FDM Academy

dizzyrascal

Sorry, me again
For anyone reading this who has not been to an assessment centre before you should expect to have done online psychometric tests (often the first hurdle), followed by a detailed application form, asking for the answers to competency based questions, with a personal statement to explain why you are the best person for the role.
Then you might be asked to attend a half day "getting to know you" day where there might be a formal interview or an informal one. At this stage you might be asked to do a presentation or prepare a document/present a case study.
If you are successful you will then be invited to an assessment day where they will assess your skills and aptitude for the job. This is sometimes followed by a further interview session with more senior people.
This process can take many months.
As a guide to salaries for people who get on graduate schemes take a look at the BT site here
As you can see BT offer technology graduates 30k as a starting salary.
Whilst these roles are highly sought after and the competition is very intense they do give the successful candidates proper training with a structured career, good promotion prospects and they pay for any training you may need to do your job properly. They will sponsor you through professional exams and occasionally a Masters if it helps you do your job.
Obviously the companies that offer these schemes do expect you to be loyal, hard working and become a corporate animal. For that reason the corporate life is not for everyone.
As the last poster lives in London I would have thought that there are many more options for them.
Look around at some SME's (small to medium sized companies) and see what they offer. If you have any technical skills you should be able to find a rung on the ladder somewhere. Technology and IT jobs are the hardest to fill.
Go and see your university Careers Service and do some career planning, start networking and get yourself on LinkedIn. Use it as a living CV, get yourself some work experience and build it up your profile. It does take time but you will get job offers eventually. All recruiters now use LinkedIn to search for candidates so the more you can put on there about your skills the better.
You don't need to rush into a job just because you are desperate and about to graduate. Start some career planning now but accept that you might have a period of unemployment. It may be better in the long run than working for these people.
If you are in any doubt, once you have been to the assessment centre I would compare them to other graduate schemes like BT or the Co-op or a national retail store and see the differences.
Just proceed with caution before signing your life away to these people.

jeffmcbiscuit

Hold on a second.
Getting an assessment day is not necessarily that difficult. I had one for IBM the other weekend, and all I had to do was an online maths test. I suppose that makes IBM a scam too?
I had an assessment day with FDM yesterday, and I don't think it's a scam.
Granted the 2 year contract can seem daunting, but there seem to be so many rumours floating about here and on other websites that seem based on very little.
It's real easy to sit there saying 'get yourself some good experience' but straight out of uni that is absolutely the hardest thing to do.
From what I've learned FDM also provide recognised training and they also offer an MSc if you are interested.
I just don't get why you're resorting to hyperbole like 'signing your life away to these people'. It doesn't help anyone make an informed decision.
My experience of the internet is that it's the easiest thing to find millions of people with a negative opinion on something and they'll defend that opinion vehemently and conversely if anyone defends the same thing they are treated with suspicion.
I strongly recommend trying to find someone with actual experience of these kinds of programmes and get their opinion directly, there are plenty of them out there; forums like these seem to be a place for people to dwell on negativity and I rarely find them impartial.

dizzyrascal

My experience of FDM is the feedback I get from my students. All of the ones who I have spoken to have felt manipulated, trapped and deeply suspicious of this company.
However, as its your first post I think it is safe to assume that you are already an employee. If not then I would focus on getting a much better start for yourself now that you've graduated.

jeffmcbiscuit

Actually I'm not an employee, no, which kind of proves my point. Had your students previously been employed by FDM? Did they complete the two years? If not, were they made to pay anything back? How long before their first placement?

dizzyrascal

I don't understand your position or what you are trying to prove here?
If you have read through the thread you will see that there are posts from people who have experienced the FDM scheme with both good and bad points to make.
People generally post on here because they want to pass on useful information to people.
I think if you look on the student room website you will find far worse comments.

I am however, very intrigued by your description of your assessment day at IBM and I think you have got your wires crossed somewhere. I know IBM very well and they are extremely professional, especially with their recruitment so the remainder of this post is a full description of their application process which they publish on their graduate website here

I have posted it so that future readers of this thread do not get confused by your post (jeffmcbiscuit)

The IBM Application Process
What we look for:
To begin with, you'll need to have achieved or be expecting to achieve a 2:1 honours degree and have a passion for the area you're applying to. For any specific degree subject requirements, please refer back to the individual job descriptions. But for most of our vacancies, any degree discipline is acceptable, because this is a graduate training scheme that can be tailored to your needs.
The people who are most successful at IBM share a distinct set of characteristics. These begin with energy and creativity, along with a clear focus on delivering exceptional customer service. We've defined and refined these to set out our foundational competencies, which you can see listed below. They complement our values and identify the skills you'll need to succeed. If you'd like to work with us, this is the best place to begin: by identifying how you've already used these skills. What have you done that shows you have demonstrated these competencies in your university life, your work experience, or your personal interests? That's what will make us think "we must find out more about this person at an interview or assessment centre!"
• Adaptability
• Teamwork & Collaboration
• Communication
• Drive to achieve
• Creative problem solving
• Client focus
• Passion for the business
• Taking ownership
Selection Process
So you're now fully up to speed in terms of what we're looking for, so the next step is to explain what happens during our selection process. Our process has been designed not only for us to understand if you are right for us, but also for you to understand if we are right for you. So, take every opportunity you can to ask questions along the way.
• STEP 1 - Submit your application
In order to apply to IBM, you will need to apply online through this website. There are 2 parts to the application form. The first part is an online application form and asks for personal details as well as information about your education and work experience. The second part is the IBM CV template (DOC, 67KB).
The CV template is straightforward to complete, lists all the skills that we look for and asks you to give examples to demonstrate when you have used these. You can use examples from any aspect of your life - school, college, university, hobbies, charity work, work experience etc.
When we receive your application, the recruitment team will review it initially to ensure that you have answered all the questions and met our minimum requirements in terms of education etc. Your application will then be passed to one of our professional development managers for full review.
• STEP 2 - Online Test
If your application is successful through the screening phase then we will invite you to take an online aptitude test - the IBM IPAT test. This test has been developed by IBM to test logical reasoning and the ability to process information quickly. All the instructions are included in the email that will be sent to you inviting you to take the test.
The test is divided into 2 sections and you can take these either both in one sitting or two sittings and you will have 5 days to take it before your password expires. The test can be adjusted for anyone that needs a reasonable adjustment and you will be asked to self select whether you need this when you log onto the test for the first time.
• STEP 3 - First Round Selection Day
If you achieve the minimum score required on the online aptitude test then we will invite you to a first round selection day. What happens on these days will vary depending on which role you have applied for. You will be given a presentation about the opportunities available and give you the chance to ask more questions and you will get the opportunity to meet some recently hired graduates and students. Although the first round days differ slightly depending on where you have applied to, on the whole the activities you take part in are fairly similar.
Group activity
No matter which role you are applying for, you will take part in at least one group activity on a first round day. This could be logical problem solving or it could be discussion based. We will be looking for you to work well in a team and demonstrate the IBM foundational competencies during these exercises.
Confirmatory IPATO test
You will take a short confirmatory test for the online test you have already taken.
Written test
You may be required to take a further numerical and verbal reasoning test or further aptitude tests depending on the role you have applied to.
Interview
For some roles, you will be given an interview at the first round selection day. You may only be given an interview if you have passed the other exercises on the day.
• STEP 4 - Assessment Centre
Our assessment centres are designed so that we can observe you taking part in a number of activities to assess the competencies we believe are important for our business. These will vary depending on which role you have applied for, however you can expect to take part in further group activities, interviews and case studies. If you need to do any preparation before the assessment centre, we will give you plenty of warning! In some cases, we may ask you to attend a business interview after the assessment centre; this will allow us to understand your suitability for the specific role you have applied to.

DukeOfEarl

jeffmcbiscuit wrote: »

Actually I'm not an employee, no, which kind of proves my point. Had your students previously been employed by FDM? Did they complete the two years? If not, were they made to pay anything back? How long before their first placement?

Hi Jeff,

These questions would probably be best answered by FDM, so

1) Have any of your students been employed by you not completed 2 years service?

2)If yes, were they made to pay anything back?

3)How long on average between a student joining this scheme and getting their first placement?

4)If a person does not get offered a placement how long, on average, has the person spent going to your office before being told that they are allowed to leave and not be charged whatever the training fee is -is it 20 thousand pounds? It doesn't talk about it on your website -

I think these are fair questions to ask