What Band 1 unit is in a low cost area ?

Cost of living has and will always be an issue, hence the old "London Weighting" in the distant past.

Up until recently tax has not been an issue.

The Armed Forces are looking into making sure everyone gets the same take home pay wherever they work.

Prospect, the union that looks after ATCOs, rejected a clause at conference regarding this issue, you should ask them why.

Best of luck to you all wherever you end up.

Southampton v Farnborough?

Band 2 has an even better example..... Glasgow v Bristol! Certainly a lot cheaper to live in Glasgow compared to Bristol.

Also worth adding that trainees are not paid shift allowances until the license is validated (completion of on the job training).

Thanks for the advice. I think there was something about categories on the initial medical form that we had to fill in.
Knowing the category won't really help though as we can't prepare for it. And like you said, the category we're sorted into doesn't have to reflect the outcome of the medical. I guess I'll just have to wait and be positive about it.

Hi Hannah, I also start on 29th April 2019 if you could message me and add me to the WhatsApp chat please?
Thanks

==============================

You can’t use the Private Messaging system, add url links or images until you have an established posting history.

So for those who have had their stage 3 assessment recently how many days prior it did you receive an email with an allocated time slot? I have my stage 3 on Wednesday at Hampshire but I have had no emails from them 🤔

OK I may just do that. Thanks Hannah.

Hey guys, anyone on here from Stage 2 yesterday(11/02)? Having made it through to the DART tests again, that is where my journey ends, again! Perhaps i'm just not cut out to be ATC as twice now I have failed on the DART!

Good news though, the process is changing from April with stages 1 and 2 being online before proceeding to stage 3 interview and anyone who has recently failed can re-apply from April, no need to wait a year!

Without wishing to sound too harsh, if you've failed the DART tests twice you may well not be the right type for air traffic. I don't mean that in a rude way, it's just a fact that some people have their brains wired the right way to do the job and some don't. There's some that make it through the second stage and the interviews would find them out and there's some who make it through the interviews as well - because as we all know there's enough floating around the internet and PMs on this forum to allow anyone to be pretty well prepared for the interview stage. However, it will catch up with you at some point and then you've wasted a load of time trying to get a job that you just don't have the aptitude for and you're back at square one having wasted over a year of your life with nothing to really show for it.

That said, don't let me put you off. I know of several people that I work with who got in after more than one attempt and they're very competent controllers.

It's cool, I get it. I feel comfortable for the most part and have no issue getting through FEAST, it's just when they turn up the heat in the final stage of dart, I tend to lose track! A big part of the job I know!! :hmm:

I may give it one more go. It's been a few years between tests and I'd forgot quite how dart went so I could really immerse myself in practice specifically around that for one final crack.

That's how I understood it too

Personal preference but if it was me I'd rather travel to the office as it makes it more real. I remember when doing stage 0/1 at home I was distracted during one of the sections by someone coming into the study to faff around with something while I was trying to concentrate. I would've been a bit peeved if that had happened during the later stages, which are so much harder. I found being in the right environment at the test centre made sure my head was really in the game. It also gives you a bit of familiarity if you make it to Stage 3 too.

Hi, I'm currently waiting to sit my stage 2 (currently studying an unrelated course at uni so was waiting until April to sit stage 2), however, I've just had an email stating stage 2 will need to be completed by the end of March and if sucessful, stage 3 by the end of April. Due to uni placements, I could only now sit stage 2 in Feb. What I am wondering is realistically, how long did it take to learn the booklet well enough to pass the test? Whilst I am aware everyone learns at different rates, I am loathed to spend £300 to travel down from Ayrshire with not enough prep time but would have to start from scratch with my application in April 2019, if I don't. Any advice appreciated!

100% agree!!

Out of interest, is anyone lurking on here booked onto the 8th May course in Jerez? I've yet to find any course mates!

I was in the same boat regarding booking stage 2. I checked the dates and there were only 2 available before the end of March. I've booked one and, worst case scenario, I can start the process again in April if I fail. I would check quick though because there seems to be hardly any availability.

I'm currently part way through the application process for Trainee ATCO, but I'm a bit confused about how salary progression would work. If I am successful, I will have to take a fairly significant pay cut for a few years it seems, so I'm trying to work out the ins and out and calculate if I can afford it. As far as I can tell it goes something like this:

College phase – £17,000 + £60/week accommodation + £1,000
On the job training – £19,423 to £23,307 (depending on location)
Post-validation – £37,014 to £41,253 (depending on location)
On third anniversary of joining – £52,878 to £58,933 plus shift pay of around £6,500

Now for my questions:
1) How long is the college phase? The NATS infographic suggests 1 year, but elsewhere I've read about 3 months basic + 3.5 months specialism + breaks (so around 7-8 months)?
2) Does everyone get the £60/week for accommodation or does it depend on you renting somewhere?
3) Who qualifies for the £1000 extra? (When you're on £17k, every little helps! But the NATS website suggests not everyone qualifies for this additional sum, without giving more details).
4) Is the 3rd anniversary of joining counted from Day 1 of the college phase?
5) If the answer to my question (4) is "yes", and college + on-the-job training can together take 2.5 to 3 years, then doesn't that mean you aren't on the £37-41k band for very long at all?