GWR Apprenticeship

[CMRail]

Hello,

I am currently at the point where I need to decide what on earth I am going to do with my life. I have looked into many things but the railway is something that will always outway the benefits of other jobs. I was wondering the chances of going for a Conductor/Train Manager role after the Operations Apprenticeship is a good idea? I feel that the role isn’t oven fulfilled by the younger generation.

 

[Tom Quinne]

This scheme has seen a huge number of people rise from trainees to guards and drivers within years so it’s a very very good way to archive in a sought after industry, probably one of if not the only good think GWR has done for its staff in the las half a dozen years.

 

[FGW_DID]

If you get a chance to go for the apprenticeship, go for it! When I first started with the company and was on the platforms, most of the young enthusiasts who were on the platforms spotting and who joined the scheme, all got employed and are now as far and wide as Condictor for Northern, a Ticket Office (after working the Gateline for a short while) and Driver (started as Dispatcher).

You also get enrolled in the IRO and complete their Certificate level qualification.

If you are more technically / mechanically minded, GWR also do an engineering apprenticeship.

 

[CMRail]

Thank you very much for the replies. I have always wanted to become a Train Manager and I am the type of person to already know platform lengths, signals, train frequencies, connections etc so I think it would be a valuable career. The pay seems good for the Conductor/Train manager role as well which is always a benefit comparing to other jobs where I wouldn’t know as much.

 

[Tom Quinne]

Believe me you think you know, but you don’t.

Please, please don’t go into any recruitment event giving off the impression you know anything other than the bare bones info about the company that they expect you to know.

Never tell them you know platform lengths etc, not unless your already in the role your applying for and sign the route.

 

[tiptoptaff]

Never tell them you know platform lengths etc, not unless your already in the role your applying for and sign the route.

This.

They will lead down the rabbit hole and deliberately draw you in to making mistakes and exposing your lack of knowledge during the interview phase. It may sound patronising, but when it comes to route knowledge, if they haven't taught you it, you don't know it. Simple as that.
Just stick to the basics. The young spotter's "I know a lot" mistake is made often. They don't want spotters. Come across as one and they will filter you out. Just because you know the length of a platform somewhere, doesn't mean you know anything about the job.

The apprenticeship is a great ENTRY LEVEL scheme. You are not expected to know anything, so forget what you think you know and let them teach you. A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.

 

[CMRail]

Sorry for just making a point

 

[tiptoptaff]

Sorry for just making a point

And its snarky attitudes like that to people who work/have worked for GWR that will do you absolutely no good whatsoever

 

[CMRail]

And its snarky attitudes like that to people who work/have worked for GWR that will do you absolutely no good whatsoever

Firstly, in my original message I was quoting certain jobs within the industry rather than the apprenticeship in particular. It was a small comment that I made saying that I am one to find stupid things like that interesting and I was expressing why I think that it was a good idea.

 

[Numbnuts846]

Firstly, in my original message I was quoting certain jobs within the industry rather than the apprenticeship in particular. It was a small comment that I made saying that I am one to find stupid things like that interesting and I was expressing why I think that it was a good idea.

I was taught by some really good railway men and women.....
You know nothing untill you are trained in that role and you still no nothing untill you have done a few years of a job under your belt
In 21 years later I'm still learning everyday, I've seen people come and go because they cant hack the railway , I've seen staff punched for being cocky ( time and a place to be cocky) .. if you go to an interview be a blank slate

 

[CMRail]

I was taught by some really good railway men and women.....
You know nothing untill you are trained in that role and you still no nothing untill you have done a few years of a job under your belt
In 21 years later I'm still learning everyday, I've seen people come and go because they cant hack the railway , I've seen staff punched for being cocky ( time and a place to be cocky) .. if you go to an interview be a blank slate

Maybe the way I wrote my messages did come across as... well selfish and certainly not humble of me to have used that attitude. Apologies.

 

[Tom Quinne]

And its snarky attitudes like that to people who work/have worked for GWR that will do you absolutely no good whatsoever

This lad will go really far when people take the time offer advice but have it returned with rolling eyes...in future I won’t bother kidda.

 

[Melancholia]

Hello,

I am currently at the point where I need to decide what on earth I am going to do with my life. I have looked into many things but the railway is something that will always outway the benefits of other jobs. I was wondering the chances of going for a Conductor/Train Manager role after the Operations Apprenticeship is a good idea? I feel that the role isn’t oven fulfilled by the younger generation.

Go for it buddy. I started off as an Apprentice for GWR in 2015, and my career has taken me different parts of the railway industry. From ticket office, to dispatch, and now in March 2019 I will be attending an interview for a Trainee Train Driver role. Only your attitude to the job will affect whether you progress well in the railway. All of this in less than 4 years, and I'm at a very young age, probably like yourself.

When the vacancy pops up for the apprenticeship, I say send an application through. My time as an apprentice I will remember as the best time of my life, as it was the first door I stepped into to join the railway industry.

If you have any questions about the apprenticeship scheme, feel free to send a PM and I'll do my best to help.

 

[Bennski]

With people saying go into an interview as a "blank slate" what do you mean by that? As in how much should I know about the company I'm applying for? Things I think I should know going into an interview are the stations, routes and perhaps the traction they run? These seem like very bare bones facts and shows I have done a little research. Or are these too much and do they prefer someone with even less knowledge than that?
Also I am a young person looking to join the railways and I think taking an apprenticeship is probably the best chance I have of joining as I feel for the most part most TOC's wont even consider you just based on my age...

 

[Melancholia]

With people saying go into an interview as a "blank slate" what do you mean by that? As in how much should I know about the company I'm applying for? Things I think I should know going into an interview are the stations, routes and perhaps the traction they run? These seem like very bare bones facts and shows I have done a little research. Or are these too much and do they prefer someone with even less knowledge than that?
Also I am a young person looking to join the railways and I think taking an apprenticeship is probably the best chance I have of joining as I feel for the most part most TOC's wont even consider you just based on my age...

I'd say the best knowledge to take in would be not ones an "enthusiast" might know, but more of about the organisation side of things. So what sort of investment is going on within the company, and upgrade works going on. Who owns the TOC and how long they have had the franchise for.

A bit of research into the background of operations in the TOC will go an extra mile, and will show you're interested in joining the company, especially if you research the topics I've listed in the previous paragraph.

 

[CMRail]

Go for it buddy. I started off as an Apprentice for GWR in 2015, and my career has taken me different parts of the railway industry. From ticket office, to dispatch, and now in March 2019 I will be attending an interview for a Trainee Train Driver role. Only your attitude to the job will affect whether you progress well in the railway. All of this in less than 4 years, and I'm at a very young age, probably like yourself.

When the vacancy pops up for the apprenticeship, I say send an application through. My time as an apprentice I will remember as the best time of my life, as it was the first door I stepped into to join the railway industry.

If you have any questions about the apprenticeship scheme, feel free to send a PM and I'll do my best to help.

Thanks and good luck in the interview!

 

[tiptoptaff]

This lad will go really far when people take the time offer advice but have it returned with rolling eyes...in future I won’t bother kidda.

Hey, at least we can say we tried.