Submitted my resume on their website along with a cover letter and examples of my past engineering work. HR called 2-3 weeks later to schedule a phone interview.
Phone interview lasted 20-25 minutes. Interviewing engineer asked why I wanted to work at Scaled, if I had composites experience, some basic structural and technical questions, what my hobbies were, what my favorite plane was, etc. I was told at the end of the call to expect a decision in 2 weeks on an on site interview.
2-3 days later HR called to arrange on site interview at Mojave. One week later flew into LAX and stayed at Mojave right by Air and Space Port.
On site interview was not what I expected. It started with three 1:1 talks with Scaled engineers. First engineer asked a few "estimation" questions, such as "How many ping pong balls can fit in this room?". Second engineer wanted to see if I could draw a shear and bending moment diagram for a wing. The third engineer asked a few systems-level questions which weren't too bad. After that I spent half an hour talking with all three about work environment at Scaled. I had lunch at airport cafe and was then given tour of facilities and aircraft. During tour I was asked to describe the function of various random components on the aircraft I saw. At the end of my day at Scaled I talked briefly with a company vice president about how I thought I did on the interview. I was told to expect a decision in 2 weeks.
Although it was cool to visit and see Scaled, the experience was a disappointing one. I was really surprised that during my whole time at Scaled I was never asked about my past work or project experience. I found this especially disappointing since I had prepared extensively to discuss my past projects, bringing examples of my work and slides describing past accomplishments, none of which I ever got the chance to show. The interviewers I spoke to were impersonal, cold, and often condescending. I never felt like anyone really wanted to get to know me as a person. During lunch and the tour the employees seemed more concerned about talking with each other than getting to know me. Very few employees here last more then 2-3 years before leaving for other work. The work environment seemed hyper-competitive and lonely, which is made worse by the extreme isolation of the Mojave desert. Moving out to desert to do something you're passionate about is tolerable so long as you're working with people who are not only competent but also good-hearted and easy to get along with. This seems to be lacking here.
For these reasons, I did not wait for a decision. The next day I emailed HR to thank them but also to notify them that I was no longer interested in employment. Very disappointing experience.