National Academy of Sciences Interview Questions
& Process

This was a really bad interview experience. It started with a French skills test where the interviewer was arrogant and didn't even speak French. Then there was an English interview with a bunch of questions which I felt I answered well, but suspected they had someone else in mind from the start. They mentioned three rounds of interviews, but never followed up. Even after I emailed them, there was no response, which was very unprofessional, especially since I had a referral. It felt like a toxic work environment, biased and not based on skills.

I had a typical interview for the position. First, they asked me what I knew and thought about the role. Then, they asked some common questions about my weaknesses and how I deal with them. They also asked about my past research experience and my future career aspirations.

It was a pretty dry interview process with unenthusiastic interviewers. First, there was a recruiter screen, a quick 15-20 minute call to go over my resume and why I wanted to work at NAS. The questions were standard, though one was a bit blunt, asking what makes me stand out from other equally qualified candidates. The call ended with a salary expectation discussion. The second interview was a panel with 2-4 people, usually a Senior Program Officer and a program assistant or consultant. I actually did two separate interviews for different departments that week, so the panel members differed. It was a bit odd during the Zoom interviews; the junior staff turned on their videos, but the Senior Program Officer didn't for either of their interviews. It felt awkward talking without seeing the main interviewer, making it hard to read cues and leading to some silences. I was then invited to a third interview with the Executive Director, but I declined because I had already accepted another job offer. Overall, the process felt impersonal, like I was just a number. They didn't try to get to know me, and I didn't get to know them or the company culture. The interviews, scheduled for an hour, ended up being about 40 minutes, likely because the SPO had other priorities. It felt very transactional and mechanical, not like a real conversation, which makes me question the work culture.

I applied online and got a call about two weeks later. The recruiter asked me some behavioral questions and my availability. A few days later she sent an email asking me to come in for an interview. I interviewed with the project supervisor, who was very nice. After that, I got an email two weeks later asking for email references. They got in touch with my references the same day, and I got the offer for the job the following day. Then I received a package in the mail with an official letter, documentation, and some cool NAS gear.