This is the 4th time I have posted this but ill give it a go anyway.
I have my stage 2 in just over a week and I have no idea how to prepare. Does anyone have any tips for preperation?
Im getting a bit worried now.
Hi,
Some people will say there's nothing you can do to prepare yourself, and some people will say you can do a lot. I will tell you that what you can do lies between those two opinions.
From what I've read in this thread, Stage 2 consists of several computer tests. I have never attended Stage 2, so I don't know what kind of tests they do. I think they do the FEAST test and also other tests. You can learn everything you need to know about the FEAST teast by checking out the EUROCONTROL thread or the Wikipedia article.
Back when I applied to an ATC position in Portugal, I passed the FEAST tests and then went to do some "psychometric tests". I can tell you a bit about them, because I'm convinced they are not that different from those you'll do in Stage 2. So, to begin with, these tests were divided in four distinct parts: personality questionnaires, group exercise, computers tests and conversation with a psychologist. I'll just focus on the computer tests because that's what Stage 2 is.
Just a brief reminder though: as far as I know, these are NOT the computer tests done at NATS. These are the tests done in Portugal.
Some were actually pretty standard tests, which you would find basically anywhere if you were to do an IQ test, like logical tests ("what's the next in sequence?"). Some of these were easy, some were demanding and some were impossible. You had a table with 3 rows and 3 columns, and the bottom right corner position was always empty. You had to figure out the right answer by following logical sequences from the remaining 8 positions, which sometimes consisted of VERY complicated drawings with colours. And to bring a little more misery into my life, sometimes you had to figure out the sequences by looking not only to the rows or to the columns, but to the rows AND to the columns simultaneously!
Then, you also had a short-term/visual memory test, which was actually very nice to do. The computer screen would show you a city seen from above in full screen, and there were some symbols (between 3 and 8, if I remember correctly) all over the screen in key positions. These symbols represented police stations, hospitals, theatres, you name it. They would show up on screen for 3 seconds and then they would disappear. Afterwards they would ask you: "where was the police station?" and you had to click in the general area. You didn't have to be precise (of course you would earn more points if you were), so if you clicked in the general area (small radius though) you would get it right.
There was also a very entertaining test that seemed like Guitar Hero on steroids. Its purpose is to test how good are your reactions. The basic idea is this: they show you things on the screen and you need to respond accordingly. So, if they show you a red ball, you need to press the red button. If they show you a blue ball, it's the blue button. If you hear a sound on your left ear, you must press a specific button, but if it's on your right ear, it's another button. And you also have two pedals. That was actually awesome and lasted 8 minutes. Believe me, that test will reveal a lot about your stress coping mechanisms because the computer just keeps showing you things faster and faster and eventually you miss something and you have to start all over again. Some people next to me started shouting and one of them actually got up and left.
Finally, there were some very ATC specific tests. One of these consisted of an aircraft, already airborne, in two different pictures. Basically you had to say what had happened to the aircraft from one picture to the next. They showed you 3 axes and for every particular movement to be achieved you had to choose what to do to each axis. So, for example, if in the first picture the aircraft is aligned with the horizon, and in the second picture it is climbing, you had to say which axis was responsible for this change and in which direction do you need to move it in order to achieve that change. It is not easy to explain in writing and English is not my native language, so I'm sorry if this explanation seemed complicated.
The final test I remember was meant to test your resistance to monotony. It's very simple. You sit at a computer and the screen is completely black with the exception of a small white circle. This circle jumps clockwise every two seconds or so, but sometimes it jumps a bit more. Whenever this happens, you need to press a button. I actually found it really easy, even though it lasted 30 minutes. Some people found it incredibly hard because they just couldn't focus for that long, and others said their eyes started hurting after a while.
So, to conclude: I described some of the computer tests I had to do in Portugal. Do you actually think you can prepare yourself for something like this, or for the personality questionnaire? Just reach your own conclusion. In my opinion, you can't really prepare for the computer tests.
For Stage 3, though, I think we're talking about a completely different thing altogether, and that is why I said, in the beginning of this post, that I was going to tell you that you can do SOME preparation in this whole process. Stage 3 is an interview, so I think it is possible to prepare yourself by reading ATC related books, by visiting towers, by talking to ATCOs, and, if you need, by reading those books on how to be successful in job interviews.
I would just like to remind you, again, that these computer tests I described are NOT done at NATS (as far as I know) so please don't think this is what you'll be expecting. It may be something totally different. But I do hope this (long) description has helped you in some way. Best of luck!
Cheers