I applied online. The process took 1 day. I interviewed at US Patent and Trademark Office (Alexandria, VA) in Mar 2012
Interview
I applied on USAJobs in February and was notified that I was referred to the hiring official in early March. Two weeks later I received an email about a phone interview and had that interview on March 27. I spoke wiht two SPEs and could hear one of them typing comments as I answered their questions. The questions were mostly behavioral like everyone else has said. They asked about my experience presenting technical information, a time when I had to persuade people to agree with my point of view, how I handle criticism, etc.
Before ending the interview I was told that it would take anywhere from 4-6 weeks to hear back from HR. Based on other posts it seems as if they are nearing the final stages and will be making calls any day now (hopefully sooner rather than later). I will definitely update when I know something new (hired or not) because it seems like every one else that interviewed in this time frame is just as anxious as I am to hear back!
Update: Received phone call from HR offering me the position on 5/1/2012.
I interviewed at US Patent and Trademark Office (Washington, DC)
Interview
Online Hirevue interview. Interview was simple and brief. Questions were related to the general breadth of patents as a whole along with various personality questions. You are given multiple attempts to record your answers.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
"Give us a time where _____ happened and how you responded"
I applied through a staffing agency. I interviewed at US Patent and Trademark Office (Oxnard, CA) in Jun 2026
Interview
I've only done the digital one, where I recorded myself, and it was fairly easy. You got chances to redo your recording, which was nice, and you had a minute before you read the question to prepare your answer. I found it to be intuitive.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
What was one time you had multiple things to do? How did you prioritize those things, and how did you complete them? (that's the gist of the question)
I interviewed at US Patent and Trademark Office (Alexandria, VA)
Interview
I started getting emails for the first round of interviews on 4/16 and did that first interview on 5/13. It was just simple behavioral questions. I received an email to schedule a live online interview on 5/19, and I am scheduled to take it on 5/21.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Tell us about a time where you had to prioritize multiple tasks and how you responded to it. Tell us about the outcome.