Went through five rounds of interviews. Spent probably over 25 hours preparing and working for all of their ridiculous interviews and presentations. Had me do a problem set and then come in and give a hour long presentation for what is an entry level role. Wasn’t offered a job after being ghosted for two weeks after all of this. Absolutely disrespectful process and baffling that they are able to hire anyone after all this.
I applied online. I interviewed at Phoenix Tailings in May 2025
Interview
There was a case study they sent me first, which I spent 2 days on alone. They told me I could ask any clarification questions, so I asked one. They told me they couldn't answer anything though (okay whatever).Then, they emailed me, outlining their interview process to me. 1.) 15 min interview. 2.) 30 min interview. 3.) 90 min interview with deep dive questions (ideally onsite). 4.)reference screen and background check.
Let's start with the 15 min interview. The interviewer never turned her camera on and I was so close to just instinctually asking her if she was going to turn it on but I wasn't in the position to ask her. She asked maybe 4 or 5 questions and 10 min 30 seconds later, she hung up. No time for me to ask the standard questions.
They then invited me to the next round. Wonderful experience this time with a junior engineer. I thought it went great! They rejected me after this round though.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Imagine you are an engineering professional tasked with designing a system that needs to remove suspended solids after a rare earth acid digestion process as illustrated in the attached flowsheet diagram.