Dude That’s Rude: Interviews

We’ve all been there. We are waiting for the interviewer to arrive at a coffee shop, not knowing what his face looks like and desperately trying to ignore our nervousness. Should we take one more bathroom run? One more check in the mirror to make sure that our faces don’t reflect the events of the past week? Also, why is it even called having “butterflies?” Butterflies are pretty, little creatures, and what we feel waiting for this interview is anything but beautiful.

We wait. And wait. And wait. Finally, the door swings open, and a 21 year-old interviewer walks in, seemingly just as confused as we are. He searches around, walking up to all the other young-in-appearance coffee drinkers, and eventually lands at our table. Thoughts rush into our heads. First, why are we even being interviewed for a six-day-long summer program? Second, how in the world did a 21 year-old land a job interviewing us? Third, why does he even want to be here on a Sunday morning? Considering that he’s our age (or younger), we’re sure (or we hope) he spent his Saturday night out on the town. Whether you’re preparing for your first interview or your 15th, here’s a list of the most irksome interview-related things we’ve encountered.

1. The “What makes you think you should be chosen to work here?” Question.

Quite possibly the worst question asked, yet it shows up in every. single. interview. The answer to this question is always the perfect balance of awkwardness and haughtiness.

2. The *Checks their phone (and acts as though you can’t see him doing it)* Dude.

We are the experts when it comes to hiding our phones and pretending like we aren’t actually spending class scrolling through Instagram. Life in Science Center Hall B has taught us well, even with no desks to hide the screen’s light. Dear interviewer: we see you and know you’re not paying attention to why we think we should be chosen for the internship.

3. The “I’m so sorry I was 30 minutes late” Interview.

Dude. That’s so rude. Like super duper rude. We arrived here an hour ago. With all this extra time wasted, we could have finished our LS pset due tomorrow morning, napped, gone to the gym…

4. We don’t have to pay... right?

Interviews that are held in bougie cafes or restaurants are definitely a win. Sitting on those plush benches and sipping on a matcha latte are all that one could wish for. But when it comes time to pay and the interviewer doesn’t say, “Oh, I’ll cover it,” we freeze. Did we really just spend $7 on a latte? Will we be able to afford our once-a-month $15 Sweetgreen splurge? Guess not.

5. And finally, why do we even have to be interviewed?

Studies show that interviews are not a good indicator for how one will perform at the workplace. So why are we even being interviewed in the first place?