I applied through other source. I interviewed at Abbott (Columbus, OH) in Mar 2017
Interview
Overall I had a very hit or miss experience interviewing with Abbott Nutrition.
I applied to an open Associate Scientist position through their company website in January and was contacted by a HR manager in February. She rescheduled our "20 minute" phone screen interview twice and when the call did happen she called me 20 minutes past our proposed time and only talked on the phone with me for 2 minutes. She asked a couple of behavioral questions and did not leave me any time to ask questions of my own.
Two weeks later I was invited to two 45-minute online video interviews which were both 2 on 1. The first one was with the hiring manager and another principal scientist, while the other was with the hiring manager's 2 direct reports. Both interviews were very standard where they asked to review my resume followed up with standard behavioral questions. All of the scientists I talked to were very nice and the interviews felt more like conversations than an actual interview.
Two weeks after the video interviews I was invited to an onsite visit to Columbus. Again, I had a very difficult time with HR. They did not respond to my emails and did not have my travel logistics organized until the day before my flight. I did not have my interview schedule sent to me until 11PM the day before my onsite interviews at noon. During my interviews the employees asked about my travel logistics and seemed appalled hearing which hotel I was being put up at and also that my flight leaving Columbus was an hour after my interviews finished.
Even though my interactions with HR were very hectic, my time at the onsite went well overall. I presented my MS thesis and fielded questions for an hour. After that I had 2 30-minute interviews, a 5 minute lunch break, and finally another 2 30-minute interviews. The first two interviews we with other principal scientists in the department and they asked very standard questions. The third interview was with the hiring manager where she asked more detailed technical questions about the position. My last interview was with the department head where she asked very open questions about my MS thesis and internship experiences. After the interviews were done I had to quickly grab an Uber, they did not rent a car for me, and rushed to make my flight to the airport.
During the interviews I was told I would hear a response in 1-2 weeks. After 3 weeks with no word I send an email to touch base with HR on any updates and did not hear anything back. Finally, 5 weeks later I received a phone call from HR saying I had not gotten the job.
Interview questions [2]
Question 1
What are your professional strengths and weaknesses?
I applied online and received a call from HR to schedule a 30-minute video interview after three weeks. I heard back within three days after the interview with an offer.
The whole process was very quick. I got an initial phone interview on Thursday, got a response the following Monday, did an in-person interview on Tuesday, got an offer on Wednesday. It was divided into 2 sessions, each 30 minutes. First half was with HR, product manager and possible direct supervisor. Second half was with the scientists working on the medical device I'd be in charge of
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Tell us about a time when you had to make decisions on the spot with limited information.
I applied online. The process took 1 week. I interviewed at Abbott (Longford, Longford) in Apr 2024
Interview
The interviewer was great and the process didn't feel stressful as the questions asked were broad and your answers could be pulled from any aspect of your work or academic experience to fit the scenarios. Like most interviews, the questions were split into 3 categories. It started with job-specific questions, experience-based questions, and general interview questions.