Twice now, in separate interviews, I have been asked if I am currently interviewing for other jobs. They follow it up with something along the lines of wanting to know for timings. That explanation does not make sense to me and I assume they want to know how much competition there is for the role.

But I want to know is there a correct answer to this question? Are they hoping to hear a specific response?

After couple of initial zoom interviews - I was invited to fly down to this company 's HQ for a full day interview.....literally 9-5 interviews....two days after this final interview - the HR lady reached out to tell me that everyone will meet early next week to discuss and let me know the update. It has been 2 weeks exactly since this email and I am likely being ghosted as there is zero update. This pisses me off as I wasted my time, energy and vacation day for this interview. I know this is probably not going to work out but I just wish they sent me a decision email at a minimum. Also I feel like I dodged a bullet considering how this firm is treating me with this whole process. I still need to get some travel costs reimbursed (they paid for the flight which was crazy expensive but I need to get back like 80 bucks for my Uber rides....)but I just don't want to even email them......

I interviewed with a recruiter and was moved to the next round. After meeting with the next person (which was a consult who would be my day to day go to) I received a call from the recruiter with feedback saying they were thrilled and said they could have spent hours talking and that an update would be provided mid week for next steps.

I just received the following email which feels automated and more so they are keeping me warm? Thoughts.

Thank you once again for taking the time to interview with our hiring team. We truly enjoyed learning more about you and your experience. We wanted to let you know that we’re still in the process of completing interviews for this role. We appreciate your patience as we work through the final stages of our recruitment process.

We’ll be sure to get back to you as soon as we have an update to share regarding the next steps. In the meantime, please don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any questions.

NVIDIA Germany: Worst interview experience of my career

I applied for a Senior Solutions Architect role at NVIDIA Germany. My resume was shortlisted, and the recruiter asked me to provide interview availability. I provided four different time slots across a week to make scheduling easier.

I was assigned an interviewer based in Tel Aviv District, Israel

Even though the role was for EU: Germany, France, Poland.

I prepared thoroughly for the interview, particularly around GPU clusters, Kubernetes, HPC, NVIDIA technologies, and related infrastructure.

First interview

On the day of the interview, I joined the Microsoft Teams call.

The interviewer told me that his camera wasn't working and that he needed some time to fix it.

I didn't think much of it initially. Technical problems happen.

But the camera remained off for around 15 minutes, and there was almost no communication during that time. I disconnected and reconnected to Teams multiple times because I thought the problem might be on my side.

It wasn't.

Throughout the interview, the camera remained off. His audio was also breaking up or was sometimes so quiet that I had difficulty understanding the questions.

I tried to stay positive and focused because I understand that technical problems can happen.

However, what surprised me was that there was essentially no technical assessment.

There were no meaningful questions about GPU infrastructure, Kubernetes, HPC, or the technologies relevant to the position. The main focus was on why I was interested in the role.

I left the interview disappointed, but I didn't take it personally.

I even sent the interviewer a LinkedIn connection request because I was interested in learning more about his background. I made it clear that there was absolutely no obligation to accept.

Around two weeks later, I received a rejection.

I didn't have a problem with the rejection. That's part of interviewing, and I continued applying.

A few weeks later...

My CV was shortlisted for another NVIDIA role.

Again, I provided four possible time slots.

And again, I was assigned to the same interviewer.

I decided to put the previous experience aside and approach the interview with a completely positive mindset.

Then the interview started.

And, unbelievably, the exact same camera problem happened again.

The interviewer spent around 10 minutes trying to get the camera working. There was no communication during this period.

I was sitting in front of the screen, looking at his name in Teams, waiting patiently and wondering whether the meeting was actually going to happen.

Eventually, after around 15 minutes, the interview started.

He explained what his team does and asked me to introduce myself.

After my introduction, he told me that he didn't think I was a fit for the role.

The interview ended after roughly 25 minutes, even though a one-hour slot had been booked.

And again, there was essentially no technical assessment.

No questions about:

• GPU infrastructure
• Kubernetes
• HPC
• GPU clusters
• NVIDIA technologies
• My open-source HPC projects
• My relevant technical experience

Nothing that gave me an opportunity to demonstrate whether I was technically suitable for the role.

What bothers me

I'm completely comfortable with rejection.

A company can decide that I'm not the right candidate. That's their decision, and I respect it.

What I find difficult to understand is the interview process itself.

If a company schedules a one-hour technical interview, I expect at least some meaningful technical discussion.

If there is a technical problem with the interviewer's setup, I also expect some communication with the candidate.

And if the interviewer decides within a few minutes that the candidate isn't suitable, I would expect some explanation or at least enough discussion to make the assessment meaningful.

This is especially surprising when interviewing with a company like NVIDIA, where the candidate is also evaluating the company and its engineering culture.

I'm not posting this because I was rejected.

I've been rejected by companies before and will undoubtedly be rejected again. That's normal.

I'm posting this because candidate experience matters.

For an external candidate, the interview is one of the very few opportunities to experience a company's culture directly.

If the experience involves waiting 10–15 minutes without communication, repeated technical problems, poor audio, an abruptly shortened interview, and no meaningful technical assessment, it doesn't leave a good impression.

Maybe I was genuinely not a fit for either role. That's completely possible.

But I would have appreciated an interview that actually gave both sides an opportunity to determine that.

Has anyone else experienced something similar when interviewing with NVIDIA or another large technology company?

I'd be particularly interested in hearing from people who have gone through NVIDIA's interview process in Germany.

hi there, can i please ask why desi / south asian people interviewed like a class viva. i mean they ask questions like a university class. they will definitely make you feel embarrassed if you don’t answer correctly or if you do, then their ego will get hurt. i have had many interviews, but never felt comfortable with them. i mean they literally come up with the mindset that i am not give him/her a job. those are mostly millennials. they have no idea about values or how someone should interview in this modern world. let me know please your thoughts on this one.

Mine was avoiding eye contact and being anxious( I used to suffer from social a anxiety). I was not capable of answering questions appropriately hence I lost the opportunity (it was in Jack). It was around 4 months after completing college.

I previously posted about being really nervous in job interviews and not knowing how long I should spend preparing. I got some really great advice from everyone, so thank you!

I have now got another interview, and the hiring manager called me beforehand to say she’s going to send the interview questions to all candidates in advance because she knows how nerve-wracking interviews can be.

She also said it won’t be a traditional interview and there won’t be a test or anything like that. She even said I can have notes/sticky notes all over my laptop 😂

I thought this was really lovely and it’s made me feel so much less anxious about the interview. Just wanted to share a positive update!

Finished my final panel interview on 8/7.

I sent a thank-you email to the recruiter, and she said the debrief would be done in the middle of the following week, and that she hoped to get an answer to me by the end of that week.

8/14: I hadn’t heard anything back, so I sent a follow-up email. The recruiter apologized for the delay and said he was hoping to have an update, but at this rate we’re looking at the middle of next week.

8/19: I sent another follow-up email. No response so far.

What is most likely the scenario? At this point, just let me know I am rejected so I don’t have to keep thinking about it.

I have an interview coming up with a company that my Dad previously worked for but has since retired. How do I mention in an interview that my dad worked for the company without it sounding weird? Should I talk about the personal connection i already have to the company because my Dad always raved about it? Should i get personal in explaining how the company was there for my family during a bad time?

I want it to be natural and not like i’m sounding entitled to the position.

Any advice would be helpful.

Thank you!

How do you all approach culture fit interviews for companies? Be yourself? Mirror what you see?

I was supposed to have an interview today for a job I REALLY want and am extremely qualified for. When it was time for the interview, though, the Google Meet link they sent me wouldn’t work.

I emailed the interviewer twice but didn’t hear back. After about 30 minutes of trying to get in, I finally called the number in his email signature and left a voicemail. He’s the National Director of Operations and the same person who contacted me and scheduled the interview. He had previously been extremely responsive, usually replying within minutes, so after several hours of silence my anxiety went through the roof and I became convinced I had somehow blown my chance.

About three hours later, he emailed me back. Apparently the link worked perfectly on his end. He said he joined, waited 10 minutes, and left when I didn’t show up. Meanwhile, I had been trying to join the exact same link and getting an error. He said he’d never had this happen before, but he offered to reschedule for tomorrow morning, which I immediately accepted.

Now I’m worried that even though I technically have another interview, I’ve already made a terrible first impression.

The frustrating part is that this job is almost an exact match for my background. I have around 10 years of experience doing this type of work, including several years in the same industry. I know the industry extremely well and have direct experience with almost everything they’re looking for. I also haven’t interviewed for a job in about five years, so I was already pretty anxious going into this.

For anyone who has been involved in hiring: Would something like this hurt a candidate’s chances, or am I massively overthinking it? Does the fact that he offered to reschedule mean I probably still have a legitimate shot?

Hello, I'm in a bit of a unique situation. Last month I interviewed for a remote engineer position at a company that's basically my dream job. Ultimately I didn't get the job because they decided to go with local candidates, but the recruiter said they really liked me and that I was the next choice over the ones they hired. The recruiter also said that the hiring manager was hoping to open up another position in a month or so and that he'd let me know to apply.

Well lo and behold, a position just opened up and the recruiter told me to apply and that I'd be able to skip the interview process. He reiterated that the hiring manager really liked me but that they'd have to post the rec and interview candidates again.

Here's the thing. Today, I just received an offer from another company for a similar engineering position, but onsite full time. I really want this remote job that I feel like I've been given a second chance at, but I'd be dumb to pass up this onsite position that's a close contender.

I may just accept this first offer and (politely) back out if I get my dream offer. But should I tell the recruiter for my dream job that I received another offer in the hopes that they might move a little more quickly to make a decision, even though they just started interviewing?

I hope this email finds you well.

I am writing to follow up once more regarding the internship position I interviewed for on Thursday, July 30th.

During our initial interview, I was informed that I would hear back by the following Tuesday. After following up via  phone, I was told I would receive an update by the end of last week once the HR manager returned from vacation. As I have not received any further communication, I am assuming that the team has decided to move forward with other candidates.

While I understand that hiring timelines can shift and unexpected delays occur, I wanted to respectfully express my disappointment with the lack of communication throughout this process. I made significant adjustments to my schedule—including taking time out while traveling across a six-hour time difference and missing a course commitment—to prioritize this interview.

Given the time and effort candidates invest in the application process, receiving clear updates or a definitive status response, even if negative, is an important courtesy.

I wish you and the team the best with the program.

I sent a follow up email to the hiring manager regarding next steps/timeline since the final interview and he replied with this:

We will be extending offers over the next couple of days. You were a top candidate.

Is he saying I was a top candidate but I wouldn’t be receiving an offer? It’s been a day since the reply and I haven’t heard anything yet. Just trying to prepare myself for the rejection even though I really wanted this job :(

UPDATE: I got the job offer 🎉

I never had a job before, is it okay if I wear black jeans to an interview? I'm getting interviewed at Chipotle so it's nothing major.

I don't want to be too hopeful, but I am wondering if anyone else has received a similar response before and then landed a job.

For context, I interviewed for one position and found out from their HR today that I didn't get it. However, they also said, "we were very impressed by your skills and experience and wanted to explore another opportunity with you." Another position that I hadn't applied for also opened up.

They also said they think I would be a good fit for this role, wanted to see if I was interested, and hoped there "may" be an opportunity to work with me. I don't think it's a job offer, but rather an opportunity to interview for this other position.

Has anyone received this type of response before, and if you interviewed, did you get the job? Was it like a sure thing?

Hi all,

I recently passed the GHA (Google Hiring Assessment) and wanted to share some insights and resources since I saw a lot of posts asking about it while I was preparing myself. Please do note that most of the information will be based purely on my own experience.

About me:

• ~4 YoE, 3 years in FAANG
• Applying to Data Engineer roles in the US

In my experience, I applied with a referral and got an email from an external screener 4 days after submitting my application asking me to take the GHA. I passed the GHA 4 years ago for a role I ended up not pursuing, and was surprised the format changed quit a bit.

This is another Reddit post/thread that I thought had the most useful information:

Google Hiring Assessment - Most Like Me, Least Like Me

One note before going into the assessment itself — for the GHA, it doesn't matter what role you're applying to. It is a general assessment as part of the Google application process where if you pass, it is valid for 2 years no matter what role you're applying to. So don't be concerned about answering the questions based on what aligns well with the job you're applying to.

Part 1: Most/Least Like Me

For each question, you will be given three statements about your work style where you have to mark one as "Most Like Me" and another one as "Least Like Me". In my experience it was about 20 questions, and the statements span across traits like communication, adaptability, and task executor.

Some example statements (paraphrased/reworded from actual questions):

• I finish my tasks on time
• I create a routine for myself at work
• I adjust to unpredictable changes at work

The key is to maintain a consistent persona, no matter what your priority ranking is.

People in other threads have asked about whether the type of persona they chose results in them failing, and while I obviously can't confirm with 100% certainty, I don't think it matters what persona you choose since the one I ended up going with was very different from ones others who have passed have mentioned. For example, in the thread linked above, the top commenter who passed went with persona

"Highly reliable executor > communication/collaboration > ambiguity handling > adaptable problem solver"

whereas I went with something like

"Communication > collaboration > ambiguity/problem solving > reliable task executor > adaptable"

My recommendation for this section:

1. Answer the first few questions to get a gist of the kind of statements/work style traits that the assessment asks.
2. Write down your responses to every question. I wrote down every statement I ranked "Least Like Me", "Most Like Me", and the statement that wasn't selected.
3. After answering a couple questions, once you have a good idea of the traits, write a ranking for yourself based on your responses. (e.g. Communication > collaboration > ambiguity/problem solving > reliable task executor > adaptable)
4. Refer to your ranking and/or previous responses to make sure your answers are consistent. As the assessment progresses, the questions get harder to answer since a lot of them will show 3 positive statements. As bad as it feels, just make sure you answer them consistently based on the persona you chose. For example, for one of the questions, I had to answer that "I meet deadlines at work without being reminded" as "Least Like Me" because there was another statement about communicating clearly with my colleagues, and my chosen persona so far has communication higher than reliable task executor.

Part 2: Likert Scale [Strongly Disagree ~ Strongly Agree]

For each question, you will be presented with a statement regarding your work style. You need to choose one of: Strongly Disagree, Disagree, Neutral, Agree, Strongly Agree. In my experience, it was about 30 questions.

This is the type of questions most people are familiar with, because the old version of the GHA consisted solely of this type.

My recommendation for this section:

• Treat this section as a completely separate section from Part 1. I've seen folks in other threads mention how they tried to answer this section to be consistent with the persona they chose in Part 1 — DO NOT DO THIS. For example, just because you ranked communication as your "least like me" trait of your persona in Part 1, do not respond Disagree/Strongly Disagree for communication related statements in this section.
• Try to stick with Strongly Agree/Strongly Disagree. Most statements are pretty straightforward where you can tell whether it's a negative or positive statement. Unless it's a statement that is genuinely vague and doesn't lean towards one side, always choose the extreme choice. Most of my responses were Strongly Agree, a few Strongly Disagree, and only one Neutral/Agree.

This part should be way faster than the previous part since you don't need to keep track of your previous responses.

Part 3: Behavioral Questions [Ethics, Policy, Conflict]

For each question, you will be given a situation at work and 4 options of how you would respond or what action you would take. You choose one as "Most Likely" and another as "Least Likely". I could not keep track of how many questions were in this section, but I want to say around 15.

This section was by far the fastest and easiest section, for almost all the questions it was pretty obvious which response was the correct/wrong one for that situation. Some example situations from the assessment:

• A client wants to offer you an expensive gift.
• A colleague makes a negative comment about a new team member.

My recommendation for this section:

• Policy always wins. No matter how seemingly small the "policy" is, never break rules for personal/company gain.
• If multiple responses seem like an acceptable answer, choose the strongest response. Responses where you are going out of your way to do the right thing and don't let exceptions slide are stronger than those that technically follow the policy but are more passive actions.

Again, I went through this section super quickly, don't overthink the responses too much.

After the Assessment

After submitting the GHA, I got an email fairly quickly (I want to say within an hour) saying that I passed the assessment and the result will be valid for 24 months (though it seems like for some people it takes longer to get the result). My status in the Google career portal was updated to "Assessment passed" after a couple hours as well. It has only been a couple days since I passed the assessment so I obviously haven't heard back about whether I will be moving on to the next round.

Hopefully this helps anyone preparing for the Google Hiring Assessment! Feel free to ask questions in the comments and I will try to answer them and update the post with additional information if needed. Please do not ask for the actual questions on the assessment, I will not be sharing them.

I’ve conducted a few initial screener interviews to get a sense of the diverse personalities I encounter. Some interviewees are seasoned professionals, while others are inexperienced but appear to be there solely because of their looks. Yesterday, I had an interview with someone who exemplified these traits.

She arrived 6 minutes late and offered minimal apology. She joined just as I was about to send an email to confirm if the call was still ongoing. Additionally, she was new to the job and struggled to recall the name of the company I was interviewing for. I believe she was about to pronounce the name of her previous company and then corrected herself.

The most frustrating part was when audio from her laptop interrupted me while I was discussing my experience. It seemed like she was browsing websites and an ad with audio took over. This disruption forced me to stop talking until she figured out how to mute the audio.

Finally, when it was my turn to ask questions, she didn’t seem engaged or interested in the interview. It felt like she was rushing through it. As a result, I felt pressured to limit my questions.

I haven’t yet found out if this interview will progress to the next round. I don’t have to be overly pessimistic about it, but it would be unfortunate if it didn’t move forward, especially since I’m qualified for the role. It seems like the incompetence of the screener might have ruined the interview.