Apple Interview Questions & Reviews in San Francisco, CA Area
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Updated Jan 21, 2012 – Interview questions and reviews posted anonymously by interview candidates.
Ratings are reflective of location and job title.
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Difficulty Rating [?] Based on 15 ratings 
“Average” Interview
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Interview Experience [?] Based on 15 ratings
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| 1–10 of 15 Apple Interviews | Sort by |
Genius at Apple
Posted Jan 21, 2012
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2.0
Easy Interview
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Overall Positive Experience
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Received and Accepted Offer
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Interviewed Dec 2010 in San Francisco, CA (took 2 weeks)
The entire face to face interview was focused on customer service and customer experience rather than technical knowledge.They did have me take a test for the tech stuff but they mainly wanted to see how I would react to different customer issues and scenarios. It was obvious that they would rather an empathetic tech guy than a know it all.
Interview Questions
Other Details
I applied In-Person and the interview consisted of a Phone Interview, a 1:1 Interview and a Skills Test.
Helpful Interview?
Yes |
No
Inappropriate?
Specialist at Apple
Posted Jan 17, 2012
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1.0
Very Easy Interview
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Overall Negative Experience
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Interviewed and No Offer
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Interviewed Jan 2012 in San Francisco, CA (took 4+ weeks)
Went online to Apple.com and applied via "Job Opportunities" tab. You fill out a very basic application and have the choice to upload your resume, which I did. You fill out several questions, I believe it was a total of 5, and they are very basic questions.
1 month later I heard back via email that I was invited to a "hiring event" interview at Apple. The date of the event was 2 weeks away so if you work or are in school you can make arrangements to make the interview. The hiring event was held at a local hotel. Apple did pay for parking via parking voucher.
When you arrive, you check-in via an Apple rep that will be outside in the lobby and will give you a name tag and a paper to fill out with availability, contact info, and ask you to number your choices of desired locations. You will also put down Apple products you are familiar with. I recommend you introduce yourself and take a moment to chat with other applicants as this will not only help calm your nerves, but it will show you’re not shy and are a people person.
As a group we were all called into a room and 2 Apple employees were waiting outside and they played music. As you go inside, smile and act like you are impressed. When you sit down they tell you to introduce yourselves to who is sitting next to you. They then go around the room and each person introduces themselves and have you say 1 fun/unique thing about yourself. Have a fun job or interesting thing to talk about. This is all personality and someone is taking notes in the room as you speak, so be energetic and sincere.
After going around the room they play a few presentations about Apple. After each video they will ask if anyone has ?’s or comments. Come up with things like how Apple is always growing, how they have such great diversity, etc. Be sure to raise your hand and speak, as they have someone taking notes. You do not need to go overboard, but it will look good if you can address each video with a comment.
After 45 mins of the "why Apple rocks" videos, you are then called to a small group interview. You are broken down into smaller groups via store you selected as top choice to work at. You go into your new room as a smaller group and are introduced to 2 Apple employees on the hiring board. Again, smile, act energetic, act like you’re so happy to be there.
They have you sit down and you hear a bit about them and then you’re being asked questions. Each candidate responds to the question being asked and most are all personality/who you are type questions. In reality you should already know what to answer as the questions are basic hr questions like "Did you ever have a conflict with a co-worker and how did you handle it?" type questions. Do not feel intimidated, take your time, and try to be unique. One person was taking notes, but never let that make you feel pressured. They will also ask you what Apple products you are familiar with, your answer should match what you checked off on the paper they had you fill out in the lobby when you arrived. They ask if you have any questions and I recommend you have a question or comment to make. You are then released; shake hands and do the fake smile and leave.
My tips for candidates: Always make eye contact, do not be shy, always make a comment when appropriate, and show you are a "people" person. You do not need to be skilled to work at Apple. You do not need a degree, or have significant computer experience. They want to sell products as a specialist and form bonds with customers so they come back again and again. Show some enthusiasm and play the game.
Why does Apple create products in California but make every product in China? Americans need jobs, open a factory here!
Why does Apple not share profits with investors?
I typed this on my PC.
Interview Questions
Other Details
I Applied Online and the interview consisted of a Group/Panel Interview and a Presentation.
More Apple Specialist Interviews
Helpful Interview?
Yes |
No
Inappropriate?
Specialist at Apple
Posted Nov 15, 2011
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4.0
Difficult Interview
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Overall Neutral Experience
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Received and Accepted Offer
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Interviewed Nov 2011 in San Francisco, CA (took 2 months)
Apple had a table set up at the SFSU Career Fair and all I did was sign up. They emailed me about a recruiting event taking place and I was invited. There were about 30+ people in the room. We began by introducing a partner to the group and the partner introduced me. They showed us slides and videos of what Apple has done for the community. You could add your input on certain comments made. After we separated into groups and were given a customer and their interests/career. We were to present what we would recommend to the customer, considering their hobbies and job. After the recruiting event, I was contacted about 10 days later for the next interview with the Director of Apple Retail Recruitment. There were two others with me during the interview. After this interview, I was contacted later that day by phone, asking for another interview with the store leader. That interview was with 3 others. About a month later, I was contacted for a final interview, which is in 2 days yet I have received the background check verification information. Hope it all goes well!
Interview Questions
Other Details
I got the interview through a College or University and the interview consisted of a 1:1 Interview, a Group/Panel Interview, a Presentation and a Background Check.
More Apple Specialist Interviews
Helpful Interview?
Yes |
No
Inappropriate?
Mac Specialist (Apple Store) at Apple
Posted Sep 29, 2011
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5.0
Very Difficult Interview
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Overall Neutral Experience
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Interviewed and No Offer
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Interviewed Sep 2011 in Emeryville, CA (took a day)
The hiring event I attended lasted for two hours and there were 24 candidates in the room. In two days they were looking at about 150 candidates for four stores. In addition to the head recruiter who stood up front and led the session, there were at least ten other Apple people in the room armed with clipboards taking notes. To start off the session the head recruiter showed some Apple videos that gave stats about Apple's success. Take notes! There is a verbal quiz! They are looking for people who can recall the number of stores worldwide, or sales for 2010. They also broke the group into pairs.I had a few minutes to get to know my partner and then introduce him to the group.Alternatively, he had to do the same. My advice: figure out the key messages about yourself you want your partner to remember and then tell him in a very clear and concise way so he can remember the key points. Following this exercise, there were additional opportunities to "add your two cents" to the presentation by raising your hand and getting called on to add comments about a question he posed. For example, "what is your favorite iPhone app and why?" This type of back and forth went on for a while until we were split into groups of six and taken out into the hallway with two people from Apple still armed with clipboards. Again, this was so weird because questions were posed to the group and either you had to jump in to answer a question or, they went around the circle and everyone answered the same question. Both of the Apple people were taking notes. We then went back into the room, sat down and they said "Thanks very much, we will be in touch as early as this afternoon." Bottom line, I have no idea what they were looking for. No one in the room had more experience with Apple products than I did. In fact, some only owed an iPod. Somehow that did not matter. They are looking for a "type" that I wish I could explain to you here, but I can't since I am not sure who got called back for round 2. I did not move forward in the process. I am a 60 year old woman who has been using and loving Apple products since 1990, the year most of the people in that room were born! I figured that it was worth a try to see if they would hire me to work with some of their customers who may be intimidated by the hip, young Specialists who dominate the scene at the typical Apple store. When I received the "sorry to say" email my husband's comment was "after a month when the novelty wears off, you would hate it." Maybe he is right. Maybe not. In the meantime, I remain a loyal Apple customer.
Interview Questions
Other Details
I Applied Online and the interview consisted of a Group/Panel Interview.
More Apple Mac Specialist (Apple Store) Interviews
Helpful Interview?
Yes |
No
Inappropriate?
Apple Genius at Apple
Posted Aug 30, 2011
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4.0
Difficult Interview
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Overall Positive Experience
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Interviewed and No Offer
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Interviewed Jan 2009 in San Francisco, CA (took 1 week)
Initial contact was by phone. After general conversation, a followup call was about my skills. I was asked specific questions about hardware and software. Some were very technical, but I was prepared. After phone interviews, I was called in to the San Francisco store and after an intro to about 12 of us, I did a 1 on 1 interview inside a closed office, which I thought went well. I then did a roll-play interview with a "customer" and was evaluated on how I handled it. I did well.
In the end, I did not receive a job offer. Perhaps I was over qualified or they thought I would not be a good fit with the team. I'm just speculating. Of course, they do not tell you why.
Interview Questions
Other Details
The interview consisted of a Phone Interview, a 1:1 Interview, an IQ/Intelligence Test and a Skills Test.
More Apple Apple Genius Interviews
Helpful Interview?
Yes |
No
Inappropriate?
Mac Specialist (Apple Store) at Apple
Posted Aug 12, 2011
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3.0
Average Interview
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Overall Neutral Experience
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Interviewed and No Offer
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Interviewed Jul 2011 in San Francisco, CA (took 4 days)
I thought that the interview process was like a joke. You make it to the third interview thinking that your "in" but in reality you haven't breach the surface of Apple. Some of the questions asks are the typical Q&A you see in other job interviews.
It started as a Group Seminar in the Nikki hotel, and it was basically 2hrs of introducing yourself, an intro into what's it like working for Apple and and presentation of how you can change a scenario of a particular situation. The second interview consisted in a smaller group of people (around 3 people) where they get a feel of your personality. The third interview involved an interview with the Store Leader which I thought was intimidating since viewing this as a third interview, it becomes more competitive. When I was interviewed, I was placed with 5 people and the Store Leader had indications of boredom, not paying attention to what we had to say, sort of un-professional, not to mention he was 10 min late! Then the rejection letter, all that Apple, really?
Interview Questions
Other Details
The interview consisted of a 1:1 Interview, a Group/Panel Interview, a Presentation and a Personality Test.
More Apple Mac Specialist (Apple Store) Interviews
Helpful Interview?
Yes |
No
Inappropriate?
Specialist at Apple
Posted Aug 11, 2011
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4.0
Difficult Interview
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Overall Neutral Experience
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Received and Accepted Offer
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Interviewed Jan 2011 in San Francisco, CA (took 3 weeks)
Oddly enough, I applied for the job via craigslist, which sent me to their website's employment opportunities page. After filling out some information there, including my resume and contact info, I received an email several days later for an invitation to a hiring event at a hotel downtown.
There were three events that day and I chose the middle one. There were approximately 50 people at the event. I wasn't sure about how many people attended the other event, but after working for them for a few months, I can safely say it was probably about the same. During the event, around seven employees come out in their Apple shirts and talk about the company and mainly just talk it up; about how great it is, how much fun you'll have, etc. You have to fill out a 20-questionnaire about basic tech knowledge. (What is RAM?) the difference between an SSD and ATA hard drive). There are videos and then we all get up and describe ourselves. They made us get into groups for the last part. We each had to answer and describe questions prompted to us on an iPad in our groups. (What is your greatest strength?) (When have you ever had to turn someone down?)
I got a call that same afternoon from Apple wanting me to come down for an interview two days later. This interview was at the store and was a group (six of us). This interview was with a store leader (manager). The interview covered basic interview-like questions and took about 45 min. There were also some tech questions where they asked us to explain the difference between features and benefits of our phones.
I got an email the next day saying I had moved on to the next round of interviews. This time it was an interview with the head store leader in a week. This was another group interview with similar questions, but more personal development-type questions that focused on who you are and what you think it's like to work for Apple. This is the first interview to bring up what store goals are and personal numbers. It's a much harder interview. I didn't think I was going to get the job after this interview because of the questions I had to answer. The interview process is designed to be long and hard as to weed out those who can't think under pressure and those who cannot extemporize easily. Remember, it's a sales position after all.
I got an email a couple days later moving up to the next and final round. This was another group interview with the Market Leader for the Bay Area. The interview was more candid than the others, and focused more on our personal accomplishments in life and work. The questions were given to have us describe very situational experiences that showed our strengths. It was the shortest interview (25-30) minutes.
About three days later I received a call from the hiring manager offering me the job and a date for a week of Market Core training to be had three weeks later. I went through the interview process in late January, got the job in February and my first day in the store wasn't until early March.
Interview Questions
Other Details
I Applied Online and the interview consisted of a Phone Interview, a 1:1 Interview, a Group/Panel Interview and a Background Check.
More Apple Specialist Interviews
Helpful Interview?
Yes |
No
Inappropriate?
Mac Specialist (Apple Store) at Apple
Posted Jul 20, 2011
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3.0
Average Interview
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Overall Positive Experience
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Interviewed and No Offer
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Interviewed Jul 2011 in San Francisco, CA (took 2 days)
First interview was the same as everyone else says. Group interview; just be yourself, speak out whenever you can but not too often, don't want to seem like a douche. Apple likes genuine people.
Second interview was what killed me. It was me and two other people applying with one person interviewing us. The interviewer appeared friendly at first, but when we spoke they had a stone cold poker face. I tried my best to try and get them involved in a conversation and to make them laugh but it seemed like a no go. Tough crowd so to speak, usually I thought I was good with people. None of us walked out confident, and I got an email the next day saying that I didn't make the cut to the third interview. Maybe it really was just me, but I felt that I gave it my best shot.
Interview Questions
Other Details
The interview consisted of a Group/Panel Interview.
More Apple Mac Specialist (Apple Store) Interviews
Helpful Interview?
Yes |
No
Inappropriate?
Manager at Apple
Posted Jun 20, 2011 — 1 of 1 people found this helpful
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1.0
Very Easy Interview
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Overall Negative Experience
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Received and Declined Offer
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Interviewed Jan 2011 in San Francisco, CA (took 6 months)
I had applied to the position online, and was contacted 5 months later. I was very happy with my job, but curious to see what was out there.
The initial conversation went over my experience and was super positive loved the energy of the individual!), and then I was asked to speak to a second individual...this is where my interaction went down hill. Thinking we would go more in depth over the phone, it was nothing like that. I was mostly asked about my love for Apple products, and as soon as the recruiter got on the phone all they spoke about was how tired they were and I could hear them yawning! Unfortunately, to me energy on the phone is important.
I received an email letting me know they would keep in touch, and get back to me after their crazy schedule died down. I emailed months later with no reply. I decided to contact another individual who was extremely helpful, but said the first recruiter said I did not have enough experience and I would need to get into contact with the first person. How would the first person know I am inexperienced, if she never asked about my experience and it was 6 months prior when we had spoken? She also said I should ask her about other positions to start off with Apple.
The interaction completely ruined my initial perception of Apple as a happy, friendly place.
Interview Questions
Reason for Declining
From speaking with those in comparable roles, I did not pursue position further because of low pay.
Other Details
The interview consisted of a Phone Interview.
Helpful Interview?
Yes |
No
Inappropriate?
Specialist at Apple
Posted May 29, 2010 — 1 of 1 people found this helpful
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3.0
Average Interview
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Overall Positive Experience
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Received and Accepted Offer
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Interviewed May 2010 in Corte Madera, CA (took 6 days)
I applied on the Apple website by uploading my resume and a cover letter. I got a email from a manager at Apple inviting me to a "invitation-only recruiting seminar". The seminar consisted of around 20 hopefuls and there were 3 representatives from Apple. We watched some videos about apple, and we were asked a few question such as 'Why do you think so many people visit the Apple Store?" "What did you notice about the video?". I said that they spray pheromones to attract customers and got a good laugh, and I said that I noticed the video was very well done, and very dynamic. Others were just pointing out things that were said in the video. We then did some role playing, pretending to sell products to each other in front of the group. We would act as a buyer and then as a seller. Make sure you are up to date on the Magic Mouse, Mobile Me, iPad, iTouch, iPhone, OS X 10.6, Time Capsule, and the iPods. When it was my turn to be a seller, I was the first to say "Hi, welcome to the Apple Store." and everyone else did it after me. I sat right in the front and made lots of eye contact and by the end, the seminar leader (in this case the same guy who had emailed me) was looking directly at me, and I felt like we were having a conversation. I got a call that afternoon to come in for a second interview (apparently there are 3). I recently became an Apple Certified Support Professional for OS X, and I think that helped a lot. I mentioned being certified when we were all waiting in the lobby and chatting before the seminar, and everyone seemed a little downcast to hear it. To get certified, I first took a class called Support Essentials: Snow Leopard 10.6 to prepare. The class was expensive, but I'm glad I took it. It is not a requirement to take the test. A expert with the OS would be able to pass it. After I got my certification I started offering one on one training sessions and troubleshooting services and I used my clients as references. Some of my clients have fancy job titles, so I think that was very helpful as well.
I have finished my second and third interview. They were both with 2 other people, which I thought was odd. It was a benefit to see who the competition was, and the pace would slow since you could think while the others were talking. At the second and third interview they did not have a copy of my resume. They had a tiny sheet of paper from the seminar. I mentioned at both interviews that I was certified, and they were surprised to hear it both times. I think they don't really care at that point. They know that your resume had to be good to get to this point, and now they go purely on character and charisma. I don't even have a High School diploma, others were fresh out of college. I got the job by telling the best stories about past work experiences at the last interview. They ask you to tell about a time when you went above and beyond what was asked of you to provide better service, and one time when something went terribly wrong and you were able to fix it. If you write these down ahead of time and practice them a few times, you will look really good in the interview. Remember to smile, and make lots of eye contact. I made a few jokes and made everyone laugh a few times, I think that helped a lot. Don't try that unless you are funny.
Interview Questions
Negotiation Details
I am starting at $14.00, however this is in the Bay Area where wages and the cost of living are high.
Other Details
I Applied Online and the interview consisted of a 1:1 Interview and a Group/Panel Interview.
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Helpful Interview?
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