Beware - Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Interview

I recently went through the interview process at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. It involved four separate rounds with eight different people over two months. To make it work, I used my own PTO, and throughout, the recruiter was consistently in touch, which gave me a good feeling about how things were going. My experience aligned well with their project goals, and overall, the process felt smooth—until the final round.

After a three-hour final interview, I was left waiting with no response. Checking Glassdoor later, I found that ghosting candidates after the final round is, unfortunately, a common practice there. It’s incredibly frustrating to invest so much time, energy, and PTO, only to be met with silence. A simple rejection email would have sufficed, especially from an organization dedicated to reducing inequities and promoting fairness.

A lot of the interview questions were focused on if you align with the foundation’s values and mission. What’s ironic is that a foundation so focused on addressing global inequities treats candidates this way. Not everyone is privileged enough to take time off work just to interview especially if the process takes months. For them to then ghost candidates feels hypocritical—it shows a real disconnect between their mission and how they handle their hiring process.

So, a bit of a rant and a PSA: if you’re considering an interview there, be prepared for the possibility of being ghosted, no matter how far you get and how much time you invest.