IMEC (Belgium) Research Engineer Interview Questions
& Process

So I had a tech interview scheduled, but the interviewer never showed up. I waited for like an hour and then messaged the HR. She couldn't get a hold of the interviewer either. The next day, HR got back to me saying the interviewer was only there for 7 minutes and then left, which is totally false. I was logged into Teams the whole time and nobody ever joined. Then she just gave me a canned response that the department has stopped hiring. It's pretty unprofessional for a company like imec.

The whole thing took a while. Initially, I had to record myself answering some standard soft skill questions. After that, I had a first interview with the hiring manager and an engineer where they hit me with some technical questions. The next step involved giving a technical presentation to a bunch of the team members. This part felt more intense, with questions that were surprisingly thorough, even touching on areas not directly related to their core work, which I actually found impressive. Then, there was another round with HR (building on the first contact) where I had to complete a questionnaire that we then discussed. The final stage was with the group leader; she mostly explained how things operate and what the initial months might look like. Overall, it seemed like they genuinely care about the person, both during and after the interviews. They even reached out unofficially to check my continued interest, see if I had more questions, and to provide feedback on my performance in the previous rounds. The difficulty felt like medium-high, but it really hinges on your grasp of your subject matter (my presentation was on my PhD project) and related side topics.

The interview process has 3 stages. It starts with an HR call, then a technical phone interview. The final stage is a day-long on-site session that includes both technical and HR interviews. You might also need to give a short presentation about your PhD research. If applying for the CORE-CMOS program, be familiar with recent advancements in the specific group you're interested in (like EUV lithography for the litho department). It's also good to check out the group's latest publications. The interviewers are usually knowledgeable and friendly, and they'll help you if you're stuck on a question. The HR department can be a bit odd; they're friendly until offer negotiation starts. Instead of discussing negotiation with HR, it's better to talk to your hiring manager about your concerns, which usually works out.