Scotrail Trainee Drivers (Ongoing)

[FlybeDash8Q400]

Given presentation and uniform wearing is part and parcel of the job, then yes, dress accordingly. Nearly everyone at my assessments were all suited and booted. This is a professional job paying a professional salary, so dress accordingly, why wouldn’t you?

From what I was told in the past few years of doing interviews, a number of employers believe it’s a barrier for some individuals. By allowing them to wear smart casual clothing, it allows them to be at their best and feel under slightly less pressure. I’m sure countless of us have been in situations where you walk in and the pressure just gets to you and you know it’s gone before you even walk out. Some employers think the smart casual option relaxes you and therefore brings out your best.

I’ve been in countless situations where you know the wrong person has been given the job, then later on it falls apart and that person either moves on or changes role. It’s not pleasant or nice to see. To be clear I am not for one second saying I was the best candidate, but others who I know well that were far more equipped than the person chosen. If this sort of option would’ve allowed them to get the role they deserved then I’m all for it.

Personally, I wouldn’t go in a 3 piece, throw in lots of hair gel among other things, but I would still wear a suit and tidy up any facial hair etc. That’s more of what I was implying with balance. Would I personally choose to go in smart casual? No, but I can totally understand why some would. The option of doing so would likely concur with the pressure scenario. I’m not saying there’s right or wrong answer in this situation, but I wouldn’t say it’s a big no no.

This feels like something fresh and different in my opinion. It’s a drivers job. You have to earn the right to be here in the first place with a strong application, the subsequent tests etc. Every person reaches a certain stage on merit and even if you don’t make the cut, it’s not a sign that you’re not good enough for the role, but rather the unbelievably high standard required. I’m amazed I’ve even got this far to be honest. I’m totally out of my box and this for me the best I’ve achieved to date, even if I get no further.

 

[LMc]

Hi Folks

Has anyone who sat the stage 1 assessment on the afternoon of the 16th July received their results yet ?

Thanks

 

[RiverDon]

From what I was told in the past few years of doing interviews, a number of employers believe it’s a barrier for some individuals. By allowing them to wear smart casual clothing, it allows them to be at their best and feel under slightly less pressure. I’m sure countless of us have been in situations where you walk in and the pressure just gets to you and you know it’s gone before you even walk out. Some employers think the smart casual option relaxes you and therefore brings out your best.

I’ve been in countless situations where you know the wrong person has been given the job, then later on it falls apart and that person either moves on or changes role. It’s not pleasant or nice to see. To be clear I am not for one second saying I was the best candidate, but others who I know well that were far more equipped than the person chosen. If this sort of option would’ve allowed them to get the role they deserved then I’m all for it.

Personally, I wouldn’t go in a 3 piece, throw in lots of hair gel among other things, but I would still wear a suit and tidy up any facial hair etc. That’s more of what I was implying with balance. Would I personally choose to go in smart casual? No, but I can totally understand why some would. The option of doing so would likely concur with the pressure scenario. I’m not saying there’s right or wrong answer in this situation, but I wouldn’t say it’s a big no no.

This feels like something fresh and different in my opinion. It’s a drivers job. You have to earn the right to be here in the first place with a strong application, the subsequent tests etc. Every person reaches a certain stage on merit and even if you don’t make the cut, it’s not a sign that you’re not good enough for the role, but rather the unbelievably high standard required. I’m amazed I’ve even got this far to be honest. I’m totally out of my box and this for me the best I’ve achieved to date, even if I get no further.

This is what it says in the assessement center 1 invitation from scotrail recruitment :

Attending the day

All materials will be provided to you.
Please remember to bring your reading glasses if you wear them.
You may dress smart casual (shirt, jeans and trousers are permitted) or in business attire, whichever makes you most comfortable or gives you confidence on the day.

Personally I took that at face value and was planning to wear chinos and a shirt but now I’ve seen the replies here and have my center in a mattar of days I’m having doubts. I would always wear a suit and tie for an actual interview but this invite is just for the paper tests and there is no interview at this stage as far as I am aware. I have bad memories of sweating in my suit on a roasting hot day the last time I did the assessment center in Glasgow (though obviously I was not successful that time though we did the paper and computer tests and the MMI interview all in the same long day then).

I’d of thought if they specifically say in the invite you can wear smart casual clothes then they won’t hold it against you if you take them up on it? Or is it a trap to thin the numbers out even more? If I turn up in chinos are they going to say sorry but you don’t have what it takes to be a train driver because your not wearing a tie.

 

[New York Giant]

Chinos are quite versatile, easily dressed up if done right. I went to my stage 2 in Watford wearing slim grey chinos with brown leather desert boots and white shirt with a tie. The other two lads both looked dapper in navy suits. Prior to the computer test the OPC guy even said we could remove our ties if we wished (none of us did). We all made it to the MMI.

However, DMI its a suit all day long.

 

[LoogaBarooga]

I wore jeans and a shirt to my both of my assessment days at Atrium. You are being judged on your performance on the tests, not your personal appearance.

Different story for the DMI of course where it's obviously important to create a good impression.

For the assessments though I think it's important to feel as comfortable as possible.

 

[scotraildriver]

Changed days indeed. Atrium court was, not so long ago, very strictly business attire or uniform no matter what you were there for. You would have been asked to leave if you turned up in jeans, as someone did on a course I was attending.

 

[Gary3193]

Hi all, this is my first time posting on this forum. I have been lucky enough to pass all assessments so far and have been invited to a final interview next week. The feedback I am reading is making sure you are prepared. So far I have spent time at a station with a spare driver at Motherwell depot however I have been told I am potentially being considered for Bathgate or airdrie.

Can anyone give any hints/tips what the interview with a DTM consists of and what other homework I can do to prep other than visiting stations?

Thanks

 

[energol]

Anybody Starting on the 9th of Sept at Atrium Court?

 

[The Difference]

This is what it says in the assessement center 1 invitation from scotrail recruitment :


Personally I took that at face value and was planning to wear chinos and a shirt but now I’ve seen the replies here and have my center in a mattar of days I’m having doubts. I would always wear a suit and tie for an actual interview but this invite is just for the paper tests and there is no interview at this stage as far as I am aware. I have bad memories of sweating in my suit on a roasting hot day the last time I did the assessment center in Glasgow (though obviously I was not successful that time though we did the paper and computer tests and the MMI interview all in the same long day then).

I’d of thought if they specifically say in the invite you can wear smart casual clothes then they won’t hold it against you if you take them up on it? Or is it a trap to thin the numbers out even more? If I turn up in chinos are they going to say sorry but you don’t have what it takes to be a train driver because your not wearing a tie.

For Stage 1 paper tests at Atrium Court, many people wore jeans and even some in trainers! (Which shocked me) I wore a shirt (no tie) jeans and smart brown shoes. I felt comfortable and ultimately passed the tests. I honestly wouldn’t worry about the chinos etc as you’ll be totally fine in them for stage 1 paper tests. Good luck when it comes.

For DMI I am wearing a suit when I finally receive my date. It’s a personal choice of mine, however I respect others comments regarding being comfortable to perform at your peak.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 23 Jul 2024 ==

Hi Folks

Has anyone who sat the stage 1 assessment on the afternoon of the 16th July received their results yet ?

Thanks

I sat them the morning of Tuesday 16th and heard back Wednesday 17th advising I had passed. I was really shocked it was so quick as I have heard of people waiting a while.

Hopefully you get some positive news soon.

 

[LMc]

For Stage 1 paper tests at Atrium Court, many people wore jeans and even some in trainers! (Which shocked me) I wore a shirt (no tie) jeans and smart brown shoes. I felt comfortable and ultimately passed the tests. I honestly wouldn’t worry about the chinos etc as you’ll be totally fine in them for stage 1 paper tests. Good luck when it comes.

For DMI I am wearing a suit when I finally receive my date. It’s a personal choice of mine, however I respect others comments regarding being comfortable to perform at your peak.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 23 Jul 2024 ==


I sat them the morning of Tuesday 16th and heard back Wednesday 17th advising I had passed. I was really shocked it was so quick as I have heard of people waiting a while.

Hopefully you get some positive news soon.

Thanks for the reply. Received “passed” email shortly after I posted. Awaiting next stage now. Cheers

 

[The Difference]

Thanks for the reply. Received “passed” email shortly after I posted. Awaiting next stage now. Cheers

No problem. Glad you got the results now, well done. Mad how you waited a week and the morning session was the very next day. Impatiently waiting for my DMI date now. Can’t come fast enough. GL when it comes.

 

[robin_cox]

Thanks for the reply. Received “passed” email shortly after I posted. Awaiting next stage now. Cheers

You must have been in the same test session as I was - Tuesday afternoon following the deluge on the way to Atrium Court. Also received the positive Email today at some point (just opening Emails now - hugely relieved as I ran out of time on the dials test and was about 10 short of the end because I spent time double-checking each answer and obviously there wasn't a visible clock).

Also a March 24 entrant, Dundee area, last minute submission. Big thank you to everyone who has posted here on historic recruitment threads and in the recent Scotrail thread - I've read here exhaustively by way of research so your contributions have been hugely appreciated.

 

[320320]

Changed days indeed. Atrium court was, not so long ago, very strictly business attire or uniform no matter what you were there for. You would have been asked to leave if you turned up in jeans, as someone did on a course I was attending.

Indeed. I was on a course in Atrium court at the start of the year and was astounded at the way some of the various trainees were turned out.

When I started you would've been hounded if the tie was loose or the top button undone. I'd imagine they're afraid of infringing civil liberties by enforcing people to dress smartly

 

[KGD1994]

I got my assessment dates through- just a quick question for anyone who has passed the assessments.

With the group bourdon tests, is it important to work to the end of each assessment under the time or is it more important to be as accurate and correct as you can? Thanks guys

 

[The Difference]

I got my assessment dates through- just a quick question for anyone who has passed the assessments.

With the group bourdon tests, is it important to work to the end of each assessment under the time or is it more important to be as accurate and correct as you can? Thanks guys

They tell you on the day they don’t expect you to get to the end of the tests. Nobody will manage that unless they just score anything and thus would ultimately fail. I managed 11,11,10,11,12 respectively and passed. I found all tests relatively easy minus 1. FYI the Group Bourdon was not the one I found most difficult.

 

[C999]

Hi all, this is my first time posting on this forum. I have been lucky enough to pass all assessments so far and have been invited to a final interview next week. The feedback I am reading is making sure you are prepared. So far I have spent time at a station with a spare driver at Motherwell depot however I have been told I am potentially being considered for Bathgate or airdrie.

Can anyone give any hints/tips what the interview with a DTM consists of and what other homework I can do to prep other than visiting stations?

Thanks

Hi Gary.

When did you get told that you are being considered for Bathgate or Airdrie. I’ve recently been told that Motherwell and Airdrie are full until next year.

 

[mlammie21]

Hi all, this is my first time posting on this forum. I have been lucky enough to pass all assessments so far and have been invited to a final interview next week. The feedback I am reading is making sure you are prepared. So far I have spent time at a station with a spare driver at Motherwell depot however I have been told I am potentially being considered for Bathgate or airdrie.

Can anyone give any hints/tips what the interview with a DTM consists of and what other homework I can do to prep other than visiting stations?

Thank

Hi all, this is my first time posting on this forum. I have been lucky enough to pass all assessments so far and have been invited to a final interview next week. The feedback I am reading is making sure you are prepared. So far I have spent time at a station with a spare driver at Motherwell depot however I have been told I am potentially being considered for Bathgate or airdrie.

Can anyone give any hints/tips what the interview with a DTM consists of and what other homework I can do to prep other than visiting stations?

Thanks

Hi gary,

I have recently been successful and have been offered a job based from airdrie. I would have a look at what tractions and lines run from airdrie/bathgate as it looks good if you have done some research. They asked me what I had done in preparation for the interview so try and remember names of people you speak to. I only visited Motherwell as I only had two days notice and received the email on a Saturday afternoon.

Otherwise I would treat it like any other interview. It’s competency based questions they will ask. I looked back to the very start of this thread and found some tips about types of question they asked previously and found them a huge help.

Good luck!

 

[KGD1994]

They tell you on the day they don’t expect you to get to the end of the tests. Nobody will manage that unless they just score anything and thus would ultimately fail. I managed 11,11,10,11,12 respectively and passed. I found all tests relatively easy minus 1. FYI the Group Bourdon was not the one I found most difficult.

Thanks for your reply bud much appreciated.

 

[robin_cox]

I got my assessment dates through- just a quick question for anyone who has passed the assessments.

With the group bourdon tests, is it important to work to the end of each assessment under the time or is it more important to be as accurate and correct as you can? Thanks guys

As said above it is almost physically impossible to complete an individual grid in 2 minutes, and completing 4 then only doing 10% of the last would torpedo the scores completely - you change when they say change and crack on. I practised on the online metodorf ones for a few weeks averaging up to high 12 / mid 13s rows, then printed a pile of them out and did them physically with a pencil on a recurring 2 minute timer to get used to the difference in feel and appearance compared to clicking them on the morning before going to Glasgow. That run I did much worse than normal which was a bit concerning. The actual test materials were almost double the size of what I had printed out so considerably easier to read and mark. One thing that isn't obvious if you do it all online is that in the paper tests you can correct an error if you realise you've scored a "5" or a "3" by counterscoring so that there is an X over that symbol, so the ones that would normally affect your scores can be eliminated if you notice.

 

[43066]

I think we live in a different society compared to even 5 years ago. Smart casual is generally seen as acceptable now. It wasn’t 5 years ago.

It’s striking a balance. I think anyone can be overdressed as much as being underdressed.

Perhaps in certain sectors (tech companies and media companies being one), but I’m not sure that’s true on a widespread basis, and certainly not on the railway, which is a pretty conservative industry. Certainly at both TOCs I’ve worked for driver managers wear full suit and tie. People who are being interviewed would do well to consider that.

Personally I took that at face value and was planning to wear chinos and a shirt but now I’ve seen the replies here and have my center in a mattar of days I’m having doubts. I would always wear a suit and tie for an actual interview but this invite is just for the paper tests and there is no interview at this stage as far as I am aware.

Sounds sensible enough, and a suit and tie won’t be so important for the selection tests. You could always wear to begin with and take your tie and jacket off at a later stage.

 

[C999]

Hi gary,

I have recently been successful and have been offered a job based from airdrie. I would have a look at what tractions and lines run from airdrie/bathgate as it looks good if you have done some research. They asked me what I had done in preparation for the interview so try and remember names of people you speak to. I only visited Motherwell as I only had two days notice and received the email on a Saturday afternoon.

Otherwise I would treat it like any other interview. It’s competency based questions they will ask. I looked back to the very start of this thread and found some tips about types of question they asked previously and found them a huge help.

Good luck!

Hello,

What date are you starting? I was offered Airdrie but since been told that’s no longer available and neither is Motherwell. I have been asked if would consider Bathgate and I have said yes.

 

[tallpaulself]

Evening all.

Just saying hi for the first time as I'm also one of the march '24 applicants.

Got my invite to Atrium Court this Monday 29th for the Group Bourdon etc and working my way through the workbook in the email. It's funny that they send a different test to the 4dots one you actually sit on the day

 

[Gary3193]

Hi gary,

I have recently been successful and have been offered a job based from airdrie. I would have a look at what tractions and lines run from airdrie/bathgate as it looks good if you have done some research. They asked me what I had done in preparation for the interview so try and remember names of people you speak to. I only visited Motherwell as I only had two days notice and received the email on a Saturday afternoon.

Otherwise I would treat it like any other interview. It’s competency based questions they will ask. I looked back to the very start of this thread and found some tips about types of question they asked previously and found them a huge help.

Good luck!

Thanks for the reply!

I’ve spent some time today at Bathgate with a DTM who was a great help so just trying to get myself ready for Tuesday.

Congratulations on getting an offer!

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 25 Jul 2024 ==

Hello,

What date are you starting? I was offered Airdrie but since been told that’s no longer available and neither is Motherwell. I have been asked if would consider Bathgate and I have said yes.

Hello!

I’m sitting my final interview on Tuesday. I received an email this morning to say it will definitely be Bathgate I’m being considered for. Have you been given a start date for training?

Congrats on the offer

 

[C999]

Thanks for the reply!

I’ve spent some time today at Bathgate with a DTM who was a great help so just trying to get myself ready for Tuesday.

Congratulations on getting an offer!

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 25 Jul 2024 ==


Hello!

I’m sitting my final interview on Tuesday. I received an email this morning to say it will definitely be Bathgate I’m being considered for. Have you been given a start date for training?

Congrats on the offer

Hi Gary,

Good luck with the interview! I’m sure it will go well!

I haven’t had a conditional offer yet. I’ve just been told that I will be contacted as soon as they have a date for a course and that it’s most likely going to be Bathgate.

 

[Slow Seline]

Is the DMI the only time we can ask the interviewer questions about the job (pension options, etc)?

 

[boabocs]

Is the DMI the only time we can ask the interviewer questions about the job (pension options, etc)?

Its probably the best time to ask any questions. The MMI is more structured but i found the DMI more relaxed and a good time to ask questions

 

[RossMc]

Its probably the best time to ask any questions. The MMI is more structured but i found the DMI more relaxed and a good time to ask questions

Completely opposite for me. MMI was far more relaxed. More of a chat in my opinion.

Questions can be asked at either.

 

[boabocs]

Completely opposite for me. MMI was far more relaxed. More of a chat in my opinion.

Questions can be asked at either.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 26 Jul 2024 ==

Have you had results back yet? Found out today ive passed and i have my medical on Tuesday. Been a really quick process from DMI through stage 2

 

[RossMc]

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 26 Jul 2024 ==

Have you had results back yet? Found out today ive passed and i have my medical on Tuesday. Been a really quick process from DMI through stage 2

Yes I'm through everything. Just waiting for course.

 

[mlammie21]

Hello,

What date are you starting? I was offered Airdrie but since been told that’s no longer available and neither is Motherwell. I have been asked if would consider Bathgate and I have said yes.

I have a date of 26th/27th sep for online induction the 30th sep starting at atrium court. Not received a contract or anything through yet so not sure if those dates are set in stone.

Is Bathgate much further for you? Congrats on getting an offer too!