GTR- Shunter Driver Brighton (05/08/22)

[Firestarter]

GTR Careers

We are the UK’s largest railway franchise, operating Southern, Thameslink, Great Northern and Gatwick Express.

gtrailwaycareers.com

 

[Bn98]

Have just done the online assessment.

 

[Sly Sloth]

Great job and a natural progression to mainline driver is now in place

 

[LeGrimpeur]

Can you elaborate on this please? My previous experience of gtr (3yrs ago) was they had no shunter to driver route. Are they now fastracking people through?

 

[sm769]

Great job and a natural progression to mainline driver is now in place

When I applied for the Shunter Driver at Brighton last year, completed the assessments and had an interview, it was made clear that the application process and psychometric tests were completely different from mainline driver and there was no progression between the two. Infact, they said they had just begun a new assessment and interview process for this role. Has this now changed again?

 

[Sly Sloth]

Can you elaborate on this please? My previous experience of gtr (3yrs ago) was they had no shunter to driver route. Are they now fastracking people through?

It’s not a fast track but they’ve run 2 courses now as part of a shunter to mainline progression.

When I applied for the Shunter Driver at Brighton last year, completed the assessments and had an interview, it was made clear that the application process and psychometric tests were completely different from mainline driver and there was no progression between the two. Infact, they said they had just begun a new assessment and interview process for this role. Has this now changed again?

You’d still have to sit the mainline tests if and when jobs became available. There was a shunter to mainline campaign which had its own specific talent pool

 

[DonkeyKonk]

Hi, I have just registered as I was interested in this role.

I have a few queries if anybody has any information that would be very helpful and appreciated.

1.- How long does the process take in general from application to selection to training, is it a few months, or can it be a lot longer (as I have seen with some driver jobs with other TOC's)...

2.- what kind of shifts are they, would you be working permanent times (like nights all the time) or would it be a mix of shifts from week to week ?

And is it a 4 or 5 day week as a shunter driver ?

3. Is Overtime possible ?

4.- any tips for the Online Assessment, how "technical" is it and is that "timed" or at your own pace ?

Thanks

 

[Bn98]

I'll try my best to answer the bits I can -
1 - Not quite as long winded as Mainline process but still relatively competetive and drawn out. You most likely wouldn't see a 6 month (sometimes minimum) "talent Pool" for this one.
2 - I would be surprised if it was permanent overnights. But the "busy" bits will be early morning/late evening. So make of that what you will - doesnt mean there isnt any day time working of course!
3 - No idea, question for at an interview!
4 - Online assessment isn't something you should be trying to prepare for. Instructions are all crystal clear - there is a timed element but its probably not in anyones best interest to pre-empt based on others experiences. Orders of items change within the testing, nothing worse that being prepared for something that doesnt come up. I would say it is really straight forward, if you majorly struggle with it then I suspect it is a pointer that it's not the right role, not meant with any malice but it is the general idea of this stage! No point revising hard to then struggle down the line (pun not intended).

Find a quiet spot, relax and don't panic about the timer - its more than enough time, just there to add a little bit of pressure/distraction!

Cup of tea beside you and you'll cruise through it!

 

[REO Nate]

If I wasn’t in the talent pool for Mainline driver already, I would probably have gone for this. Looks like a good opportunity.

 

[DonkeyKonk]

I'll try my best to answer the bits I can -
1 - Not quite as long winded as Mainline process but still relatively competetive and drawn out. You most likely wouldn't see a 6 month (sometimes minimum) "talent Pool" for this one.
2 - I would be surprised if it was permanent overnights. But the "busy" bits will be early morning/late evening. So make of that what you will - doesnt mean there isnt any day time working of course!
3 - No idea, question for at an interview!
4 - Online assessment isn't something you should be trying to prepare for. Instructions are all crystal clear - there is a timed element but its probably not in anyones best interest to pre-empt based on others experiences. Orders of items change within the testing, nothing worse that being prepared for something that doesnt come up. I would say it is really straight forward, if you majorly struggle with it then I suspect it is a pointer that it's not the right role, not meant with any malice but it is the general idea of this stage! No point revising hard to then struggle down the line (pun not intended).

Find a quiet spot, relax and don't panic about the timer - its more than enough time, just there to add a little bit of pressure/distraction!

Cup of tea beside you and you'll cruise through it!

Great Stuff,

Thank you for the information, and I will certainly think about it.... yes, I would definitely find a quiet spot and have a cuppa ready for the online assessment if i do go for it.

 

[Javelin_55]

Has anyone heard back after doing the online test? I had four or five questions left after the timer ran out.

 

[Bn98]

Nothing yet, will be a while yet! Finished the questions but know I made 1 mistake as I clicked next

Should hear back within the next couple of weeks I reckon?!

 

[Newboysouth]

Nothing yet either. Completed the questions but potentially got a couple wrong

 

[DonkeyKonk]

Anyone hear anything back yet ? Nearly a month now, I have heard nothing.

I did the assessment, I think I did okay, I finished it but believe I got a few wrong.for sure.

 

[Bn98]

Nothing yet!

 

[Newboysouth]

Not heard anything yet

 

[Javelin_55]

Nothing for me. Could be a while yet.

 

[KJCross1983]

Good luck everyone

Had a email today, saying I have been unsuccessful .

 

[DonkeyKonk]

Got my email today about 15.30 saying I have not been successful.

Ah well, was hoping I did okay, but I think I made one error in the assessment and repeated that error a few times, if that makes sense (basically did not fully look at what it was asking).

I will know better next time if I do such an assessment again though.

 

[Javelin_55]

It was a no for me as well.

Frustrating as I normally like to chase for feedback on my applications, but with something like this it seems clear I just didn't clear the pass mark (which is no doubt closely guarded)