Casual, friendly 30-minute phone interview with my potential mentor and another staff member; mostly questions about skills and experience. But the type of interview is entirely dependent on your mentor/office. Other ORISE interviews were more challenging.

DON'T BOTHER APPLYING IF YOU LIVE ABROAD. I applied through the ORISE website and about a week later was contacted to fill out a questionnaire and submit a 1-way interview within the next few days. The interview consisted of recording myself answering various questions about my qualifications. I submitted both early, provided additional writing samples when requested, and was told my qualifications looked very good. The recruiter handling the position even wrote "I know you will be among the finalists." I was invited for a 1-on-1 interview with this recruiter, and I provided my availability. I mentioned that I was living abroad, to explain my restricted hours. I also asked if there was any way of interviewing besides the conference call number I was provided, so I wouldn't be charged international calling fees, and listed several free applications like Skype and WhatsApp that we could use. This is where things took a 180. I received this email: "Since you are living abroad, our recruiting process may not work with your situation. We have a very agile process and will move ahead this week with a candidate." I was surprised, as my current address is in the online application and I'd assumed she already knew where I was located. I immediately replied that I was looking for a job that would bring me back to the US and could move on very short notice. She said if I could commit to a timeline, then we could proceed with my application. After clarifying that timeline, I said I could do it. The recruiter then said she would have to speak with higher-ups because she doesn't have the authority to make international calls. I reiterated that there were other applications we could use, but she did not respond. Our interview date came and went. A couple days later, she wrote that she would "be in touch soon." (Spoiler: she would not.) As a side note, I simultaneously had a second ORISE application for which I completed a 1-way interview for a different recruiter while trying to work out the conference call with the first. But for some reason this first recruiter was CC'd in all emails. I heard nothing after the 1-way. Almost two weeks passed. Knowing they were looking to start someone by the end of the month, I knew I had not be selected. This was fine, but I had still been ignored and treated like a nuisance just because I live abroad. I had said at least twice that I was able to move within a couple weeks, but it did not matter. Apparently when selected, you are required to report to a US fingerprinting facility immediately, which I have the resources to do. I wrote to the recruiter to confirm that the selection process was over and to ask whether the technology issue could be resolved should I apply for something else. I received a boilerplate response that confirmed the position was filled and reiterated for perhaps the third time in this interaction that "we have a very agile recruiting process." I had offered reassurances and workaround solutions at every chance, but in the end was ignored despite being told that I seemed like a top candidate.