Average Interview – Overall Positive Experience – Yes, and I accepted – Tue, 8 Sep 2015
Interviewed Sep 2015 in Los Angeles, CA(took 14 days)
I applied online. After 2 weeks of no response, I re-applied and this time had updated my resume slightly and I had received a recommendation from an Apple employee. About a week after applying a second time I received an invite to their hiring event. I had read a lot about what the hiring event looks like and you can read other reviews to get the details but the basics were exactly how I expected. You show up to the hiring event (in my case it was at a hotel) and you sign in. After a brief wait, we entered in classic Apple fashion; all of the employees were cheering and clapping as we entered the room. After settling in, it was introduction time. Employees first, then applicants. They wanted your name, amount of customer service experience and favorite doughnut. They seemed to just be getting a feel for you, don't overthink this part. After introductions, they showed us 3 different videos about Apple and working at Apple. This is your opportunity to start standing out from the crowd. Ask good questions about the video, and make sure to repeat your name before you talk since they have a lot of applicants and you need to be remembered. Focus your responses on how you love people and that's what you love about Apple, because Apple loves people, too. Next is the iPad Pass and Play session. You break into small groups of about 6 applicants per one employee. You're given an iPad and asked to read the question aloud and then answer it. No questions were repeated and you don't get to answer other people's questions. I'm just getting into the job market as a recent college grad so I've been through a couple interviews already, but I was really surprised by how some of the questions were. They weren't completely original, but they had just enough of a twist on them to make some of them difficult and you had to be able to think on your feet well. A couple people in my small group really struggled tying their stories to a specific skill they had, or making the story seem relevant to the question. Each person answered 3 questions and on the iPad it recommended you keep your answers to 2 minutes in length. After Pass and Play it was question time. All the employees lined up front and they took about 6 questions from the whole group before they dismissed us. Don't waste this chance with a question like, "Can I transfer stores?" They're looking for thought-provoking questions. They told us after we finished that we would receive an email either way. The email would either be an invite to the second interview, or it would say they are not able to accommodate you at this time. I had read in multiple places that people heard back same day, or within a day or two. Not the case for me, I had to wait a week before I got my email invite to the second interview. I haven't had the second interview, but I will update once I do.
Interview Questions
Name a time you had to deal with someone who was angry and frustrated with you.
Tell us a time when you were able to put someone at ease.
Tell us a time when you were able to improve your skill set.
Name a time when you had to learn a new system and teach it to someone else.
Answer Question