Job Interview Stories

[Newt]

Vice Presidents and personnel directors of the one hundred largest corporations were asked to describe their most unusual experience interviewing prospective employees. The results:

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A job applicant challenged the interviewer to an arm wrestle.

 

Interviewee wore a Walkman, explaining that she could listen to the interviewer and the music at the same time.

 

Candidate announced she hadn't had lunch and proceeded to eat a hamburger and french fries in the interviewer's office.

 

Candidate explained that her long-term goal was to replace the interviewer.

 

Balding candidate excused himself and returned to the office a few minutes later wearing a toupee.

 

Applicant said if he was hired he would demonstrate his loyalty by having the corporate logo tattooed on his forearm.

 

Applicant interrupted interview to phone her therapist for advice on how to answer specific interview questions.

 

Candidate dozed off during interview.

 

 

The employers were also asked to list the "most unusual" questions that have been asked by job candidates.

******************************************

 

"What is it that you people do at this company?"

 

"Why aren't you in a more interesting business?"

 

"What are the zodiac signs of all the board members?"

 

"Why do you want references?"

 

"I know this is off the subject, but will you marry me?"

 

"Will the company move my rock collection from California to Maryland?"

 

"Would it be a problem if I'm angry most of the time?"

 

"Does your company have a policy regarding concealed weapons?"

 

"Do you think the company would be willing to lower my pay?"

 

"Why am I here?"

[chesters1]

they are lucky they got that far ,i have never had a reply to any e`mails or letters concerning a job

i lied ,i had an interveiw with pc world as a computer technician,in the interveiw there was surprised looks on faces as i walked into the managers office (i`m 48 and probably too old to understand computers) manager (as far as i can remember" have you any certificates to show me regarding pc upgrading :confused: " me " no when i upgraded my first computer in 1982 there didnt seem a need to get one " manager " AH " have you any other experience " me " yes i have upgraded every pc i have owned since my xt " manager :confused: :confused: "AH! any microsoft windows experience " me" yes i have been using windows from ver 3 to xp and nt "

manager "well thanks mr granger we`l be intouch"

when the written reply arrived it said "cannot offer me a job because i have no certification "

:mad:

experience does nothing now adays :mad:in another over the phone conversation for a gardening job i was asked if i had a spray certificate and a chainsaw certificate ,i replied i had not but had worked as a head gardener in an 18 acre garden that i had over 10 years completly recovered from 50 years of neglect using chainsaws ,weedkiller ,tractors ,and spraying lindane and all the other good chemicals ,sorry mate you need certificates was the answer :mad:

the garden even had a mention in the sunday telegraph "the gardens have been restored to an exceptional standard" never got to an interveiw to show him what i could do :mad:

 

[ 22 June 2002, 08:09 PM: Message edited by: chesters1 ]

[Jim Roper]

chesters1:

they are lucky they got that far

I have given up applying for computer jobs now, after about 1 interview a year.

The last one was for a temporary support job that was to last 1 year. One question they asked me was: "Where do you see yourself in 3 years time?"

Certificates (after 7 years of computer courses, I've got them coming out of my ears) might get you an interview sometimes, but when you are a white single male over 50 with a Dorset rather than a Scottish accent, that's as far as it gets.

Don't let the B******s grind you down.

 

Newt!! I've got to write 1500 words camparing the OSI protocol stack with TCP/IP. Do you know of any web pages that a village idiot would understand??

 

Jim Roper

[Dan]

Yer Dorset accent reminds me of 'ome!!

Funnest thing was interviewing in Bournemouth for job in civil service, very nervous candidate came in, you could see his heart beating through his shirt with beads of sweat on his forehead, we tried to put him at ease asking a few easy questions like name and how did you get here etc, but before we could really start he suddenly slipped off the front of his chair that he was perched nervously on and disappeared under our table! poor guy never regained his composure! made us laugh tho! but not until he left the room I might add!

 

Dan

[Jim Roper]

Dan:

Yer Dorset accent reminds me of 'ome!!

See what I mean!!!

 

Jim Roper

[Newt]

Jim - certainly can recommend a couple. I took the below from This Article.

quote:

---

The ISO/OSI protocol with seven layers is the usual reference model. SInce TCP/IP was designed before the ISO model was developed it has four layers; however the differences between the two are mostly minor. Below, is a comparison of the TCP/IP and OSI protocol stacks:

 

OSI Protocol Stack

 

7. Application -- End user services such as email.

6. Presentation -- Data problems and data compression

5. Session -- Authenication and authorization

4. Transport -- Gaurentee end-to-end delivery of packets

3. Network -- Packet routing

2. Data Link -- Transmit and receive packets

1. Physical -- The cable or physical connection itself.

 

TCP/IP Protocol Stack.

 

5. Application -- Authenication, compression, and end user services.

4. Transport -- Handles the flow of data between systems and

provides access to the network for applications via

the (BSD socket library)

3. Network -- Packet routing

2. Link -- Kernel OS/device driver interface to the network

interface on the computer.

 

Below are the major difference between the OSI and TCP/IP:

The application layer in TCP/IP handles the responsibilities of layers 5,6, and 7 in the OSI model.

The transport layer in TCP/IP does not always gaurentee reliable delivery of packets as the transport layer in the OSI model does. TCP/IP offers an option called UDP that does not gaurentee reliable packet delivery.

---

And Here is what the Cisco folks have to say about their routers and how they handle the two.

 

And quite a few good links (including a TCP/IP - OSI comparison) from Yahoo.

 

You will have to translate a bit for the VI (village idiot) fella to completely understand maybe but excellent information.

[Jim Roper]

Newt:

Jim - certainly can recommend a couple. And quite a few good links (including a TCP/IP - OSI comparison)

Cheers Newt. Unfortunately the 'comparison' page is not available, but I think I can come up with a pass mark with what you have found and the reading I have here.

 

Jim Roper

[scoobs11]

the last job interview i had was 15 years ago .

 

i walked in told them who i was , they said sit down and fill this form in.

 

i sat down and my interviewer asked if i smoked , when i said yes they asked if they could scrounge one.

 

on being given the fag they walked out of the office leaving me to fill the form in.

 

10 mins later she returned and without looking at the form said "when can you start"

i said monday , it being a wednesday.and was told fine see you at 8am monday.

 

on arriving at 8am monday ,the first person i saw said are you stephen ?

i said yes thats me reporting for work as ordered.

got a strange look and a "we were expecting you on thursday"

 

the woman who interviewed me got sacked shortly after that.

 

i'm still stuck there

[Apache]

Think yourself lucky, I HAVE to do a IT GCSE at my school. Now I am good with computers but the teacher is an ********, and the school's computers are cr*p. It is only a half GCSE anyway!

[chesters1]

i wish i were back at school ,i would have done every thing i could to have at least a small chance in the employment game ,i left at 15 with no exams at all suffered until i was 40 then i went to college and got a city & guilds now even that has lost its value and now other things such a gnvq,hnd etc rule ,next year i bet there will be a new certificate to "have to have" and another excuse for poor pay will emerge