Before you read my review, consider this: I applied for this job with no expectations because I was clearly unqualified but figured it was worth a shot because I met some of the requirements and have heard of people getting jobs for less. What follows is not bitterness toward the fact that the interview didn't go my way (I didn't expect it to) but the fact that my time was wasted when it was clear the recruiter did not even read my resume and had no intention of considering me in the first place.
I'm sure more qualified applicants would have a better time, but this is a case where you better meet all their expectations or they'll call you for an interview and make you regret it.
I got a call about an interview about a week after I applied through Indeed. I asked for a confirmation email from the person who called me, who said Indeed didn't show my email and it wasn't on my resume. She was wrong on both counts, which made me wonder how someone technologically incompetent with Indeed could be using it for recruiting. Then she asked me questions that made it seem like she hadn't read my resume at all. She asked where I was working, what I studied in school, etc., and these things are all on my resume. Then she asked if I was bilingual-- a fact I had left out on my resume because I am not bilingual. My fluency is conversational at best. She asked if I was good with numbers and I said yes.
Then for the day of the interview: When I mentioned to the receptionist that I was there for an interview, she seemed completely surprised. She had me fill out a paper application that had some completely irrelevant fields such as height, weight, and driver's license number. Driver's license number I can maaaaaybe understand but height and weight? Oh, but I figured that out later in the interview, if they had any reason for it at all.
After taking time to fill out the form, I was shown into the conference room where I waited a minute or so before the interviewer came in. She was the one who had set up the interview with me in the first place and then asked me to introduce myself in Chinese. I had already mentioned yesterday that my fluency was conversational at best and just said explained why my fluency was that great (in Cantonese). She just looked stupefied. Then she asked me the same questions-- why I was leaving my job, if I was good with numbers-- more questions that she already asked me over the phone.
I'm sorry, but if you can't even remember what I tell you-- why should I give my time to be interviewed? I was at least hoping for a serious interview and it was clear she just wanted me out of the room as soon as I mentioned that I didn't speak Chinese well enough. Then she asked me if I could do business dress-- asking me this after I was in a dress appropriate for an interview, wearing a pair of work heels. Then she asked me if I could wear makeup. I don't wear makeup now because I don't need it for my current position, but it's not like I don't know how to wear it-- which I clearly said. This infuriated me. For the position I was applying for, did my face really need to be shown or was it just that she liked appropriately tall, beautifully made-up, and well-dressed women? I have never been told to my face that I hadn't worn enough make-up for an interview. At least have some tact, please. It doesn't present the best image of the company if the HR representative doesn't seem professional.
Then she asked me if I knew two softwares-- 2020 and something else. This I said no to. Not only did I not mention these skills in my resume, but these weren't even listed in the job description and as of this review, they still aren't mentioned. I'm not surprised because it seemed like she had a specific image in mind and at that point it felt like she was just looking for reasons to disqualify me.
In the end, she told me nothing about the position (nothing new or nothing about daily expectations, which most companies usually go further in depth with) and hurried me out the door, saying she would pass my resume on. We both knew she wouldn't consider me, so I sincerely don't know why she called for an interview in the first place. I didn't lie on my resume and put all relevant information there, yet she still asked questions about my resume that demonstrated she clearly didn't read it and thought it was okay to waste my time. I have a full-time job right now and would rather be at work then wasting my time at interviews where I have no chance of qualifying for the job in the first place.
tl;dr: I'm sure you'll have a great interview if you meet every requirement of their job listing...AND MORE. Still, you probably won't have as hard a time as I did, so don't worry if you're a potential hire reading this.
