Delta Newhire training question

[CheyDogFlies]

CDF: Can you elaborate on the "symbols vs. numbers" quiz?

Here are six symbols:
dash
circle
upside down L
u shaped thingy
etc...

Each one corresponds to a number:
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 (respectively)

Soon you will see 15 symbols on the screen (with above symbol key still in view). Type in the number for each symbol. VERY EASY if you are good at languages/alphabets such as greek, chinese, japanese, cyrillic, etc. If you suck at anything other than the Roman alphabet (me), you're not going to do well unless you can commit those symbol-number relationships to memory (for speed) rather than keep looking at the key to get every number.

As far as "competetive" goes, I had only one internal rec from a 10-yr 737 FO, and zero online recs. He either e-mailed or snail-mailed the rec for me.

 

[altscap]

hmmm... I wonder if trying to memorize just 3 combos would be beneficial. You have a good chance at 50% right?? Thanks for the warning

 

[~~~^~~~]

In practice, you could make up associations between the symbols and the numbers. The symbols & numbers are alleged to change from test to test, so use these only as an example:

1 = __ (a 1 on its side looks like a dash to me)
2= U (U2 was a favorite band of mine)
3 = C (C is the third letter of the alphabet...)

etc... (left off a public bulletin board since Delta probably does not want anything like their test actually posted. The numbers and symbols above are intentionally incorrect)

You will have to think up your own variations, but make up associations and you will be able to remember the "code" three months from now. This seems like one of the easier portions of the cog test because you have time. The faster paced tests are harder because they divide your attention between two tasks and ask you to invert the numbers. I don't know how a person could "game" those tests to get a higher score.

 

[~~~^~~~]

hmmm... I wonder if trying to memorize just 3 combos would be beneficial. You have a good chance at 50% right?? Thanks for the warning

Dangerous. If you aim for 100 and fall short, you are still OK. If you aim for 50 and hit it, you are probably not going to get in.

Play with different combinations and start practicing making associations. It is not that hard.

One of our IP's had his wife use flash cards with numbers that she would display for a second over his monitor (monitor turned off) then he would poke at the screen while saying the number in whatever order his wife specified. He aced the test and his home made simulator was probably the best technique I've heard of. He is the only person I've heard say that they "enjoyed" the cog test and thought it was "fun."

 

[Dr Pepper]

I would expect any changes to move the interview more towards a targeted selection process. I would be ready to answer lots of TMAAT questions and get very comfortable talking about yourself. Know your strengths and weaknesses, your failures and successes, you leadership and management styles, and your decision making and conflict resolution processes. Have a personal story that shows how YOU deal with each of those situations. I think if you are ready to do that AND ready for the old gouge then you should do fine no matter what they throw your way. I think they could do away with the psych eval, medical, and cognitive skills tests. This would cut the process to one day, save them money, and still allow them to find great candidates.

My interview was pretty much just like that. Plus I had two scenarios. If a change is to be made, they should get rid of the behavior test. How can you fail that test, except completely contradict yourself when the question is repeated and rephrased? I may be sick, but I kind of enjoyed the cog test.

 

[Bruiser]

Attendance

I've also heard they are looking very closely at attendance history.

I thought the PRIA allowed for training info but not sick or attendance issues. Are they getting some kind of waiver or seperate documentation to request the information from a previous employer?

 

[JOPILOT]

They have you sign a release so they can supposedly speak with your current employer about your attendance. Although I obliged, when I spoke to my employer they said this is not an acceptable practice and the information can not be given out...at least at that airline. It is possible they are trying to get you to fess up on being absent or unreliable.

Probably the best idea is to sign the paper and tell them the truth about your attendance, I definately did not have perfect attendance, but I was also always willing to do extra work on my days off if asked which I conveyed to the interviewers. There is always more than one way to skin a cat so just try to be yourself and if you think doing that is going to hurt your chances you might be in the wrong profession. Good Luck, I believe Delta just might be the best job available right now considering relative seniority, bases, and soon A/C orders. Although they are not as organized as you would hope, the employees are doing their best with what is left from bean counter cutting (the training department has been left holding the rope).

Peace JP

 

[~~~^~~~]

Our airline provides Delta with attendance records via a request to payroll. Our airline does not keep record of sick calls past a certain date, but payroll keeps track of everything, forever. Anything that resulted in money being coded as "sick time" shows up. Anything that does not show up on your paycheck does not. Other airlines may answer Delta's request in different ways.

Delta is very particular about honesty and it would be a shame to do well on all the rest of the process and then get whacked after the conditional offer letter during your background check.

 

[~~~^~~~]

I thought the PRIA allowed for training info but not sick or attendance issues.

PRIA also allows a search of your personal file for disciplinary letters. If you got a nastygram over attendance, it is not supposed to show up, but do you trust an overworked staff person to edit your personal file carefully, or just dump everything in the copier and err on the side of caution? Even the $60,000 to $80,000 a year Legal Secretaries screw up and send out confidential materials more frequently than you could imagine.

 

[altscap]

I think they are just looking for honesty. If you were sick a lot, just fess up and don't lie about it. If you were sick A LOT, then plan on backing up your actions with a logical explanation.