Congratulations all who are starting in a few weeks, I've got a while to wait yet I think! Just a request that you don't forget all of us who are still waiting and supply us with any information you get about the course structure and so on when it starts. One of my main questions would be if you are streamlined into disciplines as a course from the start and if you know in advance whether you'll be area or not, or if they decide what you'll be aiming for after a few months.

Anyway, good luck with it all and keep us posted how you go:D

Yep and please dont forget me who's still waiting patiently.......:E

Good luck to everyone, hopefully we'll all meet up soon, Im sure I'll see you around ChrisF:ok:

Where is your place ChrisF. Mine is in Southbourne, not far from the Bourncoast office.


James

in boscombe right on the seafront.....
it should be fine for the time being...... nice location, furnished, council tax and ALL utilities paid for. all for 450ish a month. (can ya tell i'm trying to convince myself?) hee hee. :O

looking forward to getting down there now!
C

Hey Guys,

I started to read all of this thread but it goes on a bit so I'll cut to the chase!

After submitting my application in November 2001 I am starting with NATS on 6 Sep 04 too!:mad: :mad: :mad: :yuk: I have some real issues with the HR department....but hey forgive and forget, they are going to give me a career!

There is a lot of rumours about what the courses are like, where they'll post us etc...... but most importantly who is stopping at new place on Sun 5 Sep 04 so I've got someone to drink with?

Looking forward to meeting everyone:ok:

Much to my surprise I got a phonecall today offering me a place on the September 6th course which I have accepted. It isn't a great deal of notice considering I have to move from Northern Ireland but I can't wait to start.

Having never visited Bournemouth before I will have to fly over next week to sort out accommodation etc. I have yet co call Bournecoast, there's so much to do! I'm looking forward to meeting everyone in the next few weeks.

Is anyone interesterd in meeting up for a drink sometime next week? I'm planning to fly over next Thursday or Friday.

For any Sept 6th joiners who have yet to find accommodation - the house next door to me has 2 rooms to rent at £225 a month each. I believe that includes bills.

Location is in eastern Bournemouth, in a fairly quiet residential area within quick reach of the A338 and Hurn.

Send me a private message if you're interested and I can give further details.

I got the call too - Im in, see everyone on Sept 6th (subject to lightening fast references etc.).

Now where on earth do I start with regards to accomodation!! Just got to ring HR in the morning to double confirm!

Boy am i a happy chappy!!:E :ok:

mps12,

I was told we would be getting a list of B&B's sent to us along with the contract and so on. I'm flying over next week to have a look at a few places first and if all else fails I'll stay in a B&B until I get a place of my own organised.

I'll be giving Bournecoast a call and I'm looking up a few other agencies so hopefully I can get something nice for ~£500 a month.

As a matter of interest, is anyone else from Northern Ireland on the September course?

Good luck! :)

COOOOOL!!
the gangs here!!!! ( i thought I had short notice!)



i believe there will still be studio flats to rent where i am.... 450 pcm all in, bills and council tax, tv licence etc. fully furnished BASIC kitchen (alledgedly)

considering the allowance it seems ok and is in a great location rite on the seafront in boscombe... very near bournemouth town centre

plus room for my gf when she moves down! :ok:

see ya in NEW PLACE bar on sunday eve 5th sept guys and gals! :}
C

Keep the comments going guys, and congrats on getting the 6th Sept course.

I'm still waiting for my medical as I've a medical history that they're not 100% keen on and I've had to have a consultant's report sent to NATS. Fingers crossed.

Has anyone who's not on the Sept course been told which course they're on recently? If so, which one? Cheers!

hi ya
i'm also on the sep course. they only rang me up on monday, which gives me 3 weeks to get sorted. package hasn't come through to me yet. have you guys got accomodation sorted?

Have had to cancel travelling plans, but can't wait to get started, feel like i've been waiting years.

looking forward to meeting you all and a pissed first week in southampton

I too have yet to receive the literature. What will the week at 'New Place' in Southampton involve? Would I be correct to assume it would be based around ice breaker and team building activities?

hi lucy,
yeah definitely looking forward to getting started now too! :ok: i spoke to an ATCO who did the top team intro week thing, and he said it is loosely based around team building etc, but a bit more fun. the previous posts said it only makes up 3 out of the first five days with the rest being intros etc.

I spoke to the college the other day to get some info for my accomodation application (employers details etc) and they said that the remaining intro packs will be sent once they receive the word from HR. I got my contract more or less the day after THE phonecall, but i am still waiting for the intro pack a couple of weeks later.

take it easy!
see you all soon
:}

Hey MPS

great news you got this course!

Not long to go - can't believe they left it this late to notify people!

:ok:

Along with everybody else on this board it'll be nice putting faces to 'tags' in the bar!

lol

:ok:

Just been counting back over the pages on this topic, I think there is 11 off us who are starting Sept 6th, who in a small way kinda know each other, some have met for real. It should make meeting in a few Sundays times that much easier. I wonder if anyone will turn up at New Place who has never even heard of PPRUNE. Well personally for me, the butterflies are starting to flap, and some nights I am wide awake thinking of what lies ahead. I am looking forward to getting it all started though..See you all soon.


Andy

is anyone likely to be in bournemouth next week? thinking of going down to look at some B&B's wed/thurs some time

Also does everyone have cars at the mo. Haven't got one as was off travelling, and might take me a month or so to sort one out. Living in the depths of devon there isn't much choice. What i'm trying to ask is if it's alright to hitch a lift with someone to the college for the first couple of weeks?

I think most people will have their own transport- someone will give you a lift im sure!!!

Yeah Im getting a little nervous too actually....

James

Hi everyone!

I'm another who'll be starting on the 6th after over 2 years wait. Can't wait to meet everyone at New Place on the 5th - should be fun.

I won't be going down to Bournemouth to sort out B&B 'til the 3rd probably, so anyone who gets sorted before then, please advise which look the best. From previous threads I'll probably be looking at the Seaway/Clematis/Edwardian to start with but will welcome any comments.

See ya soon
Steph

Hi guys and gals,

Also got a phonecall for the course on the 6th. Unfortunately due to work obligations I can't get out of I've had to say no, so won't be joining you guys :{ HR did say however that they are looking at December for the next course, to be confirmed middle of Sept.

So to those of you who are still waiting keep us posted on any news you hear, and those of you startin on the 6th, don't forget to let us know how its goin.

Good luck and have a good time down there

:ok:

Been to see a couple

The Seaway was a no-no - it was a very small room in the loft with not very good cooking space (but hey that's only my opinion!)

The Clematis was very nice: nice sized rooms each on suite (which helps)

Another option is Bournecoast (as as been mentioned before) they have a good few studio flats etc but i think you'd be looking at £500 pm for them. (+bills)

Anywyas hope that helps, pm is you want a more detailed description of either!


:ok:

lucyfbowyer:

I'll be in Bournemouth on Thursday to view a few properties. Having phoned around all the letting agents it has become apparent that all the decent properties have been taken!


I received my contract yesterday so hopefully the college will send me an info pack asap, I'm still no wiser as to what is happening.
If anyone is interested in sharing accommodation, drop me a PM. All the single bedroom flats appear to have been snapped up but there seems to be an abundance of 2 bedroom offerings.

Not long to go now, see you all in two weeks. :cool:


By the way, if anyone is stuck for transport, I have three spare seats in my car which I don't mind sharing.

Way back when I started most people just started at the top of the list of B&B's and kept phoning each one until one said they had space. For the first course any room will probably do as you'll be seeing lots of the town if normality is followed, so for a change size doesn't matter ;)

Once you have got to know your course mates you can then go and find a place to share for the next course, there is normally a good range especially as for you it'll be the wintertime.

Bournecoast flats in Christchurch I can really recommend, you can get 2 into the flats (or 3 if you manange to get lucky :p ) and by getting 2 or 3 flats you can have a great laugh. The bills are just for electricity, and didn't come to huge amounts unless you like it tropical!

Well done and most importantly enjoy it.

5mb

14 days and counting!

:mad:

nervous yet?

:ugh:

:ok:

contract eventually came through. getting really excited now. Decided i really can't bebothered with being prepared and going down to look at flats. Decided to go down to cornwall and play on some boats as have jacked my jobs in. Would really appreciate it if anyone could please email me a list of B&B's which i could start ringing through.

Also are all of you lot lads or are there any birds out there? I don't mind but was just wondering

hee hee...
boats sound like more fun than house hunting! :ok: I'm a bloke, haven't twigged on that anyone else is a girly.........
I'm sure theres quite a few of us so there must be some more around.... the pprune illiterate....


NOT LONG NOW!!!!! (still waiting for intro pack tho! :confused: :} )
Chris

Got intro pack....
more nervous now! :\
12 days to go!!!!!! :yuk: :}

C

hello all,

congrats on getting a course, i started last oct and have since been posted but remember the excitement. i'd never heard of pprune until i started so there may be some in my boat - don't exclude them!

bournecoast are good for accom cos they'll do you a three month contract (hate to be a downer but the fact is you won't all make it...), but they may try to oust you in favour of tourists come summer. b&bs are great for a start but not never overly comfy long term, and same problem come the summer...

remember you'll need somewhere to study, best to stick in groups for it as well, helps. even as a complete industry outsider and ex-student i was amazed at how much there was to learn in such a short time. expect to work hard and play hard when u can, it's not like (my experience of) uni...

you've all been given an incredible opportunity to do a job that thousands of people would give there right arms to do - something i really didn't appreciate until after starting (and i'm convinced some in the job never realise - we all know one). make the absolute most of it.

take it easy. h10. :cool:

Got my intro pack too. All I have to do now is make a million phonecalls to arrange somewhere to live. To add to the commotion, my insurance company won't add business cover to my car policy due to me being under 21. D'oh! :ugh:

hangten - If theres one thing I dread, it's not passing the course. I can't bare to think about it. Typically how many per course would fail? Do you think the ones who fail do so due to lack of dedication or is the course as intense and as challenging as it's made out to be?

I'm so excited I can hardly sleep at night.:\

Is the plan for everyone to meet in the bar at New Place on Sunday evening? What time is everyone planning to be there at?

Good luck! :)

Scuzi, out of the 23 originals on my course 8 years ago, 9 are now valid NATS controllers. Only two left due to their own preference, the other 12 failed. I believe that about 50% course pass rate is average, however there are courses that have been extreme in both directions :ouch:

my course is still ongoing so no reflection yet... however when we started i think we were quoted that 80% of those starting would make it out to unit (but not necessarily pass validation..), and of those 40% would do so without 'touching the sides' as it were, ie. without having to retake a failed course. check you terms and conditions to see how you stand on recourses should heaven forbid something go wrong, the rules change often. i reckon 5miles' figures for valid NATS controllers still sounds reasonable.

i'm afraid dedication is certainly required, without it you'll struggle no matter how much aviation experience you have, but no guarantees.

all i can say is, expect to work hard and you'll be ok! you got accepted so you're capable...

good luck. h10. :ok:

Hangten
Can you give us some information on the teaching styles at the college, especially in the early stages. Is it done lecture style like at Uni, and do they use handouts or textbooks or what?

Are their tutorials/seminars or anything like that?

Thanks

James

During the early stages it'll be more bookwork and less sims time while you are taught stuff like Aviation Law, Met, Altimetry, Telephony and phrases, aviation knowledge (ie airfield signs and lighting, aircraft recognition) and how to do your course. You'll probably get your own personal copy of the Air Traffic Bible (MATS Part 1 and 2) but whether this is a hard copy like we used to get or floppy disk we now get operationally I don't know. Each classroom is normally supplied with a hard copy of all the books for reference purposes.

The lessons take place in a classroom and handouts are normally offered for later reference. Most lessons can be quite informal, more of a discussion, so that you understand fully before applying it in the sims in various ways, but the informality all depends on who is giving the lesson, and how you act back (ie not disrupting the flow too much). The course has changed drastically since I did it, but would imagine the content still follows these guidelines.

I agree with hangten that dedication is certainly required. Its not easy by a long stretch, lots of home study to keep things fresh in your head, and then the arduous task of revising for your written and oral exams, the former needing the bible quoted verbatum. That said you need to get to know your course well so you all work as a team, very high on the priority list. Obviously the best way to do this is go out on the town, just don't overdo it too often :}

Good luck to you all, you never know I might end up training you on radar one day, then you will need luck :ooh:
5mb
:ok:

Thanks for that!
On average how many hours of study did you need to do at home in the evenings and at the weekend?

think the short answer to that is as much as it takes to understand it!

lol

sorry couldn't resist! :ok:

Suppose I set myself up for that one!!!

:D

The previous Introductory course spent approx. five weeks in the classroom without seeing the simulators (as it happens the simulators are the same workstations you sit at during the lectures) so it's a little different now.

However I know there were a few comments about this, so the structure may have changed slightly.

For info, we started with 26 and during ADC1 and 2 we lost seven - two of those are working within NATS and another is working at a non-NATS airfield. So not at all bad compared to the average.

my course was like 5miles' but as phantom says it's all different since june. as i understand it you do a few (5?) weeks on the 'introductory course', which i believe involves little if any simulator work. it's all theory, subjects as above. but the lectures are uni style and as 5miles says, quite relaxed with plenty of handouts and you do get hard copies of your bibles - the college hadn't joined the 21st century when i was there and disc copies were none existent. the opposite of which seems true at unit. we did get occasional tutorials as well (4 or 5 students), as we got close to the oral board exams. one thing that was different was that (for aerodrome anyway) there were no verbatim exams - all multiple choice 1/4 - but not always as easy as it sounds...

then you choose/get chosen for discipline, twr only (london airports), twr and approach radar (regional aiports and i think terminal control), or area radar only. the idea being to reduce failure rates (and cost - ahem) by the number of courses you do (people on my course now doing area control had to pass all the aerodrome courses first). politics abound... :{

phantom says workstations the same for lectures as sims, which is all new, i'm lost...

h10

Thanks for all the info!
all seems a tad daunting at the moment, i'm sure when i get in the swing of it i'll be fine! :O

11 days!!! aaaaaaargh :cool:
Chris

Hangten, was reading your first post and you mentioned about not everyone realising how lucky they are to have this job - are you speaking from experience and if so do you care to enlighten us?!? ;)