I applied online. The process took 5 weeks. I interviewed at Cedar Valley College (Lancaster, TX) in Feb 2011
Interview
I applied through the district website: DCCCD. Received an e-mail 4 weeks later to schedule an interview to take place in the next 4 days. I immediately called to set my interview time and asked if I could have a copy of the full job description (not an uncommon question) and (it was no longer posted to the public site). I was told I could go back onto the district website because it's posted in the "employee section"...and he was going to send a copy to my e-mail too. I'm not an employee and didn't have access to that part of the website, and I never got an e-mailed description either. However, I didn't push further for a description and found a copy by googling the job title and rummaging through their HR database of job descriptions. Done.
I showed to the interview and was not impressed with the work environment. I waited to be seated in the interview room. It seemed like I was being interviewed by all the staff that were there that day, including the program assistants. I was not impressed by the staff member's interviewing and presentation skills. I was told to relax at the beginning because they are a laid back group, which was clearly evident by the jeans, T-shirt, and wallet chain dress code of one of the interviewers. One young interviewer could barely give me a proper description of what she does there, "Um...I do this thing...and um". Another interviewer introduced himself as "My name is Blank Blank and I have the job you are interviewing for ". That came off pretty awkward!
I was asked good questions for the most part. Near the end I was asked ridiculous questions like "If you were a candy bar which one would you be"? Look, I'm serious about finding a rewarding job and I do not appreciate goofing around with questions that have no relevance to my ability to achieve results. But, I answered the silly questions with as much wit as possible.
I was then asked to design a flyer on Word in a separate room. A couple of times students walked in and asked me what I was doing. Well, I'm having an important interview and would like to focus on this task...but I was polite to the students. One student asked if I would like assistance with my flyer. I declined of course and explained that I needed to complete this flyer on my own. I didn't feel like I was given enough time to create something that represented my true ability. So, I immediately went home and finished my design on Word and sent it with a thank you note for the interview.
During my flyer design time, they started interviewing another candidate. I heard a roaring laughter from the interview room and figured at that point that I must have not made the right connection. They were looking for a candidate that appealed to them personally...not professionally. Some advice I guess....treat your interview like a laid back conversation about yourself and design your flyer quickly without it necessarily being quality.
Interview questions [3]
Question 1
If you could be a candy bar, which one would you be?