Worst Interview Experiences 7

[prohammy]

Reading a thread today, I was reminded of one of my worst interviews that I ever had....

I was contacted by an agent who said he had a position he thought I might be interested in. He forwarded my CV to th eclient who got back the next day to arrange an interview for the following Monday morning. So far so good.

I arrived at the interview (nice posh reception area, always puts me in the mode for an interview), met the interviewer and was brought into the interview room. Both of us sat down, he placed my CV on the desk in front of both of us and started the interview with the following...

'Mr. Hammond, I see you are a Mechanical Design Engineer, I think we may have a problem. The position I am interviewing for is for an Electrical Engineer'. Immortal words that have stuck with me to this day....(Immortal words that went through my head are censored by this website).

He apologised for not having read my CV and thanked me for taking the time to attend the interview.

I had a very nice conversation with the agent who set it all up later that day.

I'm really curious to see what others have come up against that they think is either funny/annoying or whatever else

Cheers



Kevin Hammond

Mechanical Design Engineer
Derbyshire, UK

 

[IRstuff]

My shortest interview, on campus:

him (Bell Labs): "Oh, I'm sorry, we're only interviewing people with GPA's above 3.5"

me (GPA:3.2): "Oh, well, thanks for talking to me."


Speaking of clothes; for a different interview, I wound up buying my interview suit on the way to the airport, because I had forgotten to pack it.

Someone else at work did something similar for an oral proposal. We arrived at in a smallish town around 9pm, and someone had forgotten to pack their business suit, and wound up buying an off-the-rack at the local Kmart, just before they closed for the night, so we could do our presentation the next morning.

TTFN

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[JStephen]

I interviewed with an up-and-coming company that right off the bat asked if I knew anything about product X. Nope. Turns out, that's all they were interested in- looking for people familiar with it because they weren't. Why they didn't just mention that on the phone and save me a day of my life, I don't know.

 

[WGJ]

To get into Frod Munter co, it went like this:

I was made redundant from a little aerospace company. I had been an industrial engineer (process planning, methods, work study, tool design, all that). This happened about 3 months before I was due to get married, so I needed work.

Frod was looking for line workers at the time, so I went along to their recruitment office and was promptly rejected, because I had QUALIFICATIONS.
However, the nice chap I saw said he would pass my details on to someone else in the company.

True to his word, he did. I eventually had an interview with a surly body-in-white foreman for a job as an hourly-paid inspector. Again, the fact that I had a qualification (albeit 'just' an HNC) seemed to be a negative for him.

He gave me some BIW drawings to read and asked some questions about them. I managed to answer his questions OK - the drawings were in some ways similar to other stuff I'd seen, but not worked with.
They offered me a job and I took it.

My pay went up by 21% compared to the staff engineering job that I'd been made redundant from. Hey ho.

After about 9 months of this, I was getting pretty bored and started looking around for another, more interestng, job and I was interviewed for a staff engineering job within Frod.
I was directed to a large building I had no familiarity with and arrived late because I couldn't find the interview location.
I entered and found myself in a room with about 11 people (supervisors and managers) - I thought I was in the wrong place.
Interview was not exactly sparkling. I answered their questions, which weren't very technically demandng, and left. I wasn't too worried, because I already had a job offer with another company that was quite interesting.

The same afternoon, while situate in the 'mens room', concentrating on a certain task, another of the inspection team came in and shouted 'is (WGJ) in here?'.
I told him 'Yep' through the locked door and was told that I was wanted in the manager's office to answer a phone call.

Thinking that the house had caught fire, wife been run over, etc., etc., I hurriedly got finfished and went to the manager's office where he handed me the phone.
It was the head of the interviewing team from the morning and he offered me a job in an engine design group. I accepted. On the day I started I asked him why he offered me the job and he said....' I thought you had a sense of humour'.

It's worn off a bit in the ensuing years.


Bill

 

[GregLocock]

A certain manufacturer of large diesel engines often used in railway engines and ships advertised for an FEA engineer.

I wrote back, and said that although I was experienced in FEA in general (and a whole lot of other relevant stuff) I had never used a modern pre or post processor.

So, I wandered up to the interview.

"Have you used package Z?"

"No, as I said in the letter, I have written pre and post processing software, and done a lot of FEA, but have never used a canned solution before"

"Oh, we seem to have been wasting your time"

Idiots.

The funniest one was rather like one of the above, I travelled by train and stayed in a hotel (booked by them). My friends later told me I got the job because my supervisor-to-be couldn't face putting in an expenses claim that was so large for an unsuccessful applicant.



Cheers

Greg Locock

Please see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips.

 

[DaveVikingPE]

I gave EddyC a star. Great story.

 

[Jordonlaw]

Off theme but worth recounting.

I was one day off moving 400 miles up to Scotland. I had quit my job and had no replacement, no career, had sold my house etc (there was a woman involved, you know the kind of thing). Anyway my mate phoned me up and told me that he might have a job for me. He had been in the pub the previous day and had happenened to talk to a friend who recruited into the automotive industry.

"How things ?" said my mate. "Really bad" was the reply "I'm trying to place someone who can do non-linear FEA up in Scotland - not a hope !". My mate said he knew my background and that I was moving to Scotland and would pass on details.

To cut a long story short, I went for an interview for a permanent job but as I just relocated and was 2 hours drive away they put me on a contract rate, provided me with IT and I worked from home for almost 3 years. When I went for my current position I had a reference for homeworking and so got offerred it again !

So in conclusion, I got a job as a results of a couple of drunks talking in a pup. Still dine out on that story.

 

[prohammy]

Jordan,

Good story, but not sure why your friends had to do 'things' to a dog, can only assume that they must have been very drunk to have a conversation there


Kevin Hammond

Mechanical Design Engineer
Derbyshire, UK

 

[sbozy25]

Ah the bad interview stories. These bring back memories from the days of college. I think my most memorable one came from one of the largest companies in the US, lets just call them P. H. …

I received a phone call from the university interview services about 3 months before graduation stating that P. H. was interested in interviewing me. I was told that I had 2 interviews scheduled, each with a different division. Well the evening before my first interview I went out got a hair cut, picked up my suit at the dry cleaners and got to bed nice and early. The next morning I show up to the interview in a very formal suit (Jacket, Shirt, Tie, Vest, Pocket Square). I thought the interview went well. Two days later I had my other interview with a different division. This interview was much more rigorous than the previous, but again I thought it went well. I was able to answer every question with flying colors and never stumbled. After a few weeks a bunch of my friends started getting their rejection letters in the mail, strangely enough I had not received anything yet. I started to get exited thinking that I had made it though. Sure enough three days later I got a letter telling me I had passed round 1 of the interviews and further directions would later follow. This is where things took a strange turn… A month later I received a letter in the mail from the first interviewer saying that the position had been filled and had a list of reasons I had not gotten the job. The first thing on the list was in bold and it said my appearance was dirty and un-kempt with no professionalism. I was dumbfounded… I mean I was clean cut, nails short, in a formal suit… what did they want me to wear a tux. They even went on to say that next time I should consider wearing a suit and tie. This told me they had no idea who I was, nor cared. The second letter was from my other interviewer and it as well said the position had been filled. It also went on to state that before I went into any more interviews I should make sure I know what the company does and prepare my self better to answer questions. At this point I fell down laughing because I knew exactly what they did and was able to answer each question flawlessly. Oh well, it was for the best… I promptly tacked the letters outside my door on the wall of rejection for all to read.

 

[ScottyUK]

My worst interview was with Rolls Royce Industrial Power Group at the Parsons works on Tyneside (since sold to Siemens) not long after graduation. The previous evening my mother had been rushed in to hospital and we had spent the entire night there. I was desperately looking for a job so I went to the interview at my father's insistence.

Knowing that I wasn't going to be at my best I tried to explain to the interviewer that I hadn't slept in the past 24 hours but I was so interested in the job that I didn't want to cancel the interview and miss out. He growled something like "he wasn't interested in sob stories" and the interview started on the wrong foot. It went downhill pretty quickly from there: my mind wasn't properly focussed - my mother was still in hospital - and he accused me of wasting his time and said I would never get a job with his company. I had even less diplomacy then than I have now, but I remember thinking that I couldn't afford a new suit if I ruined the one I was wearing slugging it out with the interviewer so I informed him that I would never work for a moron like him and would rather sweep the streets, said a cheery 'thanks! goodbye' to the receptionist on the way out and sat fuming in the car for about half an hour. I didn't even get a letter telling me I hadn't got the job.


----------------------------------

Sometimes I only open my mouth to swap feet...

 

[andrewe77]

My worst interview was for a summer internship after my junior year. The company needed someone to help out with their mechanically separated chicken line. They offered $6/hr but the plant was an hour away from the city where my school was, so they told me I had to find an apartment to live in (and pay for myself) during the summer or ride with one of of the higher up guys an hour each way every day.

I remember thinking they had to be freakin' kidding and I ended up working at a power plant for $15/hr.

 

[MrHP]

I interviewed with a company in 1999 that was located approximately 2 hours drive from my house. After I arrived, I met with HR, did the usual yada, yada, yada. Then I met with the hiring manager. I'll call him Richard. (Name has been changed to protect the guilty. The nickname is quite appropriate! ) We started off cordially, but over the next few minutes it became VERY obvious that the guy was a total jerk, and was a "my-way-or-the-highway kind of person". Having previously left a similar type of situation, I wanted none of it. The hiring manager started into another diatribe on how he wanted things done, and I said " Pardon me, but how long was the previous person in this role?". He sort of mumbled something then finally said "About a year." I politely informed him that I was done, and that I had no further interest. I got up and returned to the HR generalists office. She asked me how it went, and I told her that I had wrapped it up early and I was leaving. She said, "OH MY! You are the third candidate to walk out early on Richard, this week! I couldn't get out of there fast enough! I thoroughly enjoyed the drive home knowing I wasn't going to be his next miserable serf!

 

[sbozy25]

Ok I thought of another good story. This one did not happen to me, but rather my good friend from across the hall in school.

It was our senior year and we were both looking for jobs. He is kind of a home town type of guy and wanted a job back up in Michigan near where he grew up. Well he found a company near his home town that was looking for an engineer, he thought it sounded perfect. The company was a family owned business still run by the original founder, he must have been in his low to mid 90's because his son's and 1 grand son had already retired from the company.

Well my friend walked in for his interview and waited for about a half an hour for the guy to show up. Apparantely he was having some sort of problems in the bathroom and was not ashamed to admit it to my friend. Right away the guy started by telling my friend that he had to shave his mustache and goate if he even wanted to be considered. This guy was very old fashioned and wanted everyone to look a certain way. He even said he mandated that everyone get a hair cut every 2-3 weeks, and you could be fired for having long hair. Still my friend sat and tried to continue on with the interview. Then it happened... The older gentleman out of no where started saying how he would never hire a person of color (fill in the racism here) or a woman. He then went on to question my friends views on the subject and started questioning his religon. Apparantely this guy would have been better off on an old slave ship rather than running a company. Well my friend had enough and stood up, said thanks but no thanks and walked out.

When he got back I about fell out of my chair hearing the story. It is amazing how some people can be still to this day.

 

[SomptingGuy]

I was in the local pub with my previous boss once when he announced that he shouldn't really have had the third pint because he was interviewing someone that afternoon. He had to excuse himself twice during that interview. The interviewee didn't take the job.

 

[epoisses]

When I applied for my current job, I drank 2 beers and a full bottle of wine together with the interviewer during the interview. (I guess it must be a French thing ). One thing is sure, the closer you get to the bottom of the bottle, the closer you get to the contract.

 

[prohammy]

SomptingGuy

I like that one...I'd love to see that become the normal. I think it would make the interviewee much more at ease to know beforehand that the the interviewer was already driven to drink before the interviewee has even started.

Of course it could all escalate and turn in to a competition to see who couls be the most drunk before they both start

Kevin Hammond

Mechanical Design Engineer
Derbyshire, UK

 

[dvd]

I was fourteen years old after graduating with my BS. I went for an interview to be the lead engineer at Los Alamos. When I arrived the personnel lady seemed to take an unusual interest in me. Because of my super-human intelligence and extreme good looks, several personal questions were asked about everything from my religion to political leanings to blood type and finally my feelings regarding in-vitro fertilization. I was told that I would need to submit to a thorough physical examination which would include submitting to anesthesia. When I awoke I was laying in a bathtub filled with ice-water. My kidney had been removed, and I think I may have fathered our 43rd president.

Have a nice weekend!

 

[MikeHalloran]

I interviewed a company in Texas a while ago.

They took me to a German restaurant for lunch. Eveyone else ordered iced tea. I had a beer. I couldn't bring myself to drink iced tea with sauerbraten.





Mike Halloran
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA

 

[michfan]

"I interviewed a company in Texas a while ago. "

Interesting choice of words - maybe I should look at it as me interviewing them, not the other way around, next time...

"Eveyone else ordered iced tea. I had a beer."

Did you get that job? Because I'll try the beer thing, too, on my next interview...

 

[gaufridus]

I was sponsored at university by a company; in return I worked for them during vacations and undertook to work for them for a set period after I had graduated. This was the first time that the company had done this kind of thing and there were two of us involved although we were from different departments within the company.
Some months after graduation, all was going smoothly when the company decided that it would interview the two of us (for evaluating our future prospects within the company) but we would be interviewed by our opposite directors (vice presidents to you US guys). Anyway, since I worked in the design department I was to be interviewed by the Works (Operations) Director who was known to be a bit of a ba…..rd with his underlings.
The interview didn’t go too well as I was standing up to his attitude.
Eventually he said words to the effect that “ have you ever been in an interview when the interviewer says that the interview is over and that you can go; but just as you place your hand on the door handle he calls you back and gives you the biggest rifting of your life?” I replied that I hadn’t, to which he replied that the interview was over and I could go.
As I got up and approached the door and went to place my hand on the door handle I was shaking, convinced that he was going to call me back and let me have both barrels. Much to my relief he didn’t and I left the room. It was quite the most nerve-racking interview I have ever had.


On another occasion, I was interviewed for a job (different company) where candidates were interviewed two at a time (i.e. simultaneously) by one interviewer but for different jobs – bizarre or what?

 

[MikeHalloran]

You should always consider an interview as a two-way exchange of information. Even just thinking that way affects your demeanor, and you are perceived as dealing from a position of strength.

I didn't get that job. It wasn't the beer. More, below.


I didn't particularly want it, either.

Everyone on salary in that company was white, and they all lived in the same neighborhood, comprising identical brick houses and manicured lawns. The gates at the edges of the development were not physically closed or guarded, but it was walled off in every other possible way.

I'd have much preferred to live in the shady ramshackle town where the local blacks lived, or the salty village where the Hispanic fishermen lived. Given the state of, well, apartheid, that existed there, not so very long ago, it probably wouldn't have been a good idea to try.


<below>
Information was transferred in other channels, too. He never said so outright, but the next week, The Chairman of my then employer made a wisecrack that strongly suggested they had spoken to him about me. I was not real impressed with their ethics.


I'd go ahead and have the beer if it complements the food.

I'd be cautious about befriending The Chairman.



Mike Halloran
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA