Air Products PhD Career Development Program Interview Questions & Reviews

Interview Details – Following an on-campus interview, I was contacted by HR staff at Air Products to arrange an on-site interview. Air Products allowed a reasonable window for setting up the on-site. I was asked to give a 45 minute technical seminar, followed by about 15 minutes of questions - pretty typical for PhD interviews. The seminar was very well attended and the questions were good - a sign that the right people were in the room and that good communication was occurring within the company. The seminar was followed by 5 interviews with technical or group leads in various areas of Air Products. Lunch was on-site in the cafeteria with a current CDP participant. Lunch was low-key and a good chance to catch a bit of "rest". I found the interviews to be pretty straightforward. Some interviewers hit technical topics, but I never felt grilled. I did feel that I had a reasonable opportunity to highlight the technical areas I wanted highlighted. There were plenty of opportunities to talk about past experience and thesis-related information.

Reason for Declining – The offer was very competitive in terms of salary/bonus and Allentown if really a nice location, with great proximity to big cities, but in a less crowded area; however, I felt that I made better connections with individuals from another chemical company during the recruitment process. I think that some of this is due to the nature of the career development program, where you do not have one direct hiring manager. It was a difficult decision, and I would certainly recommend a close look at Air Products based on my experiences working with them through the interview process.