INSTITUTE FOR MEDICAL EDUCATION & RESEARCH Interview Questions & Reviews

Interviewed Dec 2009 in North Miami, FL (took 2 weeks)

I applied online for the Editorial Assistant position in September, 2007. I was contacted by a recruiter (who I never met in person) who conducted an introductory telephone interview. At the conclusion of the interview, I sent her my references.

Acting as the liaison, she sent my pertinent information to the Human Resources office. After waiting for about a week (not at all a long time), she was able to successfully obtain a second interview for me.

The second interview was conducted in the company's offices in North Miami Beach, FL. After briefly meeting the Human Resources executive, I was then interviewed by the (then) medical editor. At the time, I did not have extensive editorial or proofreading experience. Nonetheless, I had passed the personnel and basic skill criteria to qualify for the position. The overall office environment was busy, but welcoming.

The medical editor asked me questions about problem-solving specific to the publishing industry; for example: how to find relevant information on applying the editorial style (an in-house amalgam of APA and APA styles), how would I go about finding alternatives to obtaining reprint permissions if the deadline was approaching, etc. I was also given a proofreading test. After the conclusion of the questions and the test, I was thanked for my time and went home.

The third interview consisted of being given an offer. The pay was reasonable. I was that, despite my lack of editorial experience, I had shown initiative, a vital understanding of working within a team environment, and most importantly, I had been the only candidate who had actually used proofreading symbols. That had been the deciding factor in offering me the position.