what a waste of time and energy..

[westheimer1234]

i got interviewed 1st by the recruiter for 1 hr over the phone..
i got interviewed by the managers/lead engineers for 1 hr over the phone..
i got onsite interview for 5 hours! can you believe that 5 hours! with 5 different managers..

i didnt get the job... wtf..
i knew i wasnt getting the job they keep asking for field and lead experience which i dont have..
and this other guy got like 10 more years exp than i have..

what a waste of time and energy.. pisses me off.. they should have not interviewed me for 5 hours.. i mean common the 2nd interview they knew the other guy would get it..

 

[MikeHalloran]

The experience suggests that you >>almost<< had the job.

Whatever they kept asking for, that's what you should have been selling.

By that, I don't mean that you should have lied, or even slightly misrepresented anything, but perhaps you could have re-told some of your history with a different slant, that demonstrated your empirical mastery of ... well, something they wanted.

Cheer up; when the guy who beat you turns them down, they may call. Don't hold your breath, but don't give up either.




Mike Halloran
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA

 

[apsix]

Wow, 7 hrs of real life interview experience!

That will stand you in good stead for next time.

 

[kepharda]

I wouldn't look at it like that either, you were one of the finalists.

And my personal experience has been that some of the best places to work are those that have a long interview process in front of lots of people.

Take the positive approach. Follow up with your contact and thank them for the opportunity and maybe they will keep you in mind for other positions you might be a better fit for.



this message has been approved for citizen to elect kepharda 2008

 

[SomptingGuy]

1 hour with HR/recruiter/etc. That's their job.

6 hours with real engineers & managers! They will have to book their time somewhere, so they must have thought it worthwhile to spend.

- Steve

 

[IRstuff]

I agree. If you weren't seriously in the running, they wouldn't have spent the time to do the interview, since that takes time away from the stuff they're getting paid to do.

TTFN

FAQ731-376

 

[COEngineeer]

did they buy you lunch? LOL

Never, but never question engineer's judgment

 

[Mr168]

Managers here would love to do 5 hour interviews (in the event that we were actually hiring.) Someone gave them a charge number for it, so they're more than obliged to justify their time accordingly...


I've been through a similar dog and pony show, including the 10 minute drill with completely asinine questions regarding "which muffin I would choose." They even paid all the travel expenses to get there, including lodging. I almost wet my pants laughing when they discussed the proposed salary and incentives. At least I had a relatively comedic afternoon and a decent lunch/dinner!

 

[SomptingGuy]

... I take it back. Six hours to plonk on HR makes the Friday timesheet much easier to fill (cynical perhaps?).

- Steve

 

[westheimer1234]

well yeah they gave me a form where i could reimburse everything from car mileage to food.. i think they'd pay for the hotel if i check-in near their place the night before..

their place was like 1.5 hours drive from my place..
i considering moving if i got the job..

 

[shamsdebout]

Wow that is intense. As mentioned though they fact that they invested so much times means they consider you to be a fine candidate, which is good. Did they ask you alot of technical questions?

 

[KENAT]

I'm not sure about all this investing time and effort meaning they were serious malarky.

I once got a phone call, fairly early on a Saturday afternoon from a director at a place who seemed incredibly keen to interview me.

Well, I get down there had my interview with some of their engineers and they basically wanted someone who's an expert on their CAD system and has tooling design experience. I had a little time on their CAD system a few years earlier but nothing on the tooling. It was obvious within minutes that they weren't interested but I was there several hours. Last thing was a visit to the director that had called me, the engineer with me basically told the director it had been a waste of their time (more subtly) but that I might fit in at their parent organization.

I had an hour long phone interview a couple of weeks ago with 4 engineers where they asked some of the stupidest HR type questions I've ever heard. The interview would have been unnecessary if the lead had asked me the first time I spoke to him if I had any experience with software in the relevant field.

So, in my opinion, just because they spend their time with you doesn't mean it's not a waste.

Posting guidelines faq731-376

http://eng-tips.com/market.cfm?

(probably not aimed specifically at you)
What is Engineering anyway: faq1088-1484​

 

[ctopher]

Most of my jobs were from 10 minute interviews.
Any longer, I never got the job.

Good luck to you westheimer1234.

Chris
SolidWorks 09 SP4.1
ctopher's home
SolidWorks Legion

 

[JoeChem]

Westheimer,

To tell you the truth, all of my interview experiences from ther time I graduated college to present day have been very similar to your episode. 1-2 phone interviews followed by a whole day on site talking with personnel of various levels was par for the course. In one case I had to go back for a second day of interviews - this involved air travel and the works. I was offered the job but did not accept in this case due mainly to personal relocation issues.

Honestly the phone interview(s) should weed out any obvious problems with skill set matching. If it does not then the person on the other end of the phone is completely clueless.

I have to admit that I have been on 1 or 2 on site interviews where at least I knew the day would be a complete waste of time right from the get go.

JoeChem

 

[IRstuff]

The oddest interview process I had senior year was after the actual interview with IBM Research.

Everything was as usual until I got a call from the HR people that they were willing to hire me.
me: "So, what's the salary?"
them: "We can't tell you unless you accept."
me: "So, how am I supposed to make the decision, then?"
them: ...silence... "Uh..."
me: "Well, can you at least tell me if it's comparable to my other offers?"
them: "OK"
me: "Well, I was offered $20K by Harris."
them: "Oh, we wouldn't be giving you anything near that level; it would have been more like $17K."
me: "Oh, OK, so, thanks for calling..."

TTFN

FAQ731-376

 

[MintJulep]

I once drove a hour and a half to be interviewed for the wrong job.

About 10 minutes in with the hiring manager I said "Uh, we're not talking about the position I applied for."

 

[MikeHalloran]

Only once?
BTDT.


Mike Halloran
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA

 

[apsix]

Twice, if you count the drive back.

 

[SomptingGuy]

I interviewed for several sponsorships as a teenager. Most of them involved overnighting in a hotel. A couple of them involved two days of intense assessment (role playing, interviews, team games). The one I got and took was a simple 1/2 hour interview while on the way to another appointment.

- Steve

 

[StressGuy]

One of the interviews I went on my senior year was for the engineering group at a chemical plant. I drove into town and they put me up at a hotel the night before. I spent the better part of the next day interviewing, even, because I was young and stupid, taking a drug test.

It came down to me and one other guy. I eventually got the call that they were going with the other guy because he had more experience. I had over a year of intern/coop experience in chemical plants during college and I thought I was interviewing for a new grad job.

Who knows.

Edward L. Klein
Pipe Stress Engineer
Houston, Texas

"All the world is a Spring"

All opinions expressed here are my own and not my company's.