Took part in a phone interview and then came in for an in-person interview. The majority of the staff have Ivy League backgrounds, that can be intimidating to someone like little old me, with a simple master's degree from a City University of New York school. I thought the interview quite well, and this was confirmed when I was called a few days later and told that, upon contact of my references, I would be extended an official job offer. Despite this, a week later, an email was sent from the hiring manager who said they had decided to go with an internal candidate for my position. I was mortified, as I'd been looking forward to the opportunity for a job offer. At first, I assumed I had a bad referral from my references, but, after calling each one and verifying that they did, in fact, have something good to say about me, I wondered if Achievement First really had just attempted to get my hopes up and then dash them when a better candidate came along. I understand that a verbal promise is not binding in the case of extending an unofficial offer of employment, but I found what they did to be unprofessional and, frankly, unethical. In the end, it's certainly a good thing that I wasn't offered the position, and I would have hated working in the environment they seem to cultivate, but I would like to alert potential applicants of the misconduct Achievement First takes part in throughout the recruitment process.