Unit21 Interview Questions
& Process

The interview started with a call with the CTO that covered behavioral aspects and checked if my background fit the role. Then, there was a technical interview where they tested my knowledge on LLMs and gave me a coding question related to applied LLMs. I got rejected after the second round, so I don't know what else is involved. I felt like I did well in both rounds, and the interviewers seemed positive, even discussing next steps. However, they chose someone with more experience.

I dodged a bullet. My interviews started back in March. They strung me along with multiple interviews, an in person interview, and then an assignment. They talked to me like I was going to get the job after I nailed the assignment and presented it (and during the in-person interview as well). Then at the last minute, the classic bait and switch excuse of “we’ve decided not to move forward and pursue other finalists.” Their excuse was that they thought I wasn’t comfortable with the stage of the business, which is a lie. They’re using folks for free ideas with their assignment. Totally unethical. It’s now September and the position still looks open. So where are the other “finalists” they claimed they were going to pursue?

So I got this interview request from a company, and the whole thing was super unprofessional, honestly, good riddance. They called me for a first phone screen, but the person on the line seemed really distracted, almost annoyed. They were clearly irritated when I asked them questions at the end. Then, they explained the technical interview would involve real-world problems related to projects I'd be working on, which I thought was a good sign. But then, the technical interview was just a bunch of LeetCode problems. I wasn't ready for that because I was studying the actual technologies they mentioned. I bombed it. After that, I heard nothing for weeks. A whole month passed. I tried reaching out multiple times, and finally, I got a generic rejection email two months after the technical interview. Seriously, avoid this place, they don't respect candidates at all.

I applied via LinkedIn and had an initial screen with the recruiter. Then, there was a 30-minute technical discussion with the hiring manager. It turned out Spark was a key requirement, which wasn't clear initially and wasn't on my resume. I mentioned I could learn it and offered to do a take-home test. A few days later, I received a rejection email. The manager added a personal note explaining that they couldn't offer a Spark-focused take-home test, so they needed someone with Spark experience. I appreciated the respectful and specific reason for rejection, as it's been rare in my job search.