Gemological Institute of America Interview Questions
& Process

It started out pretty good, felt like a solid match and I even knew someone there already. First, an HR phone screen, then a Zoom chat with the hiring manager, and finally an in-person interview at their Carlsbad campus. I bought a new suit, studied hard for a week, and drove an hour to get there. Everything seemed to go really well, I was really hoping for this role. Then, days went by. I followed up for updates and was told 'I'll get back to you asap!' Three weeks passed, and I followed up THREE more times. No reply. I was totally ghosted. Eventually, I reached out again and got a generic 'We decided to go with someone else.' Seriously, be more responsive, courteous, and respectful of people's time and effort.

So the first thing was like a screening phone call with the recruiter, then I had a video interview with the hiring manager. After that, it was a panel interview online with some team members. Took about 3 weeks total.

The process involved 3 steps. It started with a group discussion, then a personal interview, and finally another interview as the last round. Before all that, we had a presentation about the company. Candidates who passed the GD were taken for a tour of the laboratories, which was interesting and something new to see.

A few days after applying, I had to do a one-sided recorded interview with unlimited attempts for basic questions. Then, I got a call to set up a video interview with two team members to discuss the job and fit. This took about 45 minutes and involved a lot of behavioral questions about past situations and how I handled them. After that, I went in for a technical interview which was tough since I don't know diamond grading. They said I'd hear back in about a week, but I had to call myself after two and then again three weeks later with no response. Finally, almost four weeks after the technical interview, I got an email saying I wasn't selected.