Last minute lucy…definitely my name!

So this week I’ve learned not to leave shopping to the last minute, especially shopping for an evening gown! It took far longer than I expected it to and, for a scary few hours, seemed like it would be an impossible task.

Saying goodbye to everyone I love has been the hardest part of the week without a doubt,  but I keep having to remind myself that it’s not forever and I will see them again. God knows how I’ll cope when I do actually leave for good (assuming I do get over to America permanently), I can only hope that this experience will prepare me better for that.

My suitcase and packing has now hit the point of being totally ridiculous and there is no way in hell that it is under or even close to the 20kg luggage allowance limit; all I can do is pray that I can take all of my study equiptment out before I fly and that reduces it enough that my baggage charges aren’t into the unaffordable! I don’t honestly feel like there is anything in my case that is superfluous and 20kg really isn’t a lot of weight for a 9 month span, especially when you look at the packing list you recieve in your starter pack!

I’m actually on board the train to London now,  travelling 1st class for the first time in my life and I can’t believe how much better it is than your regular train journey,  and I’m especially appreciating the endless supply of coffee! It is strange though to be travelling through all the beauty of Yorkshire for what could conceivably be the last time; I never appreciated just how lovely the place I’ve been living is until I’m leaving it behind.

On a different note I’ve had a few questions asked of me about steiner,  both on this blog and on a forum I’m a member of and I thought I should say that I’m perfectly happy to help and answer any questions or queries that I can…I don’t know everything but if I can help I will!

Bring on the sunshine!

If todays weather is anything to go by then it would be safe to say that summer is definitely over! It’s raining cats and dogs outside and isn’t due to stop any time soon if the reports are to be believed. More than anything else this has just made me start to pray that they send me somewhere warm!

I can’t imagine that the journey to training will be pleasant if the weather does persist in this manner and it certainly won’t help with the fact we’ve got to have immaculate hair and make-up!

The task of the day, and possibly the week is packing! Never my favourite part of preparing to go away, this time it’s even worse as I have to pack everything I own, enough for 10 months, into one 20kg baggage allowance.  I swear it isn’t possible within the laws of physics for a girl to accomplish this task! It doesn’t help of course that I have no idea where they’ll be sending me so I can’t pack for just one climate, I have to be prepared for all eventualities, which is a damn nightmare I can tell you!

You get a packing list in the starter pack you receive from steiner which is a good thing to check yourself off against, though it doesn’t mention towels (which you need for the ymca) and personal electronics (tablet, laptop etc…). A little application of common sense is the best bet…make a list a few weeks in advance, check it and read over it a few times, pass it around family and friends to see if they can think of anything you might have missed, then start buying the bits you’re missing and either throwing or storing stuff you don’t need. The way I see it this whole adventure gives you an excellent opportunity for a fresh start and a bit of a revamp,  so make the most of it!

I have so far managed to fit all my belongings into my suitcase with a little room to spare, which is all well and good, until I head to the mall with my mum and buy more clothes!

Online training

Yesterday I got my password for the academy online training website and, being the little geek I am, I had to log on and start my training immediately!  I had been worried that, as it states we have 2 weeks to complete the training, it would be a very long and involved process and that working the hours I am I wouldn’t have the time to dedicate to it.  I needn’t have been worried though as I managed to complete my training in one day.  I wouldn’t necessarily recommend that time frame unless you have done extensive pre-learning and are willing to dedicate time to continue your learning afterwards.

The set up is much like that of any further learning academy that uses online learning tools; a personalised log in page with courses and modules that you enroll on yourself by activating them, which then gives you access to the online seminars.  The content itself is laid out in a powerpoint type presentation format that has a few interactive click-through buttons to lead you through the content.  I was initially a little worried that I was missing content as the slide numbers do skip around somewhat but just trust steiner and you will see every slide by the end of module exam!

The first course I completed as a masseuse was on board health and safety, a course which I would expect everyone will have, no matter what their profession, which was relatively straight forward. My only gripe with this is that one of the questions on the test appears to mark the correct answer as wrong, and I did double check against the information given within the presentation as I have meticulously screen printed each one in order to make a full set of learning flashcards (told you I was a geek!) to ensure my knowledge is sound. It didn’t matter a great deal in the long run as you only need a certain % to pass which I achieved,  but it irks me none the less.

The second course I enrolled on was the elemis products course, of which I had the face and body modules. This course was much more information heavy and I would recommend looking through the material a few times before taking the tests as you do only have two attempts to pass each one.  This course took me a good few hours to complete and I did find that some of the questions asked in the tests were for products not given within the study material.  There is always the chance I missed some slides but I did go onto the slide menu and look through that way so I don’t think that’s the case.  I am going to email the training coordinator and put these questions to her so I’ll get back to you with her response when I receive it.

All in all I think the online training facility is wonderful and really helps with getting yourself in the mindset to join the ships in your last few weeks before London. For me I have timed my training purposely to coincide with the time I would normally return to university, had I not just graduated, as my mind will automatically be geared towards learning and ready to settle back into a fairly punishing routine, however some will not have been in an academic setting for a while and for them this online learning stage will be very useful – settling them back into learning gently.

Now, onward to the embassy!

Final Preparations!

This blog was actually written on Friday last (23rd) and so it’s a little out of sync with where I’m at now, but I’ve had no wifi and so you get it late…sorry!

 

So we’re getting close to go time now…monday coming is my 4 weeks left date and the day that I *should* be able to start my online training with the steiner training website, however they have been having a few problems with the system so that might hold me up a little bit. I’ve been focusing on my pre-learning anyway so with or without the online bit I should have a good grounding in the product knowledge needed for the academy.

After sending a few messages out to girls I found on the steiner Facebook page that were going into training at the same time as I am it looks like I have found a kindred spirit in Australia by the name of Corinne.  We’ve been talking via message and swapping study tips, tattoo cover advice and other such fun, which has been nice; having someone to talk to who is at the same point as you is very reassuring.

I’m actually writing this entry from the train into Bangor using my shiny new tablet – I figured it might be a good idea to test run the blogging function before I actually leave so that I can iron out any kinks whilst I still have access to a proper computer! So far so good though and I am totally in love with the little thing; the only problem I have found is that it’s so similar to my phone that I keep thinking I can make calls and send texts…it’ll take me a while to get my head round that I think!

I didn’t think I’d be returning to York apart from the day of my graduation but it seems that fate has had a hand in that and it will now be cheapercfor me to get a room in the city for a week than it would for me to be going back and too on the trains like a yo-yo!  I’m excited to be going back for a while and it means I get to spend some extra time with my friends before heading off which will always be something I’d try to do.

I’ve got my embassy interview on Wednesday so I’ll be travelling to London for that on the Tuesday and I’ll try to get a blog on that up as soon as possible afterwards.  I’m attempting to make a full breakdown of the process of joining steiner a part of this blog so that others know a little more about what to expect for those who, like me, prefer to have as much knowledge and information as physically possible!

I’m going to call and chase up on my crb check this week too as it’s been 6 weeks now and I’ve yet to hear back from them. After I’ve got that sorted and been to London that will only leave me with shopping and packing to do!  That thought more than anything else makes this new adventure seem to be approaching at a terrifying pace.

So … Blogging!

I feel the need to blog but I don’t really have anything solid to fill you guys in on!  I’ve been plodding along, paying for those bits that need paying for, organizing those bits that need organizing and studying those bits that need studying for!

I have yet to receive my online log in and password for the learning bit of my pre-academy prep (I should get this by Monday) but I am still trying to make the most of any free time I have by attempting to memorize all of the Elemis products, their benefits and ingredients!  It’s a lot of work and my memorizing skills aren’t that wonderful but, after 6 years of studying, my revision skills are top notch so I’ve put together a bunch of flashcards to help me with the study.

I’m actually getting a little antsy about being so in limbo – it feels like there is so much still to be done but nothing I can now do about it!  I’ve sent everything off and now I’m just left waiting on hearing back from the CRB check people and then I have my Embassy interview coming up on the 28^th of this month.  The constant stream of emails from Steiner head office isn’t really helping my anxiety either…every time I get a new one I check it through about 5 times just to make 100% sure that there’s nothing that I still have outstanding.

I’ve also spent a little time trying to make contact with a few other people who will be landing in London for training around the same time so that I don’t annoy everyone else in my life with my incessant Steiner-talk, which is looking like a real possibility at the minute!  I found a few girls on the Steiner recruitment Facebook page and sent them messages just to say hi so hopefully something will come of that.  I’m not exactly a shy girl but I tend to find I’m a little different to your standard ‘stereotypical’ beauty student so I’m a little nervous that I won’t find many that I can immediately connect with.  I’m hoping that I can push my ‘major geek’ aspect forward and my study skills from my degree will be able to help others with all the exams and study we have coming to us – I like being able to be helpful!

If anyone else has any awesome study tools for learning the Elemis products please, please, PLEASE feel free to forward them in my direction!

Equally, if anyone is heading into training in London in September then feel free to message me to say hi as well.

B x

The recruiter presentation…

 

During the interview process for Steiner there is a very lengthy but very informative presentation that is given by the regional recruiter, which in my case was a lovely lady by the name of Angela.  The presentation went on for around about an hour and a half but crammed so much information in that I was a little afraid I’d missed some, but I shall do my best to put down everything I made notes on.

 

I’m not entirely sure why this kind of information isn’t more freely available on the internet as it would help to dispel so many of the rumours and disseminate the back-stabbing that surrounds the Steiner Corporation.

 

Steiner runs cruise ship spas for over 160 cruise ship companies with an average fleet size of around 35 vessels per company.  There are also 65 land-based spas that are connected with Steiner, not to mention the countless hundreds of elemis franchise spas there are out there, which shows the scope of opportunity that becomes available to you once you embark upon a career with Steiner.

 

Once you are successful in your Steiner interview and go on to training you will have an exam to sit (as previously mentioned) which will test your product knowledge and other information that is found in your pre-learning pack as well as having to give a presentation to the board of directors of Steiner.

 

This presentation will be based on a colleague and what you have learned about them and it will decide which ship company you will be placed with.  When preparing for your presentation think about the ship companies that you want to be placed with and consider the qualities that the directors will be looking for when placing individuals with that brand, for instance a Disney spa therapist will likely be very bubbly, with an effervescent personality and a huge smile, whereas a celebrity cruise therapist will be a little more demure, immaculately put together with a clear and concise presenting voice.  How you come across in this presentation has the capacity to affect not only how much you enjoy your contract but also how much you earn, as the more luxurious the ship, the higher the capacity for earning money is likely to be.  As well as deciding the ship you will be placed on it will also decide the course in which you will do your specialist training and, therefore, the treatment that you will be performing the most on the ship.  Each therapist specialises in one type of treatment and this becomes their ‘signature’ treatment, that will be performed back to back on sea days, though on port days if you are working you are usually allowed more flexibility.

 

When going into training pack everything that you will need on the cruise ships as you won’t be able to return home between your academy experience and your embarkation to the ship.  Although technically training can last as long as 12 weeks it is unlikely to range further than between 3 and 5 weeks, depending on your own performance and how many places become available on the ships at which times.  You are usually given the details of your ship and travel itinerary on a Thursday or Friday and will usually fly out on a Saturday, as this tends to time in with most cruise embarkations.

 

In terms of training the official timetable that I was given was Monday through Sunday (7 days per week), from 9am to 5.30pm, though this is liable to changes, so don’t make any plans that aren’t easily re-arranged whilst at the YMCA.  It’s also worth noting that guests have very limited access at the YMCA and are only allowed in the downstairs bar.

 

In terms of travel time don’t expect a nice settling in period once you reach your ship.  Typically you will land fairly late on in your port of embarkation, spend a night at a hotel which is pre booked by Steiner and then travel to meet your greeter at a pre-arranged time the next morning.  After a small tour and allocation of your room they aim to have you in work by 2pm on your 1^st day on ship.  Pretty fast paced, so you’re likely to fare better if you are forewarned, and a good first impression will likely help you a lot!

The hours expected are as follows;

 

Maximum of 14 hours working in 24 hours

 

Maximum of 70 hours working in 7 days

 

Minimum of 10 hours rest in 24 hours

 

Minimum of 77 hours rest in 7 days

 

There are usually 2-3 sea days per cruise though this will vary, you are entitled to 1.5 days off in a 7 day period and this will always be given on a port day.

 

Once on the ship you have your own treatment room and everything in it becomes your responsibility, including the cleaning and re-stocking of products and equiptment.

 

The most commonly asked question is about pay with Steiner, and it’s important to note that there have been some big changes this year.  Pay is still mostly commission based on both retail and services, with each therapist taking no commission on the first $35 of the day for both.  Put simply if you sell a $65 product you only take commission on $30 dollars of it…after that you get commission on every product you sell that day.  The same goes for services and the $35 pre commission is on both, not shared between the two.   Services commission is set at 2% minimum where retail is set at 9% minimum so selling products is where the money is at!  There is also an auto-gratuity of 15% on every service which goes directly to you via the spa, any additional tips will be received in cash and are yours to keep as well.

 

You will be set targets to reach per cruise and these are in monetary values.  Targets are combined for both services and retail and often, hitting or exceeding these targets will earn you special treats like short shifts of a little extra time off.

 

There is also a basic salary that has now been introduced, but it’s a little weird so I’ll explain it long term.  If, in a 30 day period you as a therapist do not earn $1000 from your commission and auto-gratuity alone then Steiner will make up the shortfall so that you have earned $1000. If, in a 30 day period you as a therapist do earn $1000 from your commission and auto-gratuity alone then Steiner will pay you an extra $77.36 in basic salary, on top of whatever you have earned yourself.

 

On your first contract Steiner will always pay for your flight out to join the ship, however they will only pay for your return flight home if you complete a full contract, so keep this in mind when the going gets a little tough.  You will be covered for dental care (except cleaning and cosmetic) and will have free health care while on the ship, though this doesn’t cover extreme sports and other such fun you may get up to in your down time!  All beauty, massage, nail, and hair treatments are free for Steiner staff, as well as gym membership and (some) classes.  It is however a good idea to buy products where you can and tip your therapist/stylist as they are making no money otherwise and that’s just rude.

 

Outside of the Steiner strong hold you also get a 25% discount on drinks in the passenger area and items in the mall as well as a minimum 50% discount on shore excursions.

 

A visual breakdown of all the costs involved with procuring your place on board a Steiner ship is found below and is accurate for late summer 2013.

 

That’s all I can really think to tell you, hope it’s helpful!

 

 

 

The preparation begins…

The preparations begin…

The level of preparation that has to go into starting a contract with Steiner is impressive to say the least.  Organizing a visa application interview; applying for a criminal records check; printing off, signing and returning all contract bits and bobs; researching insurance; learning and reviewing all products…the list seems endless, not to mention I’m moving house and sorting graduation ceremony details!  My biggest piece of advice to anyone would be to start as soon as is feasibly possible because it *will* get on top of you.  I’m lucky as I have nearly a full 6 months between my interview date and when I start in September which gives me plenty of time in theory, but even now I feel like I’m letting it run away with me and it’s making me a little stressed.

In order to make it seem more palatable I will break it down into its component steps and explain each one individually;

Applying for a criminal record check

When applying for a CRB check the most important thing is that everything you put on the form be completely and totally accurate.  Even the smallest mistake can lead to it being returned and needing to be filed again, which can create a major delay.  Ensure, before beginning to fill out the paperwork, that you have addresses for the last 5 years catalogued and to hand, in order to reduce the chances of making mistakes.

As you should have taken photocopies of your passport along to your Steiner interview you shouldn’t be required to send your passport along with the application, and a photocopy will do, thus it should only be necessary to pay the £60 fee, however do double check this as it will differ for some people.  The paperwork distributed with the application form will explain it all.

Visa application process

Unbeknownst to me you can actually apply for the C/D1 visa online, which seems to be by far the best idea considering the phoneline costs  £1.23 per minute and seems to be permanently on hold!  The questions are occasionally ridiculous and frequently confusing but the guidance down the side bar is very helpful.  The only area that I found myself perplexed in was the question that asked for a national identification number – in this I gave my national insurance number, but I’m still unsure as to whether this is what they were asking for.

At the point at which I applied the visa fee was set at £120 which was to be paid in full up front but would be refunded upon the ship.

Signing contracts

This part at least is relatively straightforward; print off the paperwork (the starter pack needs signing as well, the contract should arrive in the post), sign it, scan it in and email back to Steiner.  I would also strongly recommend photocopying the whole lot and keeping the photocopies safe somewhere else, just in case the need for them comes up.

 

Insurance

The company recommended to me by Steiner was STA travel, though no guidance was given as to which insurance option was the best.  From my research into this I would say you should expect to pay between the £450-£600 mark, depending on your age and level of cover.

 

Learning the product range

Having just come out of a degree this should be the simplest thing for me as my mind is still in learning mode, but for others it could be the most difficult by far.  I recommend using the tried and tested method of remembering something – repetition!  Print out the workbook, make a list of all the products and the facts you have to learn (2 ingredients and 2 benefits per product), separate these into ranges, make flash cards with the product on one side and the information on the other and practice the hell out of it!  Seriously, this is vital, as there will be a test on this pre-learning on the first day at the academy and if you don’t pass with 85% or more you risk being asked to leave the training and forfeit your chance on the ships.

In case there are people who, like me, would like to get a jump start on this product knowledge I shall pop the links to the training manual below:

http://www.onespaworldtraining.com/pdf/Steiner_Training_Guide.pdf

Next time … what I learned about working on the ships, from the Steiner recruiter!

And the adventure begins…

I had my Steiner cruise ship spa interview on Sunday and boy was it INTENSE!!!

During my time researching Steiner and, more importantly for me, what they are like to work for I found that I had very little access to useful information.  Each time I searched I found that everything I was pulling up was forum based and although I found a lot of useful stuff this way it was crowded by a lot of bitching and fighting from the two main groups of ‘Steiner sucks’ and ‘Steiner rocks’.  Trawling through all of the snippy, passive-aggressive comments to find the info you are actually looking for is both exhausting and counter-productive.  It in fact puts a downer on the whole process.  The one girl I found who had any useful information at all was this girl >

https://www.youtube.com/user/LepaJessi?feature=

Watching her videos made me feel a little more prepared for my interview, which seemed to be approaching faster than I could comprehend, but I still didn’t have much of a clue as to the ins and outs of the interview process itself.  When I originally decided that a blog would be the way forward for keeping contact with my nearest and dearest I thought it’d likely be a good idea to totally and fully document my entire experience from interview onwards on the off chance that someone else was panicking as much as I did and found my information useful.  So here it is!

BEFORE THE INTERVIEW

I received a few emails from my regional recruiter once I had submitted my online application (you won’t need help with that – it’s super easy!) detailing briefly the itinerary for the day and listing anything I would need for my interview.  As a masseuse this was pretty basic; I needed no model and all that was listed was towels for the trade test, no big deal although I even managed to freak out about that as I had no guide as to size or quantity (Were we going to be marked on bed set-up? How big was the bed? Did I need enough for more than one treatment? What about facial towels? What about hot damp towels?!).

The basic information distributed was as follows:

9.30 am           Welcome

                        Presentation

The presentation will be very informative and is designed to answer many of the questions you will have.  During the presentation we will also cover visa requirements, medical requirements and hold a question & answer session to ensure you have all the information you need.

NB If you feel after the presentation that a life on board a ship is not for you, we will not be offended if you choose not to be interviewed, however please inform us before you leave.

12.30 pm         ½ hour break for lunch

1.00 pm           Practical tests (see attached form for details)

6.00pm approx, interviews and practical tests should be finished.

THE INTERVIEW AND TRADE TEST WILL TAKE BETWEEN 5-6 HOURS.  WE RECOMMEND YOU BRING A PACKED LUNCH

Please bring the following documents with you to the interview – 2 photocopies of your Passport, photocopies of your CV and certificates, plus 1 coloured full length photo of yourself printed on A4 paper.

AS THIS IS AN INTERVIEW WE RECOMMEND THAT YOU COME SMARTLY DRESSED & WELL GROOMED

PLEASE ALSO NOTE THAT CRUISE LINES OBJECT TO TATTOOS, SO IF YOU HAVE A TATTOO, PLEASE DISCUSS THIS WITH US BEFORE YOU ATTEND THE INTERVIEW

Sounds easy enough? A presentation from the recruiter followed by a trade test…pretty standard procedure right?

DO NOT BE FOOLED!

A few days before my interview date I received a further email stating this:

When you arrive you must have a note pad and pen to take notes throughout the day. You will also need to bring a scanned copy of the below documents. Please be aware we do not accept original documents. Once you give your documents to us they are not returned.

1 x copies of your passport, 1 x copy of all relevant certificates, 1x full length picture on an A4 piece of paper, 1 x copy of your CV.

Please bring lunch with you or money to buy lunch in town or the hotel

The interview will be held as a group. It proceed as follows:

 ALL PROFESSIONALS

9:00am – Introduction

9:30am – complete paperwork and Written exam

10:30am – Group presentation

12:00pm –  Questions and Answers

12:15pm – Public speaking and Appearance assessment

 IF SUCCESSFUL WITH EXAM, PUBLIC SPEAKING AND APPEARANCE THEN YOU WILL CONTINUE WITH THE PRACTICAL ASSESSMENT.

Ok, so now I have a written exam, public speaking and appearance assessment to contend with as well?!  Having no idea what the written exam entailed and only two days in which to prepare for it really helped let loose my crazy perfectionist streak and I must have been driving everyone I know crazy with my constant worried chattering.  I revised every piece of anatomy and physiology work I could get my hands on (which when you consider how high a level my degree takes this too was a LOT of information) as well as contraindications and spa safety.  Turns out that this was definitely over-preparing but we shall get to that in a moment.

THE INTERVIEW PROCESS

After getting up at 4:30am to start getting ready (Thanks for the wake up call Kate!) for my 7am departure from the house and ensuring I had coffee to calm me down I applied my tattoo cover-up, applied-removed-reapplied my makeup about 3 times, straightened my hair and forced it into some form of submission, dressed up in my wonderfully smart and eye-catching interview outfit (again, all thanks to Kate, my unofficial personal shopper and style guru!) and headed out the house once I had triple checked my bag for all my documents and towels.  I arrived in the city at about 8:35am giving me plenty of time to find the hotel and throw another coffee down my neck.  When I walked into the hotel at about 8:45am I was immediately confronted with a foyer full of young girls all chattering animatedly like they all knew each other.  Pretty darn intimidating!  Spying a few empty chairs at the back I toddled over and introduced myself to the gentleman sitting there, who it turned out was interviewing for the position of hairdresser, and enjoyed a few minutes exchanging information about the process and what we expected.  He speculated that we might be being watched to see how easily we mingled in the situation, which is entirely plausible as someone standing alone and shy in the corner isn’t likely to settle into ship life quickly, so my first piece of advice = Be confident and friendly – everyone there is feeling just as nervous as you but talking to each other makes it so much better! 

Eventually there was movement in the corner and we shuffled en mass through to our conference room where we were told to file in, find a seat and then approach the front desk to collect our paperwork one group at a time (in our case beauty followed by massage, hair, then personal trainers).  I decided to hang to one side and ask each person to go through if they were massage until someone said yes, because then at least it would turn out that I’d be sat with at least one person in my interview category.  This turned out to be a really good plan and we all sat on the same few rows, so we had a chance to get a little acquainted and others to fall back on if we didn’t understand something.  The paperwork consisted of a personal details sheet, a form that detailed what we would be scored on in our appearance review, a medical disclaimer and our written exam.  The exam was sat all together in the conference room and, for my discipline of massage, consisted of 19 questions mostly based around very basic spa knowledge, the importance of a consultation, the number of vertebrae in a particular area of the spine, massage terminology and the suitability of certain mediums.  It’s nothing to really worry about but if you’ve been out in industry a while it’s worth getting your old books out and brushing up a bit.

We were then given a number of questions to choose to answer in our public speaking; you had to include your name, qualifications and experience level and then select two or three other questions (Why do you want to work with Steiner? What can you offer them? What do you hope to gain? Do you fluently speak any other languages?… the usual interview questions) and had a little time to prepare our answers whilst waiting for everyone to finish their paperwork.  Then came the recruiter presentation which was SUPER informative and I strongly suggest you take notes throughout this as you will forget it all within about an hour thanks to nerves!

Public speaking came next and seemed to take forever despite each person being stood for no longer than a minute usually.  My advice here = Eye contact! Speak slowly and clearly, smile, answer your questions, open body language and if you can be a little funny, do be!   The appearance review was also carried out at this point so make sure to stand tall and try not to look too ruffled.  The public speaking is probably the most vital component of the interview as it is an essential part of ship life and successfully promoting yourself, which is of course the key to making money on the ships.  If you are stuck for something to say stress the monetary aspects as a therapist driven by dollars is a successful therapist and one that makes Steiner plenty of cash, which is exactly what they are looking for.

Our lunch break ended up being half an hour long, not that it really mattered as I was too nervous to eat and instead called my mama to let her know how it was all going and get some much needed reassurance.  From lunch we then went into the trade test and personal interviews, both of which were carried out at the same time in front of the whole group for your category, which can be pretty intimidating.  In this they are looking for posture, the ability to massage with body parts other than the fingers and thumbs (think fore-arms, knuckles and elbows!), the ability to converse and massage at the same time and the ability to tailor a massage to accommodate for specific problem areas.  You pair up for this part and it can be a little tedious, especially if you have a large interview group.

Once both partners have completed their trade test you are excused to gather your towels and wait outside.  This for me was the most nerve-wracking part as there was now nothing else I could do to help myself and I just had to wait it out.  Once everyone was finished and waiting outside we were told what order to put our paper work in and then they started calling in girls one by one.  Watching girl after girl coming back out and looking glum saying they’d been told no was hard…all I kept thinking was “that’ll be me in a minute, what am I going to say?” but when there were about 16 girls left, myself included, we were all called in as a group and told we had been successful.  I understand this doesn’t always happen and sometimes she does it on a one-to-one basis but we were running out of time and so it was easier for her this way.  Paperwork was then sorted, our availability for training confirmed and our acceptance letters distributed.  We were told to expect our starter packs by email within a few days and our paperwork through the mail within a fortnight with which we could start applying for our visas and CRB checks.

So…that is an interview with Steiner for the cruise ships! Next time we should hopefully have the visa application process and other such fun!