I was interviewed for a Recruiting Intern position, but the experience left me questioning whether the company even knew what they were hiring for. The co-founder conducted the interview, but within the first minute told me I wasn’t “cut out for recruiting” — despite the fact that I had applied to an internship, and he had clearly reviewed my resume and still scheduled the interview.
He then pointed out that my resume was geared toward HR and questioned why I was applying for a recruiting role. Honest question: if that was an issue, why did your team review my CV, call me, and set up an interview? If your internal communication is that disconnected, that’s more a reflection of your team than of the candidate.
He flagged a so-called spelling error (the word behavior in American English — my degree is from a U.S. program), and used it to cast doubt on my professionalism. The rest of the interview was mostly buzzwords and vague comments about what I supposedly didn’t know — even when I showed that I actually did. The advice I got? “Take Coursera courses, they’re free.” (Spoiler: they’re not.)
And just to top it off — I was told that “only 5%” of what they do is actually HR… by a company called HR Source.
Very little of the conversation was about my actual potential, goals, or experience. It felt like a lecture, not a talent conversation. Internships are meant to develop new professionals — this just felt like a write-off disguised as mentorship. Disappointing.