Rice University Interview Questions
& Process

It was a pretty straightforward interview process, with a lot of PIs asking questions that were relevant to the specific field you're applying for. It's a really good opportunity to meet potential advisors. I'd recommend going to the pre-interview sessions with current grad students.

I went through the interview process for a Welcome Center Manager job. It had several interviews, at least three formal ones and one informal lunch. Sometimes they sent Zoom links or updates by email, other times it was a phone call or text. It was hard to keep track of everything because the communication wasn't consistent. After a lot of effort, they said I wasn't moving forward. Then, I saw the job was posted again and reached out. There was more miscommunication, and I had another round of interviews. They told me they were actually looking for an alum and weren't going to hire me, despite all the time I put in. It was disappointing that they prioritized long-term aspirations over my qualifications and enthusiasm. Later, I found out the job was reposted with a focus on hiring an alum, which makes me think the reason they gave wasn't the real issue. It's frustrating to invest time and energy only to be passed over for unstated preferences. This makes me question transparency and fairness in higher education hiring.

I had an initial phone screening with the hiring manager, and it seemed to go well. They mentioned following up with the next steps, but I never heard back. I was completely ghosted, even after I reached out twice over two weeks to ask about the status. I kept checking the applicant/career portal, and at the end of that second week after the interview, the portal was updated to say I was declined. I still haven't heard anything directly, even after the portal update.

This job was in the Public Affairs department and the multicultural center. I found out it was mostly administrative work. After interviewing, I felt I was overqualified based on my past jobs. They asked some questions that I thought didn't need much explaining, like asking about my experience with calendar coordination. Even after I said I'd done it for 10 executives in a previous job, they wanted more detail, which was strange. They also asked about graphic and website design skills, even though one of the interviewers said they have a separate team for that. I confirmed I know Microsoft and Google products and was asked to elaborate. I mentioned mail merging and cleaning data in Excel, but they didn't seem to get it and asked for definitions and clarification on the data source. I was also asked about building community relationships, and I explained my experience, but they seemed to downplay my skills. One panelist talked a lot, limiting my time for questions. They also didn't tell me I didn't get the job after I sent my thank you email. I think they wanted someone less experienced who they could manage more easily. I'm not upset about not getting the position as I was going to decline anyway. My interview experience was not great, and the panelists kept saying 'for the good will' a lot, like I wouldn't understand the university's mission.