Isaacson Miller Interview Questions
& Process

Applied on Idealist. Excited because I fit the role perfectly. I got discouraged after reading some of the reviews on Glassdoor, but they prepared me because the interview went exactly as they said. Phone screening with a recruiter which felt like talking to a wall or Chatgpt--couldn't really tell. Informed that hiring process would be about 3 interviews total, 2 role-playing interviews--far too much for a job that pays what this does. Vibes were definitely weird when I got off the call and felt like I would not move forward if I received an opportunity. Received an email this week they're not moving forward with my candidacy. Rejection is redirection. Something about this company felt fake.

So I had this interview for a Search Coordinator position. It started with a 30-minute phone screen with a really nice and attentive person. After that, I was invited for an in-person interview at their SF office. There, I went through 4 interviews, one of which was remote via webcam. Most of these interviews were behavioral and scenario-based, and surprisingly, they all asked the exact same questions, which felt a bit redundant. This whole part took about 3 hours. Then, I had another in-person interview with a more senior person, which was also fine but quick. Following that, I had a webcam interview with someone from DC. This one was strange; she mostly talked about herself and the company, asking me only 1-2 questions, making me wonder if they'd ever ask about the role itself. Despite that, it seemed to go well. The next step was providing references, and I gave them 3-5 academic and professional contacts. Two of my references contacted me afterwards, saying they gave me glowing reviews. The following week, I received a call saying they'd chosen another candidate, even though I was amazing. Seven interviews and two references later, they could have at least given me the update sooner. It was a really long and repetitive process. I even emailed them for feedback, but got no response.

I had a first phone call with the recruiter where we talked about my background and how I'd deal with different scenarios. It went well, so they invited me for an in-person interview with some of the Search Coordinator team. I was initially told I'd meet with 4 or 5 people, and I even got their names beforehand, but when I arrived, I only ended up interviewing with two. They asked standard questions about my interest in IM and my potential fit with the company. The interview felt positive. After that, I was given a few job-related exercises to complete, including a really long editing task and a writing assignment. I finished both and sent them in on time. The recruiter said I'd hear back soon. The whole process took under a month. A week and a half after submitting my work, I hadn't heard anything, so I reached out to the recruiter for an update. She replied quickly, assuring me I was still being considered and apologizing for the delay, mentioning some internal staffing issues. She said I'd hear back soon. Then, complete silence. I'm okay with not getting the job, but being ghosted after putting in a lot of effort on the assignments and being told I was definitely still in the running is pretty frustrating.

It's a pretty detailed interview process, which makes sense for their business. It starts with a 30-minute call with HR, then a 2-hour in-person meeting with both a one-on-one and a two-on-one, and finishes with a presentation. The whole thing took about 3 months. Most of the chats were just regular conversation.