Originally Posted by SGS233

It's nice to see folks sharing info, so I thought I'd add the following as a supplement to everything else that's been well stated above.

RE: the overall DEC hiring process:
1st visit: Logbook, Urinalysis, Fingerprints... half-day, it starts early, they will fly you in the night before and provide a hotel
2nd visit: "Orientation"... half-day (same as above) and you'll end the day with a seniority number, a class start date, being on payroll
3rd visit: Day 1 of Class (this is when you will bid for base and seat assignments)

How seniority numbers were assigned:
Cadets first, then those with previous Part 121 hours
The individual with the most number of 121 hours was at the top of the list, with the person having the next highest number of 121 hours immediately below them
IIRC, those with "qualifying" 121.436 time (eg, 135, 91K, 500 hours of military) were racked and stacked after all the regular 121 folks

Class Date assignments:
Cadets were assigned to the very next class
After that, those with the highest seniority (ie, highest number of Part 121 hours) started soonest, everyone else gets slotted into subsequent class dates based on seniority (highest-to-lowest)

Pay:
For the time between "Orientation" and Day-1 of Class: $90/hr x 64 hours
Starting on Day-1 of Class:
Those that bid FO will be paid at their "longevity rate" x 64 hours mo while in training
Those that bid CA will be paid at their "longevity rate" x 72 hours a mo while in training

Have the following available during the "Orientation" visit:
Passport (for employment verification)
Notebook/iPad/Tablet/smartphone (whichever works for you, but you will be setting up your company www access (in real-time) as part of this visit)

OBTW:
As someone stated above, if you have 950+ Part 121 hours, REGARDLESS if you bid CA or FO, you will:
Train as a CA
Do your type ride as a CA
Be observed by a Fed as a CA

NB:
During training, those that bid FO will only be paid 64 hours/mo (even though they are training as a CA) vs the 72 hours/mo that will be paid to those that bid for the left-seat
Those that bid FO will fly in the right-seat until they decide to move seats (assuming there is a vacancy) and will not return to the schoolhouse for any additional training

Logistics:
Visit 1: the hotel shuttle is on-demand... so call the front desk when you're ready to be picked-up
Visit 2: ditto the above (and it generally runs every 30 minutes)
You can bring all of your travel kit to the "Orientation" briefing room as there will be ample space to store it in the room itself

General vibe:
The Director of Training very refreshingly stated (my paraphrasing): "We're a service department, we're here to help you succeed."
For me, personally, it was a much-appreciated, and much different, mindset from my previous (successful, but not well organized) 121 training experience
A 180+ page ERJ 175 study guide was electronically distributed to all of the "Orientation" attendees the same day that we were there

Hope this helps.