This was the most unprofessional and disrespectful interview process I have dealt with in my career.
It says I received an offer but declined—this is not entirely true: After my interview process (described below), I was offered the job in a Zoom call, with details on pay, etc., and I was sent the benefits package information afterward.
A full week later, no letter came. But I was reassured that there was just one signature left to OK it, and they sent me final numbers that were approved by the finance team. Three days later, I was told that the offer letter was not coming because of team re-evaluation. But I was told that I could expect an update in one or two weeks. After two weeks, I was promised an answer by "the end of the week" on when the letter for my offer was coming. No answer came. Finally, the recruiter graciously told me to move on, because the director was going to keep dragging their feet.
So, I was: offered a job, made to wait 10 days until I was told that it was on hold while "departmental needs" were being figured out. I waited 14 more days and was promised an answer after that time—one way or another—but it did not come. Then I was told the exact same thing: "Departmental needs" were still being figured out, so on hold. No definitive answer, just dragging one's feet until I go away. It's not quite ghosting, but it's very close to ghosting. It's more like filibustering, hoping I would go away in the meantime. They reneged on multiple promises, including a job offer. Completely unacceptable way to recruit talent.
Do not trust anything until you see it in writing, even when they congratulate you and tell you to celebrate.
Interview process:
- Interviewed with recruiter
- Interviewed with hiring manager
- Gave a 45-minute presentation on my research
- Did three separate 2-on-1 interviews, 45 minutes each
- Verbal offer came later that week after the presentation and 2-on-1 interviews
