A horror story I have is when the boss during the interview kept interrupting me. I couldn't even finish a sentence without him cutting in. It made it really hard for me to get my points across. I think it showed his lack of respect for others' opinions and communication. Needless to say, I didn't pursue the job any further.
One horror story was when the boss started the interview by asking really inappropriate personal questions. It made me feel extremely uncomfortable right from the start. I was so put off that I just wanted the interview to end as soon as possible. There was no way I would have wanted to work for someone who didn't respect boundaries during an interview.
One horror story is when a candidate was constantly interrupted by the interviewer. The interviewer would cut in while the candidate was answering a question, making it hard for the candidate to fully express their thoughts. This led to a very disjointed and frustrating interview experience.
One horror story is when the interviewer was constantly interrupting the candidate. The candidate was trying to explain their solution to a coding problem, but the interviewer kept cutting in with their own thoughts, not letting the candidate fully express themselves. This made the candidate very nervous and they couldn't perform at their best.
One horror interview story I heard was about a candidate who entered a very dimly lit interview room. The interviewers were sitting in the shadows and barely spoke. They just stared at the candidate in silence for minutes, which made the candidate extremely uncomfortable. It was like they were trying to intimidate him on purpose.
The most terrifying element is often the unexpected. For example, when the interview setting is normal at first but then something really strange happens like sudden noises or odd behavior from the interviewers.
A friend of mine once had a law school interview where the interviewer grilled him on a very specific area of law that he had only briefly studied. He was caught off guard and tried his best to answer, but it was clear that the interviewer was not satisfied. The whole experience made him feel extremely unprepared, and he left the interview feeling like he had no chance of getting in. However, he later found out that the interviewer was just testing his ability to think on his feet, but at that moment, it was a real horror story for him.
Sure. There was a candidate who showed up to the interview in what they thought was appropriate business attire, but the interviewers clearly had different expectations. They were judged from the start based on their appearance, and it set a negative tone for the whole interview. They didn't get the job, and they felt it was unfair as they were qualified but the first impression was ruined.
When dealing with a long waiting time, use it to your advantage. Review your notes or relax your mind so you can be more focused during the interview. In case of bias from the interviewer, make sure to emphasize your unique strengths and how they can contribute to the faculty. If the technology fails, have a backup plan like a phone call option or be ready to reschedule. If inappropriate questions are asked, you can diplomatically deflect them by saying something like 'I think it would be more relevant to focus on my academic capabilities for this faculty position'.
One common type is the unprepared interviewer. They might not have a clear understanding of the skills they are supposed to test, so they ask irrelevant questions or misinterpret the candidate's answers. Another is the overly strict time limit. For example, being given a very complex problem but only a few minutes to solve it. It doesn't give the candidate enough time to think and code properly.