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<div style="background:#eef3fb;color:#303846;border:1px solid #c9d7ee;border-radius:12px;padding:14px 18px;margin:0 0 18px"><p style="margin:0;font-size:14px;line-height:1.6"><strong style="color:#171d29">Checked 23 October 2026.</strong> Official points are from RSSB's December 2024 FAQ on RIS-3751-TOM issue four, The OPC's candidate guide (04/12/2024), information sheet and 2020 list of standards, Translink's policy, Northern's and Avanti West Coast's careers pages and The Train Drivers Academy, read 23 Oct 2026. None of the research abstracts we read tested the Group Bourdon. The worksheet, targets, tips labelled practical advice and drills are ProSyllabus advice, not the official scoring. Follow your approved practice materials and the instructions on the day wherever they differ.</p></div>

<p style="margin:0 0 16px;line-height:1.7"><strong>How to pass the Group Bourdon: for its tests in general, The OPC advises working as accurately and quickly as you can. Our practical advice: scan every row in order, see four dots as two pairs, keep one steady rhythm and treat fives as traps. There is no single published pass mark: RSSB says RIS-3751-TOM issue four does not set pass marks, and each train company decides which it uses.</strong> Check your level on the free sheet above: 40 seconds, no sign-in, and each run is compared with your last one.</p>

<p style="margin:0 0 16px;line-height:1.7"><strong>Updated for RIS-3751-TOM issue 4</strong> (published 7 December 2024). The official points on this page were checked against RSSB, ORR, assessment-centre and train company documents on 23 October 2026; our own advice is labelled as ours.</p>

<p style="margin:0 0 16px;line-height:1.7">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.</p>

<p style="margin:0 0 16px;line-height:1.7">The standard names one criterion for it: attention. RSSB's table lists the <em>"Paper Group Bourdon"</em> under attention, next to TEA-Occ. No source we read publishes how it is scored. What the sources do say points one way:</p>

<div style="background:#ffffff;color:#303846;border:1px solid #e4e1d8;border-radius:12px;padding:18px 20px;margin:18px 0"><h3 style="margin:0 0 10px;font-size:17px;font-weight:700;color:#171d29">What the official sources say about the tests</h3><ul style="margin:0;padding-left:20px"><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6">The OPC: <em>"Try to answer as many questions as you can in the time allowed."</em> So coverage matters.</li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6">The OPC: <em>"Try to avoid wild guessing."</em> So marks you have not checked are a risk.</li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6">The OPC: <em>"You might not reach the end of all of the tests, not many people do, but if you work as accurately and quickly as you can, you give yourself the best chance of being successful."</em></li></ul><p style="margin:12px 0 0;font-size:13px;color:#5b6472">The OPC candidate guide (04/12/2024), page 4. These hints are for the tests in general, not the Group Bourdon alone.</p></div>

<p style="margin:0 0 16px;line-height:1.7">Our reading, not a published rule: when time is called, a sheet shows how far you got, the fours you marked, the fours you passed and any marks on groups that are not four, so speed and accuracy are the likely ingredients of any score. Our worksheet below uses exactly those counts. How they are weighted, whether there is a penalty for wrong marks, and whether steadiness across sheets counts, is not in any source we read. What candidates report is forum-reported: one 2017 post on a train driver forum describes five sheets of dots (sometimes letters), boxes with several dots each, each box of four dots circled, and two minutes a sheet.</p>

<p style="margin:0 0 16px;line-height:1.7">If you practise on paper, score each sheet the same way every time. Set a timer, mark as you go, and when time is up draw a line after your last mark. Then count only up to that line:</p>

<figure style="background:#ffffff;color:#303846;border:1px solid #e4e1d8;border-radius:12px;padding:18px 20px;margin:18px 0" id="gb-score"><figcaption style="margin:0 0 10px;font-size:17px;font-weight:700;color:#171d29">Score a practice sheet yourself</figcaption><p style="margin:0 0 12px;line-height:1.6">For a printed or home-made practice sheet: time it, then count. This uses the same arithmetic as our trainer. It is our own way of reading practice, not the official scoring, which no source we read publishes.</p><div style="display:grid;grid-template-columns:repeat(auto-fit,minmax(170px,1fr));gap:12px;margin:0 0 12px"><label><span style="display:block;margin:0 0 4px;font-size:14px;font-weight:700;color:#171d29">Groups on the sheet</span><input id="gb-score-total" type="number" min="0" step="1" inputmode="numeric" style="width:100%;max-width:200px;box-sizing:border-box;padding:8px 10px;border:1px solid #cfd6e2;border-radius:8px;font:inherit;background:#fff;color:#171d29"></label><label><span style="display:block;margin:0 0 4px;font-size:14px;font-weight:700;color:#171d29">Groups reached (up to your last mark)</span><input id="gb-score-reached" type="number" min="0" step="1" inputmode="numeric" style="width:100%;max-width:200px;box-sizing:border-box;padding:8px 10px;border:1px solid #cfd6e2;border-radius:8px;font:inherit;background:#fff;color:#171d29"></label><label><span style="display:block;margin:0 0 4px;font-size:14px;font-weight:700;color:#171d29">Missed fours</span><input id="gb-score-missed" type="number" min="0" step="1" inputmode="numeric" style="width:100%;max-width:200px;box-sizing:border-box;padding:8px 10px;border:1px solid #cfd6e2;border-radius:8px;font:inherit;background:#fff;color:#171d29"></label><label><span style="display:block;margin:0 0 4px;font-size:14px;font-weight:700;color:#171d29">Wrong marks</span><input id="gb-score-wrong" type="number" min="0" step="1" inputmode="numeric" style="width:100%;max-width:200px;box-sizing:border-box;padding:8px 10px;border:1px solid #cfd6e2;border-radius:8px;font:inherit;background:#fff;color:#171d29"></label><label><span style="display:block;margin:0 0 4px;font-size:14px;font-weight:700;color:#171d29">Seconds used</span><input id="gb-score-secs" type="number" min="0" step="1" inputmode="numeric" style="width:100%;max-width:200px;box-sizing:border-box;padding:8px 10px;border:1px solid #cfd6e2;border-radius:8px;font:inherit;background:#fff;color:#171d29"></label></div><div id="gb-score-out" role="status" style="padding:12px 14px;border-radius:10px;background:#f5f8f6;border:1px solid #d6e6dc;line-height:1.6;color:#171d29">Enter your counts to see your accuracy and groups per minute.</div><p style="margin:12px 0 0;font-size:13px;color:#5b6472">Accuracy = 100 x (1 - (missed + wrong) / reached). Groups per minute = reached / (seconds / 60). Share reached = reached / groups on the sheet. "Cleared" is our trainer's own target for moving up a level (95% accuracy and 60% of the groups reached), not an official pass mark.</p><script>(function(){var R=document.getElementById('gb-score');if(!R)return;function g(k){var v=R.querySelector('#gb-score-'+k).value;return v===''?null:Number(v)}var out=R.querySelector('#gb-score-out');function run(){var T=g('total'),r=g('reached'),m=g('missed'),w=g('wrong'),s=g('secs');if(r===null||m===null||w===null){out.textContent='Enter your counts to see your accuracy and groups per minute.';return}if([T,r,m,w,s].some(function(x){return x!==null&&!(Number.isSafeInteger(x)&&x>=0)})){out.textContent='Use whole numbers, zero or more.';return}if(r===0){out.textContent='Groups reached is zero: mark as you go, then count up to your last mark.';return}if(m+w>r||m>=r){out.textContent='Missed fours plus wrong marks cannot be more than the groups you reached, and your last reached group is one you marked. Check your counts.';return}if(T!==null&&r>T){out.textContent='Groups reached cannot be more than the groups on the sheet.';return}var acc=Math.round((1-(m+w)/r)*1000)/10,parts=['Accuracy: <strong>'+acc+'%</strong>'];if(s){parts.push('Groups per minute: <strong>'+(Math.round(r/(s/60)*10)/10)+'</strong>')}if(T){var sh=Math.round(r/T*100);parts.push('Share of the sheet reached: <strong>'+sh+'%</strong>');parts.push((1-(m+w)/r)*100>=95&&r/T>=0.6?'Our cleared target is met on this sheet.':'Our cleared target (95% accuracy and 60% reached) is not met yet.')}parts.push(m>w*2&&m>=3?'Most errors are misses: slow down slightly and check each group.':w>m*2&&w>=3?'Most errors are wrong marks: count before you mark.':'');out.innerHTML=parts.filter(Boolean).join('<br>')}R.querySelectorAll('input').forEach(function(i){i.addEventListener('input',run)});run()})();</script></figure>

<p style="margin:0 0 16px;line-height:1.7">Boxes after your line are "not reached", not errors: counting them as misses would punish you twice for being slow. Keep missed and wrong marks apart. They have different fixes, explained in the tips below. For printed sheets to score, use <a href="https://cdn1.prosyllabus.com/rail/group-bourdon-practice-sheets.pdf" style="color:#255a45;font-weight:600">our free printable sheets with an answer key</a>.</p>

<p style="margin:0 0 16px;line-height:1.7">RSSB's FAQ, question 28: <em>"RIS-3751-TOM issue four does not set pass marks. RSSB has recommended the pass marks, but it is the responsibility of the train company to determine which pass marks are used."</em> The OPC fills in the rest: RSSB has recommended a <em>"national minimum standard"</em> that candidates must achieve on each test, while some companies use a higher standard, or add tests, called an "enhanced" standard. There is no one enhanced standard: each organisation sets its own.</p>

<p style="margin:0 0 16px;line-height:1.7">So the honest answer to "what is the pass mark?" has two parts: the national minimum on each test, which The OPC does not give to the candidates it assesses and which is not in any source we read, and the company's own, which may be higher. The OPC answers the question <em>"What scores are needed to pass the tests?"</em> with <em>"This information is not provided to you."</em> The Train Drivers Academy, the site RSSB points candidates to for the role, says performance is assessed using standardised scoring and that some operators may require an enhanced level.</p>

<p style="margin:0 0 16px;line-height:1.7">The OPC publishes one list, of organisations that gave permission to be named. It is dated 1 September 2020, so names and standards may have changed since; ask the company. Two current pages agree with it: Northern says its assessments must be passed to an enhanced standard, and Avanti West Coast says it uses enhanced standards.</p>

<p style="margin:0 0 16px;line-height:1.7">Why it matters: The OPC says that if you fail a company's enhanced standard but pass the national standard, you could re-apply to a different company without waiting, while a failure to the national standard means a minimum wait before applying anywhere. The full rules are in <a href="/hub/train-driver-assessment-pass-rate-retakes" style="color:#255a45;font-weight:600">our guide to pass rates and retakes</a>.</p>

<p style="margin:0 0 16px;line-height:1.7">No official source we read gives the number of sheets or the time per sheet; the forum post above is one person's account from 2017, and your approved practice materials and the instructions on the day are what count. Research on vigilance in general, not on the Group Bourdon, describes a "vigilance decrement" in performance and finds that keeping attention on such tasks is hard mental work (Warm, Parasuraman and Matthews, 2008). In practice: judge yourself on your last sheet as much as your first. Our trainer compares your first half with your second for this reason.</p>

<div style="background:#ffffff;color:#303846;border:1px solid #e4e1d8;border-radius:12px;padding:18px 20px;margin:18px 0"><h3 style="margin:0 0 10px;font-size:17px;font-weight:700;color:#171d29">Official points that shape every tip below</h3><ul style="margin:0;padding-left:20px"><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6">The Group Bourdon is one of two <strong>attention</strong> tests in RSSB's standard, RIS-3751-TOM, and RSSB's table names it as a <strong>paper</strong> test. Translink lists it as <em>"Paper &amp; pencil"</em>.</li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6">The OPC lists it among the <em>"core tests"</em> that are <em>"universal to all companies"</em> and <em>"that you must pass"</em>.</li></ul><p style="margin:12px 0 0;font-size:13px;color:#5b6472">RSSB 3751-FAQ (December 2024), table 1; Translink HR023 v1.5, Appendix B; The OPC candidate guide (04/12/2024), printed page 7.</p></div>

<p style="margin:0 0 16px;line-height:1.7">What none of those sources describes is the sheet itself: what the items look like, how many there are, or how long each part lasts. As noted above, a 2017 forum post (forum-reported, not official) describes marking boxes of four dots. The tips below assume that kind of task, which is also how our trainer works. If your approved practice materials or the assessor say anything different, follow them.</p>

<p style="margin:0 0 16px;line-height:1.7">Each tip is labelled. <strong>Evidence-based</strong> means published research supports the general idea; none of the research abstracts we read reports testing the Group Bourdon itself. <strong>Official tip</strong> means an assessment centre's own advice. <strong>Practical advice</strong> is ours: sensible, but untested. Each drill takes about 30 seconds: play it on the free 35-second sheet at the top of this page, except tip 7, which is done on paper.</p>

<div style="background:#ffffff;color:#303846;border:1px solid #e4e1d8;border-radius:12px;padding:18px 20px;margin:18px 0"><h3 style="margin:0 0 10px;font-size:17px;font-weight:700;color:#171d29">1. Listen to every instruction and use any examples</h3><p style="margin:0 0 10px"><span style="display:inline-block;font-size:11px;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:.06em;text-transform:uppercase;color:#2c4a7a;background:#e8eef9;border:1px solid #c4d2ec;border-radius:6px;padding:2px 7px;margin-right:6px">Official tip</span></p><p style="margin:0 0 10px;line-height:1.65"><strong>How:</strong> Before the test time starts, listen to the whole explanation, do every example you are given, and ask about anything unclear. Once the test starts, you cannot ask.</p><p style="margin:0 0 10px;line-height:1.65"><strong>Why:</strong> The OPC: before each test <em>"you may have the chance to complete some examples"</em>, the assessor can help with them, and <em>"you are not allowed to ask"</em> anyone questions once the test time has started.</p><p style="margin:0;line-height:1.6;color:#1f5f3a"><strong>30-second drill:</strong> before you press Start on the free sheet, read its instructions once and say to yourself exactly what earns a mark. Then play the first 30 seconds.</p></div>

<div style="background:#ffffff;color:#303846;border:1px solid #e4e1d8;border-radius:12px;padding:18px 20px;margin:18px 0"><h3 style="margin:0 0 10px;font-size:17px;font-weight:700;color:#171d29">2. Work in reading order, row by row</h3><p style="margin:0 0 10px"><span style="display:inline-block;font-size:11px;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:.06em;text-transform:uppercase;color:#7a5410;background:#fbf1dc;border:1px solid #ecd6a6;border-radius:6px;padding:2px 7px;margin-right:6px">Practical advice</span></p><p style="margin:0 0 10px;line-height:1.65"><strong>How:</strong> Start at the top left, go along the row to the end, drop to the next row. Keep a finger or the pen tip one group ahead of your eyes to help you keep your place.</p><p style="margin:0 0 10px;line-height:1.65"><strong>Why:</strong> A fixed route can reduce the risk of skipping a group or looking at one twice. Our trainer is built on the same rule: work along each row from left to right, then on to the next.</p><p style="margin:0;line-height:1.6;color:#1f5f3a"><strong>30-second drill:</strong> play 30 seconds with a finger one box ahead of your eyes, then open "See your marked sheet" and look for boxes you skipped.</p></div>

<div style="background:#ffffff;color:#303846;border:1px solid #e4e1d8;border-radius:12px;padding:18px 20px;margin:18px 0"><h3 style="margin:0 0 10px;font-size:17px;font-weight:700;color:#171d29">3. See four as two pairs, with one look per group</h3><p style="margin:0 0 10px"><span style="display:inline-block;font-size:11px;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:.06em;text-transform:uppercase;color:#1f5f3a;background:#e3f2e8;border:1px solid #b9dec6;border-radius:6px;padding:2px 7px;margin-right:6px">Evidence-based</span><span style="display:inline-block;font-size:11px;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:.06em;text-transform:uppercase;color:#7a5410;background:#fbf1dc;border:1px solid #ecd6a6;border-radius:6px;padding:2px 7px;margin-right:6px">Practical advice</span></p><p style="margin:0 0 10px;line-height:1.65"><strong>How:</strong> Do not count four dots one by one. Let your eyes split the group into two pairs: two plus two is four, and anything else is not. Aim to decide each group with one look; if you are unsure whether there is a spare dot, check it before you mark (tip 4).</p><p style="margin:0 0 10px;line-height:1.65"><strong>Why:</strong> In Trick and Pylyshyn's (1994) account, fewer than four items are enumerated rapidly and accurately ("subitizing"), at 40 to 100 milliseconds per item, while more than four are counted, at 250 to 350 milliseconds per item and with more errors. Separately, Ciccione and Dehaene (2020) found that dividing a set of dots into subgroups of equal size made it faster and easier to enumerate. Seeing four as two equal pairs, with one look, is our application of those findings; neither abstract reports testing it on the Group Bourdon.</p><p style="margin:0;line-height:1.6;color:#1f5f3a"><strong>30-second drill:</strong> for 30 seconds, say "pair, pair: mark" or "no" silently for each box, and never count dot by dot.</p></div>

<figure style="background:#ffffff;color:#303846;border:1px solid #e4e1d8;border-radius:12px;padding:18px 20px;margin:18px 0"><figcaption style="margin:0 0 10px;font-size:17px;font-weight:700;color:#171d29">See four as two pairs</figcaption><svg viewBox="0 0 520 200" width="100%" role="img" aria-label="Illustration: four dots seen as two pairs of two; five dots as two pairs plus one extra; three dots as one pair plus one" style="display:block;max-width:100%;height:auto"><rect x="10" y="20" width="150" height="120" rx="10" fill="#ffffff" stroke="#cfd6e2" stroke-width="1.5"/><text x="85" y="166" text-anchor="middle" font-size="15" font-weight="700" fill="#171d29" font-family="system-ui,sans-serif">Four</text><text x="85" y="188" text-anchor="middle" font-size="13" fill="#5b6472" font-family="system-ui,sans-serif">two pairs: mark it</text><rect x="46" y="46" width="28" height="56" rx="14" fill="none" stroke="#1f7a45" stroke-width="2" stroke-dasharray="4 3"/><rect x="96" y="46" width="28" height="56" rx="14" fill="none" stroke="#1f7a45" stroke-width="2" stroke-dasharray="4 3"/><circle cx="60" cy="60" r="7" fill="#171d29"/><circle cx="60" cy="88" r="7" fill="#171d29"/><circle cx="110" cy="60" r="7" fill="#171d29"/><circle cx="110" cy="88" r="7" fill="#171d29"/><rect x="185" y="20" width="150" height="120" rx="10" fill="#ffffff" stroke="#cfd6e2" stroke-width="1.5"/><text x="260" y="166" text-anchor="middle" font-size="15" font-weight="700" fill="#171d29" font-family="system-ui,sans-serif">Five</text><text x="260" y="188" text-anchor="middle" font-size="13" fill="#5b6472" font-family="system-ui,sans-serif">two pairs and one: leave it</text><rect x="211" y="46" width="28" height="56" rx="14" fill="none" stroke="#b7791f" stroke-width="2" stroke-dasharray="4 3"/><rect x="261" y="46" width="28" height="56" rx="14" fill="none" stroke="#b7791f" stroke-width="2" stroke-dasharray="4 3"/><circle cx="225" cy="60" r="7" fill="#171d29"/><circle cx="225" cy="88" r="7" fill="#171d29"/><circle cx="275" cy="60" r="7" fill="#171d29"/><circle cx="275" cy="88" r="7" fill="#171d29"/><circle cx="300" cy="118" r="7" fill="#c2553a"/><rect x="360" y="20" width="150" height="120" rx="10" fill="#ffffff" stroke="#cfd6e2" stroke-width="1.5"/><text x="435" y="166" text-anchor="middle" font-size="15" font-weight="700" fill="#171d29" font-family="system-ui,sans-serif">Three</text><text x="435" y="188" text-anchor="middle" font-size="13" fill="#5b6472" font-family="system-ui,sans-serif">one pair and one: leave it</text><rect x="391" y="46" width="28" height="56" rx="14" fill="none" stroke="#b7791f" stroke-width="2" stroke-dasharray="4 3"/><circle cx="405" cy="60" r="7" fill="#171d29"/><circle cx="405" cy="88" r="7" fill="#171d29"/><circle cx="455" cy="74" r="7" fill="#c2553a"/></svg><p style="margin:12px 0 0;font-size:13px;color:#5b6472">Our illustration, in the style of our trainer's boxes. It is not a Group Bourdon item, and the real test's layout may differ.</p></figure>

<div style="background:#ffffff;color:#303846;border:1px solid #e4e1d8;border-radius:12px;padding:18px 20px;margin:18px 0"><h3 style="margin:0 0 10px;font-size:17px;font-weight:700;color:#171d29">4. Treat five and three as the traps</h3><p style="margin:0 0 10px"><span style="display:inline-block;font-size:11px;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:.06em;text-transform:uppercase;color:#7a5410;background:#fbf1dc;border:1px solid #ecd6a6;border-radius:6px;padding:2px 7px;margin-right:6px">Practical advice</span></p><p style="margin:0 0 10px;line-height:1.65"><strong>How:</strong> If a group looks "full", check it for one extra dot: two pairs and a spare is five. If it looks thin, it is probably three. Both are the groups you leave unmarked.</p><p style="margin:0 0 10px;line-height:1.65"><strong>Why:</strong> In a task where you mark one number of dots among nearby numbers, the near misses are where wrong marks come from. On our trainer, five and three appear from level 1 and six from level 3.</p><p style="margin:0;line-height:1.6;color:#1f5f3a"><strong>30-second drill:</strong> for 30 seconds, give every box that looks full a second look for the spare dot before you mark it. Then check your wrong marks on the result.</p></div>

<div style="background:#ffffff;color:#303846;border:1px solid #e4e1d8;border-radius:12px;padding:18px 20px;margin:18px 0"><h3 style="margin:0 0 10px;font-size:17px;font-weight:700;color:#171d29">5. Rhythm over speed</h3><p style="margin:0 0 10px"><span style="display:inline-block;font-size:11px;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:.06em;text-transform:uppercase;color:#1f5f3a;background:#e3f2e8;border:1px solid #b9dec6;border-radius:6px;padding:2px 7px;margin-right:6px">Evidence-based</span><span style="display:inline-block;font-size:11px;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:.06em;text-transform:uppercase;color:#7a5410;background:#fbf1dc;border:1px solid #ecd6a6;border-radius:6px;padding:2px 7px;margin-right:6px">Practical advice</span></p><p style="margin:0 0 10px;line-height:1.65"><strong>How:</strong> Find a pace you can hold for a whole sheet with almost no errors, then nudge it up a little at a time. Keep it even: no sprints, no stops.</p><p style="margin:0 0 10px;line-height:1.65"><strong>Why:</strong> Faster decisions generally cost accuracy and slower ones buy it; Heitz (2014) calls this trade-off one of the most widespread effects in decision-making. A steady pace is our advice for staying on the right side of it.</p><p style="margin:0;line-height:1.6;color:#1f5f3a"><strong>30-second drill:</strong> play at a pace you could hold for two minutes, then compare your groups per minute and accuracy with your last free sheet.</p></div>

<figure style="background:#ffffff;color:#303846;border:1px solid #e4e1d8;border-radius:12px;padding:18px 20px;margin:18px 0"><figcaption style="margin:0 0 10px;font-size:17px;font-weight:700;color:#171d29">Speed against accuracy: aim for the steady zone</figcaption><svg viewBox="0 0 640 330" width="100%" role="img" aria-label="Concept diagram: as your pace rises, the share of groups you reach rises and your accuracy eventually falls; the useful zone is the fastest steady pace at which accuracy holds" style="display:block;max-width:100%;height:auto"><rect x="300" y="30" width="150" height="230" fill="#ecf7ef"/><line x1="70" y1="260" x2="610" y2="260" stroke="#5b6472" stroke-width="1.5"/><line x1="70" y1="260" x2="70" y2="30" stroke="#5b6472" stroke-width="1.5"/><path d="M80 60 C 260 62, 380 70, 430 100 S 560 220, 600 240" fill="none" stroke="#1f7a45" stroke-width="3"/><path d="M80 245 C 200 200, 330 120, 430 85 S 560 52, 600 48" fill="none" stroke="#2f6fb0" stroke-width="3" stroke-dasharray="7 5"/><text x="375" y="50" font-size="13" fill="#303846" font-family="system-ui,sans-serif" text-anchor="middle" font-weight="700" fill="#1f5f3a">steady zone</text><text x="86" y="54" font-size="13" fill="#303846" font-family="system-ui,sans-serif" font-weight="700" fill="#1f7a45">Accuracy</text><text x="480" y="40" font-size="13" fill="#303846" font-family="system-ui,sans-serif" font-weight="700" fill="#2f6fb0">Groups reached</text><text x="90" y="285" font-size="13" fill="#303846" font-family="system-ui,sans-serif" >Slow: accurate, but</text><text x="90" y="302" font-size="13" fill="#303846" font-family="system-ui,sans-serif" >too little of the sheet</text><text x="420" y="285" font-size="13" fill="#303846" font-family="system-ui,sans-serif" >Rushed: more reached,</text><text x="420" y="302" font-size="13" fill="#303846" font-family="system-ui,sans-serif" >but misses and wrong marks rise</text><text x="340" y="322" font-size="13" fill="#303846" font-family="system-ui,sans-serif" text-anchor="middle" font-weight="700">Your pace →</text></svg><p style="margin:12px 0 0;font-size:13px;color:#5b6472">A concept diagram, not data: none of the official sources we read describes how the Group Bourdon is scored. The general trade-off between decision speed and accuracy is described in Heitz (2014). The OPC's advice is to work "as accurately and quickly as you can".</p></figure>

<div style="background:#ffffff;color:#303846;border:1px solid #e4e1d8;border-radius:12px;padding:18px 20px;margin:18px 0"><h3 style="margin:0 0 10px;font-size:17px;font-weight:700;color:#171d29">6. Do not go back over finished rows</h3><p style="margin:0 0 10px"><span style="display:inline-block;font-size:11px;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:.06em;text-transform:uppercase;color:#7a5410;background:#fbf1dc;border:1px solid #ecd6a6;border-radius:6px;padding:2px 7px;margin-right:6px">Practical advice</span></p><p style="margin:0 0 10px;line-height:1.65"><strong>How:</strong> Once a row is done, leave it. Going back to recheck costs time on groups you have already judged and breaks your rhythm on the ones still to come.</p><p style="margin:0 0 10px;line-height:1.65"><strong>Why:</strong> The OPC's advice to circle a question and return to it at the end is written for tests with questions and answer sheets. On practice sheets we suggest moving forward rather than rechecking finished rows; on the day, follow the instructions you are given about going back.</p><p style="margin:0;line-height:1.6;color:#1f5f3a"><strong>30-second drill:</strong> for 30 seconds, never look back at a finished row, even if you think you missed a four. See afterwards whether your misses rose.</p></div>

<div style="background:#ffffff;color:#303846;border:1px solid #e4e1d8;border-radius:12px;padding:18px 20px;margin:18px 0"><h3 style="margin:0 0 10px;font-size:17px;font-weight:700;color:#171d29">7. One clean mark, steady pen pressure</h3><p style="margin:0 0 10px"><span style="display:inline-block;font-size:11px;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:.06em;text-transform:uppercase;color:#7a5410;background:#fbf1dc;border:1px solid #ecd6a6;border-radius:6px;padding:2px 7px;margin-right:6px">Practical advice</span></p><p style="margin:0 0 10px;line-height:1.65"><strong>How:</strong> Use the mark the instructions ask for, the same way every time, without pressing hard or going over it. A light, even stroke is quicker and leaves a mark the scorer can read.</p><p style="margin:0 0 10px;line-height:1.65"><strong>Why:</strong> The Group Bourdon is a paper test, so the pencil is part of your speed. This is the one tip our on-screen trainer cannot practise: do it on paper.</p><p style="margin:0;line-height:1.6;color:#1f5f3a"><strong>30-second drill:</strong> print a sheet from <a href="https://cdn1.prosyllabus.com/rail/group-bourdon-practice-sheets.pdf" style="color:#255a45;font-weight:600">our free PDF</a> and circle fours for 30 seconds with a light, even stroke.</p></div>

<div style="background:#ffffff;color:#303846;border:1px solid #e4e1d8;border-radius:12px;padding:18px 20px;margin:18px 0"><h3 style="margin:0 0 10px;font-size:17px;font-weight:700;color:#171d29">8. Settle the start, and reset between parts</h3><p style="margin:0 0 10px"><span style="display:inline-block;font-size:11px;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:.06em;text-transform:uppercase;color:#2c4a7a;background:#e8eef9;border:1px solid #c4d2ec;border-radius:6px;padding:2px 7px;margin-right:6px">Official tip</span><span style="display:inline-block;font-size:11px;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:.06em;text-transform:uppercase;color:#7a5410;background:#fbf1dc;border:1px solid #ecd6a6;border-radius:6px;padding:2px 7px;margin-right:6px">Practical advice</span></p><p style="margin:0 0 10px;line-height:1.65"><strong>How:</strong> Start at your practised pace, not faster. If you make a mistake, let it go and carry on. If the test is split into parts, take one slow breath between them, drop your shoulders, and look to where the next part starts.</p><p style="margin:0 0 10px;line-height:1.65"><strong>Why:</strong> The OPC: <em>"Try not to get flustered during the tests, stay calm and simply do your best."</em> The reset between parts is our practical advice, not an official rule.</p><p style="margin:0;line-height:1.6;color:#1f5f3a"><strong>30-second drill:</strong> breathe out slowly, drop your shoulders, then play the first 30 seconds of the free sheet at your practised pace and no faster.</p></div>

<div style="background:#ffffff;color:#303846;border:1px solid #e4e1d8;border-radius:12px;padding:18px 20px;margin:18px 0"><h3 style="margin:0 0 10px;font-size:17px;font-weight:700;color:#171d29">9. Train for the end of the test, not the start</h3><p style="margin:0 0 10px"><span style="display:inline-block;font-size:11px;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:.06em;text-transform:uppercase;color:#1f5f3a;background:#e3f2e8;border:1px solid #b9dec6;border-radius:6px;padding:2px 7px;margin-right:6px">Evidence-based</span><span style="display:inline-block;font-size:11px;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:.06em;text-transform:uppercase;color:#7a5410;background:#fbf1dc;border:1px solid #ecd6a6;border-radius:6px;padding:2px 7px;margin-right:6px">Practical advice</span></p><p style="margin:0 0 10px;line-height:1.65"><strong>How:</strong> Practise full runs, not single sheets, and look at whether your errors rise towards the end. If they do, build up longer runs gradually.</p><p style="margin:0 0 10px;line-height:1.65"><strong>Why:</strong> Vigilance tasks are hard mental work, and vigilance research describes a performance decrement in them (Warm, Parasuraman and Matthews, 2008); longer runs are our own way of training to hold attention. Our trainer shows your first-half against second-half accuracy for exactly this reason.</p><p style="margin:0;line-height:1.6;color:#1f5f3a"><strong>30-second drill:</strong> in the last 30 seconds of a sheet, hold the same pace and check, in "See your marked sheet", whether your errors bunch in the last rows.</p></div>

<div style="background:#f3f8f4;color:#303846;border:1px solid #cfe3d5;border-left:4px solid #1f7a45;border-radius:12px;padding:18px 20px;margin:18px 0"><p style="margin:0 0 6px;font-size:12px;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:.08em;text-transform:uppercase;color:#1f7a45">Check your level now</p><p style="margin:0 0 8px;font-size:18px;font-weight:700;color:#171d29;line-height:1.4">Play the free sheet and compare it with your last run</p><p style="margin:0 0 12px;line-height:1.6">The free sheet at the top of this page scores your accuracy, groups per minute, and missed and wrong marks, and shows the change from your last free sheet in this browser. Try tips 3 and 4 on it: two pairs, one look, mark or leave.</p><a href="#free-sheet" style="display:inline-block;background:#ffffff;color:#1f7a45;border:2px solid #1f7a45;padding:9px 18px;border-radius:8px;text-decoration:none;font-weight:700">Play the free sheet</a><p style="margin:12px 0 0;font-size:13px;color:#5b6472">Independent practice by ProSyllabus. Not the official test, not a copy of it, and not produced or checked by RSSB, an assessment centre or a train company.</p></div>

Missed or wrong: read your errors, then fix the right thing

<p style="margin:0 0 16px;line-height:1.7">This is our own reading of the error types, and the sources we read do not describe how the official test is scored. Our trainer counts missed and wrong marks separately, by sheet and by row, so you can see which pattern is yours.</p>

<p style="margin:0 0 16px;line-height:1.7">We cannot tell you what score passes: candidates are not given the scores needed (The OPC), and none of the sources we read states them. What we can give is our own target, clearly ours. Our trainer marks a level <strong>cleared</strong> when, over a full run, your accuracy is at least 95% and you reached at least 60% of the groups. The table shows the pace that reaches 60% if you use each sheet's full time, rounded up to a whole number of groups a minute.</p>

<p style="margin:0 0 16px;line-height:1.7">These are targets for moving up our levels, not a prediction of a result on the day. The Group Bourdon is a paper test, while our trainer is on a screen, so compare yourself with yourself on the same medium.</p>

<figure style="background:#ffffff;color:#303846;border:1px solid #e4e1d8;border-radius:12px;padding:18px 20px;margin:18px 0"><figcaption style="margin:0 0 10px;font-size:17px;font-weight:700;color:#171d29">What our trainer's result screen shows after every run</figcaption><div style="display:flex;flex-wrap:wrap;gap:10px"><div style="flex:1 1 150px;min-width:140px;background:#fbfaf6;border:1px solid #e4e1d8;border-radius:10px;padding:10px 12px"><p style="margin:0 0 4px;font-size:12px;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:.06em;text-transform:uppercase;color:#1f7a45">Accuracy</p><p style="margin:0;font-size:13px;line-height:1.5;color:#303846">Share of the groups you reached that you got right</p></div><div style="flex:1 1 150px;min-width:140px;background:#fbfaf6;border:1px solid #e4e1d8;border-radius:10px;padding:10px 12px"><p style="margin:0 0 4px;font-size:12px;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:.06em;text-transform:uppercase;color:#1f7a45">Groups per minute</p><p style="margin:0;font-size:13px;line-height:1.5;color:#303846">Groups reached per minute of time used</p></div><div style="flex:1 1 150px;min-width:140px;background:#fbfaf6;border:1px solid #e4e1d8;border-radius:10px;padding:10px 12px"><p style="margin:0 0 4px;font-size:12px;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:.06em;text-transform:uppercase;color:#1f7a45">Missed</p><p style="margin:0;font-size:13px;line-height:1.5;color:#303846">Fours you passed without marking</p></div><div style="flex:1 1 150px;min-width:140px;background:#fbfaf6;border:1px solid #e4e1d8;border-radius:10px;padding:10px 12px"><p style="margin:0 0 4px;font-size:12px;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:.06em;text-transform:uppercase;color:#1f7a45">Wrong</p><p style="margin:0;font-size:13px;line-height:1.5;color:#303846">Marks on groups that are not four</p></div><div style="flex:1 1 150px;min-width:140px;background:#fbfaf6;border:1px solid #e4e1d8;border-radius:10px;padding:10px 12px"><p style="margin:0 0 4px;font-size:12px;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:.06em;text-transform:uppercase;color:#1f7a45">Score</p><p style="margin:0;font-size:13px;line-height:1.5;color:#303846">Correct marks minus wrong marks, never below zero</p></div><div style="flex:1 1 150px;min-width:140px;background:#fbfaf6;border:1px solid #e4e1d8;border-radius:10px;padding:10px 12px"><p style="margin:0 0 4px;font-size:12px;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:.06em;text-transform:uppercase;color:#1f7a45">First half vs second half</p><p style="margin:0;font-size:13px;line-height:1.5;color:#303846">Your accuracy early in the run against late in the run</p></div><div style="flex:1 1 150px;min-width:140px;background:#fbfaf6;border:1px solid #e4e1d8;border-radius:10px;padding:10px 12px"><p style="margin:0 0 4px;font-size:12px;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:.06em;text-transform:uppercase;color:#1f7a45">By sheet and by row</p><p style="margin:0;font-size:13px;line-height:1.5;color:#303846">Where your errors sit</p></div><div style="flex:1 1 150px;min-width:140px;background:#fbfaf6;border:1px solid #e4e1d8;border-radius:10px;padding:10px 12px"><p style="margin:0 0 4px;font-size:12px;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:.06em;text-transform:uppercase;color:#1f7a45">Cleared or not</p><p style="margin:0;font-size:13px;line-height:1.5;color:#303846">Our own target: 95% accuracy and 60% of the groups reached over a full run</p></div></div><p style="margin:12px 0 0;font-size:13px;color:#5b6472">ProSyllabus diagram of our concentration trainer's result screen. These are our trainer's measures, not the official Group Bourdon scoring.</p></figure>

<div style="background:#ffffff;color:#303846;border:1px solid #e4e1d8;border-radius:12px;padding:18px 20px;margin:18px 0"><h3 style="margin:0 0 10px;font-size:17px;font-weight:700;color:#171d29">What to stop doing</h3><ul style="margin:0;padding-left:20px"><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><strong>Sprinting the opening.</strong> Speed bought with misses is not speed. Start at the pace you practised.</li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><strong>Counting every dot.</strong> In the research behind tip 3, counting larger sets was much slower and more error-prone than taking in very small sets at a glance.</li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><strong>Going back to check.</strong> On practice sheets, rechecking finished rows spends time you could use on new groups (tip 6). On the day, follow the instructions you are given.</li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><strong>Practising only speed, or only accuracy.</strong> Track both, and track missed and wrong marks apart; one total hides which fix you need.</li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><strong>Trusting a pass mark or timing from a forum or an unofficial PDF.</strong> RSSB says RIS-3751-TOM issue four does not set pass marks, and The OPC does not give candidates their scores. Practise to do your best, not to a number someone guessed.</li></ul></div>

Drills: practise each tip on the right level

<p style="margin:0 0 16px;line-height:1.7">Our plan, not an official one. Short sessions, every day if you can. Move up a level once you have <strong>cleared</strong> it, our own target: at least 95% accuracy with at least 60% of the groups reached, over a full run. Apart from the free sheet, the levels are paid (one payment opens all 10); use the approved practice materials as soon as they arrive.</p>

<p style="margin:0 0 16px;line-height:1.7">Play the same level at the start and at the end of your drills and compare the two runs. The trainer shows the change from your previous run of the same level stored in this browser, so write down the figures from your first run before you start. Fill this in for yourself:</p>

<p style="margin:0 0 16px;line-height:1.7">Better trainer runs show improved performance on this trainer. They do not predict your result on the day: the trainer and its clearance target are our own, and the real assessment has its own conditions.</p>

<p style="margin:0 0 16px;line-height:1.7">If The OPC assessed you, you will not be told a score: it says candidates are not given any scores, as required by bodies including the British Psychological Society and the Rail Assessment Centre Forum. If The OPC assessed you, you can ask it for verbal feedback within 3 months; where the company uses an enhanced standard, it can tell you whether you met the national standard. Then the attempt rules apply: for GB mainline candidates starting from 7 December 2024, three failed attempts end the process; attempt 2 comes at least a year after failed attempt 1, and attempt 3 at least five years after failed attempt 1 and at least a year after failed attempt 2 (RSSB). Translink in Northern Ireland has its own policy. Details, a date checker and a 12-month plan are in <a href="/hub/train-driver-assessment-pass-rate-retakes" style="color:#255a45;font-weight:600">train driver assessment pass rate and retake rules</a>.</p>

<div style="background:#ffffff;color:#303846;border:1px solid #e4e1d8;border-radius:12px;padding:18px 20px;margin:18px 0"><h3 style="margin:0 0 10px;font-size:17px;font-weight:700;color:#171d29">Checklist</h3><ul style="margin:0;padding-left:20px"><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><strong>Sleep.</strong> The OPC: <em>"Go to bed early - get a good night's sleep."</em> Research points the same way: a meta-analysis of short-term (under 48 hours) total sleep deprivation found effects from small to large across cognitive tasks, the largest on lapses in simple attention (Lim and Dinges, 2010).</li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><strong>No long practice session the day before.</strong> A short run to keep the habit warm is enough (our advice).</li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><strong>Glasses or contact lenses</strong> if you use them, so that you can see the test clearly (The OPC).</li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><strong>Breakfast</strong> before the session (The OPC).</li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><strong>Photo ID</strong> (passport or driving licence) and <strong>proof of your National Insurance number</strong>, plus anything the train company asks for (RSSB). Pencils and paper are supplied (The OPC).</li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><strong>Travel time</strong>: allow for cancelled trains or heavy traffic (The OPC).</li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><strong>On the day</strong>: listen to every instruction, do the examples, ask every question before the test starts, then work in silence at your practised pace.</li></ul><p style="margin:12px 0 0;font-size:13px;color:#5b6472">RSSB 3751-FAQ, question 16; The OPC candidate guide (04/12/2024), printed pages 4 to 6; Lim and Dinges (2010).</p></div>

<p style="margin:0 0 16px;line-height:1.7">For a free sheet to play and printable sheets to practise on, see <a href="/hub/group-bourdon-test-practice" style="color:#255a45;font-weight:600">Group Bourdon test practice: free online sheet and PDF</a>. For every test in the assessment, start at <a href="/hub/train-driver-psychometric-tests" style="color:#255a45;font-weight:600">our train driver psychometric tests hub</a>. For what free practice exists and which tests need a licensed system, see <a href="/hub/free-train-driver-practice-tests" style="color:#255a45;font-weight:600">free train driver practice tests compared</a>; for the other paper attention test, <a href="/hub/tea-occ-test" style="color:#255a45;font-weight:600">the TEA-Occ test</a>. Our guides on this assessment are collected on the <a href="/exam/uk-train-driver" style="color:#255a45;font-weight:600">UK train driver exam page</a>.</p>

<div style="background:#f3f8f4;color:#303846;border:1px solid #cfe3d5;border-left:4px solid #1f7a45;border-radius:12px;padding:18px 20px;margin:18px 0"><p style="margin:0 0 6px;font-size:12px;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:.08em;text-transform:uppercase;color:#1f7a45">The concentration trainer</p><p style="margin:0 0 8px;font-size:18px;font-weight:700;color:#171d29;line-height:1.4">Put the 9 tips to work on timed sheets</p><ul style="margin:0 0 12px;padding-left:20px"><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6">A free 35-second sheet with no sign-in; all 10 levels unlock with <strong>one payment, no subscription</strong>.</li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6">All 10 levels: 48 to 126 groups a sheet, three to six sheets a run, 40 to 50 seconds a sheet.</li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6">Freshly generated sheets for every run, so you are not repeating a sheet you have learned.</li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6">Accuracy, groups per minute, missed and wrong marks by sheet and by row, and your first half against your second half.</li></ul><p style="margin:0 0 12px;line-height:1.6">All 10 levels: one payment, no subscription. The price is on the free sheet above and on the <a href="/kits/group-bourdon-practice-test" style="color:#255a45;font-weight:600">trainer page</a>.</p><a href="#free-sheet" style="display:inline-block;background:#ffffff;color:#1f7a45;border:2px solid #1f7a45;padding:9px 18px;border-radius:8px;text-decoration:none;font-weight:700">Check your level free</a><p style="margin:12px 0 0;font-size:13px;color:#5b6472">Independent practice by ProSyllabus. Not the official test, not a copy of it, and not produced or checked by RSSB, an assessment centre or a train company.</p></div>

<p style="margin:0 0 16px;line-height:1.7">Some train companies add a fault finding test to the assessment. If your invitation mentions one, try 3 free questions in our <a href="/hub/train-driver-fault-finding-test" style="color:#255a45;font-weight:600">driver fault finding test (DFFT) guide</a>, then work one example step by step.</p>

<div style="background:#ffffff;color:#303846;border:1px solid #e4e1d8;border-radius:12px;padding:18px 20px;margin:18px 0"><h3 style="margin:0 0 10px;font-size:17px;font-weight:700;color:#171d29">More in this series</h3><ul style="margin:0;padding-left:20px"><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><a href="/hub/group-bourdon-test-practice" style="color:#255a45">Group Bourdon test practice: free online sheet and printable PDF</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><a href="/hub/tea-occ-test" style="color:#255a45">TEA-Occ test practice: free trial and how it works</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><a href="/hub/train-driver-psychometric-tests" style="color:#255a45">Every UK train driver psychometric test explained</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><a href="/hub/free-train-driver-practice-tests" style="color:#255a45">Free practice tests compared</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><a href="/hub/train-driver-assessment-pass-rate-retakes" style="color:#255a45">Failed the assessment? Pass rate and retakes</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><a href="/hub/train-driver-assessment-day" style="color:#255a45">The assessment day, step by step</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><a href="/hub/train-driver-adhd-dyslexia-uk" style="color:#255a45">ADHD, dyslexia and the medical</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><a href="/hub/how-to-become-a-train-driver-uk" style="color:#255a45">How to become a train driver in the UK</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><a href="/hub/train-driver-interview-questions" style="color:#255a45">Train driver interview questions and answers: MMI, DMI, structured</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><a href="/hub/northern-trainee-train-driver" style="color:#255a45">Northern trainee train driver</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><a href="/hub/northern-train-driver-interview-questions" style="color:#255a45">Northern train driver interview questions and assessment day</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><a href="/hub/train-driver-fault-finding-test" style="color:#255a45">Train driver fault finding test (DFFT)</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><a href="/hub/how-to-become-a-tube-driver" style="color:#255a45">How to become a Tube driver</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><a href="/hub/gwr-trainee-train-driver" style="color:#255a45">GWR trainee train driver</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><a href="/hub/avanti-trainee-train-driver" style="color:#255a45">Avanti West Coast trainee train driver</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><a href="/hub/scotrail-trainee-train-driver" style="color:#255a45">ScotRail trainee train driver</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><a href="/hub/lner-trainee-train-driver" style="color:#255a45">LNER trainee train driver</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><a href="/hub/southeastern-trainee-train-driver" style="color:#255a45">Southeastern trainee train driver</a></li></ul></div>

<div style="background:#ffffff;color:#303846;border:1px solid #e4e1d8;border-radius:12px;padding:18px 20px;margin:18px 0"><h3 style="margin:0 0 10px;font-size:17px;font-weight:700;color:#171d29">Sources</h3><ul style="margin:0;padding-left:20px"><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><span style="color:#1f7a45;font-weight:700">official</span> — <a href="https://www.theopc.co.uk/files/3751-FAQ.pdf" rel="nofollow noopener" style="color:#255a45">RSSB and the Rail Assessment Centre Forum: 3751-FAQ, "Frequently asked questions", issue one, on RIS-3751-TOM issue four "Psychometric Assessment in Train Driver Selection" (read 23 Oct 2026): the tests by selection criterion, attempts, pass marks, validity, practice materials, minimum age</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><span style="color:#1f7a45;font-weight:700">official</span> — <a href="https://www.theopc.co.uk/files/Train%20Driver%20Assessment%20Centre%20Guide%20V2.pdf" rel="nofollow noopener" style="color:#255a45">The OPC (a registered assessment centre): "Train Driver Assessment: A guide for candidate's who undertake their assessment with The OPC" (read 23 Oct 2026): the tests, hints and tips, the day, results and feedback</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><span style="color:#1f7a45;font-weight:700">official</span> — <a href="https://www.theopc.co.uk/files/Candidate%20Info%20Sheet%2007-12-24.pdf" rel="nofollow noopener" style="color:#255a45">The OPC: candidate information sheet (7/12/24; read 23 Oct 2026): when the outcome arrives, attempts and waiting periods, feedback</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><span style="color:#1f7a45;font-weight:700">official</span> — <a href="https://www.theopc.co.uk/files/ADVICE_Train_Driver_Standards.pdf" rel="nofollow noopener" style="color:#255a45">The OPC: "Assessment Advice - Train Driver Assessment - Which organisations use which standard?" (dated 01/09/2020; read 23 Oct 2026): organisations that gave permission to be listed, national or enhanced standard</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><span style="color:#1f7a45;font-weight:700">official</span> — <a href="https://www.theopc.co.uk/candidates/assessment-advice/train-driver-assessment/" rel="nofollow noopener" style="color:#255a45">The OPC: train driver assessment advice page (read 23 Oct 2026)</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><span style="color:#1f7a45;font-weight:700">official</span> — <a href="https://www.translink.co.uk/getmedia/78dd8ca7-6fa9-4bd1-a515-1c3c0f07132a/Psychometric-Testing-Policy-for-Train-Drivers.pdf" rel="nofollow noopener" style="color:#255a45">Translink: train driver psychometric testing policy, HR023 version 1.5 (read 23 Oct 2026): Translink's train driver assessment process, Appendix B</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><span style="color:#1f7a45;font-weight:700">official</span> — <a href="https://www.northernrailway.co.uk/corporate/careers/44-our-roles/169-train-driver" rel="nofollow noopener" style="color:#255a45">Northern: "Train Driver" careers page (read 23 Oct 2026): eligibility, the five stages, the enhanced standard and its Leeds assessment centre</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><span style="color:#1f7a45;font-weight:700">official</span> — <a href="https://www.avantiwestcoast.co.uk/about-us/careers/train-driver-recruitment" rel="nofollow noopener" style="color:#255a45">Avanti West Coast: "Train Driver Recruitment" careers page (last updated 23 January 2025; read 23 Oct 2026): application stages 1 to 5, with the stage 1.5 online sift</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><span style="color:#1f7a45;font-weight:700">official</span> — <a href="https://www.thetraindriversacademy.com/ready-to-apply" rel="nofollow noopener" style="color:#255a45">The Train Drivers Academy: "Ready to apply" page (read 23 Oct 2026): the process, psychometric assessments, how to prepare</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><span style="color:#1f7a45;font-weight:700">official</span> — <a href="https://www.orr.gov.uk/media/15947/download" rel="nofollow noopener" style="color:#255a45">Office of Rail and Road: "A guide to the occupational psychological fitness and medical requirements" (read 23 Oct 2026): the occupational psychological fitness examination, RIS-3751-TOM, the three-attempt rule</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><span style="color:#8a5300;font-weight:700">reported</span> — <a href="https://www.traindriver.org/forums/topic/group-bourdon-tests" rel="nofollow noopener" style="color:#255a45">traindriver.org forum thread "Group Bourdon Tests" (a reply posted 21 June 2017 describing the test; the thread page says it was last updated 8 years, 7 months ago by Steve; thread read 23 Oct 2026): one forum user's description of the test, forum-reported and not checked against any official source</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><span style="color:#1f7a45;font-weight:700">official</span> — <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8121961/" rel="nofollow noopener" style="color:#255a45">Trick, L. M. and Pylyshyn, Z. W. (1994). "Why are small and large numbers enumerated differently? A limited-capacity preattentive stage in vision." Psychological Review 101(1), 80-102 (PubMed record read 23 Oct 2026)</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><span style="color:#1f7a45;font-weight:700">official</span> — <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34485793/" rel="nofollow noopener" style="color:#255a45">Ciccione, L. and Dehaene, S. (2020). "Grouping Mechanisms in Numerosity Perception." Open Mind 4, 102-118 (PubMed record read 23 Oct 2026)</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><span style="color:#1f7a45;font-weight:700">official</span> — <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24966810/" rel="nofollow noopener" style="color:#255a45">Heitz, R. P. (2014). "The speed-accuracy tradeoff: history, physiology, methodology, and behavior." Frontiers in Neuroscience 8, 150 (PubMed record read 23 Oct 2026)</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><span style="color:#1f7a45;font-weight:700">official</span> — <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18689050/" rel="nofollow noopener" style="color:#255a45">Warm, J. S., Parasuraman, R. and Matthews, G. (2008). "Vigilance requires hard mental work and is stressful." Human Factors 50(3), 433-441 (PubMed record read 23 Oct 2026)</a></li><li style="margin:6px 0;line-height:1.6"><span style="color:#1f7a45;font-weight:700">official</span> — <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20438143/" rel="nofollow noopener" style="color:#255a45">Lim, J. and Dinges, D. F. (2010). "A meta-analysis of the impact of short-term sleep deprivation on cognitive variables." Psychological Bulletin 136(3), 375-389 (PubMed record read 23 Oct 2026)</a></li></ul><p style="margin:12px 0 0;font-size:13px;color:#5b6472"><strong style="color:#1f7a45">official</strong> = a document published by the conducting body. <strong style="color:#8a5300">reported</strong> = a news or coaching site we could not check against an original. Where sources disagree this page says so rather than picking one.</p></div>

<a href="/exam/uk-train-driver">This article has been published in UK Trainee Train Driver Assessment. Explore everything related to it here.</a>

How the Group Bourdon is likely to be scored, why there is no single pass mark, nine tips with a 30-second drill for each, and a free sheet on this page to check your level against your last run.

How to Pass the Group Bourdon Test: 9 Tips, Pass Mark and Scoring Explained

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