I applied online the application system was well designed and thoughtful put together. I was then sent an online test to do which did include some grammatical errors in it but again it was fairly simple. I then had an in person assessment at Tonbridge which took about 6 hours in total again it was simple and it was made very clear what I had to do. The staff at the assessment centre were very nice and caring and discussed with me in private if I needed any reasonable adjustments due to my disability. I was made to feel welcome by everyone at the assessment centre and they were very professional and very good at their jobs, they deserve recognition for their work. I was then offered an interview and unfortunately this is where everything changed. As an autistic person it became a problem as I was given the wrong location for the interview and on the day of the interview there were no staff members about in the location I was given so I had to go a search for someone, I eventually found a staff member in an office (the door to this office was closed). This staff member gave me the location and said they didn't understand why they give the wrong location. I was also given the name of the person interviewing me, I did some research on the named interviewer and prepared some questions specific to them, just for that person not to interview me. There was no call or email to apologise for not attending the interview and letting me know someone else would conduct it which would have been the professional thing to do. Prior to starting the interview I was led to a room where other members of staff walking by were looking in one of whom made a comment (again not professional) and when the interview started the two interviewers introduced themselves by first name only and didn't tell me their role within Southeastern or describe what they did (I assume they are driver managers). The interviewers came unprepared and didn't read my CV until near the end of the interview at which point they asked a question about it relating to my disability which they handled poorly. More shockingly though was that they didn't know/understand their own drugs and alcohol policy, I explained that the alcohol limit was very low that it was best to treat it as zero tolerance to which they told me I was wrong as it is zero tolerance and I told them there is zero tolerance on drugs, I have since checked to confirm what I said was correct. On the website it says the interview is conducted in a way to generate conversation but it never felt like a conversation, it felt like I was talking to a script for example I explained how a job I do in my spare time is similar to train driving, I gave examples and mentioned the similarities using the STAR method just for them to ask "Tell us about a time you did something similar to that of the role of a train driver". My autistic brain was confused and I didn't know whether to repeat myself or try find another example, a good interviewer would have let what I previously said flow and asked additional questions and then mentioned I actually answered their next question instead of what they did which left me confused and feeling like they aren't listening. One of the interviewers also criticised Southeastern during the interview and didn't seem happy in their work. Some of the documents they sent me about the role had grammatical errors in them. The interview I did as part of the assessment was perfect and I really enjoyed it, the interviewer was amazing. Summary: Everything before being told I passed the assessment I couldn't fault and was absolutely faultless, everything after was unprofessional and needs a lot of work. It was like dealing with two different companies. I do want to apply again so I hope they make changes to their final interviews. I wrote this in the hopes it makes them better, gives them feedback and makes them aware of issues they may not be aware of. Hopefully next time they will accept me and we can both improve together.

During the assessment day (2nd stage) Southeastern done an amazing job of making everyone not only feel welcome, but they made it so the environment did not feel competitive (if you didn’t know, you are assessed in a group of 8+). The whole day lasts around 6 hours, however it personally did not feel as bad as it sounds. The day consisted of 4-5 stages, however most people struggled on the first assessment which was on paper. For anyone taking this assessment, I would recommend practicing beforehand. Listen to what the interviewers have to say, it will help. When they tell you that they do not expect you to complete a task, it means they want you to take your time and do it properly, rather than rush and mess it all up. In my experience, this exact test is where half my group failed. I didn’t know beforehand, but there is an interview at the end of the assessment day. This was done extremely professionally, and you are given time beforehand to think of any examples and situations you would like to use to help prepare. The second interview. This was done around 1.5 months later, which I thought was rather speedy considering the sheer amount of applicants. I will warn people that this interview, at least at my local depot, was not done as professionally. I arrived around 20 minutes early, being placed into the staff room upon arrival. While this wasn’t bad, I did feel like I had a bit of an unwanted presence. The train drivers at the depot were not only extremely friendly, but also very funny and genuinely down to earth people. There was most certainly a sense of family between the drivers, something I found really interesting. When I entered the interview room I was met with two of the depot managers. While welcoming at first, it almost felt like a “good cop, bad cop” situation. One was very nice, explaining questions in more detail when needed and extremely patient. The other however, not so much. Any questions I had asked was met with an extremely confused look by one of the managers, which was particularly off putting. In the end I was recommended a job on the station by one of the managers, as in his opinion the interview had been disastrous. I found this rather disrespectful. Bearing in mind this was one of my first “major interviews”, a few bits of well constructed criticism and advice would have gone a long way. Instead I was basically told on the spot, I hadn’t got the job. To anyone who has made it to the 2nd interview, please check your emails. At the bottom there will be attachments, one of these you will be asked to revise. I couldn’t find this document until the very day before the interview and thus did not have enough time to drill it into my memory. One more thing to note, some of the drivers seemed unhappy with the management. I had overheard this while waiting. While this usually isn’t uncommon, It definitely made me reconsider if I wanted to work there. If southeastern ever reads this, please consider a separate waiting area for interviewees. This could help solve at least some of the issues presented.