pugwash
 

Thanks for the reply :) I've just checked it out, another personality test :( Is this to check if i've gone insane after the 2 stages :}

fail ='(
 

I also found out today that i failed stage 3, and I'm shattered by it. I know I shouldn't be, but it was my dream job.

It annoys me that I've done 1500 miles worth of travelling for nothing, and they didn;t even grace me with a reason for failing.

It also annoys me that they allowed me to go trhough all that testing just to fail an interview where nerves more often than not take over. Why?? I have already proved I've got the mental capacity to at least cope in the college.

There, RANT OVER.

Now, does anybody know of any other companies that may have similar jobs going? I know NATS is the main, but they dont do all airports. So maybe there is somewhere else I could get in??

binbrain x

Sorry to hear some people are getting bad news at the moment. You can get feedback to find out why them didn't think you're suitable - wait until the news has sunk in a bit and arrange a time to speak to HR.

binbrain: Unfortunately it's not just about mental capacity to cope at the college (and if I'm being truly honest, nearly all of us at the college probably didn't really know how hard it is sometimes until we were there doing it). There's a lot more that they're looking for - for example, it can be about how you interact with people, how you've dealt with situations in the past, the way you assess risks (some people are generally risk-takers, others risk-averse, and not something you can change easily), etc etc.

There's quite a lot of people at the college who got through to Stage 3 on their first application, failed, got some more experience or just had a better idea of what was going to happen (for some, it's the first time they've had an interview like that), re-applied and were successful 2nd or 3rd time round.

Don't know how old you are, but if you're under 25 and willing to work overseas, you can apply to Eurocontrol. Alternatively it seems it's hard to get into the non-NATS airfields without at least some ATC training - there are two colleges where you can pay to train, but it's expensive, and unless you can make arrangements before you start, no guarantee of a job once you finish.

Good luck with whatever you choose to do.

thanks for the reply.

I am only 21 and it was my 1st ever interview and I had no idea what to expect. I will definately apply again, like you said, I'll know whats coming.

When I do reapply, will I have to go through all the stages again?

bb

I believe you can reapply from the date of your stage 1... which I reckon I will do, depending on the feedback from HR.

I think a year from your Stage 1 is correct, but double check with HR nearer the time. You do have to go through all the stages again though!

Binbrain, you're only 21....don't be heart broken or give up. The first time I tried for ATC stuff I was 24 and did Eurocontrol. I got to the interview and they failed me...I believe it was because I had just moved to Europe two months before. At 24 I had no chance of attempting for Eurocontrol again....I moved on and found NATS. Now I am set to begin the college in Feb.

Keep you head up and stay positive. I truly believe that is the biggest factor in making it through all of this. Stay positive and you will find a way to achieve what you want.

Hey, I had my stage 1 shortly before it all changed over to swanwick and prestwick, I live in Birmingham so I was quite lucky. As for security checks, I got given a form at stage 3 to fill out, its like an enhanced disclosure I was told, but to be honest I could have been signing my life away and I wouldn't have known any different! But I thought that only went through if you were successful at stage 3 and have yet heard nothing about how I did, even though they are processing the security vetting now. I'm not sure about your personal circumstances, but if it was many years ago and was minor, I would be surprised if they said no because of that. Maybe ring hour and check. X

I can't believe people have heard back from stage 3 and they had their interview a week after me! I'm really sorry for you guys not getting through, I feel I may be joining you on that wagon soon. Chin up guys, worst things have happened. You will find something for you, good luck! X

Bloody hell that well scared me! Was worried I hadn't been emailed the personality test cuz I'd failed. Not that I feel like I've passed mind. Hope we find out soon. I'm going to Australia in a week so don't want to be finding out while I'm out there.

It seems like a fair few of us are currently going through the motions of the Stage 3 Assessment. I have mine on the 19th October at the Swanwick LACC. Anybody else attending the same date?

For those preparing for Stage 3, I find it really helps to take note of the fact that this assessment involves a competency interview. NATS will only make you an offer if you can talk about multiple examples of ways in which you have behaved well against the listed core competencies in the past. Being able to talk about these examples in detail is also key.

When thinking about preparing an example, it might help to break it down into different parts. For example, thinking about a tough decision you've had to make in the past; consider the situation. What was the problem? What obstacles did you have to overcome to make that decision? Follow through with information you collected, actions you took and the subsequent outcome of your actions. Remember to finish with what you learnt as a result of the example and how you might do things differently if you were to do them again.

Writing down your examples helps reinforce them in your brain. The more examples you can think of, preferably in varying situations [work/University/personal life], the better. Take a competency and write down questions you think NATS might ask you about it. Then write down 'probes' i.e. follow-on questions you might be asked as a result of your initial answer.

One example could be under the problem solving competency. An initial question might be:
'Describe a complex problem you have had to deal with.'

A 'probe' could be:
'What was your individual role in solving the problem?'

or:
'How did you communicate with members of your team to accomplish this?'

...and so on and so forth.


Hope this helps! :ok:

There's plenty of books available in your local bookshops or libraries that cover competency-based interviews and how to tackle them. Can't remember what one I used the very first time I had this type of interview (it wasn't my NATS one) but I found them really helpful and definitely worth the time spent preparing and thinking about it!

stage 3 interview
 

I wonder how one can demonstrate competence in 'emotional stability' and 'spatial awareness'. I mean, haven't they already tested us on cubes in spatial reasoning? How do you go on to demonstrate competence in 'spatial awareness'?

Do they test you on some mental arithmetic with the 'numerical awareness' competency in the interview?

SKOS,

Be prepared to answer questions on any of the competencies listed, or possibly more!

Emotional stability; you could think of an example which relates to that at work. Let's say there was a time you dealt with an big client. Your business with them was important to your organisation but you couldn't help getting annoyed at their very personal remarks at your manner of business. Did you lose your cool, or remain composed and professional and concentrate on the task at hand?

Alternatively, deadlines could be another example. For example, getting a Dissertation together for University. In these stressful times when you may have been under a lot of time pressure to produce large amounts of work in short spaces of time, did you ever feel like having a mental breakdown and giving up, or did your resilience and the goal-driven side of you put emotions to one side and focus on what was important?


Take the time to prepare, it's well worth it! :ok:

"One thing you said that I am not quite clear on is, you don't seem to know how many of the 11 maths question you answered was right. I mean with the answers, it is either you know how to work it out and get it right or not. Surely, you must have an idea as to how many of the 11 you got right."

I'd like to say with a 100% accuracy that I got all the 11 questions right (or was it 13?) I'm pretty sure I got all of them right but I know from advice and experience that answering a question isn't a black and white situation, especially on those SDT questions.

If I get feedback I will indeed share it with you all, of course I don't expect HR to give away success thresholds and such but I need answers here or I'll be forever wondering why.

Spare a thought though for the Stage 3 people who get knocked back at such a final stage that must be a right kick in the teeth ...and wallet....:ouch:

or spare a thought for those who still haven't heard back from their stage 3. 11 days tomorrow :(

Best of luck, 'leanne1987'! Try keeping the old adage in mind; 'no news is good news'!

haha, my mum said the same thing. Im just so impatient! Hows your prep going for stage 3? You seem pretty sorted for it! x

It's going alright, thanks! Just have to keep practising and going over stuff for it. Thankfully I'm going down the night before and staying in a B&B so will be a little less stressful on the day itself. I know I'll still be really nervous when the actual interview comes around though.

Best of luck with your outcome, really hope you make it! :ok:

you too good luck!!! Got my fingers crossed for you x

Hi, really nice to meet you all yesterday at S2.
I actually enjoyed the SDM, I thought it was tough but just tried to be as methodical as possible.

Peter

Peter
 

What is SDM?

Strip Display Management.

A multi-task exercise in which you have to update, sort, remove flight strips and detect local and opposite conflicts.

Leanne, your mum's right! There's 3 of us from the 29th who've already received our 'no' responses...

I did stage 2 with you - the other girl (olivia)... good luck! I really hope you pass!

Two years ago I made it to the final interview with Eurocontrol didn't get picked. It was a hard hit because I was 24 and no chance of going again for the interview. I kept my head up and moved on...now I start the college with NATS in February. The main part to keep in mind with these things is to stay positive and keep moving forward.

Hi folks,

I found out yesterday that I didn't pass my stage 3 from 18th Sept.

I'm gutted.....

The daft thing is I have a pretty decent job anyway but really, really wanted to do this.

As I'm 34 I don't think I'll be having another go.

I sat and worked out that to stay overnight and travel to stages 1,2 and 3 as well as a separate visit to Swanwick had cost me over £1000. That's a fair bit of money for a big fat NO......

Hey guys, did any of you folks who didn't make it through stage 3 get contacted about your security form you filled in? That's the only contact I've had, and I still haven't heard a thing! Was it via email or a phone call? X

Stage 2
 

Well.... just got back from stage 2. Not really sure what to make of it, what an epic day!!

Felt it was pretty tough. I think it was obvious that you couldn't be expected to do most of the tasks without making mistakes, I certainly know I made quite a few (particularly annoying when you hit the button, and realise as soon as its too late that you chose the wrong answer :ugh:). I guess its just a matter of how many mistakes you make, which makes it quite hard to judge how well you did as there is no indication of what level of performance is required. I don't feel like I made a horrendous mess of any of it, but I'm certainly not feeling confident like I was after stage 1.


For anyone wanting more detail about what it involves:

The day is split into three parts, with a 30min break timetabled mid-morning and an hour for lunch (but generally the tests don't take as long as is timetabled so you get more time between than that).

The first part of the morning is dedicated to the FEAST tests. A good description of this can be found on this website: FEAST test
NATS use the entire FEAST test, but you don't do the strip management test at this stage (this is done after lunch as explained below).

After the first break you then sit the NATS computer tests. These are pretty old school (the software seems to run in DOS). The first one is called the arrow test: there is an arrow and a ball on the screen, you have to imagine you are standing on the arrow and looking in the direction it is pointing and then say whether or not the ball is to your left or your right. You get about 1-2 secs to answer each question before it dissappears. If you aren't fast enough then you miss out on that question). Later on there is a new arrow which is a different colour, when this arrow is displayed you have to invert the answer (so left is right, right is left etc.)

The second NATS test is a sorting test more or less exactly like the one you do earlier in the day as part of the FEAST tests.

The final NATS test is a collision avoidance test. There are loads of objects flying about the screen and you have to select which objects to remove to stop them from colliding with each other, the fewer objects you remove to solve the problem the more points you get (sounds a lot easier than it is). Later, as an added dimension, you have to answer some fairly nasty maths questions very very quickly (you get a few seconds max for each question) at the same time. If I fail I'm fairly sure this test is why!

After lunch you sit the SDM (Strip Display Management) test, which is the final part of the FEAST tests. This was AWESOME!! I more or less got over the stress of the whole day's testing, forgot about what was at stake, and really enjoyed myself on this. Basically this is a simulation of a section of airspace with a number of waypoints. You have to track aircraft through the airspace and update their flight strips as they go. You also have to keep the flight strips organised based upon a strict set of rules, discard expired flight strips, and try and identify any conflicts (you don't actually have to do anything about the conflicts, just identify them - which is easier said than done when you've got about 20-30 flight strips on the screen at once and are also receiving constant updates from the aircraft regarding position, altitude, ETA to waypoints etc. through your headset and have to keep all the strips fully up to date all the time). Think I did pretty well on this. Not sure if I managed to spot all the conflicts... I didn't get any alarms or warnings so I think that was a good sign.


All in all, quite a fun day, but a lot of hard work. Fingers crossed for the results now. The assessor said she'd try and get them to us within the next week, so time for several days of nervous feet tapping and thumb twiddling!

Hello, this is the first time I have posted on here but fortunately I passed stage 3 a month or so ago. Just got back from my NATS medical. On one of the forms I had to state whether I had been to see my GP recently. At the beginning of the year I had to visit the GP due to kidney stones who then referred me to the ultrasound dept. They found no trace of them anymore and presumed I had passed them.

After telling the doctor at NATS about this I am having to wait for a report from my GP and this information is going to be sent to the CAA before they can book my CAA medical.

Im now really worried that because of a history of kidney stones I'm going to be rejected. Has anybody had a similar experience and if so what was the outcome? I will be gutted if they can't sign me off as fit because of a history of this.

This is possibly the wrong section to write this but all the searches come back with information about pilots not TATCOs

Thanks in advance
Shaun

Hi all, here is the feedback I got from HR regarding my S1 tests.

"I have checked your results. I can confirm for you that you did not meet the required standard on the diagramming paper."

Bemusing... my weakness is maths not diagramming. I did really well on the operations (diagramming) answering over 35 questions on the paper. I guess either my accuracy was not up to scratch or I didn't answer enough questions.

Really frustrating, I was so confident after answering that paper and yet that was my weakness not the SDT questions.

Instead of answers more questions....

ShaunG don't worry about it. They triple check everything medical related just to be certain. I would put money on the kidney stones not being a problem.

Medical
 

Hi Shaun

I didn't pass the Nats medical because of one of the eye tests, I've just had my CAA medical which I passed no problem and I'm booked onto the February course, I had the same worries although it was a different problem, I'm sure they would have told you if they thought it was going to be a problem.

Good luck, I'm sure you'll be fine.

Thanks for your replies guys its helped put my mind at ease a little. I will let people know what the outcome is. I think the plan is to be put on the feb course so hopefully i get everything sorted and still get put on that.

Thanks again
Shaun

Leanne 1987 - PHONE HR! It's no good asking on this forum what the email regarding the security questionairre means!

On a positive note, they would only need the security form filled out 100% accuaratly if you were succesful at stage 3!

HR may have forogtten to email you regarding the Stage 3 results, the same happened to me, I got to the 15 working days, called them and got told to call back after the weekend to find out! Called Monday and they had temporarily lost my stage 3 results!!!!!!!!!! But they found them and I had passed.....so fingers crossed for you! :ok:


To everyone sitting stage 1 - I feel for you so good luck, we were hit with a couple of stage 1 tests the other day that they are thinking of bringing in, it almost fried my brain although interestingly, most of us completed them in the time allotted. (On top of that we had a written exam 1st thing the next morning!)

god i cant remember which one you were peter! :ugh:

Seem to be loads of us from s2 on the 30th on here now. Wish the weekend would hurry up!
Would love to get through to s3.

Hey all, just signed up to the forum after finding the site a day before my stage 1 test! the sites is great and thanks for all the info, just wish I found it earlier, haha..

does anyone know roughly how long it takes to hearback after stage1 tests? I realise they say '15 working days' but after readin the threads I see some people heard back within 1 or 2 days, does it vary depending on whether ur passed or failed? I took the test on 1st October, so its only been 2 days but like others have said its horrible waiting! cheers

Stage 1 - 15th
 

Hi guys, I've got my Stage 1 again (failed Stage 3 last year), anyone going to the NATS building in Farham on the 15th, next week, morning session?

Scott :ok:

People Passing Stage 1:
 

Hey, not hearing anyone passing Stage 1 lately, if you get through be sure to let us know, GOOD LUCK!

P.S. college places seem choc-a-block, interesting to see if they choke the intake. Good Luck for those elsewhere in the process too.

lotis88
 

Hi, I was the guy with a grey jumper on. Which one were you?