The Student Room Group

Home Office - Asylum Decision Maker (EO)

Hi Guys,

I'm currently going through the application process for the Asylum Decision Maker role and was just wondering if any others are in the same boat as myself?

I applied in the middle of April and was provisionally offered the job on 26/05, since then I've heard very little from them.

Also it would be great to hear from anyone that already does this job what they honestly think of it. I've scoured this forum for hours and have found very little relating specifically to the Asylum role.

Thanks,
Craig

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Reply 1
Original post by Craig999
Hi Guys,

I'm currently going through the application process for the Asylum Decision Maker role and was just wondering if any others are in the same boat as myself?

I applied in the middle of April and was provisionally offered the job on 26/05, since then I've heard very little from them.

Also it would be great to hear from anyone that already does this job what they honestly think of it. I've scoured this forum for hours and have found very little relating specifically to the Asylum role.

Thanks,
Craig

Hi Craig. I'm in the same position as yourself. I applied for Glasgow on a fixed term appointment of 24 months. I was e-mailed to say the duration was changing to an 18 month contract.

I then received another e-mail stating that the post was being made permanent due to extra funding being received. I accepted the provisional offer. I've been stuck at the pre-employment checks for a few months now. I got an e-mail from someone in great asking about my notice period, any holiday booked in the next 3 months and if I would be full time. I replied straight away. I heard nothing and four weeks later I received the exact same e-mail from the same person and I responded again and I asked them if they received my original reply. That was on the 26th May and I've still not received a reply.

From my own research, the job appears to be very numbers driven and quite stressful. The turnover of staff is also fairly high. I usually work well with stress but I've applied for a few other HO roles also in case I change my mind about this vacancy.

The lack of information and communication to let you know what's happening is worrying also.

Have you received any further information from them?

Regards

Jay
Reply 2
The turnover of staff is more than fairly high trust me.

I can honestly say that the job was the worst I’ve ever experienced in my life (although it has helped me to gain promotion to HEO)

Please please have a long hard think about the role/job and check out other threads on this forum or DM me for more information.
Reply 3
Original post by Ufc1993
The turnover of staff is more than fairly high trust me.

I can honestly say that the job was the worst I’ve ever experienced in my life (although it has helped me to gain promotion to HEO)

Please please have a long hard think about the role/job and check out other threads on this forum or DM me for more information.

Thanks for the info. Appreciated.
Hi,I'm in the same boot.. just waiting for the pre-employment checks to finish.. what I've been told is they want people to start by September so hopefully it will speed up a little.A family member of mine works there, says it has its benefits but it's very stressful and many times wishes she didn't take the job. She mainly blames the training process as it was all online and probably would have been better training in the office. We may be lucky if we don't have to do it all remotely.I'm still thinking if I should take the job but then I like a challenge so I want to give it a go and see what I can achieve... can always move on somewhere if I'm not happy 🙂Let me know if you require any other details.
Reply 5
Original post by Typonegativ
Hi,I'm in the same boot.. just waiting for the pre-employment checks to finish.. what I've been told is they want people to start by September so hopefully it will speed up a little.A family member of mine works there, says it has its benefits but it's very stressful and many times wishes she didn't take the job. She mainly blames the training process as it was all online and probably would have been better training in the office. We may be lucky if we don't have to do it all remotely.I'm still thinking if I should take the job but then I like a challenge so I want to give it a go and see what I can achieve... can always move on somewhere if I'm not happy 🙂Let me know if you require any other details.

Yeah I felt so bad for the people having to learn the role remotely! Learning in person was hard enough…

That’s why you’ll notice so many roles advertised as people move away from it so fast however you have a really good attitude in relation to a challenge so best of luck to you :smile:!
Please think twice before taking a job in asylum. It’s the worst place I’ve ever worked, they don’t care about you at all and treat you so unfairly. Most people don’t make it past the 12 months mark before being pushed out the door. So many people off on work related sick, something I had to do myself for my sanity. The staff turnover is so high! Out of 15 people from my training group from October 2019, there is no one left! Some were pushed out and others ran before they were able to. So many other lovely government departments to work for, please just be careful. If you google Liverpool asylum bootle there’s a news article on the way the department is ran.
Reply 7
Original post by UsernameA56239
Please think twice before taking a job in asylum. It’s the worst place I’ve ever worked, they don’t care about you at all and treat you so unfairly. Most people don’t make it past the 12 months mark before being pushed out the door. So many people off on work related sick, something I had to do myself for my sanity. The staff turnover is so high! Out of 15 people from my training group from October 2019, there is no one left! Some were pushed out and others ran before they were able to. So many other lovely government departments to work for, please just be careful. If you google Liverpool asylum bootle there’s a news article on the way the department is ran.

I myself worked in the city centre doing EO Further Submissions casework and people warned me before I started which you naturally don’t listen to.

All’s I can say is please please listen to advice given in the numerous threads in relation to these roles. It is not a nice place to work.
Hello, l also applied in May. I am already a CS and I have a start date for end of August. I was originally offered July but I have holiday booked so I had to pass. I’ve got an email contact if I want to put any further holiday in or I have any further questions I’d like to ask. I’ve been told training is all online too. No info so far regarding IT equipment just that it is on order.Having read this thread and others, I must admit I am having serious second thoughts. Unfortunately, I have no idea how I can back out now. It feels like we are all being set up to fail OP.
Original post by Calixto38
Hello, l also applied in May. I am already a CS and I have a start date for end of August. I was originally offered July but I have holiday booked so I had to pass. I’ve got an email contact if I want to put any further holiday in or I have any further questions I’d like to ask. I’ve been told training is all online too. No info so far regarding IT equipment just that it is on order.Having read this thread and others, I must admit I am having serious second thoughts. Unfortunately, I have no idea how I can back out now. It feels like we are all being set up to fail OP.

I think you could use the contact details you have if you wish to withdrawn.

I am receiving contradicting information about this job so I'm not sure. I work in a similar setting so I'm used to people keep going on long term sickness due to stress but I was always the one with 0 sickness records so I won't know if the job is worse than my previous ones until I try. Can always look for another role if I won't like it but that's just me.

Only you can decide if you want to take the job or if you're happy where you are.
Reply 10
Original post by Calixto38
Hello, l also applied in May. I am already a CS and I have a start date for end of August. I was originally offered July but I have holiday booked so I had to pass. I’ve got an email contact if I want to put any further holiday in or I have any further questions I’d like to ask. I’ve been told training is all online too. No info so far regarding IT equipment just that it is on order.Having read this thread and others, I must admit I am having serious second thoughts. Unfortunately, I have no idea how I can back out now. It feels like we are all being set up to fail OP.


First of all congratulations on gaining the role.

You can withdraw from jobs on CS jobs on the applications page or use the email address provided .

It must be disheartening reading all of the comments within the numerous threads on this forum and can’t imagine much worse when having the excitement of starting a new role. All I can say is that the comments are genuine and what people say is the truth, I have no personal reason to make the comments against Home Office etc as technically it lead to my promotion but I would stick to my words of avoid this particular role at all costs it will effect your health no matter the type of person you are. I’ve never had many stresses in my life that I can think of however I would end my shift dreading starting the next and it takes over your life .
Reply 11
Original post by Calixto38
Hello, l also applied in May. I am already a CS and I have a start date for end of August. I was originally offered July but I have holiday booked so I had to pass. I’ve got an email contact if I want to put any further holiday in or I have any further questions I’d like to ask. I’ve been told training is all online too. No info so far regarding IT equipment just that it is on order.Having read this thread and others, I must admit I am having serious second thoughts. Unfortunately, I have no idea how I can back out now. It feels like we are all being set up to fail OP.


Hi which area of the country will you be working? I was provisionally offered a position on 16/6 and still haven’t been given a start date, ( I’m also a civil servant). How long did you wait between receiving your offer and a start date? Thanks in advance :-)
(edited 3 years ago)
Thanks for all advice above, it’s certainly given me a lot to think about. In the meanwhile, the job hunt continues.

My timeline from prov to formal offer was:

11/6 prov Job offer
22/6 call from academy discussion of start date etc.
25/6 confirmation pre employment chx complete and confirmed start date
6/7 formal offer

I think the Academy runs on a national basis so I don’t think it matters what your base office is. New DMs from all offices train together in a virtual cohort.

I also believe there has been a new intake every 4 weeks since March.
Reply 13
Thank you 😊 I think I will call the recruitment team to see if they have any updates for me.
Reply 14
Yeah you are correct RE new intake every 4 weeks since March. 12 people per course and this is due to continue until Feb 2022
Hi guys, I am not sure if this thread is still going to be active, but I am just wondering, specifically, what makes this job stressful? Is it very much target-driven?
Reply 16
Original post by ashleigh110594
Hi guys, I am not sure if this thread is still going to be active, but I am just wondering, specifically, what makes this job stressful? Is it very much target-driven?


I’d say the main thing was the unrealistic targets and I’m talking unrealistic. But plenty of other things as well
Reply 17
Hi guys could someone please tell me what was the EO DM interview was like? how many questions? are the responses timed? how long is the interview? I emailed them and they responded that after I assess the interview I will know the answers to my questions. I thought that was an unwise answer because when I assess the interview I will not have the opportunity to leave.
Reply 18
Original post by Mohhpa
Hi guys could someone please tell me what was the EO DM interview was like? how many questions? are the responses timed? how long is the interview? I emailed them and they responded that after I assess the interview I will know the answers to my questions. I thought that was an unwise answer because when I assess the interview I will not have the opportunity to leave.

Hi

The interview was pretty relaxed. When I had it if I remember correctly 4 competency’s and 6 strength based questions. Interview lasted around 40 minutes.

Can not remember competency timeframes however strength based questions roughly 2 minutes per question.

Wouldn’t worry too much as they seem to be employing hundreds per year due to people leaving however have a good read of the Success Profiles on Gov.uk and that will give you a good idea.
Reply 19
Original post by Ufc1993
Hi

The interview was pretty relaxed. When I had it if I remember correctly 4 competency’s and 6 strength based questions. Interview lasted around 40 minutes.

Can not remember competency timeframes however strength based questions roughly 2 minutes per question.

Wouldn’t worry too much as they seem to be employing hundreds per year due to people leaving however have a good read of the Success Profiles on Gov.uk and that will give you a good idea.

Hi Ufc1993

Thank you very much for your response.

I understand the turnover is high. Is it because of the trauma-laden interviews of the job or they are not good at retaining their employees?

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