Institute for Defense Analyses interview questions

The preliminary phone interview of 30 minutes went well and proceeded like a casual but informed conversation regarding the intersection between academic research, policy, and data needs. An invitation for an on-site interview soon followed and consisted of a meeting with an HR representative, 7 one-on-one interviews with other RSMs lasting approximately 30 minutes, a presentation of my work, a working lunch with two managers and two staff members, and a final meeting with the division manager. Contrary to another related posting on the website, I found most of these interviews to be extremely informative and helpful in prompting me to accept the offer I eventually received. Some of this difference may be due to personality. Throughout the course of the day I developed a brief, scripted response to the initial questions we had to work through then worked hard to open up the interaction into one where they could express to me whatever they wanted about IDA (why they chose the job, what they think of the work they do, what their expectations of me would be, and so forth), while I described for them my general approach to research in a policy environment. Many of these conversations exceeded the allotted 30 minutes, which many were fine with. The presentation had the format of a job-talk but was considerably less hostile than what I have encountered in academic settings (primarily as an audience member). Not to say it was not easy, but it was important to me that there was no one present clearly gunning for my embarrassment and failure. The questions were professional and appropriately probing. In all, the experience was draining but enjoyable. I can say that with no reservations. In a final note, the another posting on this site describing the IDA interview complained about not being evaluated for the division he or she listed in the online application. This incongruence should have been apparent in the phone interview, so I advise future recruits to take this interview seriously by listening to what the interviewer has to say about the position under consideration.

I started with 30 minute on-campus interview following application through the university's career center. This interview was pretty standard and unremarkable. The site interview followed a few weeks later. The day started with a meeting with an HR/recruiting staff member, and covered general background (mine and theirs) and benefits. The rest of the day was 6-7 short (about 30 minutes) one-on-one interviews with members of the research staff, a long lunch interview with the head of one of the divisions, and a seminar presenting some of my research to members of that division. The short interviews were so brief that I question their utility both to IDA and to myself, as little time was available for getting beyond the standard initial questions. The staff were generally friendly and seemed like they would be good coworkers. However, the work they were doing in that division did not particularly interest me. Though I specified divisions of interest when I applied, I did not interview with any of those; I'm not sure how the process of circulating applications works, but this is the potential result. The administrative details of my visit (including reimbursement) were carried out quickly and without fuss. The offer came through about 2-3 weeks later.