We asked recruiters in the BuzzFeed Community to share the weirdest, most cringeworthy experiences they've had while reviewing job applications or conducting interviews. Here's what they had to say.
1. "I scheduled an interview with an applicant for a mid-level tech position, but when I called for the formal phone interview, the candidate refused to continue because they were busy eating."
2. "I was hiring for a retail position, and 10 minutes into the interview, the applicant's phone started dinging. She asked if she could look at it and then said we needed to pause the interview because there was a Pokémon in the office she needed to catch."
3. "I interviewed someone who told us that his hours needed to work around his bodybuilding schedule. He proceeded to take out photos of himself in a speedo, lathered with oil. I had to leave to the bathroom before I started laughing."
4. "One time I interviewed a guy who showed up with his pet tarantula. The interviewer and I were terrified of spiders but somehow managed to get through the interview."
5. "I came across someone applying for a job at Burger King who put 'sitting down' under the 'interests' section of their résumé."
6. "Someone applied to a position at 4 a.m., added me on LinkedIn at 6 a.m., texted me an introduction at 7 a.m., and then called me as I was on my way to work. I get having dedication, but that was just too much."
7. "I received a police background check for a candidate and realized that they'd committed multiple thefts. They were applying for a job as the security guard of a MUSEUM."
8. "I received an application with a résumé that was full of information about the applicant's vaping experience and how it changed his life. It was as long as his work experience section."
9. "An applicant for a tech role brought his iPad in to show me his technical skills. I was expecting him to show me something worthwhile, but instead he showed me the basic features of an iPad like making notes and taking photos and screenshots."
10. "Instead of a résumé, an applicant sent in a poorly written, two-paged, single-spaced, kinky erotic story."
11. "We once received a résumé where the applicant wrote 'cannibalism' under the ‘interests’ section of their résumé. We definitely didn't keep their résumé on file."
12. "In an interview, an applicant asked about our vacation policy just to mention that she and her wealthy boyfriend take their private plane to hidden celebrity towns and islands every few months."
13. "I sat down with a candidate who was clearly high during the interview. When I asked why he left his last job, he said, 'Because my boss was a bitch!' I ended the interview after that."
14. "I was interviewing someone for a library aide position and asked the candidate what the last book she read was. She said it was People magazine. When I clarified that I was asking for a book, not a magazine, she said, 'Reading isn’t really my thing.'"
15. "One time, my boss was interviewing a woman of Native American descent. During the interview, my boss started talking shit about our Indian clients, but he prefaced it by saying, 'Not Indian like you,' while slapping his mouth in a stereotypical way. Then he did an impression of Apu from The Simpson's and said, 'I mean that kind of Indian.'"
16. And, "During an interview for a teaching position, the candidate sucked her hair seductively every time she had to pause to think of an answer."
Note: Submissions have been edited for length and clarity.