Mistakes to Avoid as Ex-Cabin Crew!
Why you can't be complacent at the Assessment Day!
If you’re applying for a Cabin Crew position with a few years of experience under your belt it’s tempting to get complacent. After all, airlines are looking for staff with experience, so you’re bound to be hired, right?!
Unfortunately this isn’t always the case, and we want to pull our hair out when we see this kind of attitude coming up in article comments and Cabin Crew forum posts!
Sure, if you’re a great member of crew and have glowing recommendations from your last airline this will definitely count in your favour. But don’t ruin your chances by behaving in an unprofessional way at an assessment or open day event.
We’ve had many students on our Cabin Crew course who have been ex-crew, and have come to us as they feel they need a refresher. Some of them are returning to the career after a break, and have already had unsuccessful applications before coming on the course.
So, what are the mistakes to avoid as ex-cabin crew?
- Being cliquey. By this we mean chumming up with the other attendees who are also ex-crew, and forming a group excluding new applicants. It’s important to be polite, friendly and professional towards EVERYONE – from the staff at the registration desk to the person you end up sitting next to during the presentation. You never know when a member of the recruitment team will be watching.
- Being overconfident to the point of being rude and/or irritating. Walking into the room like you own it. Snubbing those less experienced than you. Dropping into the conversation at every opportunity that you used to be crew for a certain airline, that you saw xxx celebrity on board, or you once saved a passenger’s life mid-flight. It comes across as being boastful and not very endearing.
- Not preparing for the day. Despite what you thing, you DON’T know it all, and what one airline is looking for in their crew may be completely different from another. You may not feel as nervous as a new applicant, but you need to put just as much effort in.
- Being overbearing in group tasks by butting in, or talking over others. Or using your knowledge and experience to try to intimidate new applicants. We get that applying for a Cabin Crew position is a competitive business. However, there’s no need to bully or belittle others.
We do, however, realise that there are some amazing, experienced crew out there, who are looking to move to a new direction in their career, and have the professional capacity to take the assessment process seriously and do their very best to shine whether it’s their second time round applying or their hundredth!
But please do try to bear in mind that all is fair in love and war and in the Cabin Crew assessment process! Your previous experience isn’t a guaranteed ‘golden ticket’ that will whisk you through to the interview stage.
Put in the work, like you did that very first time, and remember to always be polite, kind and above all, professional!
