Virgin America online test

[trap]

Hola,
I'm trying to find information on the "online test" and interview profile at Virgin? Can somebody help me out, please.
Thanks in advance.

 

[pilotyip]

what kind of test is it?

 

[Captain Morgan]

A lot of "If John sits next to Sherry, but Doug is 3 chairs down from Bill, what phase will the moon be in?" I heard if you act as though you're a homosexual Apple user when you take the test then you'll do fine.

 

[Flyer1015]

It's a pilot computerized testing with mathematical and pattern recognition questions. It is a tough test, and each question is timed for 3 minutes. There are 20-25 of these types of questions. The rest of the 120 questions (or so) are personality profile, agree/disagree/neutral/etc in which you just have to be honest and yourself. The math/pattern questions are tough, you should practice beforehand if possible. Just google pilot aptitude testing, pilot computerized testing, pilot psychomteric testing, pilot compass testing, etc.

 

[Flash]

Who comes up with this stupid crap?

 

[FurloughedAgain]

The same trolls who hide in caves and write standardization manuals.

 

[Flyer1015]

Who comes up with this stupid crap?

I actually think it's a good test. It's an industry-standard typical pilot computerized test. It's not stupid crap, it's a good way to eliminate candidates who are not serious about the job or those who haven't bothered to prepare. If you want the job, you'll make sure you prepare for it. The questions are tough, but a sharp pilot with a college degree who has taken college-level math should be able to do these kinds of questions. Those who are used to things being handed to them on a silver plate will find this test very diffcult.

 

[Flash]

I guess we'll have to agree to disagree. I would think that with enough flight hour qualified applicants, hr depts that add unnecessary levels of testing and paperwork are just adding to the cost of running a company. But maybe that's the dinosaur way of thinking in this shiny new pc rj world.

 

[xjhawk]

so if you study a question bank and memorize the test type questions or as I have heard some people do, have their spouse take the test with them-that makes them a better, more qualified candidate for a highly competitive position. Yeah, I am bitter I have not been called-when clearly they are looking for something that I am not. Most of that test is touchy feely questions that only hold water if you believe the rest of the crap that HR's have been telling us on what makes a good pilot. Take the pilots out of the hiring process and what do you get? Stupid test banks, quotas or the "right" people, less experienced pilots getting the opportunities (my sister was a recruiter and told me all about the off the record type requirements they would have but would not put in writing). Then again, if you have connections and are persistent, maybe one would have a chance. But I guess when I applied at my current job-I had no connections, was persistent, and met the requirements and got an interview. I think getting to the interview is where you make it or break it-at that point it is up to you.

I will just have to respectfully disagree with you about the quality of those tests. Have you seen the requirements FedEx is posting as their "ideal" candidate? It pretty much eliminates the guy that has been at the regionals as a captain since 9/11 as they are too experienced. That is what happens when the HR hires a touchy feel psych firm to determine what your ideal pilot candidate would be.

 

[Flyer1015]

I guess we'll have to agree to disagree. I would think that with enough flight hour qualified applicants, hr depts that add unnecessary levels of testing and paperwork are just adding to the cost of running a company. But maybe that's the dinosaur way of thinking in this shiny new pc rj world.

They tried that for a while, hiring those with tons of experienced hours and could fly the sim like none other. Then problems arose, like their inability to to do a basic TOD calculation, or their inability to deal properly with customers. Virgin is 100% about the customer experience, and treating their guests well. That reflects in their interview, with 99% of it being TMAAT. There's no sim, no technical questions. They don't care if you're a hotshot topgun Chuck Yeager. They want to know if you're personable, and fit the culture of the airline.

so if you study a question bank and memorize the test type questions or as I have heard some people do, have their spouse take the test with them-that makes them a better, more qualified candidate for a highly competitive position.

The VA online test doesn't really have a bank you can memorize and then get a 100% on. It's not ATP type questions. If you have your spouse, that's cheating, but I suppose an applicant could do that. I will say though that after I took the test, one of the messages afterwards stated something to the effect that they could give a re-test at a later time and expect a similar score to ensure accuracy. Basically they're trying to catch those cheater applicants.

Yeah, I am bitter I have not been called-when clearly they are looking for something that I am not. Most of that test is touchy feely questions that only hold water if you believe the rest of the crap that HR's have been telling us on what makes a good pilot. Take the pilots out of the hiring process and what do you get? Stupid test banks, quotas or the "right" people, less experienced pilots getting the opportunities (my sister was a recruiter and told me all about the off the record type requirements they would have but would not put in writing). Then again, if you have connections and are persistent, maybe one would have a chance. But I guess when I applied at my current job-I had no connections, was persistent, and met the requirements and got an interview. I think getting to the interview is where you make it or break it-at that point it is up to you.

Pilots out of the hiring process? Who do you think set the bar so high as 5000TT and 1000TPIC? It certainly wasn't HR. Honestly, I feel that is too high a minimum requirement. The pilots are part of the hiring process. If you get the interview, you'll meet with the CP, a checkairman, and Director of Training. As for quotas, I suppose nothing stops them from calling an applicant simply because the name sounds like a woman's or sounds like a minority name. Connections certainly help, too. But at VA as of right now, an applicant has to pass the pre-visor to move forward, regardless of how many internal recs they have.

I will just have to respectfully disagree with you about the quality of those tests. Have you seen the requirements FedEx is posting as their "ideal" candidate? It pretty much eliminates the guy that has been at the regionals as a captain since 9/11 as they are too experienced. That is what happens when the HR hires a touchy feel psych firm to determine what your ideal pilot candidate would be.

I haven't seen anything but the pilot minimums published on Fedex's website at pilot.fedex.com What are you implying as for the "preferred requirements" ?????

I will say, though, it's only natural. Over time, the longer you are in the left seat, the more likely your habits will become more die hard and hard to break. The theory behind limiting experience to 3000-6000TT and 500-2500TPIC is that a candidate within this window still is easily mold-able and does not have die hard habits. I'm not saying this is the case with every single senior pilot, but more likely than not, the more left seat time they get the more their habits become ingrained and harder to break. It's sometimes the small stupuid stuff. I still remember the direct entry captain pilots in my class who just wouldn't shut up with their "this is how we did it at our old airline." Or, they questioned the instructor about the 9E way of doing it. I'm sure crap like that gets old, real fast. You want to tell them: you are not at your old airline anymore. This is our airline, you will learn our way, or leave and go back to your old airline. So with stuff like that, I can see how HR or even a pilot's office could make a determination that one has "too much" turbine PIC or is "too qualified" for the position.