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Candidate-reported interview insights

3M Scientist interviews, decoded.

Explore commonly reported questions, interview rounds, difficulty, duration, and candidate experiences for the Scientist role at 3M.

3.7 rating Consumer Product Manufacturing

Interview overview

Difficulty

Average

Average rounds

2.8

Average duration

~44 days

Difficulty and candidate experience

Interview difficulty

easy11.1%
average66.7%
difficult22.2%

Candidate experience

neutral33.3%
positive55.6%
negative11.1%

Candidate-reported interview process

You start with an online application, filling in your details and uploading your CV. After that, there are online tests. If you pass the tests, you get a phone interview, but I didn't get past that stage.

First, I had an on-campus interview where I discussed my technical background and research, and also answered some fit questions. This was with one person. Then, I had an on-site interview which involved giving a 40-minute technical talk with a Q&A session afterwards. After that, I met with 3 or 4 people from the group I'd be joining, either as a group or individually for 30 minutes each.

I had an initial informal phone chat to get a feel for who I was. A week later, I got an email saying I'd be flown out for a full-day interview with the team. The on-site interviews were from 8am to 5pm, but they went by quickly. I had about 7 or 8 interviews in total, and they were all pretty conversational.

Common 3M Scientist interview questions

A focused selection of the most detailed candidate-submitted questions.

  1. 1

    Tell me about a time you showed leadership.

  2. 2

    Tell me about your undergraduate research.

  3. 3

    What are your leadership experiences?

  4. 4

    What are your practical experiences?

Interview question formats

Behavioral50%
Technical22.2%
Presentation22.2%
Other5.6%

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Interview information is based on candidate reports and may not represent the current official hiring process of 3M.