Vanda Pharmaceuticals Interview Questions
& Process

The interview process was way too long, honestly. I mean, I took the job, but I almost didn't because of how many steps there were. So, first, I had a quick 15-minute virtual call with HR/Recruiting. Then, I interviewed with the Hiring Manager virtually for about an hour. After that, I had a really long day of four different in-person interviews that lasted about 3.5 hours in total – talked to a bunch of people from different teams, including HR, other departments, and even the CEO's son. Then, I met with the Hiring Manager again, this time in person for an hour. Finally, I had a virtual chat with the CEO, which was supposed to be 30 minutes but ran short because he was late, so it was only 15 minutes.

I got through the first interview, but the second one was way harder and the interviewer seemed a bit cold. Since I've never done sales before, I get why I didn't move forward, but you really gotta be well-trained in sales-type interviews to pass.

So the interview process had three stages. First, I talked to the hiring manager for the territory. Then, I met with the regional director. The last stage was a quick 15-minute chat with the medical director to see if I'd be a good personality fit. The first interview went really well, very professional and I felt encouraged. The hiring manager seemed genuinely interested in me and mentioned they were trying to fill the role fast, expecting a decision in about 1-2 weeks. The regional director interview was tougher, definitely a challenge, but there were some weird questions thrown in like my previous salary and if I had to finance college. The hiring manager kept in touch, checking in after the second round, giving advice, and even explaining the onboarding process. It felt like we were already building a connection. I even told her I wasn't sure about my second interview, and she reassured me they really liked me and supported my application. So that's 2 down, just one more 15-minute interview left! The final interview with the medical director, who is the founder's son and the ultimate decision-maker, was a letdown. His colleague rescheduled on his behalf just 15 minutes before our scheduled time. Then, for the rescheduled call, he was 10 minutes late and didn't even apologize. He seemed off from the start, unprepared, looking stressed, and totally disengaged. He even asked me the same question twice. He said I'd hear back by midweek, but then I heard nothing for three weeks. I was really excited about the job and felt I was a strong candidate, so the lack of communication was really disappointing after all the effort. I also noticed during the wait that their team on LinkedIn lacked diversity, which didn't sit right with me. I finally reached out to the hiring manager after three weeks, and she let me know that while she would have hired me, they decided not to move forward. My final interviewers basically ghosted me.

Applied on an app, heard back from hiring manager about two weeks later asking about relocation. About 2-3 weeks after that, got an email to set up a phone interview that same week. The phone interview was about a half hour with the Case Managers' Manager and went well. Heard back same day that they were interested in an in-person interview. The hiring manager was great, paid for my flight, and covered travel expenses. The interview itself was very draining though. Interviewed with 5 people for 3 hours. Realized it was a sales case manager position, a mix of health educator and sales, focused on selling the product. It wasn't a negative experience, but ended with no offer, which was a bit surprising given the company's lack of diversity.