PIRG Interview Questions
& Process

It was a 3 round interview process. I was asked to reschedule the first interview about 5 minutes before it was supposed to start, but otherwise, everyone was professional and kind. They are looking for employees who are willing to go above and beyond for the pay offered (in my opinion).

I applied for The PIRG Fellowship and got a call back the same day for a 30-minute phone interview. It was easy, they just wanted to see if I was smart, personable, and had similar values. They said I'd move to the next phase, an in-person interview, and we scheduled it. I got an email right after with details, but it also required me to write a one-page essay on a recent article within 24 hours, taking a stance and arguing it. I managed to do it in time, though I thought 48 hours would be more reasonable. The in-person interview was a few weeks later. It was similar to the phone interview but included a role-playing exercise to gauge my reactions to unexpected situations. This interview lasted about an hour. A week later, I heard back that I didn't get the fellowship but was offered a similar role with The Fund for the Public Interest.

I initially spoke with someone from a staffing firm called Work For Progress over the phone for the Fellowship position. After that call, I was invited to travel to Washington D.C. for an in-person interview, even though the job was in NC, and I had to pay for my own travel. When I got there, my scheduled interviewer was unexpectedly out, so another staff member interviewed me instead. I felt the interview went really well and was sure I'd get the offer. However, a week later, I got an email saying I wasn't selected, with no reason given. I tried emailing my interviewer and other staff members for feedback, but got no response for days. Eventually, a hiring manager told me very little about their decision. About a week after that, the job was posted again online, and as far as I know, it's still unfilled. It seems like they might have only been looking for candidates who could relocate, which I couldn't and had mentioned early on. I felt it was unprofessional to have me travel at my own expense for a job I likely had no chance at. The staffing firm offered standard non-comments on hiring decisions and suggested checking out opportunities with the Fund For Public Interest, which I found has its own issues.

I saw a craigslist ad and applied for the Canvasser job at PIRG. I got a quick response and was called in for an interview at their office in the city. The interview took place in a back room, and the interviewer and everyone else I met were really nice. The interview itself was pretty standard, nothing unexpected.