Yep, attended on the 22nd, submitted references that night and haven’t heard anything yet.

Trying to get an idea on time frames, if you are happy to share, when did you initially apply? and roughly how long after did you complete all the different stages? thanks!

No worries mate. Timeframe below:
22/07/24 - Initially applied for ATC with ASA.
24/07/24 - Received link to online assessments.
07/08/24 - Link to stage 2 online assessments.
14/08/24 - Invited to online interrupt test.
26/08/24 - Online interrupt test takes place.
27/08/24 - Advised I’d passed the interrupt test, received link to online video interview stage.
04/09/24 - Advised I’d passed the video interviews, told that next stage will be an in-person assessment centre. No assessment centres planned currently, application is on active hold.
19/09/24 - Invited to assessment centre - only given the choice between morning/afternoon sessions on 22/10.
22/10/24 - Assessment centre visit. On the way home received an email asking for 2 employment related references through Xref.

I applied 30/04/24

01/05 invited to complete online assessments. I completed them 05/05

15/05 invited for stage 2. Completed 22/05

28/05 invited to interrupt test. Completed 07/06. This needs to be done on Teams and I took a day off work for it

07/06 invited video interview. Completed 13/06

18/06 through to assessment centre, application is on active hold. The assessment centre needs to be done in person and took a couple hours

19/08 invitation to assessment centre held on 27/08 (It was a Brisbane assessment centre which was my application was on hold for so long)

02/09 assessment centre outcome

19/09 xref invite, should have gotten this earlier but there were some delays. 22/09 xref completed by referees

25/09 verbal offer and request to do medical

25/10 medical completed, now awaiting a response. Most likely I will be a part of the February intake at the academy


They are very responsive and helpful through the process. It's just a long process but most of it can be done at home in the evening

Many thanks for that! what was involved in the online video interview and assessment centre?
Hope you get your offer soon!

Thanks for providing that! how did you find the interviews and assessment centre? what was involved?

Just received an email 10 mins ago asking for me to obtain a medical certificate III. Guess that’s good news :)

In terms of the video interview, they were pre-recorded videos around 45 seconds in length, on certain prompts given by ASA, with around 2 minutes prep time for each. There were three in total for me. One I can remember was “Tell us your thoughts on resolving conflict in the workplace” or something very similar. Speak clearly, eloquently, and use the prep time to jot down some main talking points you want to cover.

The assessment centre was over in less than 3 hours. There’s a presentation at the start covering working for ASA and what’s expected of an ATC. Everyone in the cohort is asked to introduce themselves quickly. There’s around 10 staff sitting behind you all around the room taking notes.

The group exercise is a surprise scenario which is designed to get you all talking. I guessed there’s no wrong or right answers per se, ASA is more or less looking at your teamwork skills, verbal communication, and reasoning. We couldn’t have prepped for this if we’d tried, just be confident speaking in front of a group and asserting your point of view, arguing your point on the fly if necessary.

Then lastly came the individual interviews - these are pretty well explained in the emails from ASA already. No surprises here. Just have some good examples of times you demonstrated the desired competencies in an employment context, and know how to verbalise them using the STAR method.

Sounds like good news to me, congrats! and thanks for the info above, thats a really great insight! .. especially the recorded online interview, have never done one before.
At any point in the application process did you select your preference for tower/enroute? when I did the application all I saw was the preference for location

There was no formal selection for me (yet), at the end of the interview they quickly asked what I’d be more interested in doing, and because I chose tower they also asked which cities I’d prefer to work in. Hope this helped! :)

It has, thanks for all the info you have provided, much appreciated!

For those just starting out in the process, I have seen on reddit that AsA have cut away the SHL online testing to be replaced by another set of tests, labelled Domain Testing. No further info that I could find, even on their website they seem to have cut away any reference to SHL practice tests.

Applying again after being unsuccessful
 

So I applied for the ATC trainee role a few months ago and just received news that I was unsuccessful after 2nd stage of online testing. I was not surprised and knew I’d done badly on two of the tests especially, and also knowing how competitive the role is. I’m thinking I’ll probably apply again in the future depending on other things but I guess I’m wondering, have other people been unsuccessful the first time they applied and been successful on 2nd application? Also wondering who applies for this, like are people doing this straight out of school or as more of a career change later?

Unlucky and good luck if you apply again!
In my assessment centre there was a mix of first and second attempts, although there were only 4 of us.
Most (including me) are mid twenties looking for a career change but there was one guy fresh out of high school. I'm unsure if they also progressed

I was unsuccessful on my first attempt but got through on my second attempt. If you apply again they generally request that you wait a year since you submitted your first application.

Honestly, I felt like a bit of a write off by not getting through first time. Everything you read makes it seem like it’s a near impossible task (which I know it sort of is) to get in so it does give me hope to hear that others have got in the second time! Congrats!
Do you think you prepared yourself differently the second time or was it just your performance on the day that made the difference?

The first time around I made it to the assessment centre but didn’t pass. I think the nerves got the better of me. I took advantage of the feedback session to find out where I went wrong and worked on those things. I also went into the assessment centre the second time with a clearer head and made sure I kept myself calm.

Don’t beat yourself up for not getting through the first time. If this is what you want then take advantage of the fact that you have another shot. Think about where you could improve and give it another crack. Most importantly, keep calm during the tests and have fun.

Yeah I definitely think just having an idea of what to expect would make you more prepared the second time. I’ll definitely try again next year and hopefully come away with a better outcome!

Hi everyone, I've recently started with my application process. I submitted my application on 2/11 and received a confirmation email for that but haven't received the initial round of testing yet. Looking back through here it seems people are usually getting this within a few days, but I assume it's being held up a little at the moment due to the change in testing provider.

I applied a little bit before you and I am still waiting as well. There is also a few threads on Reddit where a couple people have already done the new tests, it seems they waited 2-3 weeks to get the email - likely due to the changeover as you mentioned above.

airwaysinternational.com/sureselect-atc-selection/sureselect-toolkit/

Above is the website and information on the new tests (all listed under SureSelect test suites). Goodluck!

Just got invited to the A/C - the call came within about 20 minutes of completing the interrupt test. It seems like they don't do the video interview stage anymore. A fun little thing i found is that you can actually find out what you scored in the interrupt test by zooming all the way out at the end. For reference I thought I completely flunked it with a score of 80% but that got me to the A/C so take that as you will :)

Does anyone know if it is possible to be an ATC with Airservices Australia if trained as an ATC with the Air Force? Has anyone here done that/know people that have or know what the transition process is?

What comes after the medical certificate submission on ASA’s side? I submitted it more than a week ago, they’ve acknowledged receiving it, and nothing has happened since.

Waiting for a course start date. I got a call today saying there is a course for me to join in May, should be getting more info by email in the next week. My preference was enroute

Yup just received the same info through email. I chose tower though. May 19th 2025 start date. Congrats!

Curious to know that when you chose tower or got your intial offer, were you advised of which tower location you will go to after training?

And congrats!

Cheers :) as far as I know, ASA doesn’t tell you the location of the tower you’ll be working in until you’re close to the end of the training course. They do give you a few months to prepare for the move though, as far as I know.

Ahk fair enough, cheers! :)

I just got my call today. Enroute beginning May 19th 🤝

Congratulations! Looks like I'll see you down at the academy
I was told the 19th too so looks like they'll have both courses start at the same time. Still haven't received the email though

Amazing! See you there

What are some differences between enroute and tower, in terms of both the training courses and eventually working?

I appreciate the insight - I’ve had a look online at the main differences obviously, was just keen to hear more about it in an Australian context, considering the choice now will impact your whole career.

Tower training usually lasts approximately 9 months in the academy. The pass rate for getting through the academy as a tower trainee is typically higher than en route.
Once you complete your academy training, you'll be placed in a tower for on the job training.

For en route, the academy lasts 12 months. Courses these days are seeing approximately a 50-60% pass rate for the entire academy, and then you'll move onto field training,

Both streams are challenging in their own right, but once you have successfully passed the respective training and done your diligence in each role, you are able to look towards being 'converted' into the other type of controller, once you are bored with your current position.
It seems more common in my experience for people from en-route to want to move to tower, eventually.

Airways NZ
 

Has anyone here applied for Airservices as well as Airways in NZ? If anyone can add any information that would be much appreciated.

Airways International - New Zealand - PPRuNe Forums

Have just been invited to and booked my interrupt test! 🎉 I know I didn't do too well on the detail checking so wasn't too hopeful, but I did feel ok with how i did on the rest of the tests. Time to trawl back through this thread for all your interrupt test hints and tips!

Completed interrupt test this morning. Standing by for results but felt very good about it, and thought it was actually quite fun. We were told that those who get through will likely be doing an in person assessment centre as next steps, but not until February or March. So no online recorded interview anymore then.

:)
 

Applied through Air Services Aus site as ATC trainee on 28th Nov, havent heard back or received any 'stage 1' testing so far. I was mildly concerned about this before reading some of these threads..... as I now realise this is a long process however is a 20 day+ wait normal for the first aptitude testing?. maybe it is because of the recent changes/ maybe due to xmas? also maybe due to weird timing for the next intake? Wondering If anyone else applied around a simliar time as me and heard back, or anyone else's thoughts. Thanks!

It was 25 days from my initial application until I received the online test suite via e-mail, so I wouldn't worry about that. If you do get the tests soon I would expect however to not hear about the results anything until the new year,.as things will definitely stop over Christmas.

Hello everyone - hope you have a break Xmas and NY break!
I am in preparation to apply the trainee ATC program, particularly the psychometric assessments. With a bit of Googling, I am aware there were some changes to the initial assessment processes.

From what I read the SHL psychometric tests have been "replaced" by what's called the Domain Testing. Comprising 3 tests and multiple sections that resemble previous stage 2 assessment.
Tried to dig up more info and practice tests, I could only find out that these tests are supplied by SureSelect.

I wonder if any fellow users here could shed lights on how the new assessment looks like, how do you prepare for it etc. I'd practice with the SHL packages for now to warm up myself and get into the flow.
But curious to see if there are better options that align with the new assessments.

Another stupid question I have is whether trainee get to indicate preference on which streams and/or locations to be assigned to?
I remember seeing a user shared you could state your preference, but understandably it all depends on availability, head count and various factors.

Thank you all in advance!

2025 Intake
 

Hey all!

Made an account in the hopes that I can contribute to this thread, as I’ve recently been invited to complete stage 1 testing in the near future.

I’m not sure I’ve ever been this excited to go through the process of acquiring a job, reading this thread really got the blood pumping. What a process this is going to be, curious to see how far I get if I’m honest. It’s been a long wait since the start of December.

Congrats to all before me and goodluck to those that in the current intake with me! Looking forward to experiencing this with you. All the best, what a start to the new year!

Hi All,

Just kicked of the stage 1 test with detail accuracy and coded reasoning.. not sure how to feel. Didn't get through all the questions in either - I'm hoping this is normal otherwise I'm a fair way off the mark? :ugh:

Was prioritising accuracy, however was obviously trying to work as quick as possible - do others just try and rip through the questions?