Folkestonechap
Member
Same here. Applied 18th June. Still waiting. I put down for Ashford.
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Southeastern - Trainee Driver - All Depots (03/06/24)
- Thread starter Az87
- Start date
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R
RailUK Forums
Thank you!
In my application I put Gillingham as it’s my closest, however I am within the required travelling distance of Gillingham, Tonbridge & Dartford. I’ve got the position at Dartford.
Fingers crossed you get an assessment date soon! What station have you you put down?
In my application I put Gillingham as it’s my closest, however I am within the required travelling distance of Gillingham, Tonbridge & Dartford. I’ve got the position at Dartford.
Fingers crossed you get an assessment date soon! What station have you you put down?
I put Gillingham also and like yourself I’m within the required distance to the same stations as you.
Medway based.
Loonylefty
Member
Congratulations !!
I was also a June applicant that put down Dartford. Still waiting for a assessment date though
DNCharingX
Member
Advert seems to be back up until 10th November for those who want to join the queue 
Ezeekiiiel
New Member
Hi, thanks for the response! Do you think it's worth changing to a medway depot for example & changing over to ramsgate once I get my foot in the door?
The easiest depots to get into are the Metro depots as they have the highest turnover of drivers. These would be Dartford, Slade Green, Grove Park and Orpington. Victoria and Charing Cross are also always recruiting but you have to live within a certain radius/travel time of your chosen depot. The 'mainline' depots do have trainees, but not as many normally and not as often.
Hello,
Please could someone help me, I sat the train driver assessments earlier this year and failed the VSE (visual search exercise) and was told I could not attempt it again at the same toc as I failed it twice (first time was at a different toc) the first time I took the VSE was at home as a online assessment. and I was under the impression that tests conducted at home does not count towards the 2 lives rule after reading a comment posted somewhere in this forum.
I’ve contacted the toc i failed with and they confirmed that this information is incorrect and that doing the test at home still counts towards the 2 lives if you fail.
Does anyone know if this is 100% correct?
Please could someone help me, I sat the train driver assessments earlier this year and failed the VSE (visual search exercise) and was told I could not attempt it again at the same toc as I failed it twice (first time was at a different toc) the first time I took the VSE was at home as a online assessment. and I was under the impression that tests conducted at home does not count towards the 2 lives rule after reading a comment posted somewhere in this forum.
I’ve contacted the toc i failed with and they confirmed that this information is incorrect and that doing the test at home still counts towards the 2 lives if you fail.
Does anyone know if this is 100% correct?
Grvrdvicdr
Member
It is correct. Your 2 lives for the VSE is over I’m afraid. However this is an enhanced standard test so for national you may still be okay
Would anyone know the answer to this.
I applied for another toc last year for the trainee train driver role and have just been offered an assessment centre date. If I was to pass or fail at this toc, would it prevent me from getting an offer for an assessment centre date for southeastern? I applied in June and am yet to hear about a date. I would rather wait until southeastern get back to me as the depot I applied for is on my doorstep but I’m wondering if I was to pass at the other, would it ‘fast track’ me beyond the southeastern assessment centre with maybe going in to sit particular tests/interviews with southeastern, if I was to inform them that I’d already gone to an assessment centre.
I applied for another toc last year for the trainee train driver role and have just been offered an assessment centre date. If I was to pass or fail at this toc, would it prevent me from getting an offer for an assessment centre date for southeastern? I applied in June and am yet to hear about a date. I would rather wait until southeastern get back to me as the depot I applied for is on my doorstep but I’m wondering if I was to pass at the other, would it ‘fast track’ me beyond the southeastern assessment centre with maybe going in to sit particular tests/interviews with southeastern, if I was to inform them that I’d already gone to an assessment centre.
NSEWonderer
Established Member
Pass and to a give enough score for SE and yes you skip a few assessments come assessment center time but there's also a very slight chance SE ask you to do it all again(extremely rare but happens), you'd still have to do the VSE with SE unless said TOC does so.
Assuming you fail however then for 6 months you can't progress with any TOC unless what you failed was an assessment they don't use aka the DFFT, SE don't use this so if you failed on it but passed the rest you'd have no lives lost for SE.
So there is advantages and disadvantages. I'd just say take whatever TOC you can get unless you're really able to wait wait wait.
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Makes sense mate, thank you. Would you happen to know that if I accepted the assessment centre date with the other toc, would southeastern not offer me a place or would they not know? I’m assuming all the results get put on a database that they can access once the assessments have been done?
Only my thinking is, accept the date and if southeastern come in before that date I’ll go with them.
NSEWonderer
Established Member
Wouldn't overthink it. Only thing SE will care about is the result of what you've sat with said other TOC and If it meets their standard. As long as you've not failed anything oitright with the other TOC then they'll let you know what tests are left to sit at Tonbridge.
When I eventually had the assessment center at Tonbridge, it was only the VSE as my c2c results were all fine for SE and within the 3 year threshold, according to SE recruitment and this was a few months ago.
Leoleo1833
Member
Hi Samzino if you don’t mind sharing what you failed with c2c? (Im assuming you failed something since you told that then you went to SE)
I see thank you, I’m currently awaiting a DMI & MMI with SWR seeing as they don’t require VSE. But i wanted to ask the forum if the chance of redoing the test at se could happen. But thank you for clarifying that for me!
NSEWonderer
Established Member
Nothing failed at c2c just happened to have My se application also process not long after my c2c assessments.
Leoleo1833
Member
Oh i see well done
Is there any july applicant still waiting to be called?
Is there any july applicant still waiting to be called?
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Folkestonechap
Member
I'm a mid July applicant, still waiting to be notified.
I’m mid June and nothing yet, emailed them last week and got the below response
Attachments
Leoleo1833
Member
I am not surprised by this answer, as they extended the job listing until today; they must have many people in the queue.
GiordyRail
Member
I've applied for this role at SE, I do have an interview with SE for an engineering role next week. Got rejected at GWR and Southern for this role but GA gave me an assessement so i'll be waiting for a response in due time. I hope we're all lucky in our applications!
Az87
Member
I found out today I failed the DMI again (4th time) it was also the 4th time I had passed the assessment. This is definitely my last try, I have been trying since 2008 which is too long. I will be moving back abroad (which was the plan if I failed), I had come back to give this another try.
I think I must be the only person told by a LOM and DM that I was exactly what they are looking for in a driver but then never got through to driving.
I had done all my research but the problems began to happen when I answered a question and then the next question I was asked was already covered by my previous answer and then felt that I needed to try and think of another situation. The interview lasted 1 hour and 15 minutes and most of my answers weren't followed up with additional questions.
For anyone else who will have their DMI prepare answers for questions such as "What is excellent customer service?", "Tell us about a time when you have given excellent customer service" "When have you worked to rules/procedures", "Why do you want to be a train driver?", "What do you know about the job?" and then " What do you remember from the TPWS sheet?".
Hope this helps some of you! Good luck!
I think I must be the only person told by a LOM and DM that I was exactly what they are looking for in a driver but then never got through to driving.
I had done all my research but the problems began to happen when I answered a question and then the next question I was asked was already covered by my previous answer and then felt that I needed to try and think of another situation. The interview lasted 1 hour and 15 minutes and most of my answers weren't followed up with additional questions.
For anyone else who will have their DMI prepare answers for questions such as "What is excellent customer service?", "Tell us about a time when you have given excellent customer service" "When have you worked to rules/procedures", "Why do you want to be a train driver?", "What do you know about the job?" and then " What do you remember from the TPWS sheet?".
Hope this helps some of you! Good luck!
Thank you to the member on here who suggested I contact SE as I have already completed some assessments as was unsuccessful last time the role was advertised.
I have had a reply to my email today saying my tests from 2021 still stand and I have one attempt at the SJE when the time comes up .
Will start looking over that exercise in the very near future as I want to be better prepared then last time.
I have had a reply to my email today saying my tests from 2021 still stand and I have one attempt at the SJE when the time comes up .
Will start looking over that exercise in the very near future as I want to be better prepared then last time.
I wonder when that time will come up? With this year's recruitment drive for 170+ can't think it would be Feb & June like this year! But would like it to be ASAP obvs!!
Az87
Member
If you fail at the DMI you can't apply again for a year, which could be a painful wait if you fail and want to try again.
My MMI though went very well and the person who did my MMI gave me a lot of advice on how to pass the DMI and told me what to speak about but unfortunately it didn't help.
It did feel like I was talking to a script during the DMI more than having a conversation with a person, 1 interviewer was almost silent for the whole interview and only spoke when asked to give me a question and at the end when I asked questions.
Hopefully you have better luck than me and that seeing the questions will help.
Leoleo1833
Member
Sad to hear that after going trough all those stages you didn't pass is just brutal.
I just have a question why did they ask you about the TPWS? Isn't just something you learn in training?
Yep, I selected Gillingham as its only 10-15 mins away from me, still waiting