Careers Junction

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At South Western Railway, you’ll enjoy a rewarding career where your work helps communities stay connected and shapes the future of travel.

Together with a supportive, professional team, you’ll build a career filled with purpose, responsibility, and pride in making a difference.

Click on our roles below to find out more

Choosing your Role

The railway has a wide range of career options, from customer facing to office based,
safety critical to non-safety critical, but whichever role you choose, customers are always at the forefront of what we do.
So, where do you start?

Consider the roles you are interested in:

• What skills and experience do I have?
• What roles could my skills and experience contribute to?
• What do I need to do enable me to get this position?
• How much do I really know about the organisation?
• What am I interested in?

Passenger travelling on an Arterio train

How to apply

All vacancies are advertised through our careers website.

Once registered, you can set up job alerts for roles you are interested in.

The application process varies depending on what role you are applying for. Some applications require you to complete assessments, both online and classroom, whilst others require a CV and covering letter.

The Application

Familiarise yourself with the role.
Match your experience and skills to the requirements.
Complete the form in full.
Make your skills, experience, and achievements clear.
Pay attention to detail.

Creating your CV

A CV is something you will need to apply for a job, it is usually your first chance to promote yourself and a good CV might just get you that job interview.

Employers get lots of CVs to look at and must decide quickly who they are going to interview.

The information in our guide will help you to create your CV. It is good to have a ‘master’ CV, but always review, update and tailor your CV for each role you are applying for to ensure that your skills and experiences are highlighted for each specific job you are applying for.

Remember your application and CV are your first chance to make the best impression.

Please see our guide to creating a CV in the On Track for Success booklet at the bottom of this page.

A South Western Railway staff member working at an office desk.

A South Western Railway staff member taking part in an interview.

Preparing for Interview

The best way to prepare for an interview at SWR is to familiarise yourself with the requirements of the role and the SWR behaviours.

You will need to give specific examples of where you have demonstrated relevant skills and behaviours when you attend your interview.

We recommend you use the STAR method when answering questions, this helps to paint a clear picture of what happened for the interviewers.

Please download our example questions below.

SWR Behaviours & Your Development

SWR behaviours were created to bring our company values to life and to make sure we are all pulling in the same direction.

The behaviours outline the expectations that we can all have of ourselves and the people working around us. Irrespective of your role, what you do and how you do it matters. We are all accountable to each other and to our customers.

Embodying these behaviours will make SWR a great place to work, it will help us deliver the best service to our customers and it can help you develop your own career.

The Development Map has been created to help guide colleagues on what each behaviour means to them and how they can demonstrate this day-to-day. Our behaviours help form our interview questions, so if you haven't already, you should take some time to explore these!

Please download the SWR Development Map below.

Development Map

Example Interview Questions

On Track for Success

South Western Railway guard and Rail Operator 2 standing on a station platform beside a train.

Frequently asked questions

I’ve submitted my application, what happens next?
Your application will be screened by recruitment or the local manager for the role. At this point it will be decided if you will be shortlisted for assessments and/interview stage.

If I’m not successful at the screening stage, will I be told?
Yes, you will receive an email.

How many people will usually be on the interview panel?
There are usually two people but sometimes more.

What is a competency?
A competency is a particular quality that a company have decided is desirable for employees to possess for a particular job role. These are used as benchmarks to rate and evaluate candidates.

What kind of questions can I expect in the interview?
Introductory questions known as icebreaker, competency-based questions, and specialist knowledge questions.

I’ve not been successful at an interview, is it worth asking for feedback?
Yes! Always ask for feedback at any stage of the process regardless of the outcome as this will give you the information you need to improve for the future. Speak to your line manager and agree a development plan.