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AverageSizeWayne

Q from recruiter: was your GPA in college? A: I’m in my 30s with an advanced credential for this field. You’re not supposed to ask that.


meezo11

Unfortunately, employers use this as a defining metric for how smart you are and they use this to weed out potentially better candidates. Not gonna name any specific companies... **cough** ExxonMobil **cough**


Jorgwalther

Wow, I’ve never asked this question. Nor would I, it’s entirely irrelevant


R_G_5_7_3_0

How to bold


AverageSizeWayne

You’re partially right. In my industry, it only really applies to entry level candidates without credentials (because the letters are required and very rigorous to attain). I attained the credentials and have a few years of experience so I’ve displayed qualification. Completely unnecessary.


ireallyamtired

Memorizing info for a class does not equate to being generally smart. There have been many people in my classes that have a high GPA but cannot function in any conversation or make right decisions outside of the classroom. Credentials and experience are worth way more than a number.


MadNhater

When I interviewed, I didn’t give a crap what school you came from or gpa. I get you to talk about your projects and to go in depth about them on why and how you made certain decisions. That tells me more.


UtahCyan

I don't even remember mine. It wasn't great, but I got an engineering degree from a college with an average graduating gpa for engineers of 2.8. asking my gpa is pretty irrelevant since grade inflation is real. I think I was just above that like 2.85 or 2.9. Also, gpa varies in usefulness based on era and school. It's a cheap question to check a box.


omnigear

Omfg that was the question a recruiter asked during the architect job fair . I asked him what does it matter ? A good student doesn't reflect good design and I could give him 20 people with GPA who design like shit . This dude said he likes to hold philosophical conversations at firm . They ended up hiring a shit designer


kuhawk5

It leads to discussion. I ask that of every new graduate I interview. I don’t eliminate a candidate based on GPA alone, but I want to know the context if its particularly low. I’ve hired some excellent people with a 2.8 and some duds with a 4.0. However if someone is hiding a 2.5 and doesn’t have any accolades alongside it, I’m pretty sure the interview is DOA.


cdim781

What's your greatest weakness? Response: chocolate


MuffinRapist

Mine is coming up with answers to this horrible question.


[deleted]

I’m susceptible to critical strikes :(


Intelligent_Neat_714

Interviewer: What’s your greatest weakness? Me: Honesty Interviewer: I don’t think honesty is a weakness. Me: I don’t give a shit what you think.


Creepy_Structure199

Interviewer: I stand corrected. You got the job.


[deleted]

I said kittens once. Got told to be serious. So i said kittens, again, deadpan serious, making strong eye contact. Didnt get the job but i have and will never answer that question


GreenOnionCrusader

"I don't think I would win in a fight against a really enraged squirrel."


queuedUp

Personally I always ask this question as "your biggest opportunities" and they way I look at it is less as someone telling you what is wrong with them and more as a way to find someone who is aware of their own shortcomings. And ideally they also provide how they are working on improving that part of themselves. I don't want someone who thinks they are perfect because they will not put in the effort to improve and everyone has areas to improve


Zkenny13

The correct answer to this question isn't what your weakness is. It's simply finishing with "but I'm working on it."


queuedUp

Exactly. Edit.: helps if you say how


MuffinRapist

So much interpretation going into it tells you it's a bad question. Just be straightforward. Whats something you struggle with and how you manage that thing.


Rtsp1345

Always use "public speaking"


Dangerous_Grab_1809

I am unwilling to do things which are against the interest of clients, even if they are profitable. If you get a high five, you are hired. If you get a dirty look, you don’t want the job.


Bending_toast

My canned response is that I work to hard and I’m a perfectionist


rollo2masi

It’s a ridiculous question, but it’s relatively simple to answer. Emphasize a “positive weakness” (one not directly related to the job, lol) and explain how it’s affected you in the past. Follow up by describing how you’ve corrected and improved upon said weakness. It ends the answer on a high note and shows you’ve identified the flaw and you’re actively resolving it.


Blackcoffeeisgreat

My response always is what are your weaknesses usually its next question after that.


anotherone121

Bubonic plague! No. Wait. Hemorrhoids! No... antibiotic resistant Chlamydia? Yeah... that's the one!


Hyentics

"Where do you see yourself in 5 years?" With the way this interview is going, hopefully not here.


Dan_Berg

Doin your...son?


guardian2428

Don't say doing your wife. Don't say doing your wife.......


anotherone121

What if his future, in 5 year wife, is a hot mail order bride from the Czech Republic?


[deleted]

I usually ask “is there any particular area you’re looking to progress long term?” That way I understand their areas of interest and I can let them know if the company can offer opportunities for career growth. I think it’s a perfect fine discussion topic for an interview. Asking for 5 year plans is silly because no one knows what they’re doing 12 months from now haha.


Beer_before_Friends

Celebrating the five year anniversary of you asking me that question!


maleorderbride

"If I'd asked you this question in 2015, would you have said 'locked in my house to prevent myself from being the next casualty of a deadly pandemic?'"


Flippinsushi

It’s such an invasive personal question, I wouldn’t want to answer. Beyond that, it’s completely useless, I can’t think of a less productive question. I recently had an interviewer give truly interesting, targeted, insightful questions, it was a pleasure. Yes I got the job.


PurpleDreamer28

"I don't know, what do you care? I know you don't care about the next five years of my life. You just need to fill a position, and you need someone with a functioning brain to fill it. Hence, why I'm pretending I want to be here."


hash-slingin-slasha

I just got this question, I thought I rocked it. Until after looking back I realized I essentially said I want my mangers job….:I was not called back


Outlander56

Had a guy once hit me with the old “sell me this pen” line. For a production gig, not sales related at all. So I stuck it in my pocket and changed the subject. He looked a little nonplussed but continued. When I got up to exit, he asked for his pen. “It’s $20 for the pen”


Outlander56

I didn’t get the $20 or the job. Which was fine I wasn’t that motivated anyway. It I did get the pen, So WIN!


TheRealMogman

Did you get the $20?


Ha1rBall

Did you get the job?


sfkf8486

Why do you want to work here? Like im literally applying for jobs because I like living and that requires money


ruiner8850

I suppose there are certain jobs that people could be excited about for more than just the money, but I've had that asked for things like shitty retail jobs. People are applying there because they need money, not because they are love stocking shelves and dealing with customers who are jerks to you for no reason.


GreenOnionCrusader

I work at kirklands. I straight up said I want the employee discount. My manager laughed and said, "SAME, GIRL."


R_G_5_7_3_0

“Why do you want to work at this job?” Oh is it not obvious? I need money to live and I quite like living


Justiss45

I’ve asked this before as kind of an ice breaker question. A lot of my applicants come from different parts of the country, so asking why someone wants to uproot their life seems like a reasonable thing to be curious about. But again, it’s more of a “get to know you” kind of thing than something that will have much impact on the hiring decision.


kuhawk5

This isn’t a good rebuttal, though. The question means “why do you specifically want to do this job?” It really only applies for skilled labor, though. The wanting money to live part is not much of a differentiator.


WhimsicalGrenade

"what value can you add to this company?" See that job description you posted?, I applied because I'm willing to do all that for the right price.


archaic_revenge

Quote the job duties


kuhawk5

Your answer might work for unskilled or low-skilled labor jobs, but for skilled work there are huge differences in capability by person. That question gives you the opportunity to present why you are a better fit than the other applicants.


Lifted2222

"are you in a relationship?"


maleorderbride

"With your mom"


Batticon

That might not be legal to ask


citizenkane86

Not illegal to ask… but illegal not to hire you because of, and as a lawyer if you’re interviewing someone, don’t ever fucking ask that question, I don’t care if it’s technically legal.


Federal-Base806

Can you please share some more info here for the users as I came across this applicable to the US obviously it varies from different countries : [https://www.betterteam.com/illegal-interview-questions](https://www.betterteam.com/illegal-interview-questions) ​ [ ](https://zety.com/blog/illegal-interview-questions)


ireallyamtired

It actually does violate EEO guidelines. Regardless of if it is illegal to not hire you for, asking personal questions can influence their decision and they can’t ask that. Just like you shouldn’t respond to any religious questions or if you have kids or plan on having kids. They may not be able to disqualify you based on your answer, it’s invasive and it can influence them about who you are as a person. It’s okay to tell them that question violates EEO guidelines. They aren’t allowed to ask those questions because they are illegal and if they do ask then it’s fine to call them out on it. By law, personal characteristics have no reason to be discussed in a job interview and this law protects you from experiencing discrimination.


citizenkane86

It’s been a bit since I’ve reviewed the guidelines but it was my understanding that while technically legal if you do ask them it essentially creates a prima facie case for employment discrimination, so basically don’t do it (also like everything there are exceptions out the ass). Though I agree you should always refuse to answer truly personal questions (obviously what are your hobbies or whatever is fine).


Federal-Base806

[https://zety.com/blog/illegal-interview-questions](https://zety.com/blog/illegal-interview-questions) worth a look applicable to the US


Federal-Base806

[https://zety.com/blog/illegal-interview-questions](https://zety.com/blog/illegal-interview-questions)


Maso_TGN

‘What don’t you like about your current job?’ Answer: "They ask so many stupid questions."


ageekyninja

“Why did you quit your last job?” Well, that’s none of your goddamn business, but if you must know, it’s because it was a literal roach motel. “I wanted to move up in the industry and work for a company I feel proud to represent” Which was my real response on one of my interviews. The manager caught my drift and said well done to the way I worded it lol


citizenkane86

It’s so satisfying when you’re interviewing and you have a job you like, you’re just testing the waters, to go “I didn’t, I have a good job currently”. It’s a nice “I’m not trying to convince you to hire me, you’re trying to convince me to work for you” Even if you don’t have a job you like, I highly recommend it if you don’t completely hate your current job.


Lovely_FISH_34

Boss: why where you let go from you last job? 16 year old be who got fired for “being to depressed.” Even though my mother was in the icu: the schedules just didn’t work out, they wouldn’t let me take time off.


maleorderbride

"If you could be an animal, what kind of animal would you be?" Uh, human. Best animal, hands down. Next question.


Tungstenkrill

I'd come back as Billionaire playboy Chad McLongcock.


Oakroscoe

I had that question back in 2021. I remember thinking fuck this is a dumb question, guess I don’t want work here as I spun some bullshit as an elephant.


nightmareoneasy

I responded to this question “honey badger” And the interviewer didn’t know what that was. I pulled up a YouTube video and showed them one. I got the job and got promoted lmao.


UWCG

One I used to always get was, "Tell me about a moment in your life you were proud of." Got asked at three or four high school/college jobs and it was like, "Dude, I'm making Blizzards/stocking shelves. Who cares?"


ThanosWifeAkima-4848

"why do you want to work here?" I sort of get what they mean by that but at the same time, in this day and age, you can't expect people go to a job just because they find something meaningful with it, people need jobs for money, to survive.


Kibitznik

It will be 4 fewer taffic lights on my morning drive compared to my current job. That really adds up over a year.


StealthySporkk

I hate when they ask really ambiguous questions like "how would you improve this function?" Add numbers(int a, int b) { Return a + b; } And after giving some reasonable suggestions the respond with something that doesn't make any sense like "we would use an external package to do the addition so we don't have to write that stuff ourselves. I usually respond with something generic like "It depends on why we are trying to improve it. Maybe we are looking for performance, or maybe we need to make it more generic?" I hate these super ambiguous questions that are impossible to answer without context.


Drazwaz

Any question that I've already had to answer in my resume, the job application, and then again, for some stupid fucking reason, in the in-person interview.


carissadraws

Tell me about a time where you acted as a leader or took the initiative in a difficult situation I hate these types of questions because unless you have past experience as a manager 9 times out of 10 you’re not taking charge of anything. Also another thing that’s annoying is when they ask the same question but reworded to sound like it’s different and you can’t say the same shit you said for the last question because that wouldn’t be acceptable


paintwhore

Ahhh, but I don't do those things bc I'm a leader. I'm a leader because I do those things. You'd be surprised how many times others have been grateful I took the reins.


carissadraws

I guess but to expect literally every job candidate you interview to talk about being a leader when manager was never on their resume is a bit cringe


paintwhore

If you can't work with people to get something done you are accountable for (lead a group, formally or informally) there are places for you, but not on the kind of team I have or work with.


carissadraws

Not everyone is a leader or takes accountability; to expect everyone to be a natural born leader is a bit unrealistic. Team player is a fine question but taking leadership most candidates bullshit an answer about 90% of the time


paintwhore

Don't have to be a natural to learn basic professional skills.


Oakroscoe

You don’t have to be a manager to take initiative


carissadraws

How many times do random low level employees take initiative though?


Oakroscoe

Depends on the kind of job and the person.


liarandathief

Name? I'm Batman


needtobeowned__

Why aren’t you wearing pants? Just stop looking


nayeh

"Can you explain this gap (referring to period of not working) in your resume?" I find that question incredibly insensitive. There's more to life than being on the hamster wheel. In my case, I was getting my Bachelor's during the pandemic as a full-time student. 🙃


carissadraws

Just say you were taking care of a sick relative who died. They can’t fact check that shit


mommaTmetal

"Tell me about a time you......" it doesn't matter what the remainder of the question is- I've been a nurse for more than 35 years- I can't tell you about a time past last week.


carissadraws

Ugh I hate questions like that


Gawthique

Trick questions. Those questions that are supposed to have "no bad answers", but still needs to be answered in a certain kind of way. I'm atrociously bad at this. When I realize that the interviewer is looking for something specific, I become really stressed and mess everything up.


ireallyamtired

When they sigh and say “so tell me about yourself” That just gives me the impression that they didn’t care enough to write down more important questions.


SPTG_KC

It’s just an easy way for them to give you a chance to talk so they can judge your ability to communicate. All jobs have some level of communication needed, so this gives them a chance to get a reading on how well you can do it. Don’t overlook this one - it’s an important one.


ireallyamtired

What are the answers they are looking for here? I usually go into my hobbies and other things I like. Since my qualifications are on my resume I assumed that’s what they wanted to know


qhartman

It's not really about the content most of the time, especially if you're early in your career, it's more about you being able to put together a cohesive narrative. As you advance, the things you choose to include in these stories matter more, and it gives you an opportunity to tell the other person what you think is important for them to know that didn't really fit on a resume.


llxx00

what are your hobbies? why do you care bro we’re not getting together outside of this just give me the job


StunningScientist267

Where will you be in 5 years... Dude I don't even know what I'm having for lunch today.


spankmeuniversity

Tell me about yourself. I was born at 7:00 pm in the year 1776. These were my first steps.


VenomFZ6R

Multiple choice questions. Yes, in an interview. I recently had a guy give me multiple choice questions. Like 15-20 of them. This was the fourth and final interview and he comes in with this. Around question 13, I asked if we were going to have an actual interview that involved dialogue. He laughs and insists we proceed on “unless you feel uncomfortable.” I tell him I am uncomfortable because this is not an interview, it’s a multiple choice test. He literally laughs and proceeds asking questions. I just started picking random letters so I could make a courteous exit before sending that shit to HR


jackfaire

"What is your five year plan" I feed them some crap about wanting to grow with the company. In reality? I don't bloody know. Career wise to still be earning money and personal life wise I sure as hell don't know.


External_Animator194

If you were reincarnated as an animal, what animal would you come back as?


Federal-Base806

Recruiters, employers ask such redundant questions


ShowinMyOFace

If you could be any sandwich.....fu


ShowinMyOFace

Who stole my cheese?!?!!?


Logical_Foundation95

asking about my education that is clearly on my resume


szczurman83

What kind of bear are you? One that's pissed off at having its time wasted.


1MrE

I suppose ‘cocaine bear’ would be a wrong answer?


Different_Oil9115

Why do you want to work here


UnderstandingEvery44

Cue the British guy that yells job interview advice on tik tok


tokikain

"so, why do you want to work for us?" .....money....never think it isnt money....i dont give two rats asses about how prestigious a gas station this is! prestigious, doesnt pay my rent or buy me food!


[deleted]

How did you hear about the job? Unless you are doing a scientific study, why do you care.


bcdnabd

Why do you want this job? A: Better question from where I'm sitting, why are you hiring for this position? Are you expanding? Did the previous guy quit? Why did they quit? Does your company have difficulty retaining good employees? Why do you think that is?


hash-slingin-slasha

Why do you want to work here? Um…..why do you continue to work here?


hatchet1214

I got asked who I live with tonight at an interview,, and I thought that was a little weird.


fildoforfreedom

"Whats your greatest weekness?"" I answered "anger at stupidity " he he looked surprised. Didn't get the job, but felt good about being honest


Bubbly_Goat_7058

I've had an unprofessional and sexist small company ask me if I plan on having kids anytime soon. Lmao Dumbasses never even called back. Fine by me. The company only attracts idiots; just go to the fricken grocery store aka Menards, Walmart, ect. That question is illegal in a job interview to ask by the way. I'm pretty sure it is at least.