then as a Customer Host/Information Co-ordinator (for two different TOCs) and then became a Driver. That's taken her about seven years.
She's a little older (in her mid-30s) but hopefully, that gives you some idea as to what is involved.

 

[Greenback]

Hi SarahtheClarke

There are increasing numbers of women drivers. You can apply for trainee driving jobs that you see, but it's difficult to get a job as there's lots of competition for drivers roles these days, and tests to pass as well. Not everyone can fulfil their ambitions, unfortunately.

You can also apply for any railway job as a way in to the industry, as outlined by EM2. This means that you will have access to internal trainee vacancies, as well as those advertised outside the company and industry. You'll also have a career on the railway, should you want it, even if you don't get to drive trains.

 

[Polar]

I'm a trainee for gtr we had 2 similar aged girls on our course and there's currently at least 5 more females on courses that have started since.
Yes it's mostly blokes but don't let that stop you if it's what you want to do!

 

[Daz9284]

Hi Sarah,

I have a friend who drives for Virgin Trains East Coast. She started in customer services and the help desk on a station with GNER and she applied for trainee driver role and got it. She's been driving for over 5 years and loves it.

I know of another girl who is a trainee driver for Freighliner Heavy Haul and she loves it

Regards
Darryl

 

[irish_rail]

I would imagine being female if anything will help you in the selection process as HR departments are actively trying to up the numbers of women driving trains. It will give you a definite advantage over any male candidates applying.......

Certainly lots more girls entering the industry now, in Cornwall, it seems on the West side at FGW there are a huge number of women drivers at depots like Par - definitely becoming more popular career choice, and I don't think us guys treat any of the girls any differently at all. At my depot Plymouth, we have 2 women drivers (not so many, but it seems the girls prefer the local work generally, not the long distance as we have at Plym).

As long as you can put up with the shifts - and think carefully on that because there are plenty, male and female who have fallen by the wayside because they do not like night shifts or working weekends, or getting up at 3am etc.

Good luck.

 

[TDK]

Hello Everyone,

I'm a 25 year old Girl. I have always had a deep love for Trains (Most girls had posters of boy bands, I had a photo of the Mallard and Flying Scotsman) and for as long as I can remember I have wanted to drive them as a career. After three years at University and finishing my degree, I have been thinking about career paths and I’m really considering following my dream career path. I have some queries that I hope can be answered.

Is train driving a career that you would recommend to someone?

How do you go about getting a rail-based career / career as a train driver?

Are there women who drive trains? If so, what is the opinion of them?

Anything else you can advise me or think that I should know would be greatly received and appreciated.


Thank you in Advance.
Sarah

Is train driving a career that you would recommend to someone?


Yes, the money is good and the job is secure

How do you go about getting a rail-based career / career as a train driver?


Find out your local depots companies, by local I mean within a hour of your fixed residence, go to their website and register with their recruitment section ensuring you receive email alerts when jobs come up.

Are there women who drive trains? If so, what is the opinion of them?


Yes there are, statistically it is about 5% of drivers that are female, what do I think of them? Exactly the same as any other driver.

Anything else you can advise me or think that I should know would be greatly received and appreciated.


Check this forum in the recruitment section for any tips however there are many folk on this forum who think they know best when in fact they do not have a clue. You will be able to tell who is who and who to take advice from by reading posts and responses.

Good luck.

 

[redbutton]

Is train driving a career that you would recommend to someone?

Well, I'm a train driver so I'm probably biased. However, I can definitely say that it depends on what you're hoping to get out of it. I took the job because I'm fascinated by complex systems, both on an institutional level (the rules) and a technical level (the traction). I came from and could go back to a well-paying IT career, so it's not about the money for me. But there is definitely significant earning potential as you're no doubt aware.

How do you go about getting a rail-based career / career as a train driver?

As others have said, do your homework. Find out which companies have driver depots within an hour (by road) from your location. Monitor their websites, and apply the moment a vacancy is posted. Often times driver vacancies are removed within hours, regardless of any closing date mentioned in the advert.

Are there women who drive trains? If so, what is the opinion of them?

Absolutely there are. Unfortunately, the industry was an ol' boys' club until relatively recently, so there aren't nearly as many women as there should be. But there are more joining every day.

Anything else you can advise me or think that I should know would be greatly received and appreciated.

If you want to be a train driver, go for it. The only person who will stand in your way is yourself.

 

[Tomnick]

Yes there are, statistically it is about 5% of drivers that are female, what do I think of them? Exactly the same as any other driver.

This part of TDK's post is one of the most significant points - being female will make little or no difference to the success of your applications! As with other safety critical roles on the railway, work or other experience that you can use to demonstrate that you possess the right "non technical skills" for the job (concentrating for long periods, working under pressure, ability and willingness to learn - that sort of thing) is what matters - which might mean spending some time gaining that experience. Personally, I found that heritage railway experience - used with caution and plenty of thought, and with some 'real' work experience to support it - was really useful for that, albeit for signalling not driving.

Good luck!

 

[Daz9284]

Is train driving a career that you would recommend to someone?


Yes, the money is good and the job is secure

Unfortunately no job is really secure, look at the approx 118 drivers at DBS who are being made redundant

Regards
Darryl

 

[Dave1987]

Unfortunately no job is really secure, look at the approx 118 drivers at DBS who are being made redundant

Regards
Darryl

That's freight though.

 

[sarahtheclarke]

Thank you for all the advice. I have however had to decide that, as much as this is my dream and is a job that I would love and would fulfill my passion for trains, I cannot follow this career path.

Once again Thank you for all your help.
Sarah

 

[the sniper]

Thank you for all the advice. I have however had to decide that, as much as this is my dream and is a job that I would love and would fulfill my passion for trains, I cannot follow this career path.

Once again Thank you for all your help.
Sarah

Just out of curiosity, what changed your mind...?

 

[Tomnick]

Thank you for all the advice. I have however had to decide that, as much as this is my dream and is a job that I would love and would fulfill my passion for trains, I cannot follow this career path.

Once again Thank you for all your help.
Sarah

I made a similar decision a few years ago, Sarah - I decided that, although I'd love nothing more than to work in one of the operating grades on the railway, that it wasn't a career path that I could follow, with some uncertainty in the lower grades and no guarantee of progressing upwards (with a lot of competition and tough assessments). I'd done well at university, so went off into the world of engineering, in another industry. I enjoyed it, but couldn't escape the feeling that I still really wanted to be on the railway! Two years later (three years ago now), after a few attempts, but I got into the signalling grades 'off the street', and I'm loving (almost) every minute of it - I just wish that I'd done it sooner.

Don't give up on the dream if you're sure that it's what you really want to do - that's all!

 

[MartinG]

48 hours on and it's not your dream career anymore? :neutral:

Thank you for all the advice. I have however had to decide that, as much as this is my dream and is a job that I would love and would fulfill my passion for trains, I cannot follow this career path.

Once again Thank you for all your help.
Sarah

 

[hello]

That's freight though.

it is still driving trains though, and would also suggest that nothing is secure, what with cuts on all over the place. what happened to the xc drivers at brighton?

what happened to the wrexham and shropshire drivers?

my advice for getting on to the railway to become a driver, or start in another grade to become a drive later, would be to do what everybody else in life does,

APPLY FOR THE JOB

not rocket science really

 

[inthearea]

Hiya,

Im a girl - 23 - finished uni with a 2:1 in Finance, and I am training with GTR

If your determined you can do it - i got knocked back first time round but second time I got through - I have also just passed my Final rule,

Do it if you really want to.

 

[507021]

Thank you for all the advice. I have however had to decide that, as much as this is my dream and is a job that I would love and would fulfill my passion for trains, I cannot follow this career path.

Once again Thank you for all your help.
Sarah

That's a shame. I'm hoping to be a train driver in the next five or ten years but for now I'm working in catering just to get some work experience before going for what I hope will be my career until I retire. Perhaps you should try working somewhere else first just to get some work experience first before giving it a go in the future?

Never give up on your dream though - even if it means waiting a long time before you achieve it

Hiya,

Im a girl - 23 - finished uni with a 2:1 in Finance, and I am training with GTR

If your determined you can do it - i got knocked back first time round but second time I got through - I have also just passed my Final rule,

Do it if you really want to.

I think it's great to see more women working on the railways. All the very best of luck to you in your career

A very good piece of advice too - as I said above I fully intend on becoming a train driver in the next five or ten years because that's what I would really like to do. I originally wanted to be a doctor but my interest in railways changed that after a few years!

 

[TDK]

what happened to the wrexham and shropshire drivers?

Every one of them got driving jobs with other companies without being off work for even a week, as I said the job is secure. Freight isn't at the moment but the drivers from freight if they are made redundant will be snapped up by other companies. ASLEF plays a huge part in ensuring their members if made redundant are found alternative driving jobs.