Graduate Days

[eggon]

Hello

Ive got a graduate assesment day this Thursday. Its for a company called Enterprise Plc. not the car rental company, the utility company!
Anyway, the assesment day is the second part of the recruitment process, ive already passed the CV/application form. The assesment day is all day and the notes say that it is informal and no prepartion is needed.
Obviously Ive researched the company and its competitors and tried to find out any relevant info.
Has anyone been to graduate assesment day or know of what one would involve?
Im thinking they may do some role play and an interview but apart from that I have no idea of what to expect

Anyone Help??

[Tammer]

Whats the job for? Generally these will comprise at least an interview (usually competency based, i.e. "tell me about a time when you have shown 'insert skill here;". Also, there will be at least one team exercise, and probably some written exercise, like an "in-tray" exercise.

Its hard to go into any more detail without knowing what the role is for, and how long the day is. I've been to one day, and two day assessments before, and they're all slightly different, but inherently similar

[/dev/null]

Hi,
Yes I went for one to get my current job. I can't promise the format will be the same as ours however the schedule was as follows:

1) Coffee - just sat down with the other candidates for a coffee & general chat
2) Company introduction - basically a presentation to tell you about the company
3) Role play - they gave us a set of plastic pipes, connectors, panels and the like (oversized kids connect kit!) and asked us to design a truck and a bridge whereby the truck could travel over the bridge across a river. You had to order the parts you needed but any parts left over were penalised and parts obviously cost 'money'. A panel of about 6 people sat and watched you whilst you did this. They were basically looking at a) How you perform as a member of a team within the team and b) how you perform as an individual in the team.
4) Tour of the company facilities
5) Number of written tests such as numeracy, verbal reasoning, logic, diagramming etc. there were about 5 or 6 altogether, multiple choice and timed.
6) Formal interview with two people (lasts about 20 mins) - the main questions were of the format "Can you give an example of when you......" eg, "Can you give an example of when you spoke up about something you didn't agree with. What were the consequences?". It's also a good idea to know some stuff about the company beforehand.
At the end of the interview they will ask you if you have any questions. Whatever you do, don't say no. Make sure you have a few questions to ask, however small they may seem. Even if all your questions have been answered during the interview, think of anything (or you can even ask again) . "What progression opportunities are there within the company?" "Do you deal with international clients as well as national clients" may be some.... It shows you are interested in the company and the position.

If you get through to the next stage I'd imagine it will be a further formal interview where they ask more about your experiences and skills. Why do you want to work in the company? What do you think you will contribute? A classical question that can throw many people off is "So, tell us about yourself" - Be prepared for these, lol!

Hope this helps anyway - best of luck!

[eggon]

The job is a graduate training management role.
I am applying for the Central support graduate scheme. This involves Human Resources and Training, Accountancy, Commercial And Legal and Information Technology.
The Day starts at 10am and finishes at 4pm.
I was expecting the competence based questions and do have some prepared answers for these.
As for the role play/team building, then I guess that this is something I will have to deal with at the time. Is it best to take control and lead or sit back and offer constructive ideas?

Ive been looking over Phycsometric tests and trying to get myself familiar with these just in case these do come up.
The information I have been given is not too helpful. Just says that no preparation is needed!!!
Im thinking that this is the final stage and from here they will then decide who they will employ.
What are the best things to discuss? I dont want to get involved in a conversation of politics and end up in an argument!!

thanks for the help

[/dev/null]

T
As for the role play/team building, then I guess that this is something I will have to deal with at the time. Is it best to take control and lead or sit back and offer constructive ideas?

Don't try to "take over" as such but at the same time, don't sit back and do nothing - get involved, voice your ideas, but also listen to other peoples ideas. Try to help others if they aren' understanding something too well.