GWR Trainee Train Driver 2026: Every Assessment Stage, Test and Interview

To become a GWR trainee train driver, you apply on the FirstGroup careers site when a campaign opens, then get through shortlisting or online assessments, the psychometric tests and a Driver Manager interview before joining a talent pool for your chosen depot; you must also pass a full driver medical. GWR's recruitment portal gives the trainee rate as £32,489 a year, rising in steps to £69,105 once qualified.

Checked on 27 October 2026 against GWR's train driver recruitment portal, its latest trainee driver advert (Central Region, closed 20 October 2025), the FirstGroup careers site and RSSB's FAQ on the selection standard. Test names at GWR's assessment day come from candidates and are labelled as candidate reports. Our own advice is labelled as ours. ProSyllabus is an independent study site. It is not part of RSSB, the Office of Rail and Road, The OPC or any train company, and nothing here is official test material.

On 27 October 2026, GWR's recruitment portal showed no trainee driver vacancies, so use this guide to prepare and register for GWR's job alerts before the next campaign. For the general route into the job at any company, read how to become a train driver in the UK.

GWR's 2025 Central Region trainee advert, the latest we found, sets these minimums. GWR's network runs from London and the Thames Valley through South Wales to the South West; that campaign named Bristol Parkway, Bristol Temple Meads, Fratton, Gloucester, Swansea and Westbury.

If you have ADHD, dyslexia or another condition, GWR's advert invites you to share any additional needs so the process is fair; our guide to adjustments for ADHD and dyslexia covers what the selection standard allows.

GWR advertises trainee driver roles on the FirstGroup careers site, for a talent pool at one depot or a group of depots. You choose a first-choice location; you are then measured against the 60-minute rule for that depot, and the talent pool place is for it. Adverts may close early: FirstGroup's recruitment team warned in February 2024 that the roles are "extremely popular" and adverts may close early.

FirstGroup's FAQ says the next step after an application is either online assessments or shortlisting, and that it cannot give feedback if you are rejected at shortlisting. Candidate report: a candidate reported in August 2024 that they had completed the application and "the 2 online assessments" for Swansea. The sources do not identify those two; FirstGroup's FAQ describes its online assessments only generally, as possibly covering customer service, verbal and numerical skills, or concentration.

This is the standardised psychometric assessment in RSSB's standard RIS-3751-TOM, carried out at an assessment centre. GWR's advert says it will send Practice Test Materials before it invites you to any ability testing event. FirstGroup's recruitment team adds that anyone shortlisted for this stage is checked against the national database: a full valid pass lets you skip it, and a partial pass means you sit only the tests you do not hold.

FirstGroup's recruitment team names the Driver Manager interview as the step after the psychometric stage. Candidate report: GWR candidates on RailUK Forums also describe a multi-modal interview (MMI), which RSSB lists as part of the psychometric assessment itself. What to expect and the question types are in our train driver interview questions guide.

The full driver medical checks hearing, sight and colour vision. If you pass the whole process, GWR places you in the talent pool for your first-choice depot "pending available vacancies", and its advert says plainly that "this is a lengthy process". The 2025 campaign recruited to talent pools for 2026/2027.

Candidate report, not official: a candidate invited to a GWR trainee driver assessment day in 2024 listed these tests, among others, on their itinerary on RailUK Forums. Each is a test in RSSB's standard except the WCT, which is not in RSSB's table; RSSB says companies may also use other assessments. Check your own invitation.

What each test assesses is from table 1 of RSSB's 3751-FAQ (December 2024). RSSB's standard also includes a two-hand coordination test (2HAND), a situational judgement exercise (SJE) and the MMI. The full map of tests is below; our train driver psychometric tests guide explains each one.

A date checker and a 12-month plan for a retake are in our guide to retakes and pass rates; what happens hour by hour on the day is in our assessment day guide.

GWR's train driver recruitment portal, read on 27 October 2026, gives a trainee basic rate of £32,489 a year. Once you complete the basic training period and are confirmed competent, pay moves to a share of the full-time mainline driver rate:

The latest advert (October 2025) gives the same figures: £32,489 in training, rising to £69,105 when fully qualified. Its benefits list includes a defined benefit pension scheme, free rail travel across the GWR network for you and your family, and a company-sponsored health care plan.

Passing every stage does not mean an immediate start. GWR places successful candidates in the talent pool for their first-choice depot pending available vacancies, and its 2025 advert asks applicants to "bear with us" because the process is lengthy. The advert gives no waiting time. Under RSSB's FAQ, assessment results from 7 December 2024 are valid for five years.

Our advice: keep your contact details current on the FirstGroup site, and do not start another company's psychometric assessment without reading RSSB's one-at-a-time recommendation first.

Our guides on the train driver assessment are collected on the UK train driver exam page.