I received a call from their talent acquisition (HR) about 2-3 months after I applied online. They asked questions like why I wanted to work at Illumina, what was my ideal work place, etc. Second interview was over the phone with the supervisor who asked more questions about my technical background. They brought me in for a third on-site interview where I met with everyone in the team (about 10-15 people), the supervisor, and the same HR rep again. It felt rather rushed even for three hours. They mostly wanted to see if I got along, but the team was still asking questions about my background. I wish we had more time to talk about non-work things like hobbies. I was told there was no second on-site interview for the process (not that I wasn't moving forward), which was a shame because I'd like to have seen the facilities before making a decision.

The HR rep was quite aggressive with finding out my salary when I politely declined more than once, explaining that I would like to see what the position was valued at since it wasn't the same responsibilities/company size/industry as my previous role. That made me very uncomfortable, especially when I named the reported average salaries for this position on Glassdoor (without mentioning the website) as my target; they simply said that's not possible. Although it's likely it was due to their quarterly performance that month.

Overall, it felt like the process was a bit rushed, but I really liked everyone on the team. They are going through growing pains and trying to hire as frequently and as quickly as possible for this department. It's also a bit concerning that they didn't bother with a tour of the lab when I would be dedicating the next year or two to working there.

Why do you want to work for Illumina?

What is your ideal workplace?

Tell me about yourself.

Tell me about a difficult situation you faced at work. (between personnel)