• The Job Market / Recruitment
    40 replies, posted
[I][B]Job Interviews[/B][/I] [B]Food industry[/B] [B]Retail[/B] [B]IT[/B] [B]Office / admin/ customer support[/B] [B]Graduate role[/B] [B]Career changes[/B] [B]Apprenticeships[/B] Im lazy I'll add a few more categories and fill them in the morning. Many members of this forum are aspiring computer game developers, recording artist's, web media specialists the list goes on. Some of us go to university to get the degree which will make our CV or resume standout in a crowd of applicants often achieving excellent grades. We work on placements and put up with sometimes earning nothing for our time. Sending out job application after job application is itself a job and can get the best of us down. So when you get that reply and an invitation to an interview you want to make that moment count. Sell yourself to your prospective employer and get that job. This thread will aim to help you perform to the best of your capabilities during the precious few hours of selection. Where do you come in? If you would please post your experiences of interviews you've had, whether this be a part time job in a fast food joint or an office type environment. To the career geared entry role that you hope will lead to future prospects all voices count, if you failed to get the job or got the role it doesn't matter. People go into these interview processes with little knowledge about the whole situation. Often knowing only about the company they are applying for and the role itself, the questions asked are based on characteristics and personality traits. [B]Job summary:[/B] [B]Interview type:[/B] [B]Highlight of the day:[/B] [B]Opinions of the interview:[/B] So based on my old McDonalds job I would make the following comments [B]Job Summary[/B]- Part time role in popular fast food establishment no more than 20 hours a week. Jobs included preparing food and handling cash / orders. [B]Interview type[/B]- Basic template form filled out by hand and posted to the store, follow up phone call / chat. One to one interview followed by a group induction with around 5 other people. [B]Highlight of the day[/B]- Realizing they didn't give a shit about me at all but just about the unsociable hours I wanted to work essentially securing me the job. [B]Opinions of the interview[/B]- Rushed and processed as quickly as possible no care was given about my background and a chat with the store manager was to ensure I wasn't a lunatic. This thread will rely on input from other users for it to work, you will get as much out of it as you put in. Ill update the OP with the good replies. Best of luck with that interview!
Job summary: Loading package cars at UPS (brown trucks that drive around) from 4AM-9AM Mon-Fri starting at $8.50 Interview type: Tour facility with group of other applicants, a few brief one on one questions Highlight of the day: DON'T EVER WORK HERE UNLESS YOU HAVE TO! The turnover rate for package handlers (their phrase not mine) is 70% so you are just a disposable flesh robot that loads of their boxes until your body breaks down Opinions of the interview: Interview was very easy, they will hire people even with a criminal record sometimes so if you belong to the demographic that reads this forum, you're set as long as you're physically capable Job summary: Stocking drinks and freezers at costco part time 25h/wk at 11.50/hr from 6-11PM Interview type: Slightly more involved than UPS, asked 5 questions from a list of standard interview questions (ex. Describe a long term goal that you achieved...) It was one on one the whole time, not a group with other applicants Highlight of the day: My UPS experience was the reason I got the job. As soon as they saw UPS on my application and confirmed that I worked there by asking me some questions about it the rest of the interview seemed like a formality. They DO drug test but it was a saliva test so easy to pass Opinions of the interview: My interview was very easy and I got called only a day after I applied. From what I understand, this is rare and normally its harder to get an interview there. I've also heard lots of people say that former UPS and FEDEX workers are preferred over most other applicants.
[B]Job summary: [/B]Picker at Next warehouse on a one month temp contract [B]Interview type:[/B] Fill out application form, one-on-one interview with HR, short easy maths test [B]Highlight of the day: [/B]Realising how easy the maths test was [B]Opinions of the interview: [/B]Short and easy, but there were employing loads of people at once so you weren't really competing [B]Outcome:[/B] Got the job [B]Job summary:[/B] Part time picker for Superdry [B]Interview type:[/B] Sat on a box in a cupboard with the manager [B]Highlight of the day:[/B] I felt it went well [B]Opinions of the interview:[/B] Not very professional but that helped me relax [B]Outcome:[/B] Didn't get the job [B]Job summary:[/B] Admin apprentice for fire alarm company [B]Interview type:[/B] One-on-one interview [B]Highlight of the day:[/B] Leaving [B]Opinions of the interview:[/B] Poor, it was a man asking the most generic questions from a sheet [B]Outcome:[/B] Didn't get the job (they never called back) [B]Job summary:[/B] Temp data entry clerk [B]Interview type:[/B] Filled out a form [B]Highlight of the day:[/B] No interview [B]Opinions of the interview:[/B] Literally just filled a form out and started the next day [B]Outcome:[/B] Got the job [B]Job summary:[/B] Sales admin for food company [B]Interview type:[/B] Two-on-one with Excel test [B]Highlight of the day:[/B] Not much [B]Opinions of the interview:[/B] It went alright [B]Outcome:[/B] Didn't get the job [B]Job summary:[/B] Admin for autism charity [B]Interview type:[/B] Three-on-one interview with Sage test - never asked for CV only a form [B]Highlight of the day:[/B] Leaving [B]Opinions of the interview:[/B] Very poor, they called about three months after I applied so I barely remembered applying, didn't tell me until the interview that it was temp only, asked terrible questions [B]Outcome:[/B] Didn't get the job [B]Job summary:[/B] Claims admin for parking company [B]Interview type:[/B] One-on-one with maths test [B]Highlight of the day:[/B] Not much [B]Opinions of the interview:[/B] It went well I thought [B]Outcome:[/B] Didn't get the job [B]Job summary:[/B] Service engineer for photocopier company [B]Interview type:[/B] Two-on-one followed by separate skills test [B]Highlight of the day:[/B] Not much [B]Opinions of the interview:[/B] Very easy interview - didn't have to say much [B]Outcome:[/B] Got the job
Just a little something for those who are trying to compile work experience/impressive resumes, the things that almost every employer is looking for is teamwork and communication skills. If you're having trouble finding an on-paper job, volunteer work in many cases is just as great as work experience. Anyway... [b]Job summary:[/b] Office Associate for Home Depot (keep records of all sales and returns on a daily basis) [b]Interview type:[/b] Online application, followed by small phone interview, followed by a one-to-one interview [b]Highlight of the day:[/b] I sold my wok ethic and care for customers a little too thick, so they felt I was better suited for cashier. [b]Opinion of the interview:[/b] Had to wait 40 minutes because the interviewer took a long time with the guy ahead of me (who wound up getting the job), she apologized profusely and gave a very relaxed and easygoing interview that mainly asked how I'd handle certain customer situations or to describe times where I've had to display leadership. As already mentioned, she felt I was more suited for cashier than office, and I wasn't about to say no to a job opportunity, so things went alright. [b]Outcome:[/b] Became a cashier, as opposed to the intent of Office Associate.
[B]Job summary:[/B] Apprentice IT Technician for a Factory/Office [B]Interview type:[/B] Two one on one interviews with IT director, a short interview at a college which was more of a formality [B]Highlight of the day:[/B] Factory tour, seeing the server room and thinking "i have no idea what half of this shit is but keep smiling and nodding" [B]Opinions of the interview:[/B] Fairly reasonable interviews, no technical questions as it was an apprenticeship but they did ask me to fill in a sheet showing what I was competant at with hardware/software/networking. Was informed I had the job by the end of the 2nd interview [B]Outcome:[/B] Got the job, apprenticeship finishes in September this year and hopefully they'll be keeping me on as a regular employee and I'll be off this god damn £2.65/hr "wage".
A nice set of posts so far ill leave it till tomorrow until I start ordering them into work sectors.
In this case, I got the job based on previous experience of working in a library. Not as a job, as this was my first job, but as a student back in HS. [B]Job summary:[/B] Library Technician [B]Interview type:[/B] Brief HR interview followed up by interview with supervisor. [B]Highlight of the day:[/B] Being told that I was the only one applied and that I basically had the job. (Later on others had applied, but most were ignored I suppose) [B]Opinions of the interview:[/B] The first one felt like it was the most stereotypical as far as what was asked, but there were only a few questions. My second interview was tailored very much around asking questions about my skills and experiences to do with the library, which made it clear I was in good position.
Since I'm an Occupational Tax Accountant here at City Hall in my local city I'll go over my experience. [B]Job summary:[/B] Accountant I / Occupational Tax Accountant [B]Interview type: [/B] Group Interview with the Finance Director and other Finance department employees [B]Highlight of the day:[/B] I was toured about and shown where I would be working. After the interview they were pretty much talking as if I had the position. [B]Opinions of the interview:[/B] I loved it! It was very comfortable and I didn't find myself getting nervous. Everyone treated me like family so it didn't feel like every question was getting closer to a Gitmo style interrogation.
Job summary: Supermarket clerk Interview type: I was called by the supermarket call center, there was a bunch of people lined up to be interviewed one by one Highlight of the day: I had the occasion to talk to the other people lined up, pretty nice people compared to the interviewer Opinions of the interview: The interviewer was a scumbag, he talked all the time and he kept talking about bullshit like "skills" for cutting ham and cheese, just to intimidate me. What a twat. Job summary: Electronics store clerk, console section Interview type: Scheduled interview, i was alone and i talked directly to the director. Highlight of the day: He asked me what kind of family situation i had, some standard question and a description of the job. Opinions of the interview: Great guy, he was a really caring person, but on the next interview sadly the regional director didn't see me fit with the job, probably due to my shyness. Job summary: PC technician and programming Interview type: I left my resume at the secretary and after some months they called me back for an interview Highlight of the day:The director talked me about what they do, about how much work they have, so much that they couldn't even repair PCs like before so they needed someone. He gave me two books, one was about Visual Basic .NET and the other about Access. Opinions of the interview: He promised a second interview but he never called me back. I tried calling the office to ask what happened, the secretary told me he was at the office but ten minutes later when i was there he wasn't there anymore, and this happened for five times. 5 years of unemployment and beyond, my life is a fucking trainwreck.
Walmart Job summary: Unload trucks onto assorted pallets, take pallets to floor Interview type: Three different one on one interviews, each after the other Highlight of the day: Other workers and I would find rubber balls to throw at each other Opinions of the interview: The way I got this job was to submit an application then go into the store and ask for someone to look at it, being that they saw my physical appearance before the interview (fit enough for truck-crew) I feel I was cheated out of a cashier job. Teletech Job summary: Call center outsource company (taking calls for a bank) Interview type: fill out computer garbage and then a short talk with someone to make sure you're sane Highlight of the day: You get to just chill when systems crash Opinions of the interview: the "interview" is nothing as long as you can pass the computer tests
4Sight. (Internship.) [B]Job summary:[/B] Creating 3D models of landmarks surrounding future building sites to help investors understand the spacial relations of the project to the landscape and surrounding landmark buildings. [B]Interview type:[/B] E-mail correspondence, followed by a phone interview, then a test assignment to be finished within a week. After that, an interview in the office with a small questionnaire to further test my technical knowledge. [B]Highlight of the day:[/B] A tour of the office and a look at the in-house engine they were using to render entire cities and construction projects in real-time. [B]Opinions of the interview:[/B] Excellent interview. The man interviewing me was highly experienced, and quite enjoyed finally having another person in the office who'm he could talk to in more technical terms. I got the internship afterwards, and worked there for five months.
I've been lucky and my past 2 jobs I've been hired on the spot with no interview
I actually find this thread very interesting. If anyone else has anymore please add them, I'm genuinely interested in hearing about these. Unfortunately, I have none to give. Woo Blackpool
[B]Job summary:[/B] Working part-time at the largest movie theatre in the city. In school you'd get 20-hour workweeks (2-3 days / week usually). During the summer, more if you want (up to 40hrs. with 5-6 days / week). Working in all departments. [B]Interview type:[/B] Application process was just a resume with their application form filled out. You were then called to come in for an interview. The interview itself was one-on-one with one of the managers. [B]Highlight of the day:[/B] Not much, looked around a little bit but wasn't given a tour at that point. [B]Opinions of the interview:[/B] Pretty basic, asked about my past experience (none as it was, and is my only job I've had), questions about pay and hours, as well as schooling etc, and some scenario questions to see how I would deal with different situations. Got the job, still here. I started in my first week of high school in September of 2008, and I'm still going almost 5 years strong :) Our location's been through three different companies now, so I feel like an old timer.
swear to god ill sort the op out and make it look all fancy and sorted with everyone's submissions, thanks for them all so far. Any graduates out there willing to pipe up?
[b]Job summary[/b]: Full time job repairing wheelchairs, modifying them, restoring apnea machines and the likes. [b]Interview type[/b]: Questions regarding what I do in the free time, some questions regarding electronic components. [b]Highlight of the day[/b]: Given a tour of the place and meeting the people I was going to work with. [b]Opinions of the interview[/b]: Serious interview with tricky questions, I thought I got it right answers to most of the questions. I felt like I was going to get this job and I did! Worked there for 6 month before I got a job that I had a degree in. [b]Job summary[/b]: Full time job working as an electrician at a steel manufacturer. Programming programmable logic controllers (PLC), troubleshooting electrical faults, weekly maintenance on the different machines. [b]Interview type[/b]: Questions about what I do in my spare time, how I did in school (I got a scholarship as the beast student in my schools department) [b]Highlight of the day[/b]: Just a regular interview I guess, I was quiet worried about taking this job, because my employment on trial was running out on the first job I got and I was about to be fully employed. But I took the chance anyway because this is what I wanted to work with. The salary was higher and if I was't a total idiot I was going to get this job. And I got it!! I'm still working the the manufacturer and I'm very happy to be working there.
This is sort of related, but basically I work as a recruiter for gaming companies. Currently we are hiring game testers in the Redmond Washington area, so if any of you fine folks live there and are interested send me a pm. I also know a bit about the whole finding jobs process, so feel free to ask me anything!
[B]Job Summary[/B]: Summer maintenance at a pool [B]Interview type[/B]: Asked me a few questions about mechanical skills (types of screwdrivers, basic stuff like that) and myself [B]Highlight of the interview[/B]: Interviewer was very surprised when I said that my strength was my ability to learn. After the season (and therefore the job) was over, I learned from a friend that that question put me at the very top of the list for hiring. [B]Opinion[/B]: Very professional, focused on important stuff.
Job summary: Customer Care at McDonalds Interview type: One on one after online application and test. Highlight of the day: relief afterward Opinions of the interview: Very friendly, manager filling in boxes on a sheet. First ever job interview, I was unprepared and they ask you about situations you've been in where you had to do X or Y. You have to be good at bullshit to get through. I think it went well, though I was a bit stuttery at points. Outcome: Didn't get the job
[b]Job summary:[/b] Infantry in Military. The stated mission is to locate close with and destroy the enemy by fire and maneuver/movement. I pretty much acted as police as well, detaining and searching civilians. I also filled hundreds of sand bags and stared at nothing on guard for hours at a time. Also had to apply emergency medical care to wounded buddies, kinda like an EMT. Bottom Line: Got to travel the world and meet culturally diverse people; then kill some of them. [b]Interview type:[/b] Informal. Recruiter just asked a few questions such as schooling and hobbies. [b]Highlight of the day:[/b] Beating off in the port-a-shitter with used PlayBoys. [img]http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/h7automa/DSCF2005_zpsd43f9b27.jpg[/img] [b]Opinions of the interview:[/b] Shady. Recruiters always equivocate to get you to sign the dotted line. They also try to get you to sign your life away for a 4 year scholarship. My advice: For most people, get a military job that has civilian applicable skills. No one in the civilian world needs an expert of small unit tactics and killing other people efficiently. Only job for infantry, is a cop. [b]Job summary:[/b] Telecommunications Technician. I wire up TV cable, internet, telephone, and fiber optic applications. I also work a little bit installing home security systems. Technically, I work as a contractor, so my boss puts in a bid on some jobs in up-coming projects. Sort of like construction. [b]Interview type:[/b] Informal [b]Highlight of the day:[/b] Taking my two 15 minute unionized breaks. [b]Opinions of the interview:[/b] None. I work for family, so they were like, "hey you need a job?" I'm like, "sure." It's good to work for family. Sometimes I can be late or skip work.
[B]Snip[/B]
ITS AN ENDLESS TRAIN OMG
I'm not employed by them until september and I've no idea how many engineers will read this but I am going to work with Rolls Royce as a Graduate Electrical Engineer, but by and large the process is the same for all young professional engineers applying to the company for internship/apprenticeship/grad scheme [B]Job summary:[/B] Graduate development scheme aiming to bring participants to chartership with a relevant body and prepare them for work at RR. [B]Interview type: [/B] Full day of assessment with paper version of online psychometric tests and 2 interviews and a group exercise. One personal and one technical [B]Highlight of the day:[/B] It was a tough day all round, probably the best bit was meeting some other prospective grad students in the same boat as me from other disciplines (or possibly the free lunch) [B]Opinions of the interview:[/B] Hard work (as they all are) My tips for getting hired as a graduate (both generically and for engineering): be more than a bit of paper saying "I have a degree". All companies are looking for "competencies" or whatever they like to call them. It's basically just simple life skills they want you to demonstrate you have, the companies website in the grad recruitment section should give you lots of info in the matter. remember, everyone going for this job will have a degree, it doesn't make you special. Also be able to show you enjoy your subject outside of your lab/university, whether that means building something in your spare time or just reading a few relevant publications (a good one for engineering is the E&T mag published by the IET), showing some sort of self development is really useful too. On a more engineering specific level every company will ask you some "technical" questions. Odds are you wont really know the answer. If you do, good. If not, don't panic. Think about the problem logically, make sure you start at the beginning (if you need to buy time, ask the interviewer to repeat the question) and just show your working. Try and partition and simplify the problem and keep a level head and you'll do fine. If anyone has any questions or if they think I can be of use (unlikely as that is, feel free to ask)
Wow I wouldnt have expected you guys to have such terrible jobs. I'll probably work in the netherlands in a commodities transport/shipping/trading kind of thing, I'll probably just show up there or send a pre-emptive message showing my interest in the field. If they won't like me to join them it won't be a problem, there's tons of jobs all around the world. I've heard japan's employers have shortages of employees in 85% of the cases, so if you're struggling on a shit wage maybe you should look elswere. There's also families who adopt smart young men in their 20's to carry on with their businesses, you should dig into that.Let me know if you hit the jackpot and I've been of any help to you. Germany is also pushing for more youngsters to join their job market, they have an aging population, russia too , and many other countries...switzerland has the highest wages, 6k$ /month average. and the list can go on and on
[QUOTE=godfatherk;41264192]Wow I wouldnt have expected you guys to have such terrible jobs. I'll probably work in the netherlands in a commodities transport/shipping/trading kind of thing, I'll probably just show up there or send a pre-emptive message showing my interest in the field. If they won't like me to join them it won't be a problem, there's tons of jobs all around the world. I've heard japan's employers have shortages of employees in 85% of the cases, so if you're struggling on a shit wage maybe you should look elswere. There's also families who adopt smart young men in their 20's to carry on with their businesses, you should dig into that.Let me know if you hit the jackpot and I've been of any help to you. Germany is also pushing for more youngsters to join their job market, they have an aging population, russia too , and many other countries...switzerland has the highest wages, 6k$ /month average. and the list can go on and on[/QUOTE] because moving to a new country, learning a new language, and abandoning your friends/family is just that easy
While I admit, his post seems rude, he also does bring up a fair point. But that is some serious life altering choices to move across the world for just a job. [editline]1st July 2013[/editline] [QUOTE=metallics;41255284]I'm not employed by them until september and I've no idea how many engineers will read this but I am going to work with Rolls Royce as a Graduate Electrical Engineer, but by and large the process is the same for all young professional engineers applying to the company for internship/apprenticeship/grad scheme [B]Job summary:[/B] Graduate development scheme aiming to bring participants to chartership with a relevant body and prepare them for work at RR. [B]Interview type: [/B] Full day of assessment with paper version of online psychometric tests and 2 interviews and a group exercise. One personal and one technical [B]Highlight of the day:[/B] It was a tough day all round, probably the best bit was meeting some other prospective grad students in the same boat as me from other disciplines (or possibly the free lunch) [B]Opinions of the interview:[/B] Hard work (as they all are) My tips for getting hired as a graduate (both generically and for engineering): be more than a bit of paper saying "I have a degree". All companies are looking for "competencies" or whatever they like to call them. It's basically just simple life skills they want you to demonstrate you have, the companies website in the grad recruitment section should give you lots of info in the matter. remember, everyone going for this job will have a degree, it doesn't make you special. Also be able to show you enjoy your subject outside of your lab/university, whether that means building something in your spare time or just reading a few relevant publications (a good one for engineering is the E&T mag published by the IET), showing some sort of self development is really useful too. On a more engineering specific level every company will ask you some "technical" questions. Odds are you wont really know the answer. If you do, good. If not, don't panic. Think about the problem logically, make sure you start at the beginning (if you need to buy time, ask the interviewer to repeat the question) and just show your working. Try and partition and simplify the problem and keep a level head and you'll do fine. If anyone has any questions or if they think I can be of use (unlikely as that is, feel free to ask)[/QUOTE] Can you give us some examples of technical questions? You don't need to be super specific, but maybe just some sorts of questions they asked you, or that they might ask.
[QUOTE=Zareox7;41268031]While I admit, his post seems rude, he also does bring up a fair point. But that is some serious life altering choices to move across the world for just a job. [editline]1st July 2013[/editline] Can you give us some examples of technical questions? You don't need to be super specific, but maybe just some sorts of questions they asked you, or that they might ask.[/QUOTE] Sure, I can recall a couple of the ones I was asked, they were pretty simple. You have a rotating turbine, how would you go about measuring the speed of rotation? (he asked for several different methods and was looking for a comment on practicality, e.g.. painting dots around the shaft and recording it with a camera or an opto switch that uses the gaps in the fan blades to measure speed, the latter is probably more appropriate since paint can rub off etc.) the other I recall is you are a technician far out to sea on a military warship. The captain tells you that whatever you do with the wheel, the rudder is 20 degrees offset to where it should be. What do you do? I don't know what the model answer for this one is, here is how I attacked it. First I asked if it was a calibration error (i.e. recalibrate any systems you can). This did not fix it. Then I'd look up the information on the systems in question since I didnt know anything about them, the system is made up of the wheel, the ruder and a simple PID controller black box that I can't get into. It sounded to me like the control box was the issue. He was looking for a suggestion of replacing it at this point. Finally one technical question not from rolls royce (Atkins amongst others use it occasionally though) you are given a simple system and told it doesnt work. They ask you how you would go about fixing it. In essence everything you suggest won't work. They were looking for how long it took you to realise the system was unfixable. An interesting, if somewhat mean question. Is that helpful?
[QUOTE=metallics;41268497]Sure, I can recall a couple of the ones I was asked, they were pretty simple. You have a rotating turbine, how would you go about measuring the speed of rotation? (he asked for several different methods and was looking for a comment on practicality, e.g.. painting dots around the shaft and recording it with a camera or an opto switch that uses the gaps in the fan blades to measure speed, the latter is probably more appropriate since paint can rub off etc.) the other I recall is you are a technician far out to sea on a military warship. The captain tells you that whatever you do with the wheel, the rudder is 20 degrees offset to where it should be. What do you do? I don't know what the model answer for this one is, here is how I attacked it. First I asked if it was a calibration error (i.e. recalibrate any systems you can). This did not fix it. Then I'd look up the information on the systems in question since I didnt know anything about them, the system is made up of the wheel, the ruder and a simple PID controller black box that I can't get into. It sounded to me like the control box was the issue. He was looking for a suggestion of replacing it at this point. Finally one technical question not from rolls royce (Atkins amongst others use it occasionally though) you are given a simple system and told it doesnt work. They ask you how you would go about fixing it. In essence everything you suggest won't work. They were looking for how long it took you to realise the system was unfixable. An interesting, if somewhat mean question. Is that helpful?[/QUOTE] Very! Thanks. Although I find it odd they would ask a question for the answerer to realize it's unfix-able. You'd think they would people who don't look at things as unfix-able.
[QUOTE=metallics;41268497]Sure, I can recall a couple of the ones I was asked, they were pretty simple. You have a rotating turbine, how would you go about measuring the speed of rotation? (he asked for several different methods and was looking for a comment on practicality, e.g.. painting dots around the shaft and recording it with a camera or an opto switch that uses the gaps in the fan blades to measure speed, the latter is probably more appropriate since paint can rub off etc.) the other I recall is you are a technician far out to sea on a military warship. The captain tells you that whatever you do with the wheel, the rudder is 20 degrees offset to where it should be. What do you do? I don't know what the model answer for this one is, here is how I attacked it. First I asked if it was a calibration error (i.e. recalibrate any systems you can). This did not fix it. Then I'd look up the information on the systems in question since I didnt know anything about them, the system is made up of the wheel, the ruder and a simple PID controller black box that I can't get into. It sounded to me like the control box was the issue. He was looking for a suggestion of replacing it at this point. Finally one technical question not from rolls royce (Atkins amongst others use it occasionally though) you are given a simple system and told it doesnt work. They ask you how you would go about fixing it. In essence everything you suggest won't work. They were looking for how long it took you to realise the system was unfixable. An interesting, if somewhat mean question. Is that helpful?[/QUOTE] I'm graduating next year for electronics engineering, so reading this kind of information was very helpful. Just a little side question regarding the unfixable question, were they looking to see how persistent you'd be at solving the problem, or how quick you would be to point out its unfixable nature?
[QUOTE=Zareox7;41273841]Very! Thanks. Although I find it odd they would ask a question for the answerer to realize it's unfix-able. You'd think they would people who don't look at things as unfix-able.[/QUOTE] There are problems in life that are unfixable though, sometimes it is best to start again from fresh and they were obviously looking for a balance of not giving up too easily but at the same time not wasting your time. Some candidates apparently spent as long as 20 minutes (when usually a question is answerable in about 5) before being told it was unfixable rather than working that out for themselves when they'd exhausted all the possibilities they could think of. It's a horrible question but I can see why they would ask it, practicality isnt necessarily something taught well at university. Several of my coursemates were incredible at the maths and theory behind it, but ask them why their solar charging unit supposedly for camping expeditions (according to the brief) they had designed weighed 10kg and contained in a 0.5m cubed box and they'd just look at you blankly. "But it's a really good system which stores lots of power with efficient circuits to do this and this..." On a similar theme another question I remember, you are given this diagram [img]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/3798635/bellcurves.png[/img] (it's a rough redrawing, those are supposed to be 2 roughly the same bell curves with a tiny overlap) You are then told the blue line represents the maximum operating stress of an object, in this case a fan turbine blade again. The red line shows the results for the maximum stress a sample of blades could take before they shattered. Comment on what you see and would this be appropriate for production? They're looking for you to say no it's not appropriate because there is an overlap and even though it is tiny that means there is still a reasonable chance of failure of the item, which in this case would be bad in this particular application, you would want a safety margin which you could do by either improving the strength of the blades or lowering the operating stresses. Worth noting though that this is application specific, if that tiny overlap in the graph was related to an aesthetic LED in a cheap mp3 player (e.g. left curve number of expected switch ons in life of device, right curve number of switch ons the LED will last for) then the curves shown might be more acceptable. They want you to think about the application and relevant safety issues.
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