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Preparing for interview

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Preparing for interview 16/04/2022 at 07:44 #146163
DanNem
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4 posts
Good Morning!

My name is Dan, current NR Station employee at LB with an interview for a grade 7 vacancy at Wimbledon ASC coming up. Was scouring the information highway for any and all details i could find in preparation as sadly my shadowing request never materialised and stumbled upon this page. If I'm honest, I don't have much of an idea what to expect or how this all works but it looks fun so why not give it a whirl?

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Preparing for interview 16/04/2022 at 12:41 #146166
Peter Bennet
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5402 posts
Might be of interest.

https://www.SimSig.co.uk/Forum/ThreadView/36082
https://www.SimSig.co.uk/Forum/ThreadView/21761
https://www.SimSig.co.uk/Forum/ThreadView/38359

Peter

I identify as half man half biscuit - crumbs!
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Preparing for interview 16/04/2022 at 13:45 #146167
DanNem
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4 posts
Thank you ever so much! My only worry is that most of those threads are a bit old and it sounds like things have changed quite a bit. (See my attachment). I was surprised at that, because they didn't send any information with that, so I'm a bit baffled as to how am I supposed to learn the relevant information. Obviously I can learn routes etc but the signalling system etc isn't the easiest to find online. I got a copy (seeing as I'm an internal candidate) of the signallers rulebook but it's 1600 pages in PDF form So it's difficult to know where to look, which is why I decided to take a look around some forums.


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Preparing for interview 16/04/2022 at 14:06 #146168
TUT
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532 posts
Most signaller interviews these days revolve around the 8 'non-technical skills'

https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/non-technical-skills.135501/#post-2705086

As a non-signaller (and even as a signaller, depending on the interview) your interview is likely to take the form of a standard interview asking you to give an example of a time when you xyz and generally each question will be trying to elicit an example of when you've demonstrated one of the non-technical skills.

Make sure you read Network Rail's safety vision:

https://www.networkrail.co.uk/who-we-are/our-approach-to-safety/our-safety-vision/

It's an easy tick if you can literally just make it obvious you've been to the page, a very obvious cross if you can't.

It will obviously look good if you can demonstrate some basic level of familiarity with the location you've applied for. You should have some answers ready as to why you want to work there. Wimbledon ASC works track circuit block. It's quite easy to find out its area of control even just here as we have simulations of the area (be aware panel 5 is not included on the main Wimbledon sim but in the Feltham sim). You can find pictures of the box here: http://photos.signalling.org/index?/category/1181-wimbledon&acs=wimbl If you don't know what an NX panel is, now is the time to find out.

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Preparing for interview 16/04/2022 at 16:31 #146169
Steamer
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DanNem in post 146167 said:
Thank you ever so much! My only worry is that most of those threads are a bit old and it sounds like things have changed quite a bit. (See my attachment). I was surprised at that, because they didn't send any information with that, so I'm a bit baffled as to how am I supposed to learn the relevant information. Obviously I can learn routes etc but the signalling system etc isn't the easiest to find online. I got a copy (seeing as I'm an internal candidate) of the signallers rulebook but it's 1600 pages in PDF form So it's difficult to know where to look, which is why I decided to take a look around some forums.
The following comes with the caveat that I'm not a railway employee, so is open to correction:

Rather than attempting to study the signaller's rulebook, make sure you're up to speed on the rules which apply to your current position, especially any which involve contact with the signaller. Hopefully the information contained in the Wiki on this site is sufficient to give you a basic grounding in signalling- this page is a good place to start: https://www.SimSig.co.uk/Wiki/Show?page=signallingprinciples

While I echo TUT's suggestion to look at the Wimbledon and Feltham simulations, I'd only learn the basics of the area (what's the control area, which sections are 4 track, major stations etc.), as the simulation will differ from reality and I wouldn't want to risk getting technical details wrong when you probably won't be expected to know them.

"Don't stress/ relax/ let life roll off your backs./ Except for death and paying taxes/ everything in life.../ is only for now." (Avenue Q)
Last edited: 16/04/2022 at 16:37 by Steamer
Reason: None given

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The following users said thank you: Hap, DanNem, mldaureol
Preparing for interview 16/04/2022 at 16:55 #146170
DanNem
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That is absolutely amazing, I can't thank you enough!
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Preparing for interview 16/04/2022 at 18:41 #146171
pedroathome
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915 posts
While I can't remember all the questions I've been asked as an off the street candidate. Some that have caught me by surprise have been along the lines of

-> Describing the similarities or differences to my current job
-> How do I think I would cope with a situation such as a driver calling in saying that they'd just hit someone
-> What kind of methods of signalling are used

But other than these, Remember the STAR technique, Situation, Task, Action and Result. Additionally, as mentioned above, remember some of the life saving rules. From memory there are 10, I never needed to know them all, but knowing a good number of them may help.

I should add, I've not been successful, but these are the things which I've seen come up.

Finally, something that has come up before, not with Network Rail, if you have to relocate, have an idea on the location you'll relocate to.

James

Edited to add

In a group discussion with an interviewer after an assessment day, it was said that they would rather have someone who knows nothing than someone who thinks they know what they're talking about

Last edited: 16/04/2022 at 18:44 by pedroathome
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The following user said thank you: mldaureol