Metropolitan Water District of Southern California Interview Questions
& Process

I applied online and heard back after about 3 months. First, I had to complete a couple of written exams, which were pretty easy. Then, I had my first interview with four people. It was pretty easy, and they said they'd get back to me in 4 weeks, but they didn't. After more than 4 weeks, I had another interview. This one was also pretty easy, but again, they didn't respond on time. After a few more months, I still hadn't heard back from them. They should really respect candidates' time and respond promptly.

The interview process started with an initial oral testing interview with a few hiring managers. This was followed by a physical testing interview at a desert location they chose, which involved bending conduit and wiring control circuits. The final stage was another oral interview, this time with a larger panel. The interviews are scheduled midday and they give about a week's notice, meaning you have to take a significant amount of time off your current job. If they decide not to hire you, they might not tell you at all or will just send a generic email saying you weren't selected. The people conducting the physical testing weren't very pleasant; they seemed to act superior. They would distract you while you were working by asking a lot of extra questions, all while saying it wasn't being graded. The overall vibe from them was quite negative. I overheard some of the proctors talking about how everyone who starts there claims it's their dream job and they'll stay forever, but then they quit after about six months. Take that information as you will. Since there's no information online about these jobs, I'm sharing my experience here. The work schedule is 8 days on, followed by 6 days off. During the 8 days on, you are confined to the plant grounds and must stay in their provided housing. While the housing is very inexpensive, most families don't join them there, so it's primarily just for the workers during their 8-day shifts. This means you'll be away from your family for those 8 days if they don't want to live in the middle of the desert with you.

I sent in my application online. The entire process, from applying to interviews to actually starting the internship, took about three months. I had an interview with a panel. They asked typical behavioral questions and went over my resume. Afterward, I got a tour of the office and met a lot of the team. Everyone here seems genuinely nice, passionate about their work, and committed to the company.

Met them at the career fair, then applied online once the applications were released. Was asked to come in for an interview several weeks later. Interview questions seemed pretty standard (behavioral), although this was my first internship interview. Three interviewers took turns asking questions. I believe they were all engineers, and it seemed they had all been with the company for some time.