MTAhopefullMatt

@FRM, there's a locked thread that explains the entire hiring process in one long, extremely detailed post. But the gist is that you didn't miss any steps. After the scores are released you will be contacted to start the hiring process. You will complete a short employment application you receive in the mail and then go to 180 Livingston at the date and time you're instructed. You'll talk to HR people, show them your abbreviated application and if that's all in order you'll take a urine drug test. If you test clean you should get a call, email or letter (they'll tell you how they'll contact you) to come back for a full day of physical exams and discussions with HR folks. You'll most likely need to complete an exhaustive employment application that you submit that day. If you pass all elements of the physical testing you'll meet with HR to go over your detailed employment application. If HR is then satisfied, and there's space in the next class available, you'll be sworn in and given a date to report. If there are any elements of the physical exam that you don't pass then you'll need to go to the appropriate doctor and get cleared before you can continue the process. You would then be rescreened by the MTA company doctor. BTW, I have the same raw score as you do. I was disappointed I didn't do better. Maybe one or two of the questions I missed will be voided by NYC Transit as a result of what people argued at the protest sessions. If not, hopefully they'll be hiring enough people that they'll process my application within a year or two of the list being established.

When is the list supposed to come out? February or March of next year?

Now I'm confused. Did anyone get a score yet for the 6601 exam? The most recent update from a few days ago was that the list isn't ready yet. I was thinking the list wouldn't be issued for another few months, maybe not until January or February 2017.

No, I haven't received anything from 6601 yet. I took the exam in April. What did the letter say?

I guess I'm impatient. Is there any word about when the list might issue? I know the official answer is that it hasn't issued and that when it does we will be notified of results by mail.

Scary. Hopefully this is a lesson to all of us who enjoy using our smartphones for so many things. I'm thinking the best tactic is to turn off the phone (not put it on silent mode, shut the damn thing off) whenever going into the yard or on the train. And have it zipped into your bag, not your pocket. Question - is phone use acceptable while waiting for an assignment? Can you be on your phone while other people are watching TV or socializing? Or is it better to just have the phone off whenever you're on the clock?

Yes, TSS Garrett recommended packing snacks in your bag like almonds/granola bars/apples/oranges and bottled water because you're going to be hungry/thirsty at unexpected times, you never know when you'll get to a store and you can wind up spending a lot of money on crappy food. The area near Jamaica Yard is actually very nice but it is a long trek up and down the hill, and they don't want to hear any excuses about why you're late reporting back to work.

@RedViper, thanks for sharing that. I can only imagine that they must have been getting a lot of calls from people anxious to know when the list will come out. They proceed on their own schedule, based on their hiring needs and budget - the good thing is that they're handling everything in house, so the list can hopefully be processed quicker then when they worked with DCAS.

@Noekozz, MNR and LIRR aren't bound by typical civil service rules. They get to pick who they want to hire. As a result it's much harder to get a job with them. They don't even need to interview you, no matter your experience or training, if they don't want to.

@steve, point taken. You're correct. I was thinking of undisclosed arrests, pending cases, patterns, behavior Transit considers unacceptable even if it's not strictly prohibited.

@ Ren, these are all general guidelines and estimates. My point is that the list can move surprisingly fast when they want to keep it moving, and have the funds to hire steadily (like they did the past few years with bus operators). @VJ, I think they're just "taking things under advisement." They're not committing to doing anything, but I think they're open to striking a few of the questions that seemed legitimately confusing or badly worded by many test takers.

I'm not sure, Ren. I'm not making promises. Keep in mind there was essentially no hiring and no processing of applicants for several years from the 8094 conductor exam.

@ Ren, they've been proceeding at that hiring and screening advice for the past few years. It varies somewhat month to month and year to year. I use that as an example and guideline, not as a promise. Oops, I meant hiring rate, not "advice."

It's frustrating because so much is unknown, and we all want to be called. Things were funky with the prior conductor and train operator lists because of the multi-year hiring freezes. Once the conducor list is established they may "process" (send out letters to come in for drug tests) upwards of 2000 people per year. They may actually hire (put in class and on payroll) perhaps 600-750 per year. They always contact far more people for initial processing than are actually hired, because some people can't be reached, don't want the job, test dirty, or are disqualified for things like criminal history before they can be placed in school car. There is also the oral proficiency test which "may" be required of applicants for this test. That would be a screening device that would knock out some otherwise qualified, high scoring applicants. I think more people will be called up than people on this forum expect, but it may take longer than we would like.

@Niku, good luck. Let us know how the protest session went. I wasn't able to attend the protest session for my exam session. I scored worse than I expected, 4 wrong, so 95%. Hopefully one or two of the questions I got wrong will be invalidated. And hopefully none of the questions I answered correctly will be invalidated, as it would feel worse to get a lower final score. Speaking of which, does anyone have any idea when Transit will issue the list and begin hiring from it?

Excellent questions. This conductor exam seems to be operating differently than previous conducor exams. More applicants, yes, but also different exam topics and testing procedures (the oral proficiency follow up test). The final list is everything. The hiring process can't move forward until the list is finalized and made public.

When should we get our scores? I'm much more interested in the final official score (and above all, the list number) than the raw score. The raw score is helpful, but won't they eliminate some questions and change some answers before they issue the final score?

@Candor, that's how I feel, mostly. I have no doubt I passed. It's just that only those who score extremely well are going to get hired, and I'm not confident that I scored that high. Once/if you get on the job than it's generally a matter of pass/fail, doing what's needed and moving on.

I did my best on the exam and now it's out of my hands. It's frustrating because so many people took the exam that every missed question could push you back hundreds of positions on the final list. We'll just have to see.

@KidBx175, I agree. Probably more like sanitation than most prior Transit exams because so many people took this one. Don't forget there's also a pending promotional conductors list - they will call everyone who passed that exam before they call from this list. Re English skills, they reserved the right to do an oral proficiency follow up test to check for that. No reason to play around with the scoring, they may just only call people from 105 (perfect score plus veterans credit) to say 98.

@bx316, the good news for you is that you don't have to move into the city for this job. Like teachers, cop, firemen, etc., Transit workers have an exemption from the NYC residency requirement. Just be truthful about where you live and make sure you can be at work on time. Transit doesn't care if you live in Suffolk County or Rockland or NJ or the Poconos, but they expect you to be early for work every day, even if your report time is before the first bus or commuter train in the morning will get you to your job site location. You'll get a free ride on subways, NYC local buses and Metro North or LIRR if you live in those areas, but you may have to drive to work anyway if the schedules don't make sense. Re your old job, see if there's a way to take a level of absence if at all possible. That way, should you fail school car or decide this job isn't for you, you can go back. I'd encourage you to take the chance, give it all you've got, and see what happens.

Yes, @Candor, I have the same take on the exam. I also agree that we shouldn't be too specific about the questions. I think it was a deceptively challenging test with some sneaky answer choices. I'm just hoping I picked the right answers and can move ahead in this process within the next few years.

Thanks, LIRR 154. I'll look on the mta.info website tonight.

There were some tricky questions and one or two whose answers I changed when reviewing the test before I left the exam site. All I can do is hope for the best - I want to move beyond exam questions and actually get hired for the job.

You'll find parking. Just give yourself enough time.