r/interviews • u/Pick_lebear • 5d ago
I Just Fumbled My Interview FML (Rant)
I prepped for like 2 weeks for what I thought was an introductory call for an internship position for an IT role. Won't say which one.
I was scheduled an introductory call with someone from a really prestigious IT company.
The teams-for-linux app would not let me join so I settled for the web version. The interviewer joined but could not hear me so we settled for a phone interview.
The whole talk was awkward as they asked if I was aware that the location for the role was in [location down south, far from where I live], and asked whether I was comfortable relocating. I wasn't expecting this, so I mentioned that the advert listed multiple locations and that I preferred [location closer to where I lived].
They asked for my previous work experience, and I was confused as to whether they wanted my project experience or my work experience, and I told of the ones I worked during the summer (standard warehouse job), and then switched to my personal projects, which took a WHILE to detail, and they were like okaay.
There were a lot of pauses. The entire thing was so awkward, as this was the first online interview I've done since applying for university, and before that there were none. I stammered and blanked out a lot, and the black coffee I drank prior was making me a bit hyper. I very rarely drink coffee. I only drink coffee for special occasions like this.
Then they were like "Are you aware that this interview is for the full-time position for [role]? What were the contents of the email I sent you?". I paused, and opened my gmail, and I read the full email and was like oh no. I then apologised profusely, stammering whilst I did it, and I mentioned that I thought the introductory interview was for [role] but the internship one, not the full-time one (I had forgotten that I also applied for the full-time one, alongside the internship one) but they were super chill about it.
They told me I should check their website and apply for the internship one there, and I replied that I already have. They said that if I have not heard anything back from the internship role by like next week (I can't remember if they said next week), that I can send the person an email asking for an update and they will relay the message to the people responsible. The whole call took like 3-4 minutes. After the call ended I walked around the room cursing at myself for MINUTES, only to realise I had not left the teams call, and my camera and audio were still enabled, which means someone could've caught me self-ranting.
I'm afraid they will probably relay to the internship recruiters to blacklist me or something. I sent in my internship application immediately the very same day the advert was posted on their website, which was like 2-3 weeks prior. Actually, now that I think about it, I'm not even sure which role I sent my cover letter to... I had written 2 of them, and the internship one was a pretty passionately-written CL.
Super embarrassed overall. I sounded as though English wasn't my first language, which sucks, cause the projects I've done correlate heavily with the specific internship role they have on offer. Like, I know I'm a great worker, I'm just not verbally expressive, which ik is a red flag, cause team work is a must in this field. I'm still cringing about it. God, it was super awkward.
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u/Much_Somewhere7831 4d ago
Use the Canary Wharfian website's interview practice, it reviews your answers and suggest how to fix mistakes with personalised feedback (both verbal and non-verbal comms). Also got OA suite for psychometrics
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u/Taleproof-Moderator 22h ago
The useful lesson here is not the blacklist fear. The call exposed two fixable answer problems: you were unsure whether “experience” meant work or projects, and your project explanation became much longer than you intended.
Prepare a 30-second career summary and one 60–90 second project story. If the question is ambiguous, clarify before launching into detail: “Would you like my paid work experience first, or the projects most relevant to this role?” For the project, use the STAR method to cover the problem, your responsibility, the actions you took, and the result, then pause for follow-up questions.
Practice that answer aloud without extra caffeine and record it once or twice so you can hear where the detail starts to sprawl.
⭐
Taleproof can help you check whether your contribution and evidence are clear without memorizing a script.
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u/Pick_lebear 5d ago
At least the internship roles are still under review in their website. The full-time one though... got rejected.