‘I was asked to crawl on the floor and moo like a cow’: Applicants reveal the worst job interviews ever

From being asked to moo like a cow to a false cancellation, applicants have revealed their worst job interview experiences.

Interviewing is often the most stressful part of a job application, and every applicant has had their own bad interviews. For some people, however, this experience can be downright bizarre.

Aixin Fu had her own nightmare job interview when she applied for a minimum wage job as a university student ambassador. Ms. Fu says that during a group interview, they were asked to crawl on their hands and knees across the floor and “moo like a cow.”

Speak with BBC news Ms Fu said: ‘We did that for about three to four minutes.

‘I was quite annoyed at the time. It was highly inappropriate.

Pearl Kasirye, born in Uganda, was asked in an application for a remote job at a PR agency in Milan and was told she would be paid on a Ugandan wage instead of a London wage

“But there was a bit of peer pressure because everyone was doing it.”

The interviewer told the group that the strange cow-related activity was to see if the candidates were “fun.” However, Ms Fu believes the interviewer could have been “a bit on a power trip.”

After the interview, Ms. Fu has learned to challenge interviewers when they ask her to do “bizarre” or “unreasonable” things during the interview.

If Ms. Fu’s experience isn’t unique in her strange interview techniques. In Lae’s case, she didn’t even get to the interview process.

Lae arrived early for a job interview at a law firm in Bristol, but after a 20-minute wait was told the interview had been canceled and she had to return tomorrow.

After she left, she understandably felt upset, but she became even more upset when she received a message stating that the so-called cancellation was a test and that she had failed and not gotten the job.

Lae described the experience as “totally bizarre” and she subsequently decided to set up her own company, using more typical recruitment styles.

Other people may experience bias during the job application process, as was the case for Pearl Kasirye.

Ms Kasirye, who was born in Uganda but moved to Europe as a child and now lives in London, was asked about her heritage during an interview for a PR role at a fashion brand in Milan.

The interviewer for the remote job insisted she was paid on a Ugandan wage rather than a London wage. After this, she chose to withdraw her application.

Meanwhile, many women face sexist comments during the job application process about their marital status or whether they have or plan to have children – which is illegal for employers to ask.

Data from recruitment platform Applied shows that almost one in five women have been asked during job interviews whether they have children or plan to have children.

Applied chief executive Khyati Sundaram says she’s been asked ‘more times than I can count’ during job interviews if she had or plans to have children

Applied’s own CEO Khyati Sundaram says she’s been asked this question “more times than I can count.”

Ms Sundaram claims this question is often asked due to concerns about maternity leave.

She said: ‘The higher the wage, the more maternity pay you have to pay to find cover, and they don’t want that hassle.’

In 2022, people from across the UK took to Reddit to reveal their worst job interviews.

One person wrote, “I’ve been interviewed at Toys R Us before and the woman who interviewed me asked why I didn’t have a job for a year or so. I told her it was because my mother had passed away and my mind was a bit confused at the time.

“Her next question: ‘How did your mother die?’ I replied and told her it was a heart attack and she said, ‘Oh, so it was a painful death’.”

“I left the interview there every now and then and went to talk to her manager about what she said. I don’t know what happened after that, but I’m assuming it’s all there.’

Another wrote: wrote: ‘Delivery person for Iceland. Had to all sit in a circle and talk about yourself, what animal would you be, build a tower with newspaper and tape, b*******. I didn’t stay until the end.’