Scotrail Conductor Interview

[TheNewBoy]

Hello folks, long time lurker here but first time poster...so please be gentle!

I have applied for a conductors position within Scotrail and was happy to read earlier this week that I’ve passed the assessment stage of the recruitment process. Now comes the interview!

I’ve been involved in the customer service industry for over 15 years now, and I’ve seen, and dealt with, many different scenarios over the years. I’m hoping that my years of helping the public/dealing with sometimes challenging situations may stand me in good stead regarding the interview, but I’d be grateful if anyone here could give me a little more information as to what I can expect come interview time.

I’ve a broad knowledge of the company, and have spent the last couple of months reading up on the history of it/the number of stations it controls/the services it provides etc etc, but other than that I’m not too sure what’s going to be expected of me. Trawling the internet does give some vague (often dated) information about these interviews, so any help anyone has on here would be gratefully appreciated.

I’m genuinely excited at the thought of working within the railway industry, and I fully intend to grab this opportunity with both hands. So yeah, as I say, anyone who can offer any hints and/or tips would be great.

Thanks.

ps now that I’ve made my first post, I feel the need to pass comment on this forum itself...what a fantastic resource! As someone who’s hoping to get into the industry, I find this place to be an absolute plethora of interesting hints/tips/discussions. It’s a credit to the posters, so thanks for all the input you all contribute!

 

[Stigy]

Welcome aboard!

I can’t offer any specific advice re Scotrail unfortunately, but you’re right about this place being a great resource of information and you seem to be eager to get in the industry.

What I would advise (I’m not sure of your last interview so don’t want to patronise you at all haha) is to use specific examples when asked for these, rather than general ‘what you’d usually do’ examples to questions. Use the STAR method in your answers too, this is a good basis for all interviews (Situation, Task, Action and Result - Google it for more info).

Best of luck to you!

 

[barko26]

I would recommend taking a little trip to the station you’ve applied for, and try speak to a few conductors. Ask any questions you may have. Find out the traction types and routes operated from that depot.

The interview itself will be focused around safety and customer service. Remember Safety is No.1 priority. Try and relate any questions you’re asked to the role that you currently do, to highlight any transferable skills.

 

[TheNewBoy]

Thank you both for the replies, they’ve given me an insight into what’s I need to start researching. Following up on your replies though, I’m now wondering...

How easy is it to get a hold of a conductor? Should I just go to the station (Edinburgh Waverley) and ask where they’re to be found? Won’t they be too busy working to take time out to answer any questions I may have?

Re traction, I’m finding it hard to find any information on the Waverley station. I know that many of the lines are electrified, am I right to assume diesel traction still takes place there too though? If anyone has any further reading on train traction (particularly at Waverley) please feel free to point me in the right direction.

In the meantime, thanks again for your help and advice.

 

[barko26]

If you head round to the operations building. (Glass building next to platform 4) you’ll get plenty drivers and conductors coming in and out. Should be able to grab hold of someone for a couple of minutes. Drop me a PM if you have anymore questions regarding traction + routes etc.

 

[TheNewBoy]

If you head round to the operations building. (Glass building next to platform 4) you’ll get plenty drivers and conductors coming in and out. Should be able to grab hold of someone for a couple of minutes. Drop me a PM if you have anymore questions regarding traction + routes etc.

Thanks for the tips, really appreciated. I’ve actually got plans to go down to Waverley at some point this week (maybe even a couple of times to ensure I can pick three or four conductors brains rather than pestering any single person for more time than they’d like) so at least I know now where to head.

As I’m new to this forum I’m not quite sure how to PM. Ive clicked on your profile but can’t see where I can message you. I’ll keep trying though as I’m sure you’ll have some invaluable information I could no doubt benefit from!

Thanks again AS1990

 

[TheNewBoy]

Hi again AS1990. Unfortunately I’ve been made aware that the option to PM you (or anyone else for that matter) isn’t yet available to me due to my low post count. I’m not sure how to now get in touch with you. If you’ve any ideas how we can have a chat then please let me know (I’d happily post my email address on here but I don’t know if that would be a breach of forum rules).

Thanks.

 

[mattsfc]

Hello folks, long time lurker here but first time poster...so please be gentle!

I have applied for a conductors position within Scotrail and was happy to read earlier this week that I’ve passed the assessment stage of the recruitment process. Now comes the interview!

I’ve been involved in the customer service industry for over 15 years now, and I’ve seen, and dealt with, many different scenarios over the years. I’m hoping that my years of helping the public/dealing with sometimes challenging situations may stand me in good stead regarding the interview, but I’d be grateful if anyone here could give me a little more information as to what I can expect come interview time.

I’ve a broad knowledge of the company, and have spent the last couple of months reading up on the history of it/the number of stations it controls/the services it provides etc etc, but other than that I’m not too sure what’s going to be expected of me. Trawling the internet does give some vague (often dated) information about these interviews, so any help anyone has on here would be gratefully appreciated.

I’m genuinely excited at the thought of working within the railway industry, and I fully intend to grab this opportunity with both hands. So yeah, as I say, anyone who can offer any hints and/or tips would be great.

Thanks.

ps now that I’ve made my first post, I feel the need to pass comment on this forum itself...what a fantastic resource! As someone who’s hoping to get into the industry, I find this place to be an absolute plethora of interesting hints/tips/discussions. It’s a credit to the posters, so thanks for all the input you all contribute!

Hi TheNewBoy

I’ve recently been invited to attend an assessment for a Conductor job out of Stranraer.
I’ve spoken to a few people who do the job but, none have went through this process recently, they’ve either got the job internally or been in the job for a number of years.
Looking for information or experiences in the following tests; verbal test, safety and concentration test and customer service scenario test.
I have been working through the material sent to me in the invitation to the assessment but any links to further content would be greatly appreciated.

 

[TheNewBoy]

Hi TheNewBoy

I’ve recently been invited to attend an assessment for a Conductor job out of Stranraer.
I’ve spoken to a few people who do the job but, none have went through this process recently, they’ve either got the job internally or been in the job for a number of years.
Looking for information or experiences in the following tests; verbal test, safety and concentration test and customer service scenario test.
I have been working through the material sent to me in the invitation to the assessment but any links to further content would be greatly appreciated.

Sent you a pm mate.