RA Capital Management Interview Questions
& Process

they had me do a take-home investment pitch which took me a week to research and write, about an emerging biotech company. they rejected me after that. i never talked to anyone from the company, and they never gave me any feedback. i got emails saying the interview process would be pitch -> phone interview with associate director -> case study assignment with slide deck deliverable -> 1 hour case presentation and meetings with associate directors and team.

This interview process was very unorganized and unprofessional. They rescheduled multiple times after missing their own deadlines. I asked to be taken out of consideration, but it was escalated to the hiring manager. He called to apologize for the poor process and said it wasn't typical for the company. I had an improv interview with him. He then told me to wait for the recruiter, who had been ghosting me. I emailed again asking how we should move forward, but I was ghosted again. I don't understand why they would apologize if they were just going to repeat the same behavior.

I saw the job on LinkedIn, and the head of HR contacted me. We had a great conversation where she seemed to be evaluating both my professional skills and my personality. After that, I was given a research exercise to see how I'd handle a project and present data, which was a new experience for me in an interview. Then, I was invited to the office for an interview with three different groups of team members. They were all really friendly and seemed to get along well. I was eager to get the offer because I wanted to join their team. I got the offer a few days later and have been enjoying my job here for over two years. I really appreciate how they use a practical challenge to assess project approach during interviews. It's great they focus on both ability and cultural fit. Being part of RA Capital now, I see how well this approach benefits the team.

I had a phone chat with HR initially, which was standard at first. Then, HR asked some technical questions, which made me uncomfortable as I felt a manager should assess scientific experience. Two weeks later, HR asked me to evaluate 20 drugs and complete a map and report within two weeks. I still hadn't spoken to a manager, which I found strange for such a large assignment without understanding the company, team, or expectations. I asked three times about H1b visa transfer before starting, but they avoided the question. I completed the assignment, and two weeks later, received a one-sentence rejection. I was okay with it but was shocked by the feedback received. HR provided a generic, three-word feedback, not a manager. The report took 30 hours, the process took 5 weeks, no real interview happened, and they got a free report. I've never experienced such disrespectful behavior; it's a joke.