Assessments & Medicals discussion

[Iskra]

Can anyone please provide any information on what the eyesight component of a medical might look like for a Guard role?

I have one eye that is up to driving (cars) standard, but the other is a bit dodgy.

 

[Horizon22]

Can anyone please provide any information on what the eyesight component of a medical might look like for a Guard role?

I have one eye that is up to driving (cars) standard, but the other is a bit dodgy.

Is the “dodgy” eye corrected with glasses?

 

[Iskra]

Is the “dodgy” eye corrected with glasses?

Yes

 

[Horizon22]

Yes

Then you should be fine, as they'll test via corrected vision anyway.

 

[Iskra]

Then you should be fine, as they'll test via corrected vision anyway.

Oh, that's amazing. I've got an offer pending medical etc, and that was my biggest concern

 

[Horizon22]

Oh, that's amazing. I've got an offer pending medical etc, and that was my biggest concern

Yes, they'll do both corrected and uncorrected tests.

 

[rjs450]

I have recently passed the mmi and have a dmi coming up for GTR. Does anybody have any advice on how to approach the dmi? Will I be asked similar questions? Thanks!

 

[GPR]

Hello all,

I'm after a general concensus opinion:

I have a medical very soon for a Trainee Driver role. I'm in excellent shape and I don't think I'll have any issues with my physical health.

What does concern me a little is that I had a 3 month bout of depression in 2019 - This was due to a bereavement reaction and I was prescribed anti-depressants to get me through it. I've had no mental health concerns since - the counselling I received gave me the tools to manage my Mental health, and I can honestly say that I've been nowhere near where I was back then.

Do you think there are any implications for the medical?

I want to be completely open and transparent throughout, having got this far - I don't want to stop the show.

I'd be grateful for any opinions and advice from anyone who has been in a similar position.

Thanks in advance

You should be perfectly fine.
I know of someone who had mental health issues more recent than 7 years and they are driving now.

 

[ndjefc82]

You should be perfectly fine.
I know of someone who had mental health issues more recent than 7 years and they are driving now.

Thank you

 

[annor62]

Hi,

I'm really wanting a career in railway and the Network Rail mechanical engineering grad scheme looks like a great option, but I'm red-green colour blind and was wondering what impact that could have. Would it be possible to work on non track things like design or depot work, or will this rule me out. Also would Network Rail be flexible in their approach and try to make it work or is this just a deal breaker.

Many thanks.

 

[lachlan]

I was told being partially sighted would not be a problem, that they would accommodate me, and I just needed to do the medical to see how I could be accommodated for their electrical engineering grad scheme. I did the medical and was told I couldn't do the job, one month before the start date and no accommodations were offered.

Make of that what you will.

 

[Patrick001]

Hi all,

I appreciate this may have already been asked (and I've done a fair amount of scrolling back through the forum over the past few days), but does anyone have any tips on the MMI, specifically for Northern? I've got this coming up and based on the previous comments it seems to be the biggest unknown of the process. Are they looking for us to use the situations to help demonstrate examples of where we have shown certain non-technical skills useful for the role? There also seems to be some form of criteria, which varies for each question although this is understandably never said.

I've seen the list of potential questions and will prep accordingly, but compared to all of the other psychometrics it does seem all rather vague.

 

[UTV1982]

Hi all,

I appreciate this may have already been asked (and I've done a fair amount of scrolling back through the forum over the past few days), but does anyone have any tips on the MMI, specifically for Northern? I've got this coming up and based on the previous comments it seems to be the biggest unknown of the process. Are they looking for us to use the situations to help demonstrate examples of where we have shown certain non-technical skills useful for the role? There also seems to be some form of criteria, which varies for each question although this is understandably never said.

I've seen the list of potential questions and will prep accordingly, but compared to all of the other psychometrics it does seem all rather vague.

Hi, I've got my MMI on Tuesday and I've recorded my answers for those 6 questions using STAR. I put the NTS in to chatgpt and had it cross reference them with my answers. I'm not saying I'm doing it right or wrong but it sounds similar to what you have been thinking.

 

[Iskra]

I was told being partially sighted would not be a problem, that they would accommodate me, and I just needed to do the medical to see how I could be accommodated for their electrical engineering grad scheme. I did the medical and was told I couldn't do the job, one month before the start date and no accommodations were offered.

Make of that what you will.

When was this, as I believe rules on eyesight have been relaxed fairly recently?

 

[roadwarrior8]

I had a dmi over ten days ago and haven’t heard a thing since, will they get in touch with a fail or is it best I contact them? I’ve seen different results with some people receiving results the same day or three days later, all the other tests I completed I heard within 5 days. Cheers

 

[Madisuperstar]

If you don’t mind to tell who it was with which TOC and how it went quite intense like MMI or normal

 

[LondonRrd]

I had a dmi over ten days ago and haven’t heard a thing since, will they get in touch with a fail or is it best I contact them? I’ve seen different results with some people receiving results the same day or three days later, all the other tests I completed I heard within 5 days. Cheers

It took 3 weeks until I heard that I was successful with the DMI interview so hang in there. I know the waiting is a killer.

 

[Madisuperstar]

It took 3 weeks until I heard that I was successful with the DMI interview so hang in there. I know the waiting is a killer.

Which TOC is it for and how it went intense or calmer than MMI

 

[roadwarrior8]

It took 3 weeks until I heard that I was successful with the DMI interview so hang in there. I know the waiting is a killer.

Yeah, I was thinking that if I was getting binned I would rather be told now than having to endure this wait to be binned at the end of it.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 31 Mar 2026 ==

Which TOC is it for and how it went intense or calmer than MMI

ScotRail. Yes very intense in comparison to mmi, think it depends on the interviewers.

 

[hb129]

Have any trainee drivers recently completed a pre-employment medical with Medigold?

Wondered exactly what questions were asked on the online questionnaire.

Was there any reference to specific timespans with medical history (e.g. "... in the last 12 months" or "... in the last 5 years ")?

I know they're probably looking at total medical history but wondered if there were specific time periods they mention too and how long those periods are

 

[mickeyC]

Have any trainee drivers recently completed a pre-employment medical with Medigold?

Wondered exactly what questions were asked on the online questionnaire.

Was there any reference to specific timespans with medical history (e.g. "... in the last 12 months" or "... in the last 5 years ")?

I know they're probably looking at total medical history but wondered if there were specific time periods they mention too and how long those periods are

I had my medical last month with Medigold up London.
No questionnaire to complete, I was only asked about last 12 months medical history and medication whilst the examination took place.

 

[hb129]

Thanks for the reply. Did they not ask about any pre-existing conditions/ previous mental health/ learning difficulties/ autism/ADHD etc?

 

[mickeyC]

Thanks for the reply. Did they not ask about any pre-existing conditions/ previous mental health/ learning difficulties/ autism/ADHD etc?

Nope, just the last 12 months.
I disclosed that I’ve had a heart murmur from birth and the ECG came back clear.

 

[lachlan]

When was this, as I believe rules on eyesight have been relaxed fairly recently?

It was a few years ago.

They refused to say why I was turned down or what their rules even are. It was a very negative experience unfortunately.

 

[Dee12321]

Hi everyone, I have my Assessment day with GWR in 2 weeks and I just wanted clarification on the TRP 1 test. From my understanding we are given a text on A4 with 4/5 minutes to read through and learn it. Once this is done, you get 6/7 minutes to answer 'x' amount of questions. My question basically is about the questions asked. Is it literally regurgitating what is on the A4 text and answering the multiple choice questions, or is it a case of reading the text and applying the text/rules to then choose from multiple choice?

 

[mickeyC]

Hi everyone, I have my Assessment day with GWR in 2 weeks and I just wanted clarification on the TRP 1 test. From my understanding we are given a text on A4 with 4/5 minutes to read through and learn it. Once this is done, you get 6/7 minutes to answer 'x' amount of questions. My question basically is about the questions asked. Is it literally regurgitating what is on the A4 text and answering the multiple choice questions, or is it a case of reading the text and applying the text/rules to then choose from multiple choice?

if it’s similar across the board then you’re given a page of text that’s read out to you via a recorded message to the whole group, your then given 5 mins to read/make notes on the information.
Then all the literature is taken away including your notes and you sit quiet for 1 min.
Then you have to answer multiple choice questions on the information you’ve memorised.

 

[Dee12321]

if it’s similar across the board then you’re given a page of text that’s read out to you via a recorded message to the whole group, your then given 5 mins to read/make notes on the information.
Then all the literature is taken away including your notes and you sit quiet for 1 min.
Then you have to answer multiple choice questions on the information you’ve memorised.

Okay, that was really helpful. Thank you.
So its basically like the material's they give us in the study pack. Obviously not the same text

 

[Iskra]

I recently attended a Northern Conductor Assessment Day

The sift - the candidates present were people with a proven track record of shift work often involving potentially hostile customers.

The day consisted of two group activities (both railway related, nothing too ridiculous), followed by a face-to-face interview for candidates who passed the first stage. Out of 10 candidates, 3 progressed to interview and as far as I am aware these 3 all passed the interview stage.

Advice:

Dress the part
Make a clear and decisive verbal contribution in the group activities, but while being supportive and listening to fellow candidates. Don't talk over anyone or be argumentative.
Remember that the whole day is an interview, so for example, if the HR lady 'accidentally' drops her papers on the floor in front of you, or someone is struggling with a door, you probably want to react to that positively and helpfully.
Make an effort with other candidates
Smile
Do your prep for the interview and demonstrate this if you can
Don't stress about the interview, if you get to that stage you will find they are pretty supportive and helpful
The interview was some standard competency questions where you provide examples, plus a few questions about how you would handle certain situations. They then make sure that you are okay with certain elements of the role and give you more information about the role.
Have a couple of sensible questions prepared for the interview

All the Northern people that were there came across as decent, professional, friendly etc, they aren't trying to catch you out and overall it was quite a nice experience.

 

[rjs450]

Hi all, I recently had a DMI with GTR and fingers crossed for a positive outcome! I have passed both assessment days with the OPC which included an MMI, however during the DMI they suggested I may have to do another MMI if successful. I was wondering if anybody has gone through the same process and if the follow up MMI is similar to the one conducted by the OPC?

Thanks!

 

[Madisuperstar]

Hi all, I recently had a DMI with GTR and fingers crossed for a positive outcome! I have passed both assessment days with the OPC which included an MMI, however during the DMI they suggested I may have to do another MMI if successful. I was wondering if anybody has gone through the same process and if the follow up MMI is similar to the one conducted by the OPC?

Thanks!

Which Depot was your DMI for and how it went