GTR Trainee Train Planner 2020

[Ganerirl]

Hey guys, is there any info on the train planner position with GTR

anyone applied ?
knows the process after applying?
what type of candidate do they look for?
any tips?

regards

 

[OliverH68]

I've applied to this twice so let me give a brief rundown. I presume you've applied for it as the vacancy is no longer listed!

Should you pass the initial sift, you'll be invited to do 2 online tests - one testing your numerical skills and one data input test. The latter basically looks at how fast & accurately you can type across data in 5 minutes. Don't fear if you don't complete it, they are merely looking for accuracy but also how much you can do within the timeframe.

If you pass those, you'll be invited to a half-day assessment centre at Go-Ahead House, Croydon which involves a Professional Planning test (you will be sent practise materials for this), followed by a planning exercise. Basically just looking at how you analyse timetables and put that information onto paper based on the question(s) given.

Pass that, and you're onto interview which will be held at the Kings Cross East Side Offices. You'll meet with the managers for Train Planning there and should give examples on how you work within a team & as an individual and various other questions that I can't remember. Main thing here is to give examples - this is where I failed at! Do your research on GTR and the company, what sort of rolling stock & services do they have and mention some current/previous engineering projects, that will go down well. You'll then spend a short amount of time with a planner themselves to go over what the job is like, ask questions etc.

Then find out if you're successful or not! Twice I've done this, first time I got to interview stage but didn't get past that, and second time I didn't get past the assessment. The HR person that has done this is very good and she normally gets back with queries very quickly.

I think the first time I applied, application to interview day was just over a month give or take.

Hopefully that helps!

 

[Bucephalus]

@OliverH68 that's very helpful indeed. I'm totally saving your post in my notes!

I'm curious about applying for that job is it comes up every few months with different tocs but I need to brush up on my spreadsheet skills and keep putting it off

 

[Ganerirl]

I've applied to this twice so let me give a brief rundown. I presume you've applied for it as the vacancy is no longer listed!

Should you pass the initial sift, you'll be invited to do 2 online tests - one testing your numerical skills and one data input test. The latter basically looks at how fast & accurately you can type across data in 5 minutes. Don't fear if you don't complete it, they are merely looking for accuracy but also how much you can do within the timeframe.

If you pass those, you'll be invited to a half-day assessment centre at Go-Ahead House, Croydon which involves a Professional Planning test (you will be sent practise materials for this), followed by a planning exercise. Basically just looking at how you analyse timetables and put that information onto paper based on the question(s) given.

Pass that, and you're onto interview which will be held at the Kings Cross East Side Offices. You'll meet with the managers for Train Planning there and should give examples on how you work within a team & as an individual and various other questions that I can't remember. Main thing here is to give examples - this is where I failed at! Do your research on GTR and the company, what sort of rolling stock & services do they have and mention some current/previous engineering projects, that will go down well. You'll then spend a short amount of time with a planner themselves to go over what the job is like, ask questions etc.

Then find out if you're successful or not! Twice I've done this, first time I got to interview stage but didn't get past that, and second time I didn't get past the assessment. The HR person that has done this is very good and she normally gets back with queries very quickly.

I think the first time I applied, application to interview day was just over a month give or take.

Hopefully that helps!

Thank you very much for all that information
I had applied for the role at Kings Cross

Unfortunately they did not consider me , I know I aced that data test however I did not receive a numerical one. hmmm

Ive never worked within the railway sector maybe that why?? sigh

BUT AGAIN thank you so much Ive been looking everywhere for a little bit of information regarding. YOU ARE A STAR

btw this but it seems like this is a very particular job or do they branch off into different sectors within GTR ??

 

[Ganerirl]

@OliverH68 that's very helpful indeed. I'm totally saving your post in my notes!

I'm curious about applying for that job is it comes up every few months with different tocs but I need to brush up on my spreadsheet skills and keep putting it off

If you do apply (which you should ) or know anyone who works a similar position within the company please get some inside tips pretty please
and see your talking about brushing up tips on excel I feel like im nearly a master and they didnt want a thing to do with me

 

[Ianno87]

Thank you very much for all that information
I had applied for the role at Kings Cross

Unfortunately they did not consider me , I know I aced that data test however I did not receive a numerical one. hmmm

Ive never worked within the railway sector maybe that why?? sigh

BUT AGAIN thank you so much Ive been looking everywhere for a little bit of information regarding. YOU ARE A STAR

btw this but it seems like this is a very particular job or do they branch off into different sectors within GTR ??

Planners are regularly recruited from outside the industry.

I'd imagime GTR's planners probably do different things internally from time to time, i.e. you won't just do "Southern" all the time.

I'd emphasise in the interview that it is not about showing how much you know about trains. Read up on GTR's business, the key brands and services they operate, and what might be important for GTR to consider when building the timetable (and how this might differ across the whole network). Remember also that the timetable is not just about the trains.

 

[OliverH68]

Thank you very much for all that information
I had applied for the role at Kings Cross

Unfortunately they did not consider me , I know I aced that data test however I did not receive a numerical one. hmmm

Ive never worked within the railway sector maybe that why?? sigh

BUT AGAIN thank you so much Ive been looking everywhere for a little bit of information regarding. YOU ARE A STAR

btw this but it seems like this is a very particular job or do they branch off into different sectors within GTR ??

I think you have to pass one test in order to progress to the next. Remember - they are more looking for accuracy with an element of speed in it. Having touch typing skills REALLY helps with this.

I wouldn't put it down to not being from the railway sector. As Ianno87 says, many will come outside from the sector. I wanted to jump in from the IT sector (although working for public transport so maybe you could say I came from a semi-rail background?!).

Also I wouldn't worry too much about your Excel skills. Long as you have the basic stuff and perhaps an IT certification to back it up, that should be fine.

They tend to advertise for this twice a year - usually around September/October they will advertise again.

 

[Ganerirl]

I think you have to pass one test in order to progress to the next. Remember - they are more looking for accuracy with an element of speed in it. Having touch typing skills REALLY helps with this.

I wouldn't put it down to not being from the railway sector. As Ianno87 says, many will come outside from the sector. I wanted to jump in from the IT sector (although working for public transport so maybe you could say I came from a semi-rail background?!).

Also I wouldn't worry too much about your Excel skills. Long as you have the basic stuff and perhaps an IT certification to back it up, that should be fine.

They tend to advertise for this twice a year - usually around September/October they will advertise again.

Thank you very much on the advice, those are definitely skills I can on .
Hopefully, Ill keep a look out. I also applied for the section planner role at network rail, doubt it anything will come of it (miracle?). I am becoming quite interested in pushing for a role with in the railway sector it seem so fascinating and never ending.

 

[Ganerirl]

Planners are regularly recruited from outside the industry.

I'd imagime GTR's planners probably do different things internally from time to time, i.e. you won't just do "Southern" all the time.

I'd emphasise in the interview that it is not about showing how much you know about trains. Read up on GTR's business, the key brands and services they operate, and what might be important for GTR to consider when building the timetable (and how this might differ across the whole network). Remember also that the timetable is not just about the trains.

Thank you so much for the advise, I can definitely put this to use. Hopefully I get a second chance to get my foot in the door lol

 

[TFN]

Hello all,

I've just been invited to an online interview in 2 weeks time.

If you pass those, you'll be invited to a half-day assessment centre at Go-Ahead House, Croydon which involves a Professional Planning test (you will be sent practise materials for this), followed by a planning exercise. Basically just looking at how you analyse timetables and put that information onto paper based on the question(s) given.

Pass that, and you're onto interview which will be held at the Kings Cross East Side Offices. You'll meet with the managers for Train Planning there and should give examples on how you work within a team & as an individual and various other questions that I can't remember. Main thing here is to give examples - this is where I failed at! Do your research on GTR and the company, what sort of rolling stock & services do they have and mention some current/previous engineering projects, that will go down well. You'll then spend a short amount of time with a planner themselves to go over what the job is like, ask questions etc.

Which one would be the one I'm invited for as I haven't done the half-day assessment and they haven't sent any material over yet to go through. Thank you

 

[OliverH68]

Hello all,

I've just been invited to an online interview in 2 weeks time.



Which one would be the one I'm invited for as I haven't done the half-day assessment and they haven't sent any material over yet to go through. Thank you

You have to pass the online tests first before you are invited for the assessment.

 

[TFN]

You have to pass the online tests first before you are invited for the assessment.

I have done the online tests and have an interview scheduled in two weeks. I'm guessing due to the pandemic they are skipping the usual assessment centre in Croydon?
Does any one know what kind of reading I should be doing before the interview?

Thank you

 

[OliverH68]

I have done the online tests and have an interview scheduled in two weeks. I'm guessing due to the pandemic they are skipping the usual assessment centre in Croydon?
Does any one know what kind of reading I should be doing before the interview?

Thank you

Oh! Must be a change this time around then.

Read up on what GTR are, good to mention what services they run, where they operate. Engineering projects etc.

Then talk about stuff where you've been involved in teamwork before, working to tight deadlines. Give examples.

 

[TFN]

Oh! Must be a change this time around then.

Read up on what GTR are, good to mention what services they run, where they operate. Engineering projects etc.

Then talk about stuff where you've been involved in teamwork before, working to tight deadlines. Give examples.

Thank you much appreciated

 

[trainhun]

Hi, would you be able to provide an update on how it went and the sort of questions they asked?

If not, no worries of course! But I have an interview in a few days time for a different TOC and I have no idea what they'll be asking.

 

[Eloise]

I do a lot of recruiting for Planners and I would say well over 90% come from outside the railway. Most also don't appear to be enthusiasts so really is an open field.

 

[trainhun]

I do a lot of recruiting for Planners and I would say well over 90% come from outside the railway. Most also don't appear to be enthusiasts so really is an open field.

This is nice to hear - thank you! I have no experience of planning in any sector and no experience within the rail/transport sector at all - I'm quite worried as to how I'll be able to demonstrate that I'm right for the job in this regard. But then I also assumed that if they needed those with experience they wouldn't have shortlisted someone with no experience at all for an interview

 

[OliverH68]

This is nice to hear - thank you! I have no experience of planning in any sector and no experience within the rail/transport sector at all - I'm quite worried as to how I'll be able to demonstrate that I'm right for the job in this regard. But then I also assumed that if they needed those with experience they wouldn't have shortlisted someone with no experience at all for an interview

You don't need planning experience to be a train planner from the ground up. I finally got into a planning role with a different TOC to start in November and I come from an IT background (working on a non-mainline TOC mind you!). You just need to show examples of competencies when asked with some examples, and some railway knowledge is beneficial - especially routes and rolling stock used by the relevant TOC.

 

[Goodperson]

I have done the online tests and have an interview scheduled in two weeks. I'm guessing due to the pandemic they are skipping the usual assessment centre in Croydon?
Does any one know what kind of reading I should be doing before the interview?

Thank you

How was the assessment what was all about?

I've applied to this twice so let me give a brief rundown. I presume you've applied for it as the vacancy is no longer listed!

Should you pass the initial sift, you'll be invited to do 2 online tests - one testing your numerical skills and one data input test. The latter basically looks at how fast & accurately you can type across data in 5 minutes. Don't fear if you don't complete it, they are merely looking for accuracy but also how much you can do within the timeframe.

If you pass those, you'll be invited to a half-day assessment centre at Go-Ahead House, Croydon which involves a Professional Planning test (you will be sent practise materials for this), followed by a planning exercise. Basically just looking at how you analyse timetables and put that information onto paper based on the question(s) given.

Pass that, and you're onto interview which will be held at the Kings Cross East Side Offices. You'll meet with the managers for Train Planning there and should give examples on how you work within a team & as an individual and various other questions that I can't remember. Main thing here is to give examples - this is where I failed at! Do your research on GTR and the company, what sort of rolling stock & services do they have and mention some current/previous engineering projects, that will go down well. You'll then spend a short amount of time with a planner themselves to go over what the job is like, ask questions etc.

Then find out if you're successful or not! Twice I've done this, first time I got to interview stage but didn't get past that, and second time I didn't get past the assessment. The HR person that has done this is very good and she normally gets back with queries very quickly.

I think the first time I applied, application to interview day was just over a month give or take.

Hopefully that helps!

Once you passed your assessment you must tell the Recruitment any assessment taken availability is for 5 years when you apply and shortlisted. You are able to apply after 6 months.

Hey guys, is there any info on the train planner position with GTR

anyone applied ?
knows the process after applying?
what type of candidate do they look for?
any tips?

regards

Have you done the test data admin test? How it was?

 

[DorkingMain]

I applied to work in train planning for GTR a long time ago.

I went for an assessment day, interview, etc. - various gruelling questions about my understanding of their network, some tests with things like timetables to work out basic plans.

After that I then heard nothing for 3 months, got no response to my attempts to contact recruitment and then eventually received an email(!) saying they were sorry to hear that I'd withdrawn my application.

I sincerely hope their recruitment methods are better than that now.

 

[Bucephalus]

I applied to work in train planning for GTR a long time ago.

I went for an assessment day, interview, etc. - various gruelling questions about my understanding of their network, some tests with things like timetables to work out basic plans.

After that I then heard nothing for 3 months, got no response to my attempts to contact recruitment and then eventually received an email(!) saying they were sorry to hear that I'd withdrawn my application.

I sincerely hope their recruitment methods are better than that now.

I'm sorry to hear that. You'd think they'd put you in a talent pool or something for the next position